I recently had an experience and an insight from it that may be very significant to the way we are leading the church. The recent experience was going through the Dynamic Marriage facilitator training program. Although the purpose of this brief article is not to promote that particular program, I will say that all churches would do well to train some people to facilitate this program in their local congregations. I’ve not seen anything quite like it, and as an elder in Phoenix, I will do everything I can to get every married couple in the church to go through these classes. But, on to the insight.
The thought that hit me is very simple but probably pretty profound at the same time. According to the Dynamic Marriage facilitator training, just about all marriages fall into 1 of 3 categories: 25% are good; 50% are stagnant; and 25% are on the verge of breaking up. The trainer said that the 25% good ones are good because the marriage partners in these unions are self-starters. They hear marriage lessons and put the suggestions into practice. They read the recommended books and talk to others and get help. Taking this at face value, about one-fourth of all people are self starters and the remainder are not. From my experiences in life, I would agree that this is likely an accurate figure.
By applying this principle to the church generally, we as leaders (self-starters) may be expecting virtually every member to become a self-starter spiritually. We have said in the past couple of years that people need to take responsibility for themselves and their spiritual growth and not be dependent on leaders. That sounds noble and righteous, but is it actually in touch with reality? What we are really saying to people is “Be like me” (a self-starter). People keep saying things like “I’m not pulled in to relationships.” “I don’t have any friends.” “I am isolated.” We keep replying, “Well, have you initiated with anyone; have you sought out help, etc.” Are we expecting the impossible?
How do the Dynamic Marriage people handle the fact that 75% of all people are not self-starters? They provide very detailed structure, with specific expectations and accountability. Otherwise, that large percentage of people will not get help in their marriages, and many will end in divorce. What did we as a movement provide for our church membership in past years? Detailed structure, with specific expectations and accountability. Was that wrong? No, it was necessary. What was wrong? The types of expectations, accountability and motivation used. Strong directive leadership was not what was wrong; I think it was what was right – another right thing often done in wrong ways.
Our people who are complaining about us not helping them with relationships and other components of the Christian life sound like complainers who won’t take responsibility for themselves. Could it be that they are simply crying out for help—the kind of help that non-self starters always have needed and will likely always need (at least at points in their lives until they reach real maturity)? The ideal is that all disciples should become self-starters, and hopefully with time and good direction to help mature them, many will. But if we don’t lead people from where they currently are to where they need to be, they may never even stay in the church. If many leaders keep leading like they are, the church may well end up with only self-starter type members, and quite long lists of immature or otherwise weaker disciples who have died on the vine.
—Gordon Ferguson (April 2005)
Co-authoring a book like Golden Rule Leadership has been a daunting task. Which of us thinks we have perfected Jesus’ style of leading? Certainly not Wyndham or I. Our primary goal in writing this book was to give insight and input as peers seeking to imitate Jesus, not as experts who have figured it all out. Our intention has been to prompt healthy discussion about leadership style at an important time in the movement. We have striven to be as humble as possible in addressing such an important topic, realizing fully that we are simply works in progress and not finished products.
All leaders are also followers in some settings. Therefore, when we read a book or an article on leadership, we can focus either on (1) how we are leading or (2) how we are being led. Perhaps it should go without mentioning that we should first think about how we lead others, but this is not our tendency, is it? We tend to immediately think about how we have been led, to contemplate whether our needs have been met, rather than contemplating how we may have met (or not met) the needs of those whom we lead.
Another part of the challenge in writing a leadership book is that some readers may respond in reactionary ways. For example, one such response might be anticipated as follows: “That’s how I always thought leadership should be, but it isn’t the way I have been led.” This is a predictable response, but not necessarily the most spiritual. I am reminded of a sermon about the nature of advice that Randy McKean preached soon after he became the lead evangelist of the Boston church. At that time, some leaders considered their advice to be fairly binding, but Randy took exception to that view in his lesson, insisting instead that advice is simply advice unless a specific Biblical statement or principle is clearly involved. Randy summarized his sermon by saying that three types of people would be challenged most in applying his lesson: those who had been wrong about the nature of advice; those who had been right; and those who had been wronged.
We find ourselves in a similar situation regarding the issue of leadership style. If you have led or have been led in less than a Golden Rule manner, your challenge is pretty much the same. Maybe you have been wrong in your exercise of leadership. You will have to be humble enough to admit this, repent and change what you can figure out needs changing. Or maybe you have been right and have seen leaders leading in a non-Golden Rule manner. You will have to guard your heart against self-righteousness, another form of pride. Jesus uttered some very appropriate words for situations just like this: “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone” (John 8:7). Or lastly, maybe you have been wronged by leaders. For starters, I must ask, “Who hasn’t?”
In a recent author interview, Wyndham and I were asked why many leaders have not implemented better leadership dynamics sooner. My comments then fit well here. I wrote:
My children could easily ask this question of me as a dad. It’s a bit of a mystery that those most suited biologically to have children are the least experienced! As parents, we just have to learn as we go and do the best that we can figure out to do at the time. As spiritual parents, the challenge is the same. With our movement having grown fast, bringing fairly inexperienced disciples into leadership roles is a must. Remember that the apostle John started off as a ‘Son of Thunder’ long before he grew into being the ‘Apostle of Love.’ Sure, we have all made mistakes, some serious, as physical parents and spiritual parents. The two most important issues are our intentions and our progress. As a leader, I am not throwing stones, for even at my age (59), I still make mistakes and hurt people. But my intentions are good and my progress is real. Wyndham and I are simply trying to promote such progress by showing where changes are needed, while maintaining a grateful heart for all of the good we have experienced.
One of the greatest things about our movement is that we can look at ourselves and make changes as needed. Our leadership style has varied according to person, place and time. Many leaders have led by Golden Rule principles all along. Similarly, some ministries have been consistently blessed consistently with such leadership. The passage of time has brought changes in leadership style as we have learned from our mistakes. Al Baird wrote an article some years back entitled “A New Look at Authority,” in which he said that we had gone too far in how we applied authority to ordinary discipling relationships. As one of our most respected leaders, he was saying that we had overstepped certain Biblical principles in this area and should correct ourselves, which, in large measure, we have attempted to do. Wyndham and I are trying to prompt a similar result on a somewhat broader basis of leadership style.
Much has been right about leadership in the kingdom, without question. Forceful, visionary leadership is sorely needed in all groups, religious and otherwise, and we are grateful that our movement has been characterized by the raising up of new leaders. The Golden Rule Leadership book is about developing a leadership style and structure that is Biblically based and the most effective possible. In a nutshell, we believe that leadership style must change as congregations change in size and age, and this is the need we are addressing. Varying situations require different leadership styles, which must be selected or adapted to suit these different circumstances at any given time. Effective leadership depends upon many things: awareness of the nature of the task, the make-up of the group and its individual members, the environment in which the group is found, and particularly, the self-awareness of the leaders themselves. Younger and smaller churches will not have the option of working through strong leadership teams, but the leader(s) must strive to raise up other mature leaders who can share the load with them. I am thankful for our strong emphasis in the movement on leadership and “followership,” for God has blessed us in planting churches all over the world. Now we must take it to the next level of growing larger and larger churches, which will demand some paradigm changes in leadership style and structure.
In the end, it is a matter of faith in God⎯truly believing that he is directing us, even through our weaknesses and mistakes. All we can ever do is to do the best we can with our present knowledge and experience, trusting that God will continue to help us learn and change when needed. Paul put it this way in Philippians 3:15-16:
All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
The one thing arguably worse than having poor leadership is having no leadership at all. We are all works in progress, and if we were to wait until we had “arrived” before leading with confidence, none of us would ever lead! We can only do our best, pray about the rest, and trust that God will make up the difference as he continues to mold us.
As is often said, “Don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater.” Let’s avoid having a critical spirit regarding past mistakes on anyone’s part. Let’s remain very grateful for all of the good things that have been accomplished. And let’s trust that God is continuing to lead us all. Do we need more Golden Rule leadership? Absolutely. But that will only be possible when we all commit to being Golden Rule followers. Most of us are leaders in some sense, but all of us are followers. Rather than pointing fingers at others, let’s look in the mirror and be the best disciples of Jesus possible. God will surely be pleased with such an approach.
—Gordon Ferguson (March 2002)
First, consider the Old Testament references to the eternal nature of Christ. Isaiah 9:6-7 alone should establish the point beyond any doubt.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.
This child who would be born and sit on David’s throne can be no other than Jesus Christ. And yet this child who graced Bethlehem’s barn was to be called “Mighty God” and “Everlasting Father.” The Jehovah’s Witnesses dodge on this passage is that Jesus is “mighty” God but not the “almighty”. However, the same term is applied to Jehovah in Isaiah 10:20-21. Further, Micah 5:2 indicates the ruler who would come from Bethlehem was one whose “goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity.” (NASV)
Isaiah 43:10 and 44:6 make it clear that there was no God but Jehovah (“LORD” in NIV). Either the term Jehovah (from the original “Yahweh”) refers to the Godhead (Father, Son, and Spirit), or Jesus is not Deity. The Jehovah’s Witnesses’ claim that Jesus is a lesser god is unscriptural polytheism. A number of passages demonstrate that Jesus is in fact Jehovah. Some people mistakenly assume that Jehovah is a name applied only to the Father. In Jeremiah 23:5-6, however, the righteous Branch from David’s lineage is called specifically “the LORD (Jehovah) our righteousness.” Let’s look at that passage in its context:
“The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.”
Consider also the following parallels. Isaiah 45:18-23 states that unto Jehovah every knee would bow and every tongue swear because he was the only God. Philippians 2:11 shows that this event refers to Judgment when all confess and bow to Christ. A comparison of Joel 2:32 and Romans 10:9-13 shows that calling on the name of Jehovah is equated with confessing Christ and calling on him. Since John the Baptist was to prepare the way of Jehovah (Isaiah 40:3-5) and he did prepare the way for Jesus (Mark 1:1-7), Jesus must be Jehovah. Again, Jehovah is said to have created all things (Isaiah 42:5; 44:24), and the same is recorded of Christ (John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:16). Thus, Jesus must be Jehovah. Many other such comparisons demonstrate beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is Jehovah. Compare Isaiah 45:5 with Titus 2:13; Revelation 1:8 with Revelation 22:13-16; and, Exodus 3:14 with John 8:58.
But also there are the claims of the NT. The New Testament contains numerous passages which directly affirm the deity of Christ. Jesus is called “God” in John 1:1; 20:28; Titus 2:13; 2 Peter 1:1 and 1 John. 5:20. The Jews understood that Christ’s claim to be the Son of God meant that he was equal to God in his nature (John 5:18). They had no doubt that his claims about himself were claims to be God (John 10:33). Men may be sons of God by adoption, but Jesus was the unique Son by nature (John 3:16, Philippians 2:6).
It is of course true that certain New Testament passages relegate Jesus to a lesser position than that of the Father (see John 14:28), but this was due to Christ’s temporary fleshly existence. There was a voluntary departure from his pre-flesh glories (Philippians 2:5-8; John 17:5), but his ascension back to heaven changed this temporary humiliation (Ephesians 1:20-21). This lowered earthly role of Jesus concerned his position, not his person or nature. A person in a job setting may have a superior position over another person, but that says absolutely nothing about the one in submission being inferior in nature. The same situation exists in the case of Jesus and his heavenly Father.
A third and final observation about the Deity of Christ involves his reception of worship. Matthew 4:10 clearly teaches that only God is to be worshipped. Men could not be worshipped (Acts 10:25-26; 14:12-15), and neither could angels (Revelation 19:10; 22:8-9). However, Christ was worshipped by both men (Matthew 8:2; 9:18; 14:33; 15:25; etc.) and angels (Hebrews 1:6). Therefore, the only possible conclusion is that Jesus is God. The very foundation of the church is the Deity of Christ (Matthew 16:16-18), and any teaching that would reject this marvelous truth must be firmly and convincingly resisted by the Book of books. Christ is indeed eternal, “the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:13).
—Gordon Ferguson (April 2001)
Just about all human beings struggle with faith in God at one point or another. Some struggle nearly all the time and some struggle very seldom. Others have ceased to struggle and just have tried to forget God, or quit believing in him. Regardless of where you find yourself, you are not alone. Many of the Psalms reflect this faith struggle between the writer and God. Nearly all Psalms of this type begin with the struggle and end with faith rediscovered. Psalm 88 is an exception to that general rule, as the alleged writers (the sons of Korah) ended with this dreary, faithless statement: “the darkness is my closest friend.” Have you ever felt like that? I certainly have.
The reasons for our struggles may be both varied and numerous, but the two main sources that produce them are likely either things in the Bible or things in our life that don’t square with what we think God should be doing or allowing. I recently taught the Book of Colossians to the church in Honolulu. Colossians 3:22-4:1 deals with the subject of slavery—by regulating it, not condemning it. As I thought about God’s approach to the topic, I not only found myself repulsed by the idea, but wondered how much more strongly I might be affected if I were a black African American. For most Americans, regardless of race, the slavery era of our nation’s history is a dark and painful era to contemplate. But we can find many other biblical topics that are unsettling and troubling: the annihilation of entire nations by the direction of God in the Old Testament; the existence of a place of punishment called hell; the clear teaching of Jesus that most humans would be lost in eternity; etc.
Besides the biblical issues that may be quite disturbing and difficult or impossible to understand, we have life issues that seem even more challenging to our faith. Among such issues would be the baby born severely handicapped, or stillborn; deadly diseases striking not only the aged, but those in the very prime of life or in childhood; natural calamities killing hundreds or thousands at once; our own lives and family affected by health challenges, family challenges or financial challenges (and maybe a combination of these and other painful possibilities); etc. The old bumper sticker statement, “Life is tough − and then you die” seems more true than not. To me, life often seems very challenging with God; but life without God is too much for me to contemplate.
As I think about the nature and results of such faith struggles, I can see at least four possible outcomes. Going from worst to best, some people give in to the struggles and end up saying something to this effect: “I cannot and will not believe in a God like the one I see in the Bible or in my world.” Thus, they choose atheism—or at least try to. Let’s call this category four. Other people feel much the same, but have a slightly different response intellectually (although not practically). They say, “I cannot and will not serve a God like the one I see in the Bible or in my world. I can’t deny his existence, but I will choose to live as if he didn’t exist.” The term to describe one who comes to this conclusion would be “practical atheist.” He or she lives as if there is no God. We will call this category three.
Most of us find ourselves in one of the two better categories of strugglers. I’m in category two myself, which is to say that I often struggle with my faith in God through the circumstances of life. I have found ways to harmonize to my satisfaction the biblical issues that some have not yet resolved regarding God and his nature, but I don’t always find it easy to harmonize my view of God with my life as it tumbles in. Thus, like the writers of Psalms or the biblical character Job, I find myself questioning how God is running the world, especially my little personal world. The category some folks are in, and I wish I were one of them, is category one, in which a childlike faith seems to rule supreme most of the time. Their mantra is simple: “God is God, and God is good, and since he knows all things and can do all things, whatever happens will work out for my good—somehow, sometime and some way.”
My wife, Theresa, is pretty much like that most of the time. She has what the Bible calls for − a childlike faith. Jesus words in Matthew 18:2-5 ring loudly in my ears (if not always in my heart): “He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ‘And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.’” One of my favorite Psalms, Psalm 131, reads this way as David declares his childlike faith in God: “My heart is not proud, O Lord, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore.” What an upward call that is for all of us!
If we don’t live most of the time in category one, what are we to do? Let’s start at the worst place once more. What if your faith struggles have led you to tout atheism? Honestly, that one isn’t as difficult to deal with as some think. It’s hard to maintain the atheistic position. Too much evidence for the existence of God is readily available. When I was a young man in Graduate School, I had a professor named Thomas Warren, who specialized in debating well-known atheists. Tom had a PhD in philosophy from Vanderbilt University, and developed some ways to refute atheism that made me glad I was on his side of the issue! Along with several thousand others on a university campus, I observed him debating Anthony G. N. Flew from England. Flew believed that the existence of evil and tragedy in the world proved that there was no God, but he was unprepared for Tom Warren, who pretty much obliterated his arguments. Interestingly, although that debate took place decades ago, and Tom Warren is now dead, Anthony Flew renounced his atheism within the past few years. It’s simply a difficult position to maintain when the signature of God is written all over the universe in myriad ways. Only the fool says in his heart that there is no God (Psalm 14:1), and the bigger fool blurts it out for everyone to hear!
Those in category three who refuse to serve God, although they believe he exists, are essentially mad at him for one of many possible reasons, and don’t work through it. In essence, due to their problems with either biblical issues or life issues, they give up on God. Regardless of which type issue is at the root of their frustration or anger, they need to stop and think about some of the ramifications of their beliefs. Although it is not difficult to find reasons to question God and his love, to stay in that position is not only damaging, it is arrogant to the nth degree. In effect, a person in this category is saying, “God, you are not running the world correctly. I may be a mere human, but I can tell without a shadow of a doubt that you are messing up in the way you have done, or are doing, your business of running the world.” Wow—what an colossal assumption! Job was once dangerously near this conclusion, as his family calamities and person pain led him to question God. Actually, he did more than question: he had his case against God developed to the point that he was ready to enter God’s courtroom and take him on, acting as his own attorney. Finally, God had heard enough. Job 38:1-3 says: “Then the Lord answered Job out of the storm. He said: ‘Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.’” This was God’s introduction to a little quiz he had for the self-assured Job.
About halfway through the quiz, Job had now heard more than enough, and he stated: “I am unworthy − how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth. I spoke once, but I have no answer—twice, but I will say no more” (Job 40:3-5). However, God wasn’t through with the quiz yet, and he continued to go after Job. At long last it was all over, and Job’s final reply, with bowed head and broken heart, was as follows in Job 42:2-6:
I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted. You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. “You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.’ My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.”
For those who don’t figure out what Job discovered about God in this life, it will take but a matter of seconds to figure it out in the next life when they stand in God’s presence. The very thought of meeting God in that state takes my breath away and brings tears to my eyes—literally, as I write this. We need to learn the most important lessons in life before we pass into eternity. I’m drawn to what the old priest in the movie Rudy said to the young football player who was struggling with his faith. He said something to this effect: “Son, I’m an old man now, and I have learned two big lessons in life. One, there is a God, and two, I am not him!” That’s a good starting place, but we need to go one step further. What has kept me out of this category through my struggles is one basic presupposition, and that is that God must be good.
I go out on prayer walks in nature, and see the beauties of creation all around me, and I know that God must be good. Even in the desert of Arizona, I find myself intrigued by the tremendous varieties of plants that not only survive but thrive where rain is all but non-existent. We have a number of different types of Agave plants that sprout huge shafts right out of their middle that often reach 10 feet high. And the shafts are of different configurations, depending on the type Agave. The Century plants near our neighborhood supermarket are startling to me every time I drive by, with those golden shafts reaching up from an 18” high plant 10 feet into the sky. I have taken dozens of photos of these plants, not only because they are mesmerizing to me, but because they shout out loudly, “God is!” “And he is good.”
The creation of the material world just gets me started. Then I think about the wife of my youth, the love of my life, my bride of 42 years. And I break down and weep with gratitude that I serve a God who is good. I go on to think about my two wonderful children and their wonderful mates and our five beautiful grandchildren—and I weep yet more. I then think about others in my physical family whom I love dearly, and then about those in my spiritual family who have blessed my life immeasurably. Oh, yes, there is a God, and he’s a good God—a very, very, very good God. His patience with my faith struggles is astounding. Paul once wrote with the pen of inspiration that Jesus our Lord had “unlimited patience” (1 Timothy 1:16). Unbelievable! Unthinkable! Unfathomable! Listen, if God were not good, I would have been burned to a crisp years ago, and so would you. Sometimes I go out on a long prayer walk for one purpose: just to start at the beginning of my life and thank God for all of the good things during the 64 years since. Sure, there are plenty of bad things, as I would deem them, but I am not so dense or hard-hearted that I miss seeing the hand of God even in those times. God never said that all things in life are good, but he did promise to work them together for good (Romans 8:28). He didn’t say to be thankfulfor all circumstances, but he did say to be thankful in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18), trusting that his promises to make it all come out right will prove true.
You can mark this principle down: those in category two that don’t accept the presupposition that God is good, even in the midst of fighting for faith, will end up in category three—and ultimately reap a whirlwind that they cannot imagine at the outset. No, I’m not in category one yet, with a childlike faith eliminating most of the battles in trusting God. But I want to be there with all of my heart, and I’m trying hard to be surrendered enough to let the God of all goodness and all comfort win those battles for me. As someone once said, “Doubt is not bad if you use it as a shovel with which to dig for faith.” If you are already digging, keep it up. If you have stopped digging, get started again. When your shovel strikes God’s treasure house of faith once more, the idealism once found in you as a little boy or a little girl will once again lead you to skip down a bright, flower-strewn path, hand-in-hand with God! Oh yes—God is, and God is good! You can bet your life on it − this life and the next life.
—Gordon Ferguson (April 2007)
(This article was written in about 1981 while I was still a member of mainline Churches of Christ—soon after I first encountered the discipling type churches.)
Churches of Christ are receiving adverse publicity in the mass media of our nation. Shocking! Recently, I listened to a couple of taped messages by a brother in California who is highly disturbed by this publicity. He was quite upset about the congregations who were the focal point of the controversy, and unquestionably viewed them as heretics. Although he dealt with a number of areas in which he believed them to be in error, it seemed to me that the unfavorable attention in the media was the catapult that launched him into orbit! Reproach has been brought upon the name of the church!
Certainly no one of us wants to see negative publicity about God’s people, but there is more involved than what we may want. My comments in this article relate directly to the publicity issue itself, and not to the controversial issues that spawned it. I am neither defending nor disapproving any movement among us in this particular article, but rather addressing the issue of adverse publicity. Frankly, I marvel that those who claim to know the Bible have jumped to the conclusion that highly negative remarks by newspapers, radio, and television prove that certain brethren have become heretical! If they have, the publicity surely cannot be taken as proof of it. Some other criterion will have to be used—for example, the Bible.
Well, what about the church and the world’s evaluation of us? In Acts 2:47, we find that our early brethren were “having favor with all the people.” Favorable publicity. But for how long? By the time one reads up to Acts 7, he finds folks with blood pressures going off the top of the sphygmomanometer. They were screaming, gnashing their teeth, and throwing rocks at a Christian. Adverse publicity. Stephen must have been bringing reproach on the church!
Paul and Barnabas were well received at Antioch of Pisidia (Acts 13:14¬43). Favorable publicity. For how long? In this instance, only one week (vs. 44ff). Then came adverse publicity. Paul seemed to have a penchant for creating this sort of negative reaction. They became so angry at Lystra that they stoned him (Acts 14:19), although earlier he had been received as a god! In Acts 16, he and Silas were thrown in jail. I wonder what the headlines in the Philippi Morning News reported about Christianity? The Athenians mocked him as a babbler, according to Acts 17. He managed to get the great city of Ephesus in such a turmoil that a large multitude screamed their lungs out for two hours. Now how in the world could Paul hope to build a church in a city when such adverse publicity had occurred?
The book of Acts has a good deal more to say on the subject and the reader would do well to study it with this emphasis in mind. By the time Paul arrived in Rome, the Jewish leaders said that they knew little about Christianity, but they were sure of one thing—it was a sect everywhere spoken against (Acts 28:22)! Our brother Paul must have really been something, or all of the criticism directed toward him by those in and out of the church surely would not have occurred. After all, where there’s smoke, there’s fire!
It is a matter of historical record that the world in which the early church grew was set against them. The mass media of that day claimed that Christians were immoral (practicing holy kisses), cannibalistic (eating flesh and drinking blood—the Lord’s supper), and atheistic (did not believe in the gods). How did that church grow with such adverse publicity? Sure¬ly their joy buses must have been nearly empty.
At one time in America, we were the sect everywhere spoken against. Now, however, we have finally achieved a degree of respectability. Thus we are shocked by adverse publicity, and assume that it proves we are departing from the Bible. Have we so soon forgotten what Jesus taught on the issue? “If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more them of his household (Matthew 10:25)!” “And, ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake (Mark 13:13)” “If ye were of the world, the world would love its own: but because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you (John 15:19).” “Yea, and all that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution (2 Timothy 3:12).”
Whether some of our brethren are using unscriptural methods, or scriptural methods in an unscriptural manner is a different issue than the publicity issue. Adverse publicity may be directed at evil works or good works, as the Bible amply demonstrates. Biblical Christianity will stir up Satan and his ministers, if Christ’s teaching on the subject is trustworthy. Unbiblical works will often stir up controversy also. The presence of controversy itself proves nothing. The traditions held sacred by many of us likewise proves nothing. The Bible is the only guide to whether or not a work is good or evil.
In conclusion, we do confidently affirm that a lack of adverse publicity demonstrates all too well that we are doing little to disturb Satan. If we were wreaking the kind of havoc against his kindgom that the early church did, we could not stay away from adverse publicity any more than they. Let us not come unglued when the world doesn’t like us—it never has.
—Gordon Ferguson (1981)
A concept is a general idea that encompasses a set of specifics. Another way of describing it is to say it involves getting the big picture of a topic by looking at many of its individual parts. Describing concepts often produces a set of terminologies that are used to simplify and clarify those concepts. This is a normal part of our communication process that all of us use every day. The terminologies thus employed are accommodative – matching a concept to our cultural setting. It is quite natural to develop accommodative terms to describe biblical concepts. For example, we use terms like “total commitment,” “discipleship,” “quiet time,” “sold out,” and “fired up” to express these concepts in the vernacular of our day. None of these exact terms can be found in the Bible, but they represent true biblical ideas. At least some of our conceptual terminology has developed in our attempt to correct previous terminology that has either been incorrect or misunderstood.
The phrase, “cooperation with God” is a phrase that I believe can be helpful in correcting a misunderstanding that has come about through an unbalanced emphasis in teaching. Obedience and obey are biblical terms, and we should therefore never quit using them. However, if not explained well in the big picture of man’s faith response to God, their usage can lead to a man-oriented, performance mindset in Christians. As a movement, we have not explained them clearly enough, nor used them in a balanced way, which has left many of us with a wrong view of our obedience. That in turn has left many of us with a consistent sense of either guilt or self-righteousness about our performance, and has not led us to the correct understanding, appreciation and response to God’s grace in our lives.
The way we have taught people to become Christians says a lot about our misplaced emphases in the past. In the “First Principles” study series, the word grace is used once – in refuting a false doctrine: “baptism is the outward sign of an inward grace.” Also, there is no mention of the love of God. The word love appears twice: (1) We must love Christ and (2) we must love one another. In God’s “first principles,” the Book of Acts, the word grace is used 11 times. In Jesus’ “first principles” statement of Matthew 22:37-40, he said that love for God and our neighbor were the greatest commands of the Old Testament (and by implication, I think, the whole Bible). In both our study series and our follow up series here in the Phoenix Valley Church, these emphases are solidly reflected. Our desire was to focus on God much more than on man, to use this God-focus to prompt our faith responses to him. In the introduction to the study series, the question “Why are we replacing the old study series?” was answered this way: “Primarily because the old series was too focused on man’s performance and not nearly enough on God’s grace as our primary motivation for serving him. Although thousands of people became Christians through the use of the old series, for which we are thankful, the new series will provide a much better motivational foundation to help keep people on a better track once they become Christians.”
Thinking about cooperating with God helps me put my obedience in the right perspective. My initial salvation, my continuing forgiveness of sins, my overcoming entrenched sinful tendencies in my life, my living a life that consistently reflects the Christ in me, and my perseverance are all beyond my ability as a sinful human being. As Jesus succinctly put it: “apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Paul said it this way: “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out” (Romans 7:18). In our own power, we are pretty helpless; in God’s power, we are able to do amazing things.
Here is the real kicker – if you see your obedience as falling under your own power to perform, you will be well acquainted with failure and frustration; if you see your obedience as falling under God’s power to do in us and through us and with us that which we could never do on our own, you will be happy and blessed. It’s all perspective, isn’t it? The concept of cooperating with God helps me keep the right perspective in the matter of obedience. God is the One with the power – all power, by the way. In my response to him – my heartfelt, trusting obedience – I am simply trying my best to cooperate with him in order to allow him to do his thing in my life. I hope that is helpful to you; it surely is to me.
My hope is in God, not in myself. I have failed and sinned far too many times to trust in my power. But that same failure and sin has caused me to look up at him and to him more and more. The old adage, “God helps those who help themselves” appealed to me as a young man. As an older man, I would change the wording to “God help those who help themselves!” It is not a matter of whether we obey God’s teachings or not; it is a matter of how we view him and ourselves as we obey. Obedience is presupposed biblically for anyone who intends to please and follow God. But our trust as we obey is the fundamental issue. Are we trying to trust ourselves, or do we trust God and his grace in our lives?
Paul described this difference very well in Ephesians 2:8-10: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God– [9] not by works, so that no one can boast. [10] For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Once I would have used this equation to describe how we obtain salvation: “faith (man’s part) plus grace (God’s part) equals salvation. This leaves the impression that man’s part and God’s part are on equal or nearly equal ground. Nothing could be further from the truth. Man’s part is simply accepting the real deal, that which actually forgives and saves. Our obedience is God’s plan for us to show our trust in his power and grace rather than in our own power. So, it is not “faith plus grace” that equals salvation; it is “faith trusting grace” that turns the key to our hearts and to his. Our good works, according to Ephesians 2:10, are a result of his work in our lives. Said another way, this passage says that we don’t work in order to be saved; we work because we are saved. We cooperate with him and he works in and through us to the point that we can say with Paul, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
—Gordon Ferguson (March 2005)
