Five point Calvinism is the name given to a particular theological
position that emphasizes five principles. The first principle, total
depravity, says that humanity has been so corrupted by the Fall that
people are by nature incapable of seeking God. Instead, God must put the
desire in the hearts of those who do seek God. This idea goes back to
Augustine, whose personal journey to God was recorded in his
Confessions. Augustine was on a quest for God from his youth, and
he spent time with the Manicheans and the Neo-Platonists before settling
down at last in Christianity. He believed that God had drawn him
irresistibly through the work of the Holy Spirit and that without God's
call, he would have been unable to come to God on his own. Assuming that
Augustine's experience was normative, some who drew on Augustine's
writings for their understanding of conversion (e.g., both Luther and
Calvin) came to two conclusions: (1) humans were innately incapable of
seeking God of their own free will; (2) when God called people, they had
no choice but to respond positively, eventually (the doctrine of
irresistible grace). Today's reading from Deuteronomy suggests a
different evaluation of the human condition. What God commanded of the
nation was not too difficult for them to accomplish, Moses tells them.
God's commands are neither inscrutable nor impossible to follow. The idea
that the Fall affected people's ability to respond to God in obedience is
not an Old Testament concept. Otherwise, why would God hold people
responsible for their actions, as the prophets proclaim? Sometimes
Christians fall into the trap of blaming our own sins and weaknesses on
either our sinful nature or on evil supernatural forces ("the devil made
me do it"), but according to this passage, both are merely attempts to
shift the blame for our failures. We can choose to obey God, but we often
choose not to. It's not the Fall that is to blame but rather our own
unwillingness to do what we know we should do. Does all this mean that
God doesn't call people or offer them grace to overcome temptation? Not
at all! It simply suggests that God's call is a universal call, and God's
grace is available to all who want it, though it is never forced on
anyone. God has created us as responsible individuals, that is, God has
made us with the innate ability to respond to God's call and commands.
Psalm 25:1-10 (first published 5 March
2006)
Former California congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham was sentenced
this week to eight years and four months in prison, after pleading guilty
to accepting $2.4 million in bribes. A contrite Cunningham said before
sentencing that he would accept without complaint whatever punishment the
court handed down. Although none of us has ever accepted $2.4 million in
bribes, we should all feel some empathy with the former congressman. We
have all done things that we knew were wrong, and we have all been in the
position of having to ask for forgiveness. The psalmist asks God, "Do not
remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your
steadfast love remember me, for your goodness' sake, O Lord!" Or maybe it
should say, "For goodness' sake, O Lord!" There come times in all our
lives when we want to ask God, and other people as well, "Please
distinguish in your mind my sins from me as a person!" There are certain
people who have gone down in history as those who have committed great
sins. When we think of Adolf Hitler, Timothy McVeigh, or David Koresh, it
is unlikely that we think of anything other than the Holocaust, the
destruction of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, or the
conflagration at the compound outside Waco. Several months ago I saw a
German movie called Downfall about the last days of Hitler, a true
story based on the account of his secretary. The movie makes no attempt
to mask the evil committed by Hitler, Himmler, or others who were in the
bunker during the last week of World War II in Europe, yet it also shows
Hitler as a human being, a person who grows tired, feels bewildered as his
world come crashing down around him, and even shows affection for some of
those around him. One of the problems with demonizing Hitler and others
who have committed horrific crimes is that it puts them beyond the pale of
humanity. When we cast another human being out of the human race for his
sins, we threaten ourselves with the same fate. Maybe our sins aren't as
great as a Timothy McVeigh, but who can really foresee the consequences of
our acts of greed, selfishness, or xenophobia? Fortunately for us, God is
perfectly capable of separating the person from the sin, and though we
deserve justice, God often grants mercy. If God grants mercy to us
sinners, we need to grant mercy to other sinners as well, for though their
sins may be more spectacular, at their core they are people like we are,
people God longs to bring back into the human-divine fellowship that we
can all share.
Colossians 1:1-14 (first published 11
July 2004)
When I was a pre-teen, the father of one of my church friends decided
that he would no longer go to Sunday School, because he had learned all
that the teachers had to teach him. I've remembered that incident over
the years as I've examined and worked in the adult education programs of
various churches. Although I don't agree with his solution to the
problem, I think that his analysis of the problem was probably correct: he
had learned all that the teachers in that church had to teach him.
Typical adult educational curricula in the churches with which I'm most
familiar offer lessons on a set number of biblical passages--the Prodigal
Son, David and Goliath, Elijah and the Prophets of Baal, etc.--then repeat
them after two or three years. Even programs that offer more variety
often restrict their audience's exposure to the biblical text and perhaps
some classic devotional works of years past. Some publishers of
educational material offer much more, and individual churches, or
particular adult classes within a church, take advantage of the wealth of
potential educational material at their disposal. In verse 10 of today's
reading from Colossians, the author prays that his readers "may lead lives
worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good
work and as you grow in the knowledge of God." This verse contains three
important goals of every adult education program. First, adults should be
taught to lead lives that are worthy of the Lord and fully pleasing to
God. In the context, perhaps the emphasis here is a negative one: true
disciples will avoid getting caught up in the sins and cares of the world.
If so, the second goal in the following phrase is positive. Disciples
should bear fruit in every good work. The Christian life is one both of
separation and of engagement. A good adult education class will help
believers determine those points at which they should separate themselves
from their surroundings and the ways in which they should interact fully
with others. The final goal is growth in the knowledge of God. There is
much that can be learned about God from the Bible; in fact, I would
venture to say that the Bible is an almost inexhaustible resource for
knowledge of God. However, it is by no means the only resource, and in
certain circumstances other material, when used properly, may offer a more
penetrating or striking presentation of some divine truth. Contemporary
and classic books, both fiction and nonfiction, are potential educational
resources, as are movies, TV shows, drama, field trips, and encounters
with people of other faiths, just to name a few. Every church should have
a quality adult education system, one in which no one can ever truthfully
say that he has learned all that the teachers had to teach him.
Luke 10:25-37 (first published 11 July
2004)
My neighbor across the street is a really bad guy. Last week I saw him beat up his wife and his son, so I called the police to report him. They responded by sending a helicopter carrying a large fire bomb. They dropped the bomb on his house, killing him, his wife, his son, his next-door neighbors on either side, and sending the neighbors who lived behind him to the emergency room with missing limbs. I guess that will teach him! Of course this story is completely made up, and we know that it is because our police wouldn't respond to a domestic situation in a way that threatened the lives of an entire city block (at least not since the MOVE incident in Philadelphia in 1985). That's not how we deal with our neighbors. However, there are many religious people who have no qualms about dealing with people in other countries in just such a manner. How many wedding parties have we crashed--literally--in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past year or two? How many innocent civilians have died? How many children have been killed or maimed? Why is a child killed in America a tragedy, while one killed in Iraq is just "collateral damage"? The lawyer in today's reading wanted Jesus to clarify for him just who his neighbors were, perhaps so that he could feel better about ignoring the plight of others who were not his neighbors. Jesus, however, turned his question around. The issue is not who your neighbor is, Jesus said. The issue is being a neighbor to everyone you meet. When we view an Iraqi child as our neighbor, we won't drop a bomb anywhere near her home or school--in fact, we probably won't drop any bombs on her country. When we view a village of Ugandans suffering from AIDS as our neighbors, we'll find a way to get medicine to them, regardless of the cost or the loss of profits to large international conglomerates. When we view a Haitian peasant as our neighbor, we'll ensure that his children can attend school in peace. When we view a homeless man on the streets of New York as our neighbor, we'll do our best to meet his medical needs and find him housing and employment. The world is full of people waiting for us to be their neighbors. Are we ready?