Demonstrating God’s Will

Flickr/Edward Zulawski

By Beth Snodderly

“In a cosmic battle for the rulership of this planet, God is deliberately overcoming evil with good until, in the end, Jesus will reign in his Kingdom of shalom. But until God ushers in that final perfect new heaven and new earth, there is a need for believers to engage intentionally in efforts to demonstrate God’s will for people, for societies, and for God’s originally good creation. Jesus’ followers serve as God’s display window, showing what Jesus’ reign is meant to look like. As pastor-theologian, Gregory Boyd, says,

As Christ gave his all for us, so we are called and empowered to give our all for others. As we abide in Christ and participate in the love of the self-sacrificial God, our lives are to manifest the self-sacrificial love of God to others. See “Living In, and Looking Like, Christ,” in Servant God: The Cosmic Conflict Over God’s Trustworthiness (Loma Linda: Loma Linda University Press, 2013), 407.    

Read more excerpts from my book, Chaos Is Not God’s Will at: Introducing International Development as Cosmic Battle

The Secret Message in Some of Our Most Popular Christmas Carols

By Brian Lowther

With Christmas just days away, Christmas music can be heard on every radio station, and in practically every store and elevator in America. Often we don't pay attention to the lyrics of Christmas music because we’re so accustomed to them. It’s easy to sing along, but how often do we think about the words as we sing? Some popular Christmas songs are rather inappropriate, but the lyrics of several Christmas carols are marvelous and profound, and if you listen closely you might discover a secret message. One such carol is “O little town of Bethlehem.”

O little town of Bethlehem,
How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep,
The silent stars go by.
   Yet in thy dark streets shineth
   The everlasting Light.
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.

For Christ is born of Mary,
And gathered all above,
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love.
   O morning stars, together
   Proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God, the King,
And peace to men on earth.

O holy Child of Bethlehem,
Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sins and enter in,
Be born to us today.
   We hear the Christmas angels
   The great glad tidings tell:
Oh, come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Emmanuel!

“O Little Town of Bethlehem” has many common Christian themes such as an everlasting light shining in the dark, our sins being cast out, and peace on earth. It concludes with a word that sums up all of these themes: “Emmanuel,” which is commonly known to mean, “God with us.” But hidden within the name Emmanuel is an awe-inspiring biblical vision.

Thy Kingdom Come

In singing “Emmanuel,” we are, in affect praying for God’s kingdom to come and his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. In other words, we are singing / praying for shalom, a one-word summary of God’s will for the earth and everything living on it.

The usual connotation of shalom is “peace.” And, while peace is one aspect of shalom, it doesn’t begin to describe the full meaning of the word. In the biblical sense, shalom is an all-encompassing term that essentially means perfect harmony, rest, and completeness. In her essay, “Shalom: The Goal of International Development,” Beth Snodderly defines shalom as, “wholeness and wellness in the context of right relationships with God, people, and nature.”[1] That says it all. 

During this holiday season which is so thoroughly associated with gift giving, what gift can we give to a person or a society in need that will reflect the shalom God wants for all of creation? What will it take to see God’s kingdom come to the troubled lands of the Congo, Sudan, Myanmar, or Aleppo?  

As an answer, we can extend shalom at an individual level by proclaiming good news to the poor, freedom for the oppressed, and sight for the blind.[2] But these proclamations need to be empowered by intentional acts of service like sharing our possessions with the needy and helping the poor,[3] or healing the sick, the blind, and those tormented by evil spirits.[4] We can also provide a preview of what God’s Kingdom will look like when it comes in its fullness by participating with others on a global scale to resolve major human problems like disease, poverty, illiteracy, apathy, corruption, racism, exploitation and violence. These are ways we destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8), and how we can assist God in extending shalom to our sometimes beautiful, sometimes horrifying corner of the universe.

If that sounds vague, I’ll make it more specific.

If you want to extend shalom in your neighborhood and around the world, I think you should sit down and make a list of everything you can think of that is wrong, unfair, ungodly, deadly, and dangerous, and then ask the Lord throughout each day, “What would you have me do about these evils?” If you sense something, and it is consistent with the self-sacrificial love exemplified by Jesus, do it. The worst-case scenario is that you will perform a small act of love or compassion for someone in need. The best-case scenario is that you will accept profound responsibility to do something significant about one of these global evils.

Still too vague?

Okay, if it were up to me, everyone reading this would find a way to focus their specific set of gifts, abilities, and interests onto the global cause that I personally feel is most compelling and strategic: disease eradication. There is a considerable list of 16 diseases which we already know how to extinguish completely, but haven’t. If I were you, I would set out with all of the willpower and courage I could muster and direct it with a laser-like focus on one of those diseases, or partner with an organization that is already doing so. I think there is every reason to see this as your Christian calling. (Read this article for why).

Does that sound impossibly ambitious?

If so, that's because it is. But while we cannot predict or count on human success in eradicating the next disease, or quelling any specific kind of evil completely, we also cannot allow ourselves to be lulled into a complacent sense of resignation. As if the problems are so big we shouldn’t try. We as the collective body of Christ know far more about the problems and far more about the solutions than ever before. Yet we mainly sit back and let civil organizations[5] take the lead in tackling the great world problems of our day. I believe the principal reason shalom isn’t more widespread is because the body of Christ has not adequately accepted the challenge along with civil forces to exterminate the roots of disease and evil.

We can resolve this here and now, and empower our evangelism while we’re at it.

What we need—it seems to me—is a rally cry, a moral and spiritual equivalent of “For King And Country.” We need a sticky concept that will inspire a massive, urgent, sacrificial concentration of human effort against not humans, but human problems and against the spiritual enemy of God and of all creation.

The obstacle is, there are so many competing rally cries in today's world of advertising overload. Many of us have compassion fatigue. We are indifferent to the plethora of causes we can join, to the slew of appeals we encounter on behalf of those who are suffering. We need a rally cry that will cut through all of that fatigue and indifference, one that will turn our hearts to fire and our nerves to steel.

What if God is providing this rally cry right now on every radio station, and in practically every store and elevator in America? I think this rally cry is the secret message in many of the best Christmas carols. “Emmanuel, God with us, peace on earth, goodwill to men, the Lord is come, the Savior reigns.” When I hear these words, I hear the expectant visionary language of revolution. I hear the ultimate heavenly plan of peacefully bringing God’s kingdom of shalom to this darkened, violent planet of ours. I hear the one quality that makes any rally cry truly effective: the capacity to instill absolute confidence that the battle can and will be won. It’s the same quality contained in the famous question, “What one great thing would you dare to dream, if you knew you could not fail.”

No one anywhere is doing anything truly important if it is not part of the battle to defeat evil and extend shalom. This calling is inescapable. There is no reason for non-involvement. We either live for him and his purposes, or die in vain.

Even if you don’t tear yourself away from the work you do to join this cause “full-time,” do you consider the job you have a holy calling? Is it just a source of income and an opportunity to witness? Or, is it the most significant kind of work you could choose to do? You have only one life to live. Why not choose something most others can’t or won’t do?

Over the next few days until Christmas when you’re in the car, or in an elevator, or shopping for that last gift and you hear a Christmas carol, know that God is speaking to you, calling you to join him in defeating evil and extending shalom. Are you listening?

Endnotes

• [1] Read the full essay here: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5078ae40c4aadb13b740c960/t/53ba62c7e4b074d7aaf64213/1404723911838/shalom_beth_snodderly.pdf
• [2] Luke 4:18
• [3] Acts 4:32-37, 8:4, 9:37-42
• [4] Acts 5:12-16, 8:5-8, 9:7-19
• [5] Examples include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), and Rotary International.

This blog entry was inspired by the following three blog posts that first appeared on the William Carey International Development Journal website:

• http://www.wciujournal.org/blog/post/christmas-and-international-development-o-little-town-of-bethlehem
• http://www.wciujournal.org/blog/post/shalom-is-the-reason-for-the-season
• http://www.wciujournal.org/blog/post/joy-to-the-world

Brian Lowther is the Director of
the Roberta Winter Institute

Links for Today (September 28, 2016)

By Beth Snodderly

Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan’s $3 billion effort aims to rid world of major diseases by end of century

The founder of Facebook and his wife, among the 10 wealthiest couples in the world, announced they are funding an effort to get scientists to collaborate on eliminating major diseases. They are emphasizing the power of collaboration and openness.This is the type of initiative Ralph Winter wanted to see believers get behind to demonstrate that disease is not God's will. Maybe some will!

Jesus’ Demonstrations of God’s Will

“Jesus demonstrated the nature of the life of God, the shalom spoken of by the Old Testament prophets, by overcoming evil with good in his acts of ministry. The appearing of the Son of God resulted in characteristics that are the opposite of those associated with the darkness and hatred of the devil. The ultimate purpose of Jesus’ appearing was to glorify God by bringing life to the children of God, replacing death that is a work of the devil in the present age. The author of the Gospel of John selected six ‘signs’ that represent the ways in which Jesus demonstrated God’s will for the world.”

Alcohol Addiction and Deaths

EXCERPT from a 2014 WHO report: “The net effect of harmful use of alcohol is approximately 3.3 million deaths each year*. … Harmful use of alcohol accounts for 5.9% of all deaths worldwide. … Harmful use of alcohol can also have serious social and economic consequences for individuals other than the drinker and for society at large. Despite the large health, social, and economic burden associated with harmful use of alcohol, it has remained a relatively low priority in public policy, including in public health policy.”

            * In comparison, malaria deaths are under .5 million/year.

Beth Snodderly is the RWI's Theologian in Residence and Chair of the Board.

A New Interpretation of Genesis 1 and a More Complex Mission

Interpreting Genesis 1 so that it doesn't conflict with the latest scientific views about the age of the earth, while also making sense of the problem of evil, and what that means for Christian mission.

By Ralph D. Winter (compiled and edited by Beth Snodderly)

Editor’s Note: Today Beth Snodderly finishes her four-part series exploring Ralph Winter’s Four Seeds of Destruction by compiling and condensing material from a number of Winter’s essays. You can read the previous installments here: Are We Building an Enduring Christianity or Not?, Emotionalism vs. Intellectualism, and Violence, Suffering, and Evil Are Not God’s Will.

As mentioned in the previous blog entry, two significant barriers to Christian belief are the rampant suffering, violence, and evil in this world as if there is no Satan behind it, and a Bible that is thought to have feet of clay, beginning with Genesis 1. Both of these obstacles to belief can be dealt with in an unusual way: a brief scenario that attempts conjecturally to interpret Genesis 1 in such a way as not to conflict with the latest scientific views. It may be helpful in dealing with either non-Christians or Christians about to lose their faith, people who believe current science is mainly correct in regard to 1) how old the earth is, and 2) how long ago humans first appeared, but for whom these two things are difficult to square with the Bible. This story will also be helpful to anyone who is confused about why and how radical evil appeared in our world. This scenario differs from the view of many scientists in that it explains the development of life by a means quite different from a Darwinian style random process. Furthermore, it allows for much of both the so-called “Young Earth” and the “Old Earth” perspectives. Most of all, it highlights a strikingly new dimension in the definition of Christian mission.

I am thinking more and more of the possibility (which I think should at least be considered!) that the lengthy “geologic ages” occurred before Genesis 1:1, and that no matter what you think about all those vicious animal fossils that have been dug up, you can’t interpret the non-carnivorous life described in Genesis 1 to be the same thing. Most people unthinkingly assume that way back when Genesis was written there was knowledge of a planet, solar system, galaxy, and indeed an entire universe and that precisely the beginning of all that is what is being referred to in Genesis 1:1. Certainly it is easy for us unthinkingly to read our knowledge today into something that was put together several thousand years ago when Genesis came into oral tradition and was later written down.

Now, I would not be giving this example if I had not discovered that Dr. Merrill Unger, who for nineteen years was chair of the Old Testament department at Dallas seminary, clearly espoused this view way back in 1958 in the pages of the Bibliotheca Sacra, and then, later described it in his Unger’s Bible Handbook. Please understand that the idea that the long geologic ages occurred before the Genesis account of a “new creation” is as an idea, not something I “believe” in the same way I believe some other things. This idea, however, does commend itself to me as the interpretation which is most fair to the Bible. I feel we must be very cautious that we do not find ourselves demanding that the Bible say what we would like it to say, or saying what we expect it to say, or even saying what many people think it says.

This “new creation” concept allows for both young earth and old earth views to be true. But there is something else that is the thing most important for me. If the thousands of forms of life that are now extinct lived before Genesis 1, their pervasively violent, perverted, distorted, carnivorous, predatory character could then be conceived to be the evil work of Satan and his rebel angels after his “fall.” This more concrete idea of a first fall would suggest that the second “fall,” that of Adam, resulted in the rejection of the newly created, undistorted life forms of Genesis chapter one, forcing them out of the Garden of Eden, into the larger planet where they would interbreed and intermarry with the long-perverted other forms of life. Result? A gradual reversion to the pre-Genesis perversity and viciousness that were the result of Satan’s earlier fall. This then provides a rationale for the need for God’s new beginning described in Genesis.

A More Complex Mission

For me, then, this would define a much more complex mission for redeemed man: to destroy the works of Satan. Since God is extensively blamed and his glory stained by common assumptions that there is no Satan, and all evil is God’s “mysterious will,” our mission is to “re-glorify” God. We can do this by seeking, in his name, to restore to God’s original intention, where possible, Satan’s perversions in all forms of life. This includes participating in serious efforts to eradicate diseases caused by viruses, many bacteria, and most parasites. This kind of activity would seem to be highly crucial in restoring the reputation of God, who is now being blamed for all sorts of evil. This basic type of amplification of mission can uniquely empower evangelism. As a Caltech scientist once implied to me, who wants to be in heaven forever with a God with a stained and gruesome reputation?

Insight into the Real Nature of Salvation

A major reason people are leaving the church, losing their faith, and staying away in the first place, is because the church has not adequately stepped up to bat along with civil forces to beat down the corruption, disease, and poverty of at least a billion hopeless people. Evangelicals have misread the Bible. Salvation is not just a “ticket to heaven.” In my opinion a basic problem is our blindness to the essentially wartime calling of those who follow Christ. The church has largely gone AWOL, distracted or preoccupied with programs that serve our own ends. But the Bible does not call us to save ourselves, to solidify our security, or just to talk about world problems. God is asking humans to choose to join him in the battle to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) and restore shalom to creation.

Historically, in hundreds of foreign fields, schools and hospitals have portrayed God’s love, just as did the practical dimension of Jesus’ ministry. Missionaries in the past have transformed whole countries in many practical ways. Today we know far more about the problems and far more about the solutions than ever before. Yet the world still sees us as merely religious fanatics propagating a salvation that is not here but only in the hereafter.

Self-Serving Church or Challenging World Problems?

Building the Church in both number and depth is self-defeating if the larger purpose of God’s calling is ignored. It is like recruiting soldiers for a non-existent war. Why self-defeating? The self-serving church may expand by attracting people interested in their own salvation, but if it only serves itself it also crumbles and self-destructs. Isn’t this what happened to Italy, France, England? Is France the end product, where 80% are “Christian” but only 20% believe in God? The church is now crumbling globally (as well as expanding), like salt losing its savor. This is true even on the “mission field,” even where high percentages are believers. For example, Nagaland in India, or the Central African Republic, 97% and 70% “Christian” respectively, yet are also known to be exceedingly corrupt.

We often rejoice over the global gains of the Church, but there is another side! If people are being won into the front door and eventually move out the back door, what could be the answer? We are to be salt and light in this world. That means not just adding members to the Church but glorifying God by our good deeds (Matt 5:16). We are saved by the infusion of God’s power (grace) into our lives precisely so that we can do those good deeds (Eph 2:8-10).

Conclusion

We have greater opportunities and greater obligations than ever in history. Yet the chasm between our unemployed resources and an effective challenge to big world problems is very great. It is apparent that organized believers are largely missing in the conduct of the Kingdom of God, in bringing His will into the dark and suffering places in our world. [A notable exception is the 2008 announcement that billionaire Ted Turner was partnering with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, and the United Methodist Church to raise funds to stop deaths from global malaria. In January, 2016, the ELCA announced it had reached its $15 million goal of funds raised to combat malaria through its relief and development arm. “Thank you for naming suffering as contrary to God’s will and working to correct injustice,” an ELCA blog stated in announcing the successful conclusion of the ELCA Malaria Campaign (http://blogs.elca.org/malaria/2667-2/).]

The cure for a church that is in many ways staggering, stalling, and sitting down, the cure for our malaise and evaporating faith, is clear-cut definitive obedience. We must face and define the need to get organized answers to this world’s problems as well as getting individuals reconciled to God. In fact, getting people reconciled to God and to his Kingdom business must go together. Otherwise our absence at the frontlines of major global problems means we are misrepresenting God’s will and misusing the wisdom and resources he has given us to act out and speak out his love and glorify his name among all peoples. What kind of a Christ are we to follow? “The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8, NASB). If we “declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples” (Psalm 96:3, NIV), we will then build the Church on a solid foundation that will not crumble.

References

Unger, Merrill F. 1958. “Rethinking the Genesis Account of Creation.” Bibliotheca Sacra 115 (January-March): 27-35.

______. 1967. Unger’s Bible Handbook. Chicago: Moody Press.

USA Today. 2008. Ted Turner Apologizes, Joins Churches’ $200M Malaria Fight. April 1. Accessed May 2, 2016. http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-04-01-turner-churches_N.htm.

Image: Aftab Uzzaman/Flickr

Ralph D. Winter (12/8/24 – 5/20/09) founded the Roberta Winter Institute.

Beth Snodderly is the RWI's Theologian in Residence and Chair of the Board.

Are we building an enduring Christianity or not?

Communities of believers who do not do the hard work of answering the hard questions can expect their children and future generations to abandon their faith.

By Beth Snodderly

Editor’s Note: Last week, here on the RWI blog we published an introduction to Ralph Winter’s Four Seeds of Destruction. Today, Beth Snodderly begins a four-part series exploring these topics in more depth. Enjoy.

Ralph Winter often talked and wrote about why people turn away from faith. He wanted the mission world to be aware that newly reached peoples will eventually follow the pattern of post-Christian Europe if we don’t stop exporting a gospel that contains the seeds of its own destruction. He recognized that communities of believers who do not do the hard work of answering hard questions can expect their children and future generations to abandon their faith in God, as was the case in 19th and early 20th century England. Winter saw that intellectual insight into God’s Word, God’s world, and who God is, needs to accompany emotional and experiential awareness of God. Otherwise, as Winter observed, people turn away from faith once they start asking hard questions about the rampant evil in this world, thinking this is God’s will and not realizing there is a Satan behind it. And if they are unaware of what the Bible really says and means on key issues, if they perceive the Bible to have feet of clay, thinking people are unlikely to be interested in following the Jesus of the Bible.

Winter wanted mission and church practitioners to recognize that they need to lead the way in restoring God’s reputation and glory in the eyes of the on-looking world. Believers need to help potential followers of Jesus see that suffering, violence, and evil are not God’s will and are not from him. Rather, societies and all creation experience the consequences of human and angelic choices, both good and bad, and God does not overrule the free will he has granted his creatures. Winter pointed to the importance of seeing the historical big picture—that God is in an ongoing battle with a spiritual adversary, starting even before Genesis 1. Salvation is thus not just a “ticket to heaven.” Rather, God is asking humans to choose to join him in the battle to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) and demonstrate God’s will for shalom for human societies and all creation.

In my next installment, I’ll explore Ralph Winter’s thoughts on why Christianity has succeeded among rural populations all over the world but is facing increasing opposition from the educated world.

Photo Credit: vonderauvisuals/Flickr

Beth Snodderly is the RWI's Theologian in Residence and Chair of the Board.

Introducing International Development As Cosmic Battle

Flickr/Pan .

Picture the world as it was in the beginning of Genesis: A world without form, lost in deep darkness, where chaos and desolation reigned. Now shift your gaze: See the only immortal God who, as Paul wrote in 1 Timothy, "dwells in unapproachable light."

Since the beginning there has been this juxtaposition, dark and light, evil and good, evening and then morning, always in that order. This is also the pattern of scripture; God draws springs out of the desert, makes creation out of desolation and pruning hooks from swords. 

In this beautiful excerpt from her book, Chaos is Not God's Will, theologian Beth Snodderly posits that the model for the war of the ages is also the model for international development.

" . . . In a cosmic battle for the rulership of this planet, God is deliberately overcoming evil with good until, in the end, Jesus will reign in his Kingdom of shalom. But until God ushers in that final perfect new heaven and new earth, there is a need for believers to engage intentionally in international development efforts to demonstrate God’s will for people, for societies, and for God’s originally good creation."