On the phone with Grandmummy

Why did God make bad people?

Today I listened Greg Gilbert preach on injustice from Psalm 10. In his sermon, he related how his son had asked him,

"Dad, why did God make bad people?"

That's one of the many good questions that kids ask - and parents are often at a loss to answer. As I've been reading Augustine's City of God, I'm beginning to get a handle on what I believe is the Biblical answer, and how to explain it to kids.

Augustine's consistent answer to this question is that God did not make bad people. From creation, we affirm that God made all things good. He made humanity with a good nature. So He is the author of good.

Accordingly God, it is written, made man upright, and consequently with a good will. For if he had not had a good will, he could not have been upright. The good will, then is the work of God, for God created him with it. But the first evil will, which preceded all man's evil acts, was rather a kind of falling away from the work of God to its own works rather than any positive work. (City of God p457).

Evil is not an entity opposed to God, but what we call anything that turns away from God as its supreme good.

So there are two appropriate answers to the child who asks, "Why did God make bad people?" The first is that God created good people. He is the author of good. Those good people then became bad by turning away from God. The second answer is that we must look at ourselves, as well as others, when we ask why God made bad people. The Bible tell us, and our experience confirms, that we are bad people. So why did God make us? He made us to glorify Him and enjoy Him for ever, but we turned away from Him both corporately (or, more precisely, federally) and individually.

The great privilege of a parent who receives this question is to help their children see that God was good in creating good people, and that the blame lies only at our own feet for turning away from Him. So He is all the more merciful and glorious in granting forgiveness through Jesus.

Rock climbing

Yesterday was the first day that Elisabeth braved the kiddo climbing wall at the playground!

Fishing again

Elisabeth requested that we go fishing again today. So we did. We had a few nibbles this time, but no bites.

While their hearts are far from me

Children are very astute observers of interpersonal dynamics. They recognize what is desired by authority figures, and can learn to 'play the game.' The child who is caught taking candy from the jar when she should not says a quick "Sorry!" though she does not mean it, because she knows that this is what is expected of her. She may even be able to feign sincerity, knowing that her parents will not be satisfied with a sassy "sorry."

As soon as a child is old enough to understand what is required of her, it is not too early to begin teaching the dangers of hypocrisy. The word of the LORD through Isaiah provides a great occasion for teaching:

Because this people draw near with their mouth
and honor me with their lips,
while their hearts are far from me,
and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,
therefore, behold, I will again
do wonderful things with this people,
with wonder upon wonder;
and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
and the discernment of their discerning men shall be hidden. (Isaiah 29:13-14)

Even a young child can understand what it means to draw near to someone "with their mouth" while their heart is still far away. Their own experience of disobedience and feigned repentance connects with the behavior that is condemned. So we can impress upon our children that what God desires, and we desire, is not merely right words, but a right heart. For as God brought judgment on the people of Israel for their hypocrisy, because they honored Him with words while their hearts were yet estranged, so He will not endure our hypocrisy if we draw near to Him with words only, while our hearts are far from Him.

Learning this early, by the work of the Holy Spirit, will save children many, many pains.

Filling in a shape

For quite some time we have been working on coloring in the lines. Elisabeth was able to do one of two things: (1) stay in the lines, but not fill in the whole space; or (2) fill in the whole space, but not stay in the lines. Saturday was the first time that she was able, repeatedly, to color in a shape without going outside the lines and completely filling in the shape!

Divide and conquer

I've decided to divide my blogging along the two particular lines it falls: parenting and entrepreneurship. This blog (to the relief of many) will no longer contain my musings on the Gospel and entrepreneurship. Forthwith, they can be found here. (I'll be migrating the posts that I've put up here over there in the days to come.) If you are interested, you can subscribe to the feed here.

I hope that this will serve my readership better by being more focused in each context.

A good man

[I]n men who are justly loved, it is rather love itself that is loved; for he is not justly called a good man who knows what is good, but who loves it. (Augustine City of God p372)

In parenting there is the grave danger of giving our children the impression that knowing the things of the Gospel is sufficient, which the Gospel itself repudiates. A child (or adult), can very naturally assume himself better than his peers because he knows what is good through being educated in the Scriptures. Yet "he is not justly called a good man who knows what is good, but who loves it."

This is essential to the nature and proclamation of the Gospel, that by the new birth we begin to love the good. The glory of this doctrine is that it utterly humbles us; it is not within our power to love the good. Our hearts must be awakened to its beauty in order that we should love it; and since this awakening comes from without (the Holy Spirit) and not from within, we cannot boast in it, or take pride in it. We can only ask, and receive, and honor the Giver.

Why is this so important? Through syncretism with modernism, many Western churches have come to present the Gospel as if saving knowledge is just knowing what is good, rather than loving it. Many professing Christians have no love for God; they have simply believed a set of true statements about God - and their evangelism is to convince other people to believe what they believe about God.

To spare our children from our errors and the errors of our forebears, we must present to them the beauty of God, with the full conviction that their merely knowing about Him is not saving knowledge; their loving Him through the work of the Holy Spirit is our hope and our aim.

Seeds of Purpose

I am always in the market for music that helps children (and their parents) to memorize Scripture. In that quest, several friends recommended Seeds, a line of children's music that is Scripture set to music, and is intentionally designed for family worship. We received Seeds of Purpose, one of their four CDs, and I have been impressed.

I'm happy to say that I find myself now singing Scripture. If I had to rate the musical quality on a scale from 1 to 10, it would probably get a 5 or 6, but that's probably because I'm a snob. Elisabeth really enjoys it, and I'm enjoying it more and more. More importantly, I think that it is going to become music that we can use for family worship - not just to listen to, but to worship together.

Teaching younger ones

Normally on Mondays Elisabeth and I go to a class that has a time of singing and hand motions, during which time Elisabeth usually sits quietly while the other kids sing and do the motions. (She then comes home and sings the songs through, and does the motions here instead.) This week Elisabeth brought her younger friend Zoe. Before the singing started, I asked Elisabeth to model the motions for Zoe during the singing time. To my surprise, when the time came to sing, she held Zoe's hands, and helped her do all of the hand motions - the first time she had ever done them in this class.

Gospel Basics: The Grace of God

[Part 2 of a series of posts on Gospel Basics]

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people . . . (Titus 2:11)

If a person begins announcing the Gospel by starting with grace, the good news will not be shown to be as truly good as it is (which happens very often, in my estimation). The grace of God comes into beautiful relief when we have first seen who we were. Then when the grace of God comes, it rises like the sun over the deep valley of despair.

The grace of God has appeared. 'Grace' means undeserved kindness. The grace of God is His entirely undeserved kindness toward His foolish, rebellious, enslaved creatures who live in hatred of one another. Paul makes perfectly clear to Titus that:

. . . he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy . . . (Titus 3:5)

When God acts in grace, He acts according to His nature and character, and not according to ours. His grace appears through the announcement of the good news that God was reconciling humanity to Himself through Jesus, not counting people's rebellion against them. It shatters our pride at every turn because in our folly we despised Him, in our rebellion we rejected Him, and in our enslavement, we lacked even the power to repent (to turn back to Him).

This grace brings salvation to all people. God's grace does not merely make the futility of life more bearable, it powerfully brings salvation. That is to say, it saves. It saves us from the penalty, power, and eventually the presence, of sin. It delivers us from the penalty of sin, which is the infinite, just wrath of God against us. This grace conquers the power of sin to rule our lives, so that for the first time we are free to love, obey and please God. With this grace is the promise that we will finally be delivered even from the presence of sin. Instead of being separated from God, we will be separated from all that is hostile to God; and we will be with God! The salvation that grace brings is fundamentally from enmity with God to friendship with God.

This grace is for all people, and yet the Scriptures are clear that there is only one condition under which a person can receive it:

God opposes the proud,
but gives grace to the humble. (James 4:6)

The grace of God brings salvation to all people through humility. The only people who can receive this salvation are those who have been proud, but none are saved who remain proud. There is no room for the arrogant, for they oppose God, and God opposes them. Grace is good news, but it is good news only to those who are shattered by it, who admit their rebellion, enslavement and folly. Indeed the gospel of grace accomplishes its own conditions - it makes the proud humble, who would never otherwise humble themselves. And so it is gloriously true that salvation is for all people, and is ALL of grace.

[The best exposition I have heard of this reality is C.H. Spurgeon's little book, All of Grace.]

What happened to Adam and Eve when they sinned?

I was delighted (again) to see, through the Catechism what Elisabeth is learning. I read to her question 37:

What happened to Adam and Eve when they sinned?

Although the "correct" answer is, "They were separated from God" (Genesis 3:24), Elisabeth answered,

"It was hard to have babies, and getting food was hard."

That is a very good 3-year-old paraphrase of Genesis 3.

"I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;
in pain you shall bring forth children. . .
cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life" (v. 16, 17).

Gone fishing

Yesterday was Elisabeth's first forray into fishing. (No nibbles . . .)

Have I had my vitamin yet?

Elisabeth loves her vitamins. If we haven't given her a vitamin for the day, she's sure to ask us for it. She usually poses the question, "Have I had my vitamin yet today?" which is appropriate, since she is only allowed one each day.

Amusingly, on several mornings as she climbed out of bed, Elisabeth has asked,

"Have I had my vitamin yet?"

No, sweetie, not yet today.

How many Gods are there?

Last night we were reading My First Book of Questions and came to questions 16 and 17:

16. How many Gods are there?
There is only one God. (Isaiah 45:5, Deuteronomy 6:4)
17. How many persons are there in the one God?
Three persons (Matthew 28:19)

When I read question 17, Elisabeth answered,

"Three, like me."

Clearly I need to help her understand that "How many persons . . .?" is different from "How old are you?"

Education and Evangelism

Whatever their pretensions, schools teach children to believe something and not something else. There is no 'secular' neutrality. Christians cannot evade the responsibility which a democratic society gives to every citizen to seek access to the levers of power. (Lesslie Newbigin: Missionary Theologian p149)

Schools, whose duty it is to educate children, necessarily deal in the realm of truth. They "teach children to believe something and not something else."

I have observe three general categories of Christian response:

1. Accommodation. Christians simply allow schools to teach their children to believe things that they disbelieve, and to disbelieve things that they hold dear. They assume that 'home' and 'school' are separate spheres, and each ought not to muddle with the other.
2. Argumentation. Christians engage in debate, saying that school ought to change what they teach. The classic example is evolution/creation. They assume that their position, as true, should be accepted and taught by the public schools.
3. Withdrawal. Christians create their own schools (either private schools or homeschools) that teach what is consistent with their own values. Then they don't have to accommodate, or argue with the educational establishment.
   

There are two categories of Christian response that I have rarely seen, but which I believe should have a more prominent place.

1. Evangelism. For those who choose to stay in the public schools, there is an alternative that is neither accommodation nor argumentation; it is evangelism. Evangelism? Yes, evangelism: announcing the good news of God in Christ. A truly evangelistic approach recognizes that beliefs about truth and knowledge are the consequences of faith commitments. The modern scientific world view is committed to the belief that those things that can be known truly are subject to the rules of the scientific method. Claims that cannot be verified by their method belong to the realm of opinion and belief, and therefore are private, and not the content of public education. The Christian is committed to the belief that 'in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge' and that faith in Christ is the way to true knowledge. Consequently, He is central in the dialogue.
   
   This is very different from argumentation because it doesn't assume that the Christian position is persuasive or even tenable to those who reject Christ. It confesses that what it holds most dear is foolishness to the world. So it does not attempt to argue about conclusions; instead it announces the foundations, trusting that it is through the heralding of this foolishness that the Holy Spirit will save others and that persuading unregenerate persons that God created the earth in seven days entirely misses the heart of the Gospel.
2. Mission. Since the Gospel is public truth, and not merely true for Christians, it seems natural to me that we would start schools that announce the Good News, and teach all things in the context of the Good News to anyone who wants to matriculate, and not merely to children of parents who will sign a statement of faith. [In this it is distinct from withdrawal, because rather than disengaging from those who disbelieve, it goes to them with the offer of truly excellent education, built on the Gospel.] If it is true that all the riches of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ, then schools that are built on this through reliance on the Holy Spirit ought to be better schools, and to attract those without any commitment to the Gospel (yet) simply on the basis of outstanding education.

As we're very actively thinking about Elisabeth's formal education these days, and we haven't found a missional school, I think that we're going to need to grow in the grace of evangelism.

On the 'balance beam'

One of Elisabeth's favorite activities is walking on any raised curb, which she calls a 'balance beam.'

Let's watch TV

Spring has arrived, and last week I put the air conditioner in the window in anticipation of the summer months. After installing it, I set the remote control on top of the air conditioner for whenever that time comes that we start using it.

Yesterday Elisabeth picked up the AC remote and said, "Let's watch TV!" She pointed the remote at the AC unit and 'changed the channel.' "Now I'm turning up the volume," she explained. "Is that too loud?"

O how grateful I am that we can pretend to have a TV!

Navigating the sandbox

Today in the playground sandbox, a little boy came up to Elisabeth and snatched a shovel out of her hand. She tried told on, but then let it go. So she picked up the bucket, which he promptly snatched and walked away. This is a not uncommon scenario in the park, and one of the reasons that I am profoundly convinced of the importance of active gospel parenting.

Elisabeth has just been wronged. Now she has to choose how to act. Does she withdraw? Does she yell at him? Does she take back the bucket and shovel? Does she appeal to his parent? Or does she appeal to me? I believe that the course that she takes will be dramatically influenced by what I teach her, both directly, and by example. It is my responsibility to impress the call of the gospel to do good to those who mistreat us, to forgive, and confront injustice.

I was really proud of how she handled the situation today. Usually in this scenario, she comes to me to ask me to intervene. My usual reply is, "What did you say to him? Did you use words? Did you ask for it back? Did you find a solution?" Steadily she has learned that I'm not going to resolve situations for her at the first try. I'm going to send her back to appropriately confront the offender. That's exactly what she did today . . . without coming to me first! The boy didn't really respond to her, and watching from the side, I wondered if he had a receptive processing delay, or perhaps was not an English speaker. Elisabeth (again!) did exactly what we had talked about. When the words didn't solve it (because he didn't seem to get it), she went on with life and found some other toys to play with. She had done all three: kindness, forgiveness, and respectful confrontation.

The little boy continued walking around the sandbox taking toys from other children and walking off with them as if they were his own. Elisabeth and her friend sat down with me to build a sand mountain. The shovel-hungry boy wandered over to play with us, and I was quite surprised to discover that he did speak English and had basic receptive and expressive abilities. When I spoke firmly about not throwing sand, not taking things from others and working with us to build the sand mountain, he complied with them all.

It only further convinced me that kids respond to active teaching. His nanny was actively teaching that she was going to sit on the side and not intervene (or yell idly), and consequently he was a pest to all the other kids in the sandbox, and friendless. When I was sitting eye to eye with him in the sandbox, he could obey and enjoy playing with other kids. Kids must be taught well to navigate the sandbox. It will lay the foundation for how they navigate school, and life beyond.

Correspondence

In my experience, one of the challenges of being a full-time parent is making time for all the things that need to get done that are not as easily done with a baby or toddler around. Since I'm always looking for ways to be more efficient about the things that need to get done, I especially appreciated these tips on how to be efficient with email.

HT: Justin Taylor

[Note: spelling of correspondence corrected]

Eating daily of the tree of life

He that makes it his business to eat daily of the tree of life will have not appetite unto other fruit, though the tree that bear them seem to stand in the midst of paradise. (John Owen Overcoming Sin and Temptation p215)

The great business of parenting is to teach our children to feed daily on the tree of life, that they may not have appetite for deceitful fruit. Yet we cannot teach what we do not know, and so it is first the responsibility of parents to learn for ourselves (not only for our own sakes, but for our children's) to drink daily of the water of life and feed on the bread of life in order to be able to model, impart and teach.

Cupcake smile

A good habit

I recently heard C.J. Mahaney describe one of his habits in preparing to preach. After studying the text, praying, and constructing the sermon, on the Saturday night before he is to preach, he makes a habit of reading Charles Spurgeon's sermon on that particular text in order that his own spirit might receive life through that passage in preparation to offer that grace to others the next day.

From my exposure to Spurgeon, I can't imagine that anyone who made such a habit would fail to learn how to preach well from one of the most capable and faithful English-speaking preachers.

For that matter, if a parent wants to learn how to interpret the Scriptures to children, to make it accessible, and to make Christ and the Gospel central, reading Spurgeon on any text that you're going to unfold is a great way to learn from a great model.

Here we have no lasting city

For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come (Hebrews 13:14).

How does one teach a child to 'seek the welfare of the city' in which we live with the recognition that 'here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come'?

If this tension is not identified, and maintained, we will tend to one of two errors (both of which are common):

1. Seeking the welfare of the city of our exile with the illusion that the changes to it will be enduring.
2. Seeking the city to come in a way that ignores and harms the welfare of the city of our exile.

The only way that we can teach our children to be truly responsible citizens of the 'city of man' is to teach them to be faithful citizens of the 'city of God.' Then, and only then, will they understand to seek the welfare of this temporary city in a way that confesses its transience and calls the passing city to join us in seeking the city that is to come.

This, I believe, is why Christians are called to gospel entrepreneurship, ventures that provide a foretaste of the Kingdom of Christ with whom we do business, act as a sign of the redemption that Christ has wrought, and are the instrument of God's saving and redeeming work within this fleeting city. If we are faithful to the Gospel of Christ, the ways that we seek the welfare of the city of our exile will at the same time witness to the city that just and equitable business alone cannot and will not redeem a city. She needs a Redeemer, who is the Ruler of the city to come.

I can hear the (warranted) questions: Can't this happen in existing businesses? Why entrepreneurship? Those are questions for another post . . .

Getting set to slide

Irresistable!

Last week Elisabeth and I were in the park, and there was a clown creating balloon art and selling the balloons to parents and children in the playground. Elisabeth saw him and was intrigued by the balloons. When she realized that he was making them for children, she turned to me and asked,

"Daddy, may I please have one of those that the clown is making?"

I was overjoyed by the way she asked: with polite words, in a polite tone, without any sort of whining or manipulation. For quite some time now, we have been working on all of those elements, and it was such a joy to see them all come together in one request. I think it was a small glimpse of the way our Father views our prayers when we come humbly.

If you think you deserve to be a Christian . . .

"If you think you deserve to be a Christian, I promise you: you're not." (Mark Dever)

This is the kind of preaching that kids need to hear. They need to hear from the start that the starting place of the Gospel is that we are undeserving. If in time we lapse into thinking that by reason of our religious performances (or anything else) we deserve to be Christians, we have turned away from the Good News of Christ.

I want my children to feel that the peril of not trusting Christ is greater than the peril of drugs or sexual promiscuity, or any of the other evils that can ensnare them and make them miserable. I want them to see that being cut off from Christ is the real peril, so that they hate sin first and foremost because it separates them from God, and not primarily because it makes them feel bad about themselves, or kills their brain cells, or establishes dysfunctional relationships.

For the world against the world

When I read Lesslie Newbigin: Missionary Theologian, I found the following excerpt both profound and confusing:

The cross is the total identification of Jesus with the world in all its sin but in that identification the cross is the judgment of the world, that which shows the gulf between God and his world, and we must always, in every situation, be wrestling with this reality: that the Church is for the world against the world; the Church is against the world for the world. The Church is for the human community in that place, that village, that city, that nation, in the sense which is determined by the sense in which Christ is for the world. And that must be the determining criterion at every point. (Lesslie Newbigin: Missionary Theologian p134, emphasis mine)

Recently, I have begun to see what he means in the practice of entrepreneurship. The Church, as she engages in commerce is for the world in the sense that she serves the public good in creating capital, establishing just and equitable business practices, giving human dignity in work, and many other ways. Yet she is for the world against the world in that the love for Christ which motivates her involvement for the world simultaneously subverts the worldly economic system. It dethrones profit as a god, and establishes Christ as the King of commerce; it creates capital and wealth not primarily for itself, but for assisting those who need help: the refugee, orphan and widow; it puts no trust in its power to create capital, nor in the wealth it possesses, but in God, who is the source of all things. In all these things it is for the world against the world.

The Church is no less against the world for the world. She is against the world as she opposes the powers of the age, commands repentance, and attacks structures of oppression not because she has the illusion that the righting of these wrongs will establish a harmonious society, but because this is how she lives under Christ her King, who commands and enables her to do justice and love mercy. In this she is for the world, just as Christ was for the world as He commanded: 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near!'

How desperately we need to be for the world in a way that is against it, and against it in the way that is truly for it!

Gospel Basics: Who We Were

For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. (Titus 3:3)

The Gospel, which means 'good news', comes to those who desperately need good news. Lest we, as readers, think that then the Gospel is for them [the bad people], not us, the Apostle Paul makes it unambiguous: "we ourselves were once . . ." He does not say, "Some of us were . . ." but "we ourselves were . . ." The only people who have received this good news were formerly bad people. Indeed, Paul, in describing what 'we' were, is describing the condition of every human being apart from the Gospel.

We were foolish. It is not just that we were ignorant and didn't know what to do. No, we were foolish, knowing to a degree what was wise - and yet walking in the path of folly. A fool is not pitiable; a fool is contemptible. We can pity the ignorant who stumble into error, but we rightly despise the fool who sees danger and continues straight into it. That is precisely where all of humanity is before the coming of the Gospel.

We were disobedient. The nature of our folly was disobedience - at least to conscience, and in many cases to more direct revelation from the only true God. Every human being knows the experience of having a pang of conscience (which comes from God), and then foolishly, wickedly continuing on the path of error. This is our common human situation. No matter what degree of knowledge we have, every human being has turned away from what is right and good.

We were led astray. Is it possible that it wasn't our fault, then, if we were led astray!? No; it is possible both to be led, and to be responsible. Consider the two young boys in a convenience store: One says to the other, "Let's steal some candy!" The second boy, who had no impulse of his own to steal, gives in to the other and they both steal candy. The first clearly led the second astray; yet no one would rightly say that the second boy was not responsible for his action in stealing. Just so, we have been led astray and we bear responsibility for our folly and disobedience.

We were slaves to various passions and pleasures. If we can't pass it off on whoever led us astray, then certainly the language of slavery allows us to lay the blame at someone else's feet! Sadly, this kind of slavery makes us only more miserable, and responsible. For the passions and pleasures to which we are enslaved are our own passions and pleasures. The Apostle Paul uses the language of slavery to show us that the human condition is one of bondage and slavery from which we cannot free ourselves. We cannot simply turn away from folly and disobedience whenever we choose.

We passed our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. As we were led astray from the right way into foolish disobedience, we were enslaved to our own passions and pleasures. Functionally, we made ourselves the measure of all things, and the other people with whom we were made to live in love became enemies, rivals and competitors. So it is quite natural that in this condition, we hate one another, envy each other, and have malice for others. They threaten the satisfaction of our passions and pleasures (our masters), and make us even more miserable.

This is the desperate and miserable state into which the Gospel speaks. Before it speaks good news, it must speak truth, which is bad news, about the human condition. That truth is that our foolish disobedience has alienated us from our Creator, and from one another. As if that wasn't bad enough, this condition is enslaving and we cannot free ourselves from it. This is what the Gospel says about the human condition.

The greatness and glory of the Good News rest on this perspective of who we were. Any attempt to soften the bad news only tends to diminish the good news. The Gospel liberates us from slavery, reconciles us to God, makes peace with our neighbors, and brings us into wisdom and obedience that we could not accomplish by ourselves; the greatness of the salvation it offers is magnified by the contrast with the misery of the condition from which it snatches us.

[What this means for parenting, I hope to later unfold.]

One energetic, one snoozing child

Watching the boats with Zoe

Be much in prayer

. . . he that would be little in temptation, let him be much in prayer. (John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation p196)

Fearing only sin?

Let no man, then, pretend to fear sin that does not fear temptation to it. . . . He hates not the fruit who delights in the root. (John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation p193)

Gospel Basics

In several conversations recently, I have realized how important it is to define my terms. Where words have multiple, or ambiguous meanings, this is all the more necessary.

I talk a lot about the Gospel. For someone without a background in the Church, that might mean nothing at all; for some in the Church, it may have an entirely different meaning than what I take to be the Biblical reading. So, for the sake of clarity, I want to take time in a number of posts to explain the Biblical Gospel, and why it becomes the centerpiece of all of life for those who embrace it. I am going to use a New Testament letter from the Apostle Paul to a young man named Titus to explain the Gospel because this letter contains some of the most concise statements of the foundations of the Gospel.

I hope that by setting forth the Gospel clearly:

1. My readers who have never heard it may receive it and embrace it.
2. My readers who have misunderstood it formerly may also now receive and embrace it.
3. My readers who have already embraced it may be thrilled again with the beauty of it, and see afresh how it reorients everything around King Jesus.

As always, dialogue refines both articulation and understanding, so please feel free to comment!

Tired Kiddo

Elisabeth fell asleep sitting up on the bus yesterday!

Missionary Parenting

Many of my heroes are, or were, missionaries. I admire them for a host of reasons, not least of which that they have endured tremendous trials to bring the good news to others.

As a parent, I am well aware of the tension of living the Gospel, and the fear of putting our children in harm's way. I have talked with many a parent who would not consider living in certain places (even in this country) because of the challenges and disadvantages for their children. As we are now exploring educational options for Elisabeth (and since we have several friends with children who live in hostile places), I am thinking again much about missionary life.

Graciously, the Spirit reminded me that in the incarnation, the Father sent His beloved Son to be born in a barn under an infanticidal tyrant. The Father was not negligent, or unkind; yet in love sent His Son to be born away from comfort, soon to be a refugee.

If our loving Father was willing to put our Savior in this place for our good, can we not trust Him to take care of our children in the places to which He calls us? Is it possible that love for our children does not require us to shelter them from all harm, but to trust the Father to protect them regardless of how safe or unsafe a place appears to be? I am increasingly convinced that it is my unwillingness to trust the Father that keeps me from obedience. It is easy to say that I trust Him, while doing my best to control the environments in which I place my daughter. But have I truly trusted Him, or merely offered Him lip service, while trusting my own ability to protect my child?

Another one cuddling wth Mom

Dangerous combinations

Fire and things combustible may more easily be induced to lie together without affecting each other than peculiar lusts and suitable objects or occasions for their exercise. (John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation p190)

2 cute bunnies

Cuddling with Mom

Yes, picnic season has arrived!

Loving a Wayward Child

As a blogger, I reflect on how the Gospel of Christ transforms all of life. As a full-time father, and part-time entrepreneur, much of my reflection on the Gospel relates to these two spheres. For the most part, I aim to offer meaningful, authentic reflections on those areas rather than scouring the internet to connect readers to other sources.

Today I want to transgress that pattern slightly by recommending Abraham Piper's reflections on 12 Ways to Love Your Wayward Child. Abraham speaks not from the perspective of a parent, but from that of one who has been wayward, and his words are wise and rooted in the Gospel.

HT: Justin Taylor

Conquest over sin

He that would indeed get conquest over any sin must consider his temptations to it, and strike at that root; without deliverance from thence, he will not be healed. (John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation p187)

Pride and Ambition

Entering into temptation may be seen in the lesser degrees of it; as, for instance, when the heart begins secretly to like the matter of a temptation, and is content to feed it and increase it by any ways that it may without downright sin. In particular, a man begins to be in repute for piety, wisdom, learning or the like - he is spoken of much to that purpose; his heart is tickled to hear of it, and his pride and ambition affected with it. If this man now, with all his strength, ply the things from whence his repute, and esteem, and glory among men do spring, with a secret eye to have it increased, he is entering into temptation; which, if he take not heed, will quickly render him a slave of lust. . .

The same may be the condition with men, as was said, in preaching the gospel, in the work of the ministry. Many things in that work may yield them esteem - their abilities, their plainness, their frequency, their success; and all in this sense may be fuel unto temptations. (John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation pp 188, 189)

Last week I got a glimpse of my pride that had grown unawares; and it was ugly. It frightened me how quickly and subtly, and yet powerfully it had grown - in contempt of Christ and the Gospel. I read this section from John Owen that diagnosed my condition so well, and was again grateful to have a mentor so wise and unrelenting.

Fear of hell

And they who are scared by nothing but fear of hell, on whom considerations short thereof [what dishonor to God, what scandal to the gospel, what woeful darkness and disquietness they may bring upon their own souls, though they perish not] have no influence, in my apprehension, have more reason to fear it than perhaps they are aware of. (John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation p184)

Grinning with Norah

Know your own heart

Let him that would not enter into temptations labour to know his own heart, to be acquainted with his own spirit, his natural frame and temper, his lusts and corruptions, his natural, sinful, or spiritual weaknesses, that, finding where his weakness lies, he may be careful to keep at a distance from all occasions of sin. . . .

Seeing we have so little power over our hearts when one they meet with suitable provocations, we are to keep them asunder [apart], as a man would do fire and the combustible parts of the house wherein he dwells. (John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation pp 201, 203)

One of the great responsibilities and privileges of parenting is to help our children to know their own hearts in order that they may "keep a distance from all occasions of sin." It is not enough to merely correct, instruct and encourage (although these are essential). Unless we teach our children to recognize their own particular weaknesses for the purpose of avoiding temptation and actively trusting Christ to deliver them from evil, we will deal only with the fruit and never with the root. Not only that, but we will lead them into frustration, because they will not learn how to put sin to death by the Spirit.

This, I would say, is where 'good' (moral, upright, and, in a human sense, wise) parenting and gospel parenting part ways. I use the phrase 'gospel parenting' deliberately. 'Christian parenting' ought to be identical in meaning, but in my observation has come to be more associated with 'good parenting' than with truly Christian parenting that accords with the Gospel. Consequently, I choose to use the phrase 'gospel parenting' not because it is different from what Christian parenting ought to be, but because it makes explicit that Christian parenting, if it is truly Christian, must be rooted in the Gospel.

Good parenting can be firm, gentle, loving and have integrity. There are a great many things that 'good parenting' can do. It can teach a child how to manage sin, and and even how to avoid some temptation. Yet it cannot do what is truly needed: It cannot reconcile the child to God; nor can it enable the child to overcome sin. Owen makes clear what we need:

For the provision to be laid up . . . is that which is provided in the gospel for us. Gospel provisions will do this work; that is, keep the heart full of a sense of the love of God in Christ. This is the greatest preservative against the power of temptation in the world. . . . [S]tore the heart with a sense of the love of God in Christ, and his love in the shedding [spreading abroad] of it; get a relish of the privileges we have thereby - our adoption, justification, acceptance with God; fill the heart with thoughts of the beauty of his death - and you will, in an ordinary course of walking with God, have great peace and security as to the disturbance of temptations. (John Owen, Overcoming Sin and Temptation p204, emphasis mine)

Parents who have believed and received the Gospel must make it their business not only to fill their own hearts with a sense of the love of God in Christ, but to teach their children to do the same. This only is the way to forgiveness of sin, and freedom from it.

Becoming more bold

I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. (Philippians 1:12-14)

The bold fearlessness that Paul observed among the brothers and sisters as the consequence of his imprisonment is no less real today. I am convinced from Scripture and experience that stories of faithful trust in God through persecution, hardship and imprisonment are frequently the tool of the Holy Spirit to make us more bold to speak the word without fear.

I could list dozens of contemporary and historical Christians whose faithfulness in the hard places has made me more bold in sharing the good news. I realize now that my parents played an important role in giving me a taste for missionary biographies. Those biographies, in turn, challenged me to more trust and boldness. So now, as I have the privilege of parenting, I want to regularly read to my children the faithfulness of God to those who have trusted Him through extremely trying circumstances, so that they too would be emboldened to trust Him.

Two classes of people

I heard Mark Dever say recently that the many ways that we classify people (men and women, Republican and Democrat, pro-war and anti-war, etc.) are all tertiary. The Bible lumps people into one of two camps: either being saved or perishing. I saw that especially clearly today reading 2 Corinthians 2:15,

"For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing . . ."

Either we are being saved by God, or we are perishing. This is the great division of humanity that drives the mission of the church: to spread the good news of Christ in order that through this message the Holy Spirit may depopulate "those who are perishing" and multiply "those who are being saved."

Pride and Humility

There is, therefore, something in humility which, strangely enough, exalts the heart, and something in pride which debases it. This seems, indeed to be contradictory, that loftiness should debase and lowliness exalt. But pious humility enables us to submit to what is above us; and nothing is more exalted above us than God; and therefore humility, by making us subject to God, exalts us. . . . And therefore it is that humility is specially recommended to the city of God as it sojourns in this world, and is specially exhibited in the city of God, and in the person of Christ its King; while the contrary vice of pride, according to the testimony of the sacred writings, specially rules his adversary the devil. And certainly this is the great difference which distinguishes the two cities of which we speak . . . (City of God p461)

I have found Augustine's treatment of the two cities (the city of God and the city of man) to be tremendously helpful in understanding how we are to live in the the world, 'the city of man', as strangers and sojourners, citizens of the 'city of God'. He defines the cities in this way:

When, therefore, man lives according to man, not according to God, he is like the devil. . . . When, then a man lives according to the truth, he lives not according to himself, but according to God; for He was God who said, 'I am the truth.' When, therefore, man lives according to himself - that is, according to man, not according to God - assuredly he lives according to a lie; not that man himself is a lie, for God is his author and creator, who is certainly not the author and creator of a lie, but because man was made upright, that he might not live according to himself, but according to Him that made him - in other words, that he might do His will and not his own; and not to live as he was made to live, that is a lie. (ibid p445)

The city of man is comprised of the proud, who live according to themselves; the city of God is comprised of the humble, who live according to God, doing His will and not their own - and that by the grace of God.

I desperately want our children to see the wisdom of God in saving the humble. To be even more clear: I want them to see that God saves the proud by making them humble, for there are no citizens of the city of God who were not formerly citizens of the city of man. I want them to see that this God-granted humility is not merely the means to joy for citizens of the city of God; it is their joy for God to be all in all. And so it is that "humility, by making us subject to God, exalts us" by taking us from the ruin and futility of our pride to be subject to God.

Enjoying the flowers with Uncle Gordon

The lie of sin

For no sin is committed save by that desire or will by which we desire that it be well with us, and shrink from it being ill with us. That, therefore, is a lie which we do in order that it may be well with us, but which makes us more miserable than we were. And why is this, but because the source of man's happiness lies only in God, whom he abandons when he sins, and not in himself, by living according to whom he sins? (City of God p445)

Unless parents teach their children to recognize the lie of sin, that lie will ensnare the children. Even when the parents have exposed the deceitfulness of sin, it is still powerful to deceive. It is not without reason that we are called to "exhort one another every day, as long as it is called 'today,' that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin" (Hebrews 3:13).

I think that there are two particularly opportune times to drive this message home. The first is when the child encounters advertising. Very often, when we purchase something "in order that it may be well with us", that thing or experience doesn't satisfy (because it couldn't), and it "makes us more miserable that we were." That is the deceitfulness of covetousness and greed. It is subtle, and works deep within our hearts. So it is immensely helpful to a child to help them early to recognize through advertising the false promises of sin.

The other opportunity comes through discipline. When a child has done something wrong, it is helpful to talk through the sin with them so that they can see where they were deceived into thinking whatever they did would make it well with them. If parents neglect this step, and skip to punishment, or even talk only what to do differently next time, the deceitfulness of sin has not been exposed. The child may not fail in that particular thing again, but they haven't seen and understood the power of sin to deceive them and make them miserable. This is the solemn privilege of parents: to help kids see this early and often so that they learn how to make war on sin.

Fun with Uncle Gordon

Today Elisabeth went to the zoo with Uncle Gordon and saw the polar bear swimming (above).

Democracy and capitalism

I have elsewhere quoted John Piper on the doctrine of original sin as the Christian reason for democracy:

G. K. Chesterton and C. S. Lewis said that the doctrine of original sin is the basis of a democratic form of government – where power is spread out over the people – because it is the only reason we can give for not absolutely trusting a ruling elite. In other words, the best argument of democracy is not that men are good enough to govern themselves, but that men are so bad none can be trusted with absolute power. (John Piper, emphasis mine)

It occurred to me recently that the Christian argument for capitalism is very similar. The best argument for capitalism is not that people are good enough to make the right choices in a free market, but that humans are so bad that none can be trusted with arbitrary power to distribute wealth equitably.

Both democracy and capitalism are weak, inasmuch as they are representative of the character of the people who participate in them. [Witness the United States.] Yet in them there is, at least in theory, a natural system of correction that does not exist in autocracy or socialism. [Witness the former Soviet nations.]

Consequently, Christians who participate in capitalism, like those who participate in democracy, should start on different foundations, and move in different currents, and speak in different ways than those who reject the doctrine of original sin.

Lesslie Newbigin captures well how the doctrine of original sin is anathema to the modern scientific worldview (which has championed democracy and capitalism) as he describes the massive shift that occurred in the Enlightenment:

The replacement of 'God' by 'Nature' involved a new understanding of 'Law'. There is no longer a divine law give whose commands are to be obeyed because they are God's. Laws are the necessary relationships which spring from the nature of things (Montesquieu). As such they are available for discovery by human reason. Reason is the faculty common to all human beings and is in principle the same everywhere. Provided it is not perverted by the imposition of dogmas from without, reason is capable of discovering what the nature of things is and what therefore are 'Nature's laws'. The most dangerous and destructive of all the dogmas which have perverted human reason is the dogma of original sin. To destroy this wicked slander against humanity is the first essential for the liberating of human reason and conscience to do their proper work. But this dogma is only the centrepiece of the whole structure of dogma which has to be destroyed. Any authority - of dogma, of scripture or of 'God' - which purports to replace human reason is to be rejected as false and as a treason against the dignity of the human being. (Lesslie Newbigin: Missionary Theologian p194, emphasis mine)

If the Gospel is our starting place, our engagement in democracy and capitalism will be entirely different from those who reject the Gospel with its doctrine of original sin. This is precisely what makes our engagement in politics and commerce evangelistic: that we cannot escape announcing the news that has turned the world on its head and that subverts the presumptuous power of Reason.

Pulling out all the stops

[Note: Rebecca noticed that I had missed one of Elisabeth's lines in this conversation the first time I posted, so I'm adding it in bold.]

Yesterday, after a short walk, we arrived home en famille. Elisabeth and Mommy started up the stairs while I stepped outside to receive a package from the UPS man. As soon as the door clicked closed, the following conversation ensued:

"Mommy, can I have some gum?"
"No, sweetheart."
"Then I'm not walking upstairs."
"It is time to walk upstairs."
"I'll walk up if you give me some gum."
"No."
"I'm sorry. I won't ever fuss again. Can I have some gum?"
"No."
"When we get home, I'm going to make a big, big mess!"

I couldn't help but laugh at how many diverse ploys Elisabeth tried in one conversation:

1. Ask the parent more likely to say 'yes' when the other parent is not present
   
2. The polite request
3. Open defiance
4. Invitation to bribery
5. Repentance as payment for goods
   
6. Threat of a tantrum

Thankfully, Mommy's will prevailed, and there was neither gum nor tantrum.

Entrepreneurship and parenting

I have been working on several posts on entrepreneurship and realized that there is a direct connection to parenting that I want to draw out:

Parents prepare their children, for better or for worse, to be members of society. They nurture their children spiritually, intellectually, socially and emotionally (and in other ways) to enable them to participate in human society. One of the ways that those children will, or at least should, participate in society is by working.

When I lived in Uganda, East Africa, I was introduced to two helpful ways of describing students: job-creators and job-seekers. The people in the village where I lived had begun to realize that the schools prepared students only to be job-seekers. Since the town was "in the bush" and the economy was almost entirely agricultural, there was very little commercial activity. Consequently, everyone who became 'educated' had to leave to find work. By contrast, there were a few Ugandans, whom I was privileged to know, who were job-creators; they were entrepreneurs. They saw opportunities, and took them - and created opportunities, jobs, capital, wealth and income for themselves and others.

I thought of job-creators and job-seekers as African descriptors (since I first encountered them there), until I returned to the United States and realized that those descriptors were very helpful in looking at students here: and by and large, they are job-seekers. While the American economic system thrives on entrepreneurship, surprisingly its educational system does not, in my opinion, intentionally shape students who think and act entrepreneurially.

So now as a parent and entrepreneur, I want to intentionally nurture my children to be job-creators. Another way to say it is that I want to raise my children to be critical thinkers and creative problem solvers who enrich their communities by using their God-given abilities to participate in and create meaningful work that benefits the community and provides a foretaste of the Kingdom of God.

If I prepare my children merely to take existing jobs that have been crafted by others, there will be at least two consequences:

1. They will likely not use their God-given creativity to the extent that He has ordained and designed.
2. They will, by virtue of being employees, need to submit (at least to a certain extent) to the vision and mission of their employer.

That is emphatically not to say that there is not dignity in working for others; I believe that there is. Nor am I denying that in the best businesses, employees are encouraged to be creative, and to contribute to the vision of the organization. What I am saying is that there need to be more businesses and organizations that creatively address needs, solve problems, and encourage their employees to do the same.

That is the kind of entrepreneur I aspire to be, and the kind of outlook that I long for my children to have as they prepare for, and participate in the world of work.

Sitting with Daffodils

Crock pots!

As the warmer weather has come upon us, we quickly realized that Elisabeth had outgrown her water sandals from last summer. Since they become her daily sandals (so that she can go in the sprinklers at the park whenever we're there), I was firmly set on getting some comfortable, durable, washable, non-absorbent water shoes/sandals.

I did a little research on what I wanted, and then set out to the store. I told Elisabeth what we were looking for, so when we walked into a shoe store, Elisabeth burst out:

"Crock pots!"

She almost got it.