The Theology of the Body: Click | View Series

Your Gender Matters

As embodied creatures, human beings are either male or female (Gen. 1:26-27); indeed, gender is a fundamental reality of human existence. God does not create a generic human being and then add on gender; rather, he creates a human being either as a male person or as a female person. Human genderedness means that a man is conscious of and knows himself as a man, he relates to other human beings as a man, and as a man he relates to God.

Similarly, it means that a woman is conscious of and knows herself as a woman, she relates to other human beings as a woman, and as a woman she relates to God. Try as I might, even urged on by my wife, I cannot see life from her—a woman’s—perspective! Human beings are perspectivally gendered—as designed by God.

Accordingly, men and women should be thankful for the gender with which God created them, and any sense of superiority or inferiority because they are male or female is wrong and dangerous. Gender differences should be celebrated, and men and women should learn to enjoy personal, pure relationships with the other gender (1 Tim. 5:1-2).

Sexuality and Marriage

An important aspect of gender, and hence of human embodiment, is sexuality. Indeed, God created human beings as both male and female so that they could fulfill the mandate to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth” (Gen. 1:28). This universal command means that the majority of people will be married, and the biblical portrait is that marriage is between a man and a woman who commit themselves to living in a monogamous relationship. Sexual intercourse is to be enjoyed within the bounds of this covenantal framework and is designed for several purposes, including pleasure, procreation, a guard against immorality, and unity.

Tragically, the fall into sin wreaks havoc with human sexuality, and Scripture presents instructions intended to help people overcome temptation and failure in this area. For example, Paul denounces sexual immorality (1 Cor. 6:12-12), urging Christians to flee from it. Elsewhere (1 Thess. 4:3-8) he commands married people to engage in sexual activity in a God-honoring and spouse-respecting manner while avoiding immorality. The close relationships that Christians enjoy with one another should never be allowed to cross the lines of proper morality so that members defraud one another by taking that which does not belong to them.

Sexuality and Singleness

Paul also addresses the reality of singleness (1 Cor. 7:7-9). This state, like that of marriage, is a gift of God (v. 7). Paul’s preference is that people remain single (v. 8), for celibacy offers many advantages (1 Cor. 7:25-40), including avoidance of troubles and anxieties, and promotion of “undivided devotion to the Lord” (v. 35). The advantages of singleness are many, yet only those to whom this gift is given should remain single (v. 9). Those with the gift of celibacy are not asexual beings who lack sexual desire, but they are able to control those urges by channeling them in God-honoring ways. Lacking such self-control, people should pursue getting married so they are not overwhelmed by sexual desire and thus fall into immorality.

We are certainly aware of the many troubles Christians and the church encounter in this area: rampant sexual immorality, adultery, homosexuality, sexual abuse, pornography, prostitution, and other problems. Cognizant of these many challenges, we should never lose sight of the fact that human sexuality and sexual intercourse between married couples are wonderful gifts from God for his embodied creatures, gifts that should be celebrated and enjoyed.

To be continued.

2010 Seattle Bootcamp

The biggest church planting event we've ever done. September 29-30 in Seattle. Church Planter: A29 National Bootcamp.

Justification by X: Click | View Series

Church Math

As kids, I bet most of us reading this post probably hated math—all the subtracting, borrowing, and dividing. These are all words that make pastors nervous. No wonder teachers called them "problems."

But as we aged and began ministry, something miraculous happened and we suddenly fell in love with numbers. In fact, we learned the whole new subject called "church math," like baptisms, budgets, and Sunday service attendance. The number of things to count became almost endless and almost fun—that is, as long as the numbers were up. But if the numbers went down, especially the Sunday attendance number, our spirits would often go down with them. And that is a problem indeed.

Our Relationship With Attendance

I am not against counting things when it comes to church. The old adage which says, "We count people because people count" may be trite, but it is true. We should count the things that we keep track of. But all of us will readily admit that there is something suspicious going on with our relationship with the attendance figure. I believe it is because, at times, we look to it to justify ourselves and our ministries.

The equations on the chalkboard of our heart usually go something like this:

Lots of people = Visible success in ministry = I am happy

Fewer people = Failure in ministry = I am depressed

Anybody else think that math is a little fuzzy?

Here are a few tips to help us clear things up.

1. Define yourself by what Jesus did on the cross, not what you do on Sunday.

Though we all know this is true, we often struggle to believe it when it counts. To see change happen, we must do what it takes to write this gospel truth on our hearts, so that it is ready when we need it most. As we grow in our ability to use the gospel in daily life, we will be better equipped to fight the enemy's lies.

2. Be careful with counting.

As I said before, I'm not telling you not to keep track of things. I’m simply saying that we recognize attendance records can be like handguns—helpful in some situations and dangerous in others. Ask yourself questions like, “Why am I watching the attendance so closely? For Jesus or for me?” Remember, our worth as followers of Jesus and as pastors is not wrapped up in how many people attend our services, but in the gospel.

3. Be careful with how you define success.

Though our “bigger is better” mentality may tempt us to think otherwise, a big crowd doesn’t necessarily signify a faithful ministry. In fact, as we study the Scriptures we see a number of “successful” preachers who weren’t always surrounded by huge crowds—Isaiah, Jeremiah, and at times, even Jesus. While we can take heart in this fact, we must also guard ourselves from going too far in the other direction as well. Pastoring a small church doesn’t necessarily make us more faithful, just as pastoring a large church doesn’t make us unfaithful.

4. Be part of the solution instead of part of the problem.

Nearly every pastor I know struggles with this issue. Will you join me in serving your fellow strugglers and not let “So what are you guys running these days?” be the first question you ask your pastor friends the next time you talk to them? Ask about their soul, their family, or how they are engaging their community. As we do, I think we will do the kingdom a great service.

Our justification is in the gospel, not how many people attend our services. What are you looking to for your justification today?

Missional Ecclesiology

Re:Train professor Gregg Allison explains the missional church in his blog series on Missional Ecclesiology.

Click through to the Resurgence if you can't see the video.

In this short interview clip, Pastor Mark asks bestselling author Randy Alcorn what people should read if they've never read any of his books and want an introduction to his writings.

Here are the books he mentioned:

Nonfiction:

• The Grace and Truth Paradox: Responding with Christlike Balance (Randy's favorite)
• Heaven (Pastor Mark calls it "the standard on the subject")
• If God Is Good: Faith in the Midst of Suffering and Evil
• Money, Possessions, and Eternity

Fiction:

• Safely Home
• Deception

For Children:

• Heaven for Kids

See all the parts of this interview posted so far.

ESV Study Bible

The ESV Study Bible is our Bible of choice. To show how good the notes are, we’ve posted some free study notes on the Trinity. Read them here.

Pharisees

Jesus' greatest enemy was a purity movement.

The Pharisees were a sect of Jewish leaders and teachers whose main goal was to purify Israel of its sin so that God would deliver Israel from Rome. In the law they saw the fundamental promise: "If you obey you will be blessed and dwell in the land." And so they took it upon themselves to be obedient and to enforce obedience across their small country.

The problem was that they thought they were the obedient ones.

Swallowing a Camel

The Pharisees were meticulous in following the law, while actually missing the grand intent of the law. It was not only to be pure and blameless, but also to be loving and good. That is why Jesus said that they would "strain a gnat, but swallow a camel." They neglected mercy and justice to their fellow countrymen.

But we ought not to just think that these men were more evil than any of us. They just had it in their mind that they were worthy of being blessed, and they tried to root out any people that would withhold the blessing from the nation—prostitutes, tax collectors, and "sinners."

The Fundamental Question

And that is the problem with all purity movements, whether they are doctrinal, methodological, or moral. The leaders see themselves as part of the solution, and act as referees in their culture—sitting in judgment of those who, in their minds, are withholding blessing from their nation. And so they have to be merciless and judgmental, because their fundamental question is "What must we do to be blessed?" instead of "God has already blessed us—what must we do to love?"

Vintage Jesus

A theological journey chasing Jesus through Scripture and pop culture. Timeless answers to timely questions about the most important man who has ever lived. Find out more.

The Theology of the Body: Click | View Series

What Is Embodiment?

Let me begin with a definition of embodiment. The human body is an essential aspect of human beings during their earthly existence and, following Christ’s return and the resurrection of their body, in the age to come. Specifically, the body is the material component of human nature distinct from—but intimately linked with—the immaterial component, commonly called the soul (or spirit).

Only between physical death and the return of Christ will human existence be a disembodied one. The soul (or spirit) will survive death and continue to exist while the body is sloughed off, but this is an abnormal condition (2 Cor. 5:1-10). Embodiment, therefore, is the state of human existence between conception and death, and again after the resurrection of the body and for all eternity. The normal state of human existence is an embodied existence.

Your Body: God’s Design

Human beings are this way because God designed them to be embodied. This was true of the first man (Gen. 2:7) and the first woman (Gen. 2:22), and it continues to be true of each and every human being since the original creation, as God is intimately involved in fashioning human life from the moment of conception (Psa. 139:13-15). Moreover, human beings are created holistically, so that in this earthly existence, soul and body are an inseparable unity. Indeed, being made in the image of God entails the embodiment of the image bearers. Human embodiment, then, is according to divine design.

Your Body Is a Gift

Accordingly, people should embrace embodiment as a gift from God. C.S. Lewis presents a common viewpoint that people have of their bodies: “The fact that we have bodies is the oldest joke there is.” Such disdain for human embodiment is not in accord with Scripture. Frederica Mathewes-Green offers a corrective insight: “The initial impression that we stand critically apart from our bodies was our first mistake. We are not merely passengers riding around in skintight racecars . . . we are our bodies. They embody us.” Embodiment is God’s creative design for human beings, who should be grateful for their physical existence.

Implications of Divine Creation

Divine creation of the body has important implications in the ethical realm. Both abortion at the beginning of human existence, and euthanasia/physician-assisted suicide at the end, are ruled out; so are experimentation to develop human cloning, genetic engineering to produce perfect children, and transhumanist experimentation to develop superhuman beings or cyborgs (man-machine complexes).

Moreover, the church is called to minister to people as holistic human beings created in the image of God. This worldview entails treating all people—both Christians and non-Christians alike—with respect for their inherent dignity. Furthermore, the church should be engaged in helping the poor and marginalized through deeds of mercy, communicating the gospel of Jesus Christ to everyone, and discipling Christians by addressing their many needs—intellectual, emotional, volitional, physical, educational, and socio-economic.

To be continued.

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