Frère Williams - Reformed Creole Contemplative

2011-02-01T00:54:00.000-08:00

It has been a long time since I have blogged, and much of the reason for this is because life in the theological world and in general has been rather peaceful as of lately and I have had nothing to complain about (LOL!). To be honest I have enjoyed life minus the numerous debates :D (though there are the occasional little ones that pop up and end peacefully). Nevertheless my time without big debates has come to an end, and a classical theological leviathan has once again reared its ugly head........This particular leviathan is the relationship between Scripture and Tradition, and whether one should be chosen over the other.

As a good Reformed Protestant I will first and foremost say that I believe in Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone) with all of my heart, and will defend this doctrine until I give up the ghost (KJV English meaning "die"). Yet, as I defend this pillar of Protestant Church tradition, I REFUSE to defend the popular and nebulous misunderstanding of this pillar that is rampant among many fellow Protestants. When the Reformers (I am speaking of the magisterial Reformers: Luther, Calvin, Farel, Zwingli, Bullinger, Oecolampadius, and Melanchton) said "Sola Scriptura", they did NOT mean Scripture without tradition, they were talking about the relationship between Scripture and tradition. In the minds of the Reformers, tradition was secondary to Scripture because Scripture is in one sense God's voice (or a means by which God speaks to us and reveals Himself) while tradition is in one sense the voice of the church (or a means by which the church bears witness to God, and in a way reveals Him to the world).

It would be foolish to say that tradition should go out the window, for tradition is the compiled prophetic witness of Christians throughout the centuries handed down to us in the present day, and it by tradition that we believe that the Bible IS God's Holy Word. Without the witness of tradition (or God's saints throughout the ages), the Bible would be seen as another book and not given the place of honor that is due to such a gift of God and means of revelation. It is because of Holy Fathers and Mothers of old like St. Thomas Aquinas (who looked to the Church Father St. Augustine when speaking of the Scriptures) that I personally came to firmly believe in Sola Scriptura. Aquinas once said:

"Nevertheless, sacred doctrine makes use of these authorities [the pagan Greek philosophers] as extrinsic and probable arguments; but properly uses the authority of the canonical Scriptures as an incontrovertible proof, and the authority of the doctors of the Church as one that may properly be used, yet merely as probable. For our faith rests upon the revelation made to the apostles and prophets who wrote the canonical books, and not on the revelations (if any such there are) made to other doctors. Hence Augustine says, 'Only those books of Scripture which are called canonical have I learned to hold in such honor as to believe their authors have not erred in any way in writing them. But other authors I so read as not to deem everything in their works to be true, merely on account of their having so thought and written, whatever may have been their holiness and learning.'" (Epis. ad Hieron. xix, 1)

From Aquinas one can see how tradition plays a role in our belief that Scripture IS God's Holy Word, and this is why the Reformers held that tradition is secondary to Scripture, for it is only a witness to the authority of Scripture. Looking back on the previous sentence I would like to point out that Sola Scriptura is ultimately about the authority of Scripture, and Church tradition does not work against this authority but heralds and proclaims it with a trumpet blast. But what of the times where the Reformers railed against tradition?. How does one explain this?......Well the answer is simple. There are two facets of tradition which a fellow minister pointed out; these facets are Big "T" tradition and Little "t" tradition.

Big "T" tradition (ex. Belief in the Holy Trinity, the sacraments, belief that the Bible is God's Holy Word, the hypostatic union) is the tradition of the Apostles and Early Church that can be found in Scripture and has been historically passed down since the early ecumenical councils. Though this facet of tradition is not perfect (for it comes from human understandings of God's Word), it is what all the orthodox Christian churches believe no matter what denominational stream they are in (in other words it is the foundation of the Christian faith; what Christians MUST believe). Little "t" tradition on the other hand are church traditions and customs that are locally made and handed down (ex. Greek Orthodox wedding crowns, Reformed Psalm singing, or the way some Baptist groups immerse and dress in white during baptisms), and though they are not found within Scripture they can serve as a way of helping one with their devotion to Christ. Unlike Big "T" tradition, Little "t" tradition is not necessary for one to be a Christian, and if this facet of tradition is misused then the consequences can be dire.......During the Reformation period Little "t" tradition was essentially out of hand (for various reasons such as Scholasticism in theological education and corrupt church authorities who used it for ungodly purposes), and the Reformers had to put it in check because it was leading to unChristian folk beliefs (a.k.a. superstitions) that went away from the heart of Scripture and the faith of Christ. Nevertheless the Reformers did not get rid of Big "T" tradition or the church authorities of the past whom they looked at through a critical lens for these authorities were still human and possessed their own flaws. When speaking of the role of tradition in John Calvin's interpretation of Scripture, Justo González states that although he insisted upon the sole authority of the Holy Scriptures [Sola Scriptura], he interpreted them in the light of the early ecumenical councils. Furthermore Calvin also looked to ancient Christian writers, and in his writings one can observe him quoting them often, and quoting them with approval (See Justo L. Gonzlez's work titled, "A History of Christian Thought: From the Protestant Reformation to the Twentieth Century", pg. 48 ).

So when it is all said and done, Sola Scriptura is simply a proper understanding of the relationship between Scripture and tradition, and sadly many Protestants are clueless when it comes to this. Furthermore I have observed that the common misunderstanding of Sola Scriptura has led to an epidemic of bad Little "t" tradition, for every individual is their own source of authority. Unlike many Protestants of today, many of the classical confessional Protestants did as the church had always done and looked back to the voices of the past as they read the Scriptures; sure their interpretations were not always the best, but they were a lot better than Joe Schmoe who studies Scripture and only asks "what does this mean to me?". The healthy appeal to tradition (where one uses it critically) is an act of humility, for when one goes to the authorities of the past who carried on the work of the Gospel and gave their lives for it, then they are putting their own interpretations last to consider the interpretations of others throughout the ages.

So with all that said I am done with this blog session after months of silence, and if anyone wishes to read a good article on the Reformers' view of Sola Scriptura go here:

"The Bible Alone"? Not for John Calvin!

2010-03-09T07:37:00.000-08:00

I'm A Married Man

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For those who have been wondering what the Black Creole Reformer has been up to.......well.......let's just say that his Swiss Miss became his Swiss Mrs. LOL!

2009-04-21T06:59:00.000-07:00

An Update On Life

Some people have been wondering where the Black Creole Reformer has been hiding as of lately, and some have been saddened by my lack of blogs since December. Truth is that I have just been taking a break from blogging and from other things and just living life and preparing to make some big decisions and moves. Right now I am preparing for graduation from seminary and ordination while deciding which country I will do a second Masters degree in......and yes I repeat that I would like to do a second Masters. I am looking to embark upon more studies in either Switzerland, Germany, Holland, or England and this second Masters will prepare me for possible Ph.D work in Europe or elsewhere. Apart from making major decisions ,I have been chilling in Europe for the past three weeks working with New Chance International Ministry`s yearly Crazy For Jesus Youth Camp in Flehingen and Gochsheim Germany. I really wish that American Christian youth were more like the Christian youth in Germany and Switzerland, because these youth actually want to learn and think critically. It was amazing to teach church history to Christian youth and have them ask qeustions and see them engage with the material, and it was amazing to see them get excited about the ancient church. Besides teaching youth, my time in Europe has been one of rest and relaxation, and the other day I went for a little mountain climbing with my precious Lal. And speaking of Lal, I have decided to pop the question when she visits me in July and it is so wonderful because we finished our last pre-engagement and marital counseling session last Thursday. While being here I made sure that all possible final doubts in my mind were erased and that I had a little more confirmation from those who know us both. Lord knows there were smiles on my faces when various folks I did not even know were saying that the approved of me and had good feelings about us.

Anyways there is a little update for everyone, and I hope to try and get back to blogging soon.

2008-12-25T19:15:00.000-08:00

The Wonder Of The Infant Jesus: He WAS God!

As I look upon the picture to the left, I am reminded of who the infant Jesus really was and how most Christians (be they Romans Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, or "Non-Denominational") think of Him at the nativity. It seems that many of us have a "Talladega Nights" view of the infant Jesus, and we look upon Him as we look upon our own infants. Yet even as an infant He was light years away from our precious little ones, and of far greater value and more precious than the entire universe and everything within it. Christ was not born of radically depraved seed, but was born of the Spirit of God itself and being born of the Spirit He was born of perfect love and eternal glory and righteousness. Yet even more than being born of the Spirit of God was the fact that He WAS God (according to the orthodox Christian view of Jesus), and He WAS born fully God and did not "become" God (contrary to the opinions of those such as Creflo Dollar).

We must come to grips with the fact that even as a weak and feeble infant, He lived out His infancy without sin, and in doing so He redeemed infancy itself. As an infant He was still the Judge of the living and the dead, and was still the Sovereign Ruler of the universe. It was He who made the heavens and all its hosts, and established the earth on the waters. It was He who brought forth the winds out of His treasure box, He breathed unto the trees and they blossomed. It was He who caused the rain to fall upon the face of the earth, and it sprouted and gave its fruit. It was He who made humanity in His image, and His likeness that we may praise Him. Though He came to us as an infant, even as an infant He was worthy of all praises, for He WAS God and even though He could not utter a word of or give a gesture of mercy upon us, we were still in need of His mercy.

2008-12-15T22:39:00.000-08:00

Asking To Enter Jesus' Heart

In April I will have the privilege to once again travel to Europe to assist in the Lord's work. On this particular excursion I shall be in southern Germany at Demetri's Betts' annual CRAZY FOR JESUS youth camp where I will lead a workshop on the issue of suffering, and preach on Easter Sunday as the main speaker (my precious Lal will translate for me). When I first asked about my upcoming Paschal duties, Lal told me that I was expected to give an altar call at the end of my message and upon hearing her words..........I flipped my wig LOL! She was shocked to learn that I do not do altar calls; in fact I think the altar call is unEvangelical.

The thing that makes me cringe about the altar call is that it propagates the obtuse concept of one "asking Jesus into their heart". To be honest I consider this concept to be almost perverse, because it makes regeneration in Christ look like a human work, and furthermore confuses people into believing that the physical act of "coming forward" is the spiritual act of coming to Christ. In the end altar calls inevitably lead one to base their assurance of salvation upon a one time event, and rather than walking in eternal security in Christ, it leaves them walking in the "once saved, always saved" lunacy of Free Grace Theology ("once saved, always saved" is NOT eternal security). One interesting thing to note is that the altar call did not come about until 150 years ago, and it cannot be found in Scripture or in the writings of the Holy Fathers and any other Christian writings before it was invented; therefore I hold the altar call to be unBiblical and unApostolic. Taking all these things into account one is left to wonder what this crazy Creole puts in place of the invitation for one to "ask Jesus into their heart". Well I propose that preaching the Gospel and the work of evangelism it is not an invitation for one to ask Jesus into their heart, but it is Christ' call and command for one to enter His heart.

Evangelism is a matter of giving those outside of Christ a glimpse into His sacred heart, and looking into it they see His love. But many do not know that what they see is His love, for what they first behold is His sorrowful Passion which darkened the sun. Many cannot perceive how Christ being scoffed, beat, and nailed to a cross is God's love, and out of their own misconceptions of Divine Love they deem the Passion as divine child abuse, senseless violence, and even sadomasochism. To those who misconceive Divine Love, the Passion is foolishness, and this is to be expected because their hearts of stone have not been made flesh by the work of the Holy Spirit. Yet to those whose hearts have been made flesh through the Spirit, Christ' Passion and the Cross that is its culmination are more beautiful than the most radiant of wonders in our universe. And those whose hearts have been made flesh are not those who have or will receive the invitation of an evangelist or pastor, but those whom Christ invited into His heart long before the foundations of the world. Those who have hearts of flesh do not ask Him into their hearts, but are compelled by the beauty of Divine Love conveyed through His Passion to ask if they might enter into His heart.

Apart from Christ' invitation through the work of the Holy Spirit, all that a regenerate believer can offer to the unregenerate is a glimpse into His sacred heart. And how do we do this? We live out the reality of Christ and His grace......we live as people who have accepted His invitation, entered into His heart, and have truly experienced and comprehend His marvelous love. And how do we live the reality of Christ? We live this reality through imitating Him, and as we imitate Him He unites us to Himself and conforms us to His image that He might draw others to Himself through us. But the greatest beauty of entering Christ' heart is that unlike the altar call which is a one time event, it is a daily event. Daily we are to enter into Christ heart and beholding His Passion and Holy Cross we are to suffer for His name's sake and die to our sinful selves, and after being entombed in His humility, He raises us up with Him to radiate the light of His resurrection which enlightened all of creation. The altar call, and its dangers of works righteousness and false assurance is void of all the marvelous things that are found within the sacred heart of Jesus. We fail to realize that the heart of Jesus is the best place to be, for it is the heart of God and in it is the most sufficient work, the greatest righteousness, and the truest assurance. In our daily entering the heart of Christ we are as David who was after God's own heart, and when Jesus does enter into our sinful hearts He cleanses them and beckons us to further enter into His heart.

2008-11-21T16:31:00.000-08:00

I'm Back

Hello everyone, I have returned from the wonderful village of Seon in Argovia, Switzerland. The purpose for this trip was to assist my friend Jurg (who is a pastor in the Reformed state church) with his church's annual Gospel concert. During the trip we saw the Spirit of Lord move mightily in the lives of people of people, and we got to share the faith in most marvelous ways. I also got to see my precious Lal, and she assisted us as we ministered. Oh and to my dear friend Liz, she will be visiting the good old U.S. of A. in July (LOL!).

Pastor Jurg asked me to pray during the concerts......Lal translated for me

Lal's good friend Rebbecca and I between the last two concerts.

Lal Rebbecca and I.

Lal and I after seeing Rebbecca off.

Your's truly singing "Go Down Moses" with the choir.

Your's truly and the choir singing "Amazing Grace".

"Amazing Grace" continued.

We took it all the way back to Africa with the song "Amazaliwa".

Pastor Jurg preaching the Gospel with FIRE!

The choir singing the "Unser Vater (The Lord's Prayer)".

2008-10-17T19:30:00.000-07:00

How Could Anyone Not Want This?

Being a tent making pastor during my days of seminary, I have found myself earning a living among mostly unregenerate people. As for the so called Christians, they tend to be a bit lax and nominal in their representation of Christ (I say this taking into account that my own representation is not perfect). Out of all of the affects of the fallen nature, the affect that leaves me the most perplexed is the one on relationships.....especially marriage.

As I have been preparing to pop the question to my precious Lal (Hindi for "Beloved"), I have found that certain coworkers of mine will slip in their radically depraved opinions like, "Screw marriage.......I say find them, use them, and leave them before they fall in love with you". It amazes me at how these guys can live with the desire for endless, empty flings; even when they are married they promote such fowl things. They live for the flings like there is no tomorrow, and when you tell them of something greater they chastise you for it. Looking upon the picture above, I can't help but wonder how anyone could not want what I have with my precious Lal? How could you not want a person who is willing to be vulnerable with you as you are vulnerable with them? How could you not want true intimacy (which means "Into Me See")? Seriously, Abba Maximos the Confessor was right when he said that people think they have what is good, when in reality they do not.

2008-09-30T08:19:00.000-07:00

The Right Way To Do Theology Part I: The Arithmetic Method

As I have been delving into and enjoying the light of Patristics, I have gotten some interesting reflections into the process of doing theology. Sadly, much of what is modern Christendom goes about the process of understanding God as if they are doing basic arithmetic.......Something (Usually a human work) + God= A certain conclusion about God. Though this method of doing theology can produce some accurate conclusions about God, it is not the right way of doing theology. This "arithmetic method" does not even get one into the actual process of understanding God, but it uses God as a means to an intended end and furthermore it fits well with the scientific method used by those such as Richard Dawkins. The arithmetic method goes like this:

(1.) Observing a "Phenomenon" - Things such as poverty, abortion, Darwinism, war, gay marriage, drinking. These phenomenon naturally present a challenge to the Christian, and make their life uncomfortable.
(2.) Formulating a Question - How can the Christian stop the phenomenon that makes their life uncomfortable?
(3.) Creating a hypothesis (possible answer) - The Bible is seen as holding the answer to the phenomenon, but when its passages are applied it is in an eisegetical nature where one reads their own meanings into the text. But before looking to the Bible they have already concocted their own answer to the problem, and so the Bible serves as a means of divine justification for their answer. In the end they are not only eisegetical, but they resort to proof-texting......if they can find the right verses to support their hypothesis then they ultimately have God's support.
(4.) Testing the Hypothesis - With "God on their side" there is no need to actually carry out an experiment and critically think about their hypothesis, instead they deem it as the will of God. If there is any testing, it only takes place within a Christian context (usually of the person's specific theological tradition, or the movement of a certain Christian "leader") which will always result in the hypothesis being proved. In the end their experiment consists of no honest interaction between their hypothesis and true society.
(5.) Formulating the Conclusion - Since their hypothesis has been proven true and has divine justification, then it is an absolute law and objective truth.......it is God's will and God sees things as they see them. Thus if their conclusion is fundamentalist or liberal then God is a fundamentalist or liberal.

Truth is that the arithmetic method results in a God that does what we want him to do......he is predictable, we have him figured out, and thus we can wield his power. In the end the arithmetic method of doing theology is pagan, because it makes absolute magic formulas that we can apply to get our intended results; in arithmetic 2 + 2 cannot equal anything other than 4, and so we assume that SPECIFIC HUMAN ACTIONS + WHAT WE HAVE DETERMINED GOD TO BE cannot equal anything other than our intended results. It is sad to see people going about this sorry method of doing theology, because it only leads to disappointment. There are many times where people hate God because their absolute magic formula did not work, in other words they discovered that God IS NOT subject to being manipulated by their low grade witch craft. A lot of people will say that God said He would do this or that for them if they did this, and when you take them to the Word they find that He did not say it.....so not only does the arithmetic method begin with our own intentions, it also begins with a lack of truth when it comes to God's Word.

Yet this lack of truth in the arithmetic method shows us a lack of knowledge when it comes to the Word of God, and when God's people lacked knowledge in the Old Testament they perished for it (Hosea 4). The greatest danger about this method of doing theology is that it is deadly, for it begins with humanity and not God, and if it begins with humanity it is not theology at all........it is simply glorified anthropology that seeks to manipulate the divine.

2008-09-04T05:48:00.000-07:00

I'm Not Purpose-Driven.....I'm PREDESTINED

This morning I had an excellent time with the Lord as I plumbed the depths of His Holy Word, and prayed the Lorica of St. Patrick. My precious Lal and I have been going through the book of Romans in our private and corporate devotions, and this morning I was blessed by my favorite chapter (chapter 8). I am so thankful for Romans 8 because it shows that I don't have to get on the saddle with Rick Warren to have a "purpose driven life"; all I need to do is look to the Holy Scriptures. Blessed St. Jerome of Alexandria once said that when we read the Holy Scriptures it is God speaking to us, and this morning the Lord has told me that I am NOT "purpose driven".......I am PREDESTINED. Now at this some may say that I believe in a doctrine (election) that as Wesley once put it, "makes the blood run cold", and people say this because it is always put it into a framework of going to heaven or hell. But the truth is that predestination is about more than where we go when we die, Romans 8:29 starts off by saying:

"For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son....."

The truth is that those in Christ have been predestined for more than heaven (in fact Romans 8 makes no mention of heaven at all), we have been predestined to look like Jesus. And what is He besides the Son of God? In the Greek text of Colossians 1:15 Christ is called the "eikon tou theou" meaning "image of [the invisible] God"; Christ is the IMAGE OF GOD. When we look at the beginning of Genesis 1:26 we find God saying, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...."; in Genesis 1 we find that Christ is not simply the image of God, but He is what God created us to be. Furthermore if Christ is what we were created to be then our understanding of what it means to be human is way off, for in fully being the image of God, Christ is the most perfect example of what it means to be human. I must confess that such thoughts have crossed my mind before, but the magnitude of them has not hit me like they have this morning. I have realized that the reason God abhors sin is not only because it is rebellion against Him; He detests sin because it is inherently inhuman. Yet it is a tragedy when we look upon our sins or the sins of others and give the classic cop-out, "Well I am/we are only human."

I pray that we no longer persists in this foolishness of making excuses for shirking the pursuit of our God ordained destiny, and I pray that we abandon this "Wesleyan cowardice" (no offense to Wesley or Wesleyan folk.....I happen to love John Wesley) of letting our blood run cold as we strive to be "purpose-driven". I pray that we would have the intestinal fortitude to let our blood boil from a Christological destiny that burns with fervent heat and courage. Let us boldly accept the reality that we are PREDESTINED, and not for some marshmallow celestial abode that never ends, but being conformed to Christ and following Him and continuing our conformation through endless ages. And if we cannot have the courage to accept such a destiny and strive for it in this life, then heaven will be hell for us, because all there will be is eternal conformation to Christ.

2008-08-24T21:48:00.000-07:00

The Secret To Successfully Singing Black Gospel Music

On Halloween I will once again be embarking upon another wonderful journey to Switzerland, but my purpose for going shall not be my precious Lal. The purpose of this second journey will be gospel music, and I have been given the wonderful opportunity to be invited as a guest singer by the Reformed Church of Seon (click on the picture to the left to see details) where my friend Jürg von Niederhäusern is pastor. Jürg has to be one of the most amazing brothers in the ministry that I have ever come across, and during my first visit to Switzerland I had the wonderful privilege of singing with his church's gospel choir.

As I have been preparing for the coming concert in Seon, I have been asked to prepare a few words to give to those who will attend, and the only thing that comes to mind is my personal philosophy of Black Gospel music. In truth my philosophy is a conglomeration of the philosophies of several great Black Gospel artists (Rev. James Cleveland,Rev. C.L. Franklin, and Dr. Thomas Dorsey to name a few), but despite being a conglomeration of several philosophies, my personal philosophy of Black Gospel shares a common thread with them all. This thread that binds all philosophies of Black Gospel music is more than a common bond, it is the secret to singing Black Gospel music well. Now one might initially think this secret to be the Gospel itself, but the Gospel is the essence and foundation of Black Gospel music, and it too acts as a thread which binds it to all other genres of sound Christian music that are based upon and convey it......yet the Gospel is not the secret.

The secret to successfully singing Black Gospel music is rather simple......it is BELIEF, and furthermore BELIEF in the Gospel. Belief is the life-force of Black Gospel music, and it is what gives it its' passionate flare, upbeat spiritual atmosphere, and encouraging feel; in truth just as the Gospel binds Black Gospel music to all other genres of sound Christian music, so does belief bind it to them. Belief also binds Black Gospel music to the Gospel even more, and in this the power of the music is amplified for it radiates an endless and eternal source of power, and that is Christ Himself. Being so bound to the Gospel, Black Gospel music is all about Christ, for since the Gospel is it's foundation and is His story then He is its' foundation; Christ IS its' beginning, its' sustainer, and chief end......Christ IS its' very life-force. In being bound by belief, Black Gospel music finds itself in a deep and sweet fellowship with all other genre's of sound Christian music, and together they reflect a most complete image of the risen Christ and the eternal communion of saints unto our fallen world and its' fallen people.

Without belief Black Gospel music would simply be another ethnic choral tradition and its' many vocal and instrumental distinctives would not be expressions of a deep faith, but mere technical aspects and musical theory. I have found that the reason why so many choirs (especially secular choirs) sound so funny when they sing Black Gospel music (even if they can do the technical aspects well, and get a little rhythm) is because their goal is to sing "Black". But the goal is not singing like you are Black, the goal is to sing like you BELIEVE and if possible to sing with actual BELIEF. The same principle of belief applies to any style of music, and this is what sets the entertainer apart from the master; the entertainer just wants to perform a piece of music well, but the master wants the music to live and gives of their heart that the notes might be more than marks on the page. The entertainer will attempt and struggle to do numerous voice inflections in order to "sing with some soul", but the master will find voice inflections coming naturally and will even find them unnecessary at times as they sing from their soul. In the Black church we make a distinction between entertainers and masters when we say, "Anybody can sing, but not everyone can SANG".

When I look at Jürg's choir, I am amazed at how they outdo many of the great conductors and choirs I have sung with (and some of the them have been Black choirs); Jürg's choir may be a bunch of SwissGerman folks with interesting accents, but they sing like they BELIEVE and make Black Gospel music their music. But isn't what happens with Jürg's choir what is supposed to happen when people truly grab hold of the Gospel? It is no longer merely the story of Christ power over the human struggle with sin.....it now becomes their story where the risen Christ overpowers their own struggles with sin and frees them from death. The secret to successfully singing Black Gospel music is not singing like you are Black, it is singing with BELIEF.

2008-08-21T06:50:00.000-07:00

NO MORE Shot Glasses!

When Juanite Bynum's theology was somewhat biblical and bearable, she gave an excellent sermon titled "NO MORE Sheets", where she challenged Christians to break free from the strongholds of sexual immorality. "NO MORE Sheets" had a powerful impact upon many of my close Christian friends, and I marveled at the breakthroughs they experienced when it came to sexual purity. What was so wonderful about Bynum's message was that it essentially challenged Christians to do more than step it up in the area of sexuality, it also challenged them to step it up in their walk with Christ. As a minister I sometimes find myself saddened when talking to believers who feel empty and distant from their God, and they tell of how they miss the joys and wonderful experiences of the days when they became regenerate in Christ. Many times I find that the church challenges such believers to hold onto their faith, and God will eventually bring them out of it.

Now I must admit that I too have given people the classic remedy of "holding onto their faith", but in the end I have found that the solution is really "letting go". A few years back I was watching a really stupid and heretical movie (Dogma), and I heard a wonderful line about faith that really impacted me (LOL!); the movie begins with a Catholic woman who has lost her faith, and so she looks to her Jewish coworker for advice on how to find it again. Her coworker then reminds her of a Protestant seminarian that she had dated the previous summer, and then tells her of an illustration he gave on faith. "When you are a child faith is like a shot glass", says the coworker, "And that one little shot is enough to satisfy you for you are small, but as you grow up the cup becomes a goblet and the little shot is not enough......So you must meet the challenges of the bigger cup, and fill it with more than a shot."

When I now hear Christians wishing that they could return to their shot glass (a.k.a. baby Christian) days, I no longer tell them to hold on to the faith from their first days of regeneration. In truth they should let it go and step up to the "days of the goblet", they should realize that the emptiness, distance, and longings are sometimes indicators of growth and the need to step it up and live up to a new level in Christ. In letting go of the shot glass faith, one must place it into the hands of God who does not give them a new faith, but multiplies the old faith and fills the goblet to overflowing. When we let go of our shot glass faith, we give our faith a chance to grow and open ourselves up to more powerful and joyful experiences with our God......we go beyond knowing God for what He can do, and open the door to knowing Him for who He is. When we let go of our shot glass faith we also find ourselves one step closer to being conformed to Christ, for as we grow in our faith we become like Him. Yet God wants to take us beyond the goblet, and in His Holy Word we are given glimpses of a day when we shall receive a measure that is beyond our comprehension, for our eyes have not seen, our ears have not heard, and it has not entered into our hearts what He has in store for us. I believe that there will come a day when what was once a shot will be as the oceans themselves, and even then God will reveal unto us that there is more potential than this, and we will find that it will take a literal eternity to receive the greatest measure of what He offers us.

So with all this I say, "NO MORE Shot Glasses"........it is time for all who are in Christ to step up to the bigger vessel that He has placed before us, and behold as he doubles the faith that He gave us before. It is time for us to realize that the emptiness, distance, and longings call us to experience our God in greater ways, and they offer us a chance at deeper communion with him.

NO MORE Shot Glasses!

2008-08-17T02:18:00.000-07:00

My Pastor

Yes folks, this is the man that trained me for the ministry. Rev. Roland P. Whitcomb........crazy isn't he?

2008-08-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

Peter Pan Negroes

One of the many affects of radical depravity is that it hinders human development from being as God intended for it to be, and one areas of human development that is affected is becoming a true man. When I speak of becoming a true man I am not talking about physical changes, but I am talking about the psychological and spiritual changes that are necessary in order that a male human being might act Pauline and "put away childish things". Sadly a lot of the physically grown males of our society are unable to put away childish things, and many of them reject the call to psychological and spiritual maturity. As I went around North Minneapolis picking up kids for VBS, I could not help but be reminded of the reality of this issue, and its' prevalence within the Black community......in other words we got a lot of what I call "Peter Pan Negroes (PPN)" running around. PPN are Black men infected with PPV (Peter Pan Virus), and that is where physically grown men simply do not want to grow up and they live as if they are in Neverland. Race is NOT a factor in who can be infected with PPV; just like there are PPN, there are Peter Pan Euros, Peter Pan Asians, Peter Pan Latinos, and the list goes on and on.......every part of the human race has its Peter Pans.

Being that I am a male of the African phenotype, I will sweep around my own front door in this blog, and offer a solution to helping PPN leave Neverland. The solution for PPN has two parts, (1.) Regeneration in Christ followed by (2.) Conformation to Christ.

Solution Part 1: Regeneration in Christ
The root of the PPN problem is radical depravity which affects all forms of human development, and most PPN are operating out of the fallen nature and need to get regenerated. The goal is to do more than get them to hold a steady job, or take care of their kids......the goal is to have them become the men that God intends for them to be, and this is not possible without Christ. There are many PPN out there who hold a job and take care of their kids, but at the same time they are still in Neverland acting out of radical depravity. When a PPN meets the risen Christ he is more than a man who comes to work, he is a representative for the living God who works with honor and integrity; in Christ he is more than a meeter of needs for his progeny, he is father who is able to meet the greatest need of his progeny......CHRIST HIMSELF AND GOD THE FATHER.

Solution Part 2: Conformation to Christ
I am amazed at how many PPN go around professing regeneration in Christ because they grew up in or regularly attend Great Mount Carmel Baptist, A.M.E, C.M.E., COGIC, Apostolic, or Pentecostal Church/Cathedral/Christian Center/Tabernacle. A lot of PPN also profess regeneration in Christ because they prayed the sinners prayer when they were a child. Sadly many of these saved PPN are under the illusion of salvation, and furthermore this illusion is strengthened by this "once saved always saved" foolishness, which says that one can "walk away" from God and die rejecting Christ, but because they prayed that prayer they will make it to Paradise. The regeneration of the PPN tells them that their fate is secure because of their actions, but true regeneration says that ones fate is secure because of Christ. True regenerations is not once saved always saved......it is eternal security, and this eternal security calls for one to be conformed to Christ image, it says, "You MUST look like Christ." By imitating Christ the PPN acts like the man God intends for him to be, he leaves Neverland and takes the road to Glory land, he stop going along with his Lost Boys (who are also PPN) and starts to encourage them to be found in Christ. When a PPN is conformed to Christ he acknowledges the system but does not depend upon it or use it as a scapegoat for irresponsibility, he acknowledges the reality of racism but says "God is greater and His will be done" and he lives this out in his life. Conformation to Christ makes the PPN frustrated with his sinful and childish antics, and leads him to continuously seek mortification of the flesh and the putting away of childish things.

It is only by true regeneration and conformation that PPN will leave Neverland, but there is a third step in the process and that is that the church must have to courage to play Captain Hook. We must be willing to shoot them down from their fairy dust flights and challenge them to stop running with Tinkerbell. Sadly there are many Peter Pan's in the church, and many of them have the title of Reverend too; therefore Captain Hook must look at the PPN on his own decks as he looks at the PPN in the world. I pray that not only would our Black men be cured of the Peter Pan Virus, but I pray that all men would be cured of it......nevertheless we live in a fallen world and there will always be Peter Pans, I just hope that we can get more of them to leave Neverland before it is too late.

2008-08-09T18:26:00.000-07:00

Deliver Us From Infidelity Oh Lord

One of my favorite hymns is Rev. C.L. Franklin's composition title, "Wings of Faith". I love the chorus which goes, "It gives me wings. Two wings to veil my face. It gives me wings. Two wings to fly away. Wings of faith to fly away to be at rest. To be at rest. It gives me wings. Two wings to veil my face. It gives me wings. Two wings to fly away. And I'll fly away somewhere to be at rest. To be at rest." But when I think of the legacy of Rev. Franklin, I see a moment where he did not fly away on wings of faith to be at rest; I see a moment of infidelity. In failing to fly away on wings of faith he ended up with a painful divorce and a daughter out of wedlock by a teenager in his congregation. When I think of Rev. Franklin's moment of infidelity, I am filled with fear because I too am a minister and even within my own family one can find ministers who failed to fly away on wings of faith. One minister in my family left his wife because she stood on the Word and spoke out against dishonest actions within their denomination's leadership; he left her for a schoolteacher (who professed Christianity) and after the divorce he had the nerve to ask his former wife to be his woman on the side.

Other than Rev. Franklin and my relatives I know several other ministers who have fallen into infidelity, and this leads me to realize that it can happen to even the best of us. Sure I can boast regeneration in Christ (and I do BELIEVE in the power of Christ to save me from the power of sin), but all the ministers who have failed also boasted and boast regeneration in Christ. In the end I did a little research and found that what got all of them was the attitude that they were too regenerate to commit infidelity, they all thought, "It could never happen to me". What led many of them to infidelity was pride, which blinded them to their need to pray for and seek protection against infidelity as they entered into marriage. As I thought about these things I decided to muster up the courage and share my fear with my precious Lal, and during our daily prayer times we prayed earnestly for protection against the possibility infidelity and for God's blessing as we think of marriage. I know that prayer is not a fool proof protection against infidelity, for there are other essentials to guard against it such as open and honest communication. Nevertheless prayer is a good start and we both have found that it has allowed us to have better communication with one another........I pray that unlike those before me that I (AND my future bride) will fly away on wings of faith to be at rest from the restlessness of infidelity.

2008-08-07T09:22:00.000-07:00

Fun With Lal And Her Family

Lal's sister Sarah was leaving for a year in Costa Rica.....gosh I miss her too

All of us in the airport......I'm looking away to keep from crying

Lal's mother and I

Lal's father and I

Lal's mother thought we should visit the Alps after seeing Sarah off

The beauty of the Alps....or the beginnings of them

I was too choked up from seeing Sarah leave, and the Alps didn't help me......so Lal took me to the chapel of Philip Melanchton in his Melanchton's hometown of Bretten (where she also works)

Me and and my boy Phil

Me and my boy Martin

My and my boy John Calvin

Kisses for Lal

Kisses for me

2008-08-06T07:17:00.000-07:00

The Jesus Prayer: Our Defense Against Professing Christianity

The other day a friend of mine told me of a young mother who had lost her 7 year old daughter, and how the monste......I mean mother-in-law did not attend the funeral because the mother did not "properly" ask her to attend. Upon hearing this I was shocked at how this woman could assert that she had to be "properly" asked to attend her granddaughter's funeral (or that she had to be asked at all), but what really gets my goat is the fact that this woman "professes" regeneration in Christ. I am amazed at the number of people who boldly profess Christianity but act in a manner that is borderline demonic. They go around eisogetically quoting scripture and acting as if they are the best thing since communion wafers, and the whole time they go about doing destructive things which mar the church's witness.

But the purpose of this blog is not to complain about professing Christianity and its borderline demonic activity; the purpose of this blog is to offer a defense against professing Christianity, and that defense is confessing Christianity. If we are to fight professing Christianity, we who seek to truly exalt Christ must constantly live confessional lives, and the greatest means by which we can live confessional lives is through the Jesus prayer. The words of the this wonderful prayer are, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. AMEN.".........such a simple prayer this is, yet its' confession is one of great power. Unlike the professing Christian who disregards several essentials to the Christian life, through the Jesus prayer the confessing Christian acknowledges these essentials, which are:

1. "Lord Jesus Christ,- Christ Himself and His Lordship
2. Son of God,- Christ' Deity
3. have mercy on me,- The need for Christ' mercy
4. a sinner.- The reason they need Christ' mercy
5. AMEN."- Claiming that all those things which have been confessed would be so, or become the lives out reality in the life of the believer.

Truly our sure defense against professing is confessing, and in sincerely praying the Jesus prayer we do truly acknowledge who He is (our Lord), what He is (God), what He gives to us (Mercy), why He gives it to us (Sin), and what we really are (Sinners). When we live confessional lives we are as C.S. Lewis states in The Great Divorce, "people about the spreading of Christ rather than the spread of Christianity." The confessing Christian, be they Reformed or wishing they were Reformed (lol!), cares about Christ Himself and the lived out reality of His Kingdom. But the professing Christian only cares about religion and the reality of their affiliation with religious institutions; thus they can can claim Christianity and act in an un-Christian manner. As confessing believers go about confessing Christ, they must also encourage the professing to confess......confess His Lordship, confess His deity, confess His mercy, confess their need for His mercy, confess their miserable and helpless estate without His mercy, and more than all these things continuously confess that this confession be so in their lives.

Let we who faithfully pray the Jesus prayer always confess, and in our confession let us find humility that we might come before God with contrite hearts and love the professing who do not know Him, and always remembering that we too are no better than they.

"Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us, sinners. AMEN."

2008-08-02T16:11:00.000-07:00

Fun with my German relatives and my precious Lal

The Black Creole Reformer chillin........

.........and letting Onkel Frank do the grilling

My precious Maria (a.k.a. Lal - Hindi for "Beloved")

Aunt Karin pouring a little spot of tea

My cousin Justin making Lal laugh

My cousin Chris just waking up after a long night of soccer practice

My Cousin Lisa

All of us in downtown Frankfurt

At the church

Dinner with Lal's family

2008-07-28T22:49:00.000-07:00

I`m Thinking of Marriage

My old pastor used to say, "Opportunity does not knock.....it stands silently by waiting to be noticed, but most of the time we do not take it because we think it's an uneven exchange." When I look at the Swiss girl pictured to the left I can only think of my pastor's old words, and how she selflessly stood by in silence as I overlooked her in a one-sided relationship, and dates with some interesting women. Even after I ended my two year relationship that was headed for marriage, this Swiss girl didn't take advantage of me when my heart was broken, and put aside her feelings for me to pray for me (in fact she had gotten completely over me when she saw that I was staying in my previous relationship LOL!) and let my broken heart be mended. Yet even after my heart was mended she did not come to me with feelings (like I said, she gotten completely over me and moved on LOL!) and remained my friend in silence until I noticed her and realized that she was not an uneven exchange.......and so I have seized the opportunity, and will soon ask her to seize the opportunity to marry me (and I do have her father's blessing to marry her by the way).

Yet as I ponder upon seizing the opportunity to marry my Swiss Miss, I find that there are those who seize the opportunity to try and discourage me from doing so.......and what is sad is that they are family. These relatives are not discouraging me from marrying this good woman, but they are going step further and trying to discourage me from getting married all together. Their discouragement is not based on the fact that they think I'm not ready, but on the fact that they have had rocky marriages, and many of them have been married three times. It's funny to see how these same folks who abandoned our traditional courtship and marriage customs are now trying to make me stick to them.......most of them got married because they wanted to have sex and rather than wait to get married in the church, they rushed to the courthouse. But I will not go to the courthouse, and I am not seeking to marry for sex.......I am seeking to marry Lal for more reasons than I love her and she loves me. I want to marry her because:

1. She is a regenerate believer
2. She is not laden with drama
3. She seeks to be conformed to Christ and is frustrated when her sin hinders her conformation.
4. She loves Christ more than she loves me (that is a really important quality that my wife must have)
5. She seeks to glorify God in all she does, and challenges me to live for the glory of God.

When I think about the words of these certain relatives, I am saddened that they have made so many mistakes and entered bad and shabby marriages and that they are seeking to discourage others from it. I am saddened that I can't really go to my relatives to talk about marriage, because most of them are not really qualified to give advice......I can't look to them in a positive manner, I can only look at their negative actions and in not doing them I'll be doing the right thing. Despite my relatives` discouraging words I will continue to pursue Lal, and look to the Lord`s leading as I get ready to spend the rest of my life with her.

Lord please give me the wisdom and direction to not be as so many before me have been, let me be an example as I prepare for marriage. Let me do things differently that those who come after me will not have only mistakes to look at when it comes to seeing what it means to be and stay married.

2008-06-24T05:58:00.000-07:00

What Silence Is Truly Golden?

Those who know me know very well that one of the things I love to do is talk; I can sit for hours with someone and just happily chatter the day away......very few are the times where I am without words. Where I come from people tend to be very talkative due to our hospitable nature, but as my dear grandfather once pointed out, I have been given a double portion of our talkativeness. Though my talkativeness may annoy some (and I do apologize if it does), I value it greatly because there was a point in my life where I had been silenced. Upon moving to the Midwest I found that people were not as talkative as those back home, in fact I learned quickly that silence is more than golden........to some people here silence is as gold itself. In school I was called a chatterbox by teachers and fellow students, and in church I was rebuked for not being "salt and light" which make no sound. It was so confusing to me when well meaning (at least I assume they were) folks around here would constantly say, "You have wonderful and insightful things to say, but do you ever stop talking?" Of course I was crushed, and I was especially crushed when certain people offered to pay me to not talk for a day.

Out of confusion and brokenness I resorted to total silence, unhealthy shyness, and false humility in an attempt to go for the gold of silence. For years I held in many thoughts that I had and just went with the flow of things, but when I got to college where speaking was encouraged it was like a shaken champagne bottle had been opened. I exploded with all the things that had been kept suppressed within me over the years, and again I found people calling me chatterbox and challenging me to be salt and light for Jesus. But just as I began to resort to the effective remedy of years past, I found myself surrounded by good people who told me to keep talking.....in fact one professor called my ability to speak a gift, and encouraged me to perfect it through preaching and writing for the edification of God's people.

At one point I was shocked to see a certain professor bash the "gold" of so many people around here, and she added that though silence is one of many noble virtues, the silence that many were ascribing to was ungodly and hurt the Body of Christ. I was shocked to see a great number of people open up and start talking about tragic events that had taken place in their lives, and how they were not allowed to speak of them; some were sexually abused as children, and others had diverse emotional wounds that had never been healed. That day I learned that the silence that was deemed a blessing by so many was really a curse and a cover up, it was not golden or let alone even as brass, but it was as dark as soot. Back home we know dark silence too well, for there are many secrets that are not talked about in our families, and as a result there are deep wounds from our past and present that are not dealt with. It amazes me how some in my hometown are so open, yet so closed at the same time and one would not know their internal sufferings as they speak on of edifying things. In the end I found my people to be no different from those here, for we all suffer from and within a silence that is not golden.....the only difference is that some of us keep talking within and masks our pains in the joyful and edifying subjects with which we converse.

In these recent years I have searched for a silence that is truly golden, and the only golden silence I have found is what Bonhoeffer calls "spiritual stillness under the Word of God". Bonhoeffer writes:

"We are silent before hearing the Word because our thoughts are already directed to the Word, as a child is quiet when he enters his father's room. We are silent after hearing the Word because the Word is still speaking and dwelling within us. We are silent at the beginning of the day because God should have the first word, and we are silent before going to sleep because the last word also belongs to God. Silence is nothing else but waiting for God's Word and coming from God's word with a blessing."

I pray that we all have that stillness under the Word of God, and that we wait upon and come from it and find ourselves blessed in a silence more golden than the glorious rays of the rising sun. May we cleave to the Word, which St. Jerome called the most sure means by which our Creator speaks to us, and may we be silenced by the marvelous things He imparts unto us

(Take a moment of stillness under the Word by going here and just sitting back and listening....I guarantee that you will be blessed)

2008-06-18T15:35:00.000-07:00

Reform For The Right Reasons

If there is one person in history that I would love to go a few rounds in an empty parking lot with, it would be none other than King Henry VIII of England. Sometimes I ask the Lord if He could tell me where this man went after he died, because apart from being born radically depraved, Henry made sure that his deserving eternal damnation was confirmed a thousand times over. I mean seriously, how does one go to the lengths that this man did and not end up in hell? He "reforms" the church not so that people might be conformed to Christ and grow in His grace through the Sacraments, Holy Scriptures, and work of the Holy Spirit......this fool calls for reform simply so he can get a divorce because his wife could not give him a son (GRRRRRRRRRRR, just thinking about this makes me want to go and shoot something).

Yet as I think of Henry's "Reformation" within the church of his day, I think of the Reformation that I aspire to see within the church of my day. I long to see God's people gathering together to worship Him in Spirit and in truth under the leadership of ministers who rightly preach the Word and rightly administer the Sacraments. Though the Reformation I seek to see is a virtuous thing, as St. Gregory the Great points out in his timeless work Pastoral Care, within every virtue lies the possibility of vice; no matter how virtuous the Reformation I aspire to see may be, there is always the possibility of vice. Like old Henry, I too was born radically depraved and daily do things deserving damnation, even now there is enough sin in my writing this post to bring about my eternal damnation. But as I look upon Henry's Reformation I find that despite his vice filled reform for the wrong reasons, there were those who called for virtuous reform for the right reasons.

My own work in the efforts for a Reformation within the modern church has led me to realize that I too act out of vice at times and seek reform for the wrong reasons. I confess that I sometimes desire reform while being blinded by visions of a "New Geneva" arising from the shattered remains of the ghetto of American apostasy that Reformed theology might stand as the only Biblical theology. I confess that I sometimes desire reform in a spirit of anger and almost hatred, desiring to see the shameful downfall of heretics as they are crushed beneath an Evangelical Calvinistic juggernaut bearing a Christ of my creation. But despite the sinful vices within my reform for the wrong reasons, a most compassionate, merciful, and gracious Christ touches me with virtue, and I once again see reform for the right reason. Reform for the right reasons leads not to a "New Geneva" or the simple shaming of heretics, and it is not filled with anger and hatred. Reform for the right reasons leads us to the New Jerusalem, where heretics and sinners of diverse transgressions are granted absolution by the work of Christ and are filled with the Holy Spirit that they might live in eternal love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.......all endless virtues to the glory of God the Father.

2008-06-17T21:25:00.000-07:00

A New Hymn is Born

Title: Quddusun al-Masih
By: Minister Scotty J. Williams

Dedicated to the wonderful Richard Evans, Father Duane Pedersen, and His Holiness Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria (You are three of my greatest heroes, and I love you all)

~A call and response hymn written in Coptic, Arabic, and a little Greek and put to the tune of the Genevan version of Nunc Dimittis.~

http://genevanpsalter.redeemer.ca/genevan_psalter_files/nuncdimittis.mid

CALL:
Agios Pekhrestos (Holy Christ)
Ari-voythen eroy ([Jesus] Help me)
Genti emvo-ethos, (Be a help to me)
Ethrek sowti emmoi. (So that You may save me.)
Ethrek sowti emmoi. (So that You may save me.)
Esos eleison. (Jesus have mercy)

RESPONSE:
Quddusun al-Allah! (Holy God)
Quddusun al-qawi! (Holy Mighty)
Quddusun al-adhi! (Holy Immortal)
Quddusun al-Masih, (Holy Christ)
Quddusun al-Masih, (Holy Christ)
Esos Eleison Imas. (Jesus Have mercy on us)

CALL:
Pa-shois Pekhrestos, (My Lord [Jesus] Christ)
Dek-met aghathos, (May Your Goodness)
Mares tahoi enkowlem, (Come speedily to me)
Ethrek sowti emmoi. (So that You may save me.)
Ethrek sowti emmoi. (So that You may save me.)
Esos eleison. (Jesus have mercy)

RESPONSE:
Quddusun al-Allah! (Holy God)
Quddusun al-qawi! (Holy Mighty)
Quddusun al-adhi, (Holy Immortal)
Quddusun al-Masih, (Holy Christ)
Quddusun al-Masih, (Holy Christ)
Esos Eleison Imas. (Jesus Have mercy on us)

CALL:
Agios Pekhrestos, (Holy Christ)
Gosht e-ekhree egon (Look upon us)
Khen oo-val enna-eet (With the merciful eye)
Ente tek-met-aghathos (Of Your Goodness)
Ente tek-met-aghathos (Of Your Goodness)
Esos eleison. (Jesus have mercy)

RESPONSE:
Quddusun al-Allah! (Holy God)
Quddusun al-qawi! (Holy Mighty)
Quddusun al-adhi, (Holy Immortal)
Quddusun al-Masih, (Holy Christ)
Quddusun al-Masih, (Holy Christ)
Esos Eleison Imas. (Jesus Have mercy on us)

CALL:
Pa-shois Pekhrestos, (My Lord [Jesus] Christ)
Cho enikhren-kheten, (Implant in us )
Enno-heat ef-soo-ton, (An upright heart)
Ethren-esmo erok, (That we may bless You)
Ethren-esmo erok, (That we may bless You)
Eel pe Emmanoel. (God is Emmanuel)

RESPONSE:
Quddusun al-Allah! (Holy God)
Quddusun al-qawi! (Holy Mighty)
Quddusun al-adhi, (Holy Immortal)
Quddusun al-Masih, (Holy Christ)
Quddusun al-Masih, (Holy Christ)
Eel pe Emmanoel. (God is Emmanuel)

2008-06-13T16:17:00.000-07:00

Is the God of the Oppressed really the God of the Oppressed?

In hopes of doing a future PhD, and to make myself look better on the market for teaching college level, I am preparing to do a thesis on an alternative theological means of empowerment for Black people other then the current means we are utilizing (ex. Black Liberation Theology). While looking at the current theological means of Black empowerment I have been constantly seeing statements such as, "Black Theology holds that God is the God of the oppressed, and therefore His chief purpose is their liberation."........To be honest not only am I annoyed, but I am also bewildered at such a statement. Though God does care for the oppressed and their plight, thus making Him the "God of the oppressed", I wonder how much how the oppressed treat God plays into the grand scheme of things. Being that I am from an oppressed people, one of my biggest concerns is that many of my beloved people assume that what we have went through bears some sort of salvific merit.

I constantly get this feeling that many Black folks think that our struggle somehow makes us extra special within the sight of God, and this leaves me rather concerned. Truth is that we have entered into this world just as radically depraved and in rebellion against God as any other people, and therefore not only do we need liberation in the physical sense, but we are also in dire need of it in the spiritual sense. Now I understand that I may be sounding like Ole Massa back on the plantation when I say this, but we must not forget that just like Ole Massa and all our other oppressors, we too are fallen people separated from God by sin. We too must experience the reality of Accomplished Redemption through Christ alone and union with Him by the Holy Spirit that we might leave the reality of Radical Depravity that pervades our entire existence. Without the Accomplished Redemption that is in Christ, the oppressed are nothing more than sinful people living under the effects of sin (a.k.a. their oppression) and in this state God is not their God. Furthermore apart from Christ the oppressed (along with their oppressors) are the enemies of God because they are living in rebellion against Him though they experience injustice at the hands of sinful people.

At my previous statement many have said that I am being heartless towards the oppressed, for no human being deserves such injustices, and to this I say that the oppressed actually deserve worse then their oppression.....they deserve eternal damnation and total destruction because they are born in sin. But what of the efforts of liberation by people like Frederick Douglas, Harriet Tubman, Steven Biko, or Eddie Koiki Mabo.....are they all in vain? Though they became for thousands of people deliverers from tyranny, they could only deliver people from the shackles of slavery to their oppressors, but they could not deliver any of them from the shackles of slavery to sin. Without Christ what we perceive to be liberation is not liberation at all, for though we free people from their earthly plight, if we do not preach regeneration through Christ we will leave them bound in the very thing that resulted in their earthly plight and leads to eternal damnation.

If one who is oppressed is to experience true liberation, then the God of the Oppressed must first become their God through Christ Jesus. It is not enough for ones earthly situation to change, but just as their situation must change so must they be changed by God. Upon being changed they will be free from the cause of their oppression, and they will be found within the likeness of Christ that they might join God in carrying out His most wonderful work of liberation within this world......a liberation that far surpasses any liberation that we can offer. Liberation without Christ is not the liberation of the God of the oppressed, it is only humanitarian aid. It is Christ that set those such as Frederick Douglas and Steven Biko apart from many great liberators in human history, they did not go as far as they did by progressive socio economic and political programs.......they went as far as they did because of their faith, FAITH IN CHRIST. And if we in the black community look to our own legacy we will find that save a few, the majority of our liberators will tell us that they came this far by faith, leaning on the Lord Jesus Christ, and trusting in His Holy Word.

Is the God of the Oppressed really the God of the Oppressed? If they are outside of Christ, then He is not their God. But even outside of Christ He cares for them, and moves those who are in Christ to work with Him that He might be their God and they might find a most excellent and complete liberation.

2008-05-21T22:41:00.001-07:00

Scrapping Black Liberation Theology

When I first heard of James Cone, I was amazed that mainstream Black theologians actually existed; I remember getting a copy of his book, "For My People", and soaking it up like parched ground soaks up the rain. Yet Cone was only the beginning of my journey through the world of Liberation Theology, and within that world I found a soothing balm for the scars upon my ravaged Black-Creole soul. Within the balm of Black Liberation Theology I found a voice that seemed to invoke the recesses of my shattered dignity as a Black-Creole man, and for the first time in my life I was proud of who and what I was. But as Anthony Carter writes, "Overtime the balm became a toxin infected with nationalism and self-destructive humanism, and led to a nebulous view of man, sin, history, Christ, God, and the Holy Scriptures." In the end the very theology that was about my liberation was not only failing to liberate me, but was poisoning me and leading me to some wacky and un-Biblical conclusions.......and so I walked away from Black Liberation Theology looking for another alternative.

Now before I go on I would like to say that I am forever indebted to James Cone and other Black Liberation Theologians, and despite my objections to many of their conclusions I appreciate their hearts and still glean from their wisdom (I really like Cone's comparisons between the cross and the lynching tree). With that made clear I now wish to say that despite the good things it has done, Black folks should abandon Black Liberation Theology and scrap it completely. I do not say this simply because I am of the Reformed persuasion, in fact there are brothas who are not even of the Christian persuasion who completely agree with me (Warith Deen Muhammad for example). My issue with Black Liberation Theology is just as Warith D. Muhammad pointed out in a recent speech, "It weakens our ability to gain guidance from scripture to make ourselves a better religious community."

I have observed that in the hands of most critical realist theological types, the pitfalls of Black Liberation Theology are somewhat on a leash because they are still aware of the necessity of doing good hermeneutics (the art and science of biblical interpretation) of Scripture. In doing good hermeneutics one takes historical and theological reflection into account and gets into the context and original languages of a passage while looking to orthodox Christian perspectives on it. Sad to say but most of the people who hold to Black Liberation Theology have no idea what hermeneutics even is, and rather than being critical realists most are staunch fundamentalist or liberals, which in turns leads them to anti-intellectualism. Staunch fundamentalism and liberalism lead to anti-intellectualism because they both throw out good historical and theological reflection of Scripture for "my Bible alone and me" (fundamentalism), or "progress and looking beyond the 'outdated' things of old [this includes good hermeneutical methods]" (liberalism).

When one looks at a certain UCC crackpot who is light years from being Wright, they will see what happens when Black Liberation Theology gets into the hands of a staunch inept liberal......its pitfalls are amplified and do serious damage. Black Liberation Theology was meant to empower Black people that they might step forth in the Spirit of God and have an impact upon the world for Christ being secure in who and what they are. Yet these inept novices have taken it and made it a force of division and the idolatry of "Blackness" rather than what Cone, Washington, and other Black theologians meant for it to be. When I look at Rev. Wright wielding Black Liberation Theology I liken it to my four year old brother getting his hands on an assault rifle....absolutely NOTHING good can come out of it. Despite the good intentions of Black Liberation Theology, there are things within its basic makeup that automatically lead it to where Wright and all the other wrong people are taking it. Truth is that Black Liberation Theology automatically leads to division and the idolatry of Blackness, and we recently saw this when the political campaign of a certain young man was thwarted by the Wright words and Wright actions.

So what could replace Black Liberation Theology? In my opinion we need to develop an honest perspective of classic orthodox theological traditions (especially Western ones) and acknowledge the African presence within them. The problem is not that Western theological traditions are inherently evil, the problem is that they have been White washed and taught only from a Eurocentric perspective for the advancement of White folks. The thing I cannot stand about Liberation Theology folks is that they solely look to Eastern theological traditions (even non-Christian Eastern religions) and treat them as if they are immaculate, but even in them there are serious pitfalls that have led to the oppression of innocent people. One African friend of mine constantly bashes Western theological traditions, and the funny thing is that he fails to see that much of Western theology has African roots (Augustine, Tertullian, Origen, Macarius, Cyprian, Alexander or Alexandria, Athanasius, Cyril and list goes on and on). Though Western theology has been misused, many of it hermeneutical methods are quite good (though not perfect), and they keep on honest with the Holy Scriptures. At the same time I believe that as we look to Western theology and its African roots in an honest light, we should look to the East for it has some positive things to say to us and it too has African roots. As Black folks look at these classical theological traditions in a new light, they will not only find empowerment, but honest liberation through the only thing that truly liberates fallen humanity.....Christ Himself.

P.S. : And to my White brothers and sisters.....don't allow liberal guilt to get you to thinking that you have to support a theology simply because it is deemed "Black". If a theology (Black, White, Asian, or any other ethnicity) does not point to the true risen Christ, does not conform people to His image, makes Him a means to an end, and is eisogetical with the Holy Scriptures........then it is a bad theology and should be discarded.

2008-05-14T21:56:00.000-07:00

Is Unconditional Love Without Conditions?

As some of the Blessed Church Fathers were thinking about the omnipresence of God (God being everywhere) they wrote, "Pantahou paron kai to panta pleron" which means that God is "Present in all places and filling all things". Looking at the concept of God being present in all places and filling all things, some of the Fathers thought about what it meant for humanity and they wrote, "En auto zomen kai kinoumentha kai esmen" which means that humanity, "lives, moves, and has its existence" in God. In the Holy Scriptures , the Apostle Paul makes a similar statement in Acts 17:27-28 which reads, "That they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for 'In him we live and move and have our being'; as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we are indeed his offspring."

Piggybacking off of Paul and the Church Fathers, I would like to say that since God is love (1 John 4:16) then it is not just divinity but love that is present in all places and filling all things, and it is in perfect Triune love that we live, move, and have our being. There is not one square inch in all of the creation where perfect Triune love is not present, and therefore God loves all that He has created from the plants and smiling babes to the nebulas and celestial bodies at the farthest corners the universe…GOD LOVES IT ALL in perfect Triune love. Perfect Triune love is not far from anyone of us no matter what our circumstance......in the beginning it was love that said "LET THERE BE", and all that exists came into being. All things were made good because they were made in perfect Triune love, and we mere mortals are the offspring of that perfect Triune love. When the Church Fathers wrote that God is present in all places and filling all things, they were saying more than God is everywhere….they were also saying that God is intimately participating with us in the very life that we live. Triune love intimately participates in every aspect of our lives, and this means that unconditional love is somehow at work in our daily living. When most people hear of God's intimate participation through unconditional love in human life, they get all warm and fuzzy and immediately say, "God truly does love me".

Yet too often I am saddened to find that Satan deceives many into thinking that unconditional love has no conditions, and many in the church seem to encourage this by only preaching, "God loves you". But looking back to the Blessed Church Fathers, Martin Luther and John Calvin said, "Yes Triune love intimately participates in our lives and is unconditional, but it is not a love without conditions." Luther and Calvin remind us that it is not enough to look upon the world and simply say, "God loves you" we must also challenge the world by asking, "DO YOU LOVE GOD?....though being loved by God is wonderful, it is not enough. When Luther looks at this he likens it to the exchanging of rings in a wedding, where there must be an exchange of our ring of wickedness for Christ ring of righteousness; once these rings are exchanged Luther then says, "Thus the believing soul by means of the pledge of its faith is free in Christ, its bridegroom, free from all sins, secure against death and hell, and is endowed with the eternal righteousness, life, and salvation of Christ its bridegroom." (Martin Luther, The Freedom of a Christian: Vol. 31, pg. 351, 352)

Christ' eternal righteousness, life, and salvation are wondrous benefits, but they are only accessible to those who go beyond simply being loved by God. Calvin writes that these benefits are only possible when the love of God ceases in being an external factor, and becomes internal; Calvin writes, "How do we receive those benefits which the Father bestowed on his only-begotten Son—not for Christ's own private use, but that he might enrich poor and needy men?....First, we must understand that as long as Christ remains outside of us, and we are separated from him, all that he has suffered and done for the salvation of the human race remains useless and of no value for us. Therefore, to share with us what he has received from the Father, he had to become ours and to dwell within us." (Calvin, Institutes of Christian Religion, III.i.1.). It is not enough to have God's unconditional love, WE MUST MEET ITS CONDITION, and that condition is that perfect Triune and unconditional love must dwell within and change us that we might intimately participate back with God and love Him in return. The reason that He freely loves us with such a wonderful love is not only because He is love, but because He wishes for us to love Him in return.

And how do we love God?....Our Sweet Lord tells us that if we love Him we will keep His commandments (John 14:15), and what are His commandments that we should keep?....In Matthew 22:37-40 our Lord says, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets." We have already seen how loving God is the condition of unconditional love, but in the second greatest commandment we see the fruit of meeting that condition. The fruit of loving God is the love of neighbor as one loves self; we find that a love for God leads us to love what He loves, and that is people ........regenerate in Christ and unregenarate in sin, righteous and unrighteous......we love what He loves.

2008-05-08T23:23:00.000-07:00

R.I.P. MawMaw....It’s Been A Year Since You Left Us

I can't believe that as of today it has been a year since my Grandmother died, and despite the deep void I'm doing better than I expected. It seemed like when she was gone I thought I wouldn't be able to live anymore, but day by day it gets better and lifes gets more wonderful. Like the late Elder Ward, MawMaw was a grace case; she was saved by, lived by, and entered glory by grace through Christ alone and nothing else. As I think more about the loss of MawMaw I'm reminded of a wake/funeral song of remembrance among my people. The song goes:

You know all, all of my friends.....they all turning their backs on toward me,
That's why I'm coming home......
I'm coming back home.......
Because that's where I belong.

You remember when I come home......I want to start, Lord, start all over again,
I'm coming back home and meet my dear old mother,
Because that's where I belong.

I'm, I'm coming home.....
I feel.....feel so all alone.
I'm coming back home and meet my dear old mother,
Because that's where I belong.

Truth is that I realize now more than ever that like MawMaw I'm a grace case, I would not be here were it not for my Sweet Lord's marvelous grace which knows no end.....and it is His grace that will enable me to drink of the chalice of death in my appointed hour, and say in honor with my final breath, "I'm coming back home, and meet my Precious Jesus......Because that's where I belong."

2008-05-07T13:29:00.000-07:00

A Swedish, Norweigan, Danish Lutheran Joke For My Good Friend Liz

A Swedish, Norweigan, and Danish Lutheran all died after eating a bad batch of lutefisk. Upon arriving in heaven they were greeted by Blessed St. Peter who said, "Valkommen, Velkommen, and Velkommen good sirs, I am St. Peter and I've come to wish you a happy stay in the Life Everlasting. Because there's no sin around here you're pretty much free to do whatever you want, but we do have one rule.......DO NOT STEP ON ANY OF THE DUCKS AROUND HERE.....God kind of has a fondness for them, and takes stepping on them very seriously."

Well all three men just laughed, and said, "Hah, that shouldn't be to hard", but to their surprise ducks were everywhere, and it wasn't long until the Danish fellow had stepped on one of them. Immediately St. Peter appeared with a hideous beast, chained it to the Danish fellow, and said "For stepping on a duck you must spend the rest of eternity chained this hideous beast, and that goes for anyone who steps on a duck here." Leaving the poor Dane behind the Swedish and Norweigan went on their way, and after sometime the Swede stepped on a duck an was changed to a hideous beast for all eternity.

Leaving the poor Swede the Norweigan then said, "Wow, I'm the only one left. Well in that case I will be extra careful to avoid stepping on a duck". With that he was very careful to avoid the ducks, and went 1,000 years without stepping on one. As he sat quietly feeding some ducks and holding a duckling, he began to think about how Norweigans must be better and smarter then Swedes and Danes.......he had managed to avoid stepping on any ducks, and at this thought he began to laugh. Suddenly St. Peter appeared with the most beautiful women he the Norweigen had ever laid eyes on, she looked like one of the Valkyries from the legends of old, and her long blond hair nearly touched the ground. Before he knew it St. Peter chained the beautiful woman to him, and before the saint could say anything the Norweigan said, "I know, this is for eternity....I'll be chained to her forever right?". "Yes good sir," St. Peter replied, "You shall be chained to this woman for all of eternity", then turning to the woman he said, "And as for you madam I hope you realize that when we say that there are consequences for stepping on a duck , we mean business."

2008-05-05T12:21:00.000-07:00

Stained Glass and IPODS

Though many Evangelical church leaders are stepping up to meet the current need for a deeper faith community, I feel that their attempt to meet the need is rather one sided because they are only dealing with discipleship aimed at right belief. Now some may say, "But discipleship for orthodoxy builds community", and though this is true it does not fully build a faith community. Though our current efforts for discipleship are producing theologically aware people who find some form of community, many of these people are still feeling that something is missing.....that something is an awareness of catholicity. What pisses me off about so many of my Reformed brothers and sisters is that they have no awareness of the ancient roots of the Reformed faith, they act as if Reformed theology began with a rebellious monk (Luther) and three Johns (Calvin, McArthur, and Piper), but our faith goes back to St. Augustine and the Church fathers. What makes me even more irate is that many happy Protestants have no idea what the Reformers meant when they said Sola Scriptura.......they did not mean that we are to read Scripture outside of tradition, they meant that as we read Scripture within our traditions that we always remember that though tradition has authority it is secondary to Scripture which is the final authority under the Holy Trinity (read Alister McGrath's book "Reformation Thought").

As the Reformers defended themselves against their critics, they always stated that they were not innovators and that as they articulated the beautiful truths they held to, they were looking back to the saints before them....thus they were still a part of the catholic faith though they had split with Rome. The first Protestants also called themselves catholic, because they believed that despite their break with Rome, they were still in alignment with the Church Fathers......in fact the Reformers were constantly making direct quotes from the Church Fathers. Up until our modern era, believers always saw themselves as a part of something that went back to the days of antiquity in the very life of Christ itself, thus the saints of old always played a significant role in the lives of believers despite the fact that some of our traditions do not venerate them. To my Reformed folks who think that the Puritans only had the Bible alone, this is a total fallacy; being good Reformed folks the Puritans loved St. Augustine, and they also treasured and read St. John Chyrsostom who was a big favorite among them. Despite being against the Church of Rome and its practices, even the Puritans considered themselves as a part of the one holy, CATHOLIC, and apostolic church that went back to the days of antiquity.

I am honestly saddened that much of Evangelicalism lacks solid catholicity, and as a result people are starting to go for a faith that a good friend of mine states is characterized by "stained glass and IPODs". Though people want the church to go forward and speak to this present era (IPODs), they also want the voices of the past to speak to their faith and play a role in their Christian life (stained glass). If we had a more solid catholicity, there would not be such much mass hysteria when another Richard Dawkins pops up, for the ancients would remind us that they too faced their own Dawkinss and that the truth of Christ remained secure. In hearing the voice of the ancients we will then find that along with the most perfect defense rendered unto us by Christ, we have a most powerful and blessed defense rendered unto us in the living faith of our dead. If we had a more solid catholicity we would realize that we are a part of something bigger than what we see today....an elect faith community that goes back 2000 years into the very life of God and incorporates the lives and experiences of spiritual giants now seated in heavenly places.

2008-05-04T20:01:00.000-07:00

Walking Alone

For the past few months I have been keeping to myself and besides the occasional visit and phone call to or from certain people, I have been in a season of walking alone. It is interesting to go through such a season, and to just focus, reflect daily, and make important decisions. One of the things I have been doing is evaluating certain relationships, and having to cut some folks off, and this makes it hard to go through this season of walking alone. I recently told my mother of my having to cut some folks off and as usual she sarcastically said, "Well good riddens......sometimes you have to clean house so that you can make room for more meaningful and beneficial relationships, and focus on the meaningful relationships you already have. When you do this you will find more sanity."

Despite my reserves about my mother's sarcasm, she is right and I am currently seeing her words coming to pass. About a month ago I had to let a certain person go, and when I did I found that a lot of the drama I had been experiencing ceased....funny thing is that it was not even my drama, but drama that this person kept bringing on in their own life. The thought of cutting this person out was hard, but when I did it God brought other people into my life, and not just any kind of people......through my good friend Richard, He brought people such as Father Duane Pederson (the same guy that helped to found the Jesus People Movement) into my life. It is so refreshing to be around people who are not ashamed to talk about being conformed to Christ, and who don't take the things of God as almost a joke for the sake of relevancy to people who do not really care for God. It is also refreshing to have these same people challenging me in my own conformation to Christ, and respecting my contemplative life as I go through this season of walking alone.

Yet the greatest thing that I find in this season is that I am encouraged to press on by the saints of old, and everyday I am reminded that as the Church Fathers once wrote "Pantahou paron kai to panta pleron (The Divinity id present in all places and filling all things)." Though it may seem that I am alone, I am not alone, for God is present even in the place, and fills it in all His grace and love.

2008-04-25T12:05:00.000-07:00

Proverb of the Day

I wish some brothers in relationships would look at the picture (I think I'll make a t-shirt of this picture LOL!), and learn this proverb:

"Half of a man's wisdom is lost between the legs of a woman."

2008-04-24T08:22:00.000-07:00

What Suffering People Really Need

Right now I am on the verge of tears after receiving the news that a fellow seminarian and friend lost his 2 year old daughter; while in the middle of a church plant meeting yesterday, we received a call to notify us that little Nora had fallen from an apartment window and died. It leaves you speechless to think of this family's suffering, and how they will never be the same......no parent ought to bury their child, and it breaks my heart to once again see this with someone I know. But what breaks my heart even more is how I know certain Christians (especially some Reformed folk) are going to respond to this; they will make the stupid and rather sad attempt at trying to answer the "whys?" that come about in tragedies such as these. What gets to me about the Western American Evangelical church is it's lack of a theology of suffering or death, and this lack results in us trying to answer all the "whys?", and leave us with no means of how to deal with suffering and death.

I remember the many times I went through loss and suffering, and sat back as Christians tried to theologize and explain things away; they try to tell you if the person is in heaven, or they try to tell you how God is at work in the situation. Truth is that it is not our responsibility and place to play the part of the theologian and try to answer questions in regards to people's loss an sufferings because we simply don't know. What else saddens me is that our current culture seems to condition people to seek the "whys?", and when a minister admits that they do not know the answers they are deemed as useless. When my grandmother was dieing an uncle of mine said to me, "As a man of God you ought to have faith, lay hands on her, and heal her.....where is your faith Rev. Williams?" Truth is that save faith in Christ being the Son of God, I had no faith, and it was in this state that I went to Grandmother's bedside; I then did the typical minister stuff...I read from the section for the dieing from the Book of Common Prayer, anointed her with oil, and then said my own little prayers for her. When it was all over she gave me a look as if this was not enough, and I saw that she was wondering why God was letting her die of cancer when she served Him diligently, ate right, and didn't smoke or drink. Upon seeing her face I said,

"MawMaw right now save faith in Christ I have no faith, I do not know or understand why God is letting all this happen to you.....it seems that it shouldn't be this way because you have served Him faithfully and loved Him more than anyone I know. If I could lay hands on you and bring down all the powers of heaven that you might be healed I would, but healing is God's choice and His alone. Grandmother I can't promise you healing, though I would love to. But there is one thing I can promise you....I can promise that there is a God. I can promise you that He created the heavens and the earth. I can promise you that He is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. I can promise you that He is Triune....Father Son and Holy Spirit, and that the Son gave His life to accomplish our redemption. I can promise you that He dwells within us by the Holy Spirit. I can promise you that He is providential. I can promise you that He loves you. I can promise you that He is beneficent and merciful. I can promise you that He sees all things and cares. I can promise you that His Paradise awaits those who are faithful to Him. I can promise you that all things good or bad work together for those who love Him. And in all this I promise you that no matter what happens, He will never leave you nor forsake you, and that this great God is with you right now holding you in the hallow of His hand, and with Him I also hold you."

After saying all this I watched as she took my hand and said, "Thank you baby....thank you." I left her still having to deal with the pain of her cancer, and I still had to face the pain of the chastisement of foolish friends and family, but from that experience I learned what suffering people need. As wonderful as my Reformed theology is suffering people do not need a Reformed or any other kind of systematic theological discourse from anyone....what suffering people need is a vision of who God is, and for someone to get in the darkness and cry with them. We are not called to answer the "whys?", we are called to help others bear their crosses as St. Simon of Cyrene helped our Lord bear His cross. I have five words to say to those whose only response to suffering people is cold, wooden literal, systematic theological statements.....PLEASE SHUT THE HECK UP, please just stop talking and trying to answer questions you can not answer, and silently bear the pains of the other person in compassion and love.

2008-04-19T21:42:00.000-07:00

"The Church Is Not Burger King"
~God~

Due to a slight sickness and fatigue I was not able to go and happily slave away at my second job.....so I called in! As I have been resting I have been relaxing to one of my favorite compositions called Path of the Wind. Whenever I listen to this piece my mind careens back to recollections of the past, and tonight I remembered a rather comical rebuke that I received when I first entered the ministry. I had almost completed my ministerial training and with a pocket full of church growth strategies, I gave my pastor the answer to all our church's problems. "ABANDON TRADITION", I boldly proclaimed, "AND GET MORE UPBEAT MUSIC."

Truly I felt that I was the answer to my church and all of the church's problems, but the worst part is that I deemed my pastor's philosophy of ministry as irrelevant. I had grown accustomed to a Word of Faith mega-church setting where I could get my skinny decaf mochaccino before the service, enter the sanctuary with its comfy theater style seats with cup holders, and receive my weekly self help sermon. After telling my pastor what I really thought of his ministry I walked away saying, "Ha....I showed him", but little did I know that God was about to show me, for when I got home He gave me a good rebuking that went something like this:

God: Hello Scotty!

Scotty: Hello God!

God: So My dear child, I hear you're a Calvinist these days?.....And you believe I called believers to salvation before the world began?

Scotty: Why of course, You even knew that I would be Reformed before the world began LOL.

God: That's good, that's good.....So you believe that the church is My elected people gathered together in Jesus' name?

Scotty: Why of course, you know my every thought......therefore You know that I believe that the church is Your elected people gathered together in Jesus name.

God: Then why are you treating My church like it is Burger King?

Scotty: Why Lord I don't know what You mean...I.....I....I'm confused....I mean, I'm not getting burgers and fries from the pulpit.
God: But if you could have it that way you would.

Scotty: No I woul.....

God: Scotty, don't even say it. Remember who you're talking to.

Scotty: Yeah....I'm talking to God. But I would use the burgers and fries to bring attract people that they might come to the church and be saved.

God: So you're saying that the church has to do all this extra stuff in order for people to be drawn unto me. What happened to My sufficient grace and Me drawing people unto Myself by My own power? What happened to the work of My Spirit?

Holy Spirit: (Speaking in Scotty's heart) Yeah what about my working in people's hearts?

(Scotty looks down in shame)

God: Let's be real Scotty, all you want is a church where people are entertained, and if you want that there are plenty of them out there. But entertainment is just entertainment. Scotty I have placed you under Pastor Whitcomb's ministry so that you might truly become a minister of My Gospel and not some entertainer in the pulpit.

Scotty: But Lord what is wrong with making one's ministry attractive?
God: Nothing, but when it all about the ministry and not about the God behind it, then the ministry is worthless.....I am what saves people and it is My voice that calls them unto salvation through My Son, not burgers or fries or a "cool" worship band. It is My voice that calls them unto Me.

(Scotty again looking down in shame)

God: The church is NOT Burger King. The church it is My elected people gathered in the name of My Son. If you want to build a Burger King, then leave the ministry and go into the fast food industry. But if you want to build a church then repent and realize that things will be going My way, and no you CANNOT have it your way.....My church is NOT Burger King.

2008-04-17T23:14:00.000-07:00

さとし (Wise) - A New Identity

"From now on your name shall be さとし (Satoshi)", she said walking away giving an illusive East Asian smile. During the four years Mrs. Satoh taught me Japanese she never called me Scotty, she always called me Satoshi. I wasn't the only one she gave a Japanese name, she gave all her students a Japanese name and almost never called any of them by their true first names. Nevermind that we were all Americans of diverse ethnicities, while we were under her kind instruction we were Japanese and she expected us to act in a manner befitting Japanese students. She also expected us to act in a manner befitting the meanings of our new names; my name (Satoshi) meant "wise", and so I was expected to be wise. Satoh Sensei was not blind to what we really were, and many times she inquired about our different cultures with great interest...but as her students we were also her people. Even when we happened to see her outside of the classroom she called us by our Japanese names, and this reminded us that our new identity went beyond the classroom and into everyday life.

After a while I found myself so immersed in my new Japanese identity that I would unknowingly introduce myself to new people as Satoshi, and there were times where I would find those around me saying, "Scotty, please stop saying HAI and just say YES when I ask you a question." When I stepped into stores that sold Japanese products, it was so cool to see how I knew the hiragana and katakana characters and could partially make out words. But though the new reality wrought by my new identity was wonderful there were times where my love for Japanese things caused trouble. I was mocked by friends and even family members for learning Japanese; I remember the stupid jokes about me not being Black enough and trying to be something else, I remember people encouraging me to take a more "useful" language like Spanish. My classmates also faced the same jokes and discouragement from friends and family, but despite this when we were in class we encouraged one another in the growth of our new Japanese identities and we were able to endure. The bond we had was so cool, and it was wonderful to see how our bond crossed our distinctives and made us one; when we saw one another throughout the school we would converse as much as we could in Japanese, and it felt like we were a part of some secret society that no one else could enter.

As I reflect upon my years of learning Japanese I realize that it taught me what life in Christ is really about. When we are regenerated by the Holy Spirit, Christ gives us a new identity where we are no longer called children of wrath, but children of God. We are expected to live up to this identity to the point that it goes beyond the Sabbath meetings and permeates our everyday lives; we will find ourselves talking differently and joyfully understanding and appreciating a whole new world that we previously could not understand or appreciate. Yet as we joyfully experience life in our new identity we find that there are those (be they friends or family) who will scoff at us, and encourage us to take back our old identity or make us into something else. Nevertheless we must endure the scoffing and discouragement and encourage one another when we assemble together during Sabbath meeting or when we see one another in everyday life. In the midst of everyday life we must boldly interact with one another in our new identity, and in this interaction we will find that we all share a bond that crosses all our distinctives and makes us a part of something that most of those around us can not enter apart from God. This is the new identity for those who are in Christ, and we must live up to it.

2008-04-15T23:31:00.000-07:00

The End Is Near

I remember the initial shock I received the day I stared the end of my college days in the face; looking upon my transcript I realized that I only had six courses left and then I was done. Yesterday morning that same initial shock returned, as I found myself staring the end of my seminary days in the face.....this time I only have three classes left. It is hard to believe that I will soon be donned in an academic robe to follow the processional cross to Bethel's chapel and be declared a seminary graduate.

As I think about the end of seminary, I ponder upon how far He has brought me.....it's crazy that my Lord has enabled me to do so much at 25 years of age. To be honest I'm not only shocked, but I'm also rejoicing because these things assure me that the doctrine of election is indeed true. Right now I should not be graduating from seminary if one looks at where and what I come from....right now I should be back in Sarepta, LA hauling puckwood at the paper mill, but God in His sovereignty saw otherwise. Speaking of puckwood, I remember when it was my dream to haul puckwood (LOL!) and eventually marry a hazel eyed gal from Cotton Valley who would look after a little farm I would have and accompany me when I went to churches to preach.

Oh I thank God that such a dream did not come true, for He has given me something beyond my most wildest dreams or imaginations. He has allowed me to get the education that my ancestors prayed for their descendants to have the opportunity to receive, He has allowed me to return to Africa on behalf of my family, and He has allowed me to become a minister of the Gospel and not a clerical crook who pimps the Gospel. I pray that as my siblings see me obtain my Master's degree that they go forth and do greater things than I have done, and at even younger ages.....after all they have been much of my inspiration these past six years. Thank you Lord for the wonderful time in seminary; let me finish well, and humbly go forth for Your glory into all that You have predetermined for me to do. AMEN.

2008-04-10T19:10:00.001-07:00

Fornication

Abba Cyrus of Alexandria was asked about the temptation of fornication, and he replied, "If you do not think about it, you have no hope, for if you are not thinking about it, you are doing it. I mean, he who does not fight against the sin and resist it in his spirit will commit the sin physically. It is very true that he who is fornicating in fact is not worried about thinking about it."

~Abba Cyrus of Alexandria~

2008-04-06T07:01:00.001-07:00

Off To Monastery

Hey Everybody, I'm just making this post to let you all know that I will be out of commission this week due to a need to replenish my strength and bask in the light of divine things......so I am off to the monastery again. Save my classes and small group at Bethel Seminary, I will be out of commission until the end of this week, and if I'm up to it after the week is done, I will possibly stay in monastery a little bit longer. If you wish to contact me please email me at stmoses_cell13@yahoo.com, and I will gladly shoot you a reply upon receiving your messages.

Be Blessed,
~Frère Williams

2008-04-04T15:41:00.001-07:00

Not Caring And Not Giving A Ripp

For the past month I have been able to just sit in peace for the first time in years, and not play priest for people with self inflicted drama. If there is one thing I have learned from befriending Lutheran clergy, it is the necessity of applying this proverb without guilt, "It’s not that I don’t care, I just don’t give a ripp (the laity actually use a stronger word if you get my drift...LOL!)." Now this proverb may seem cruel to some, but let me break it down you for as I did for my dear friend Sola Gratia (Sola for short) the other day. On the surface not caring and not giving a ripp seem to be the same thing, but in fact they are quite distinct; you see not caring is a total disregard for anything having to do with people’s problems, but not giving a ripp pertains to what you specifically don’t care about in regards to peoples problems. As I told Sola, an example of not giving a ripp would be, "I care about what you think of my theology, but I don’t give a ripp about what you think of my cooking. LOL!"

It is such an attitude that I have chosen to have when looking at folks and their personal drama; it’s not that I don’t care about the people....I just don’t give a ripp about their self inflicted drama. What I have found is that people with self inflicted drama are nothing but takers, they love for you to call them and they love for you to grant them advice and some sort of absolution for their actions, but when you need this in return they don’t offer it to you. Now some may say, "Well Frere....you’re a minister, and people are going to do that to you." But takers do this to more than ministers, they leach off of people who have a genuine giving spirit, but when the giver needs to take they give them nothing in return. Takers are like vampires, in the end they drain you and leave the remains to find another host. What is sad is that it took me years to get to this point, and sometimes I find it a struggle because folks (mainly takers) will look at me and say "Be the ’BIGGER PERSON’ Frere".

Well to such people I say, "Why don’t you be the ’BIGGER PERSON’....STOP getting yourself into the rubbish you get yourself into, and STOP moooching and actually contribute something beneficial to your relationships." The killer is that when these takers actually do contribute something, it’s a half-bummed contribution and they would have been of more help not contributing in the first place. So with that I’m done with all these bass ackwards mooching people for a while; NO MORE PLAYING PRIEST. And if such people come to my confessional they will hear these words, "It’s not that I don’t care, I just don’t give a ripp."

2008-04-02T02:20:00.001-07:00

What Should Christian Women Wear?

+ = One Happy Preacher

After reading my Proverbs 31 woman post, a friend asked, "So if you don’t like the whole church lady 3000 (big church hat, church shoes, church dress) get up...then what do you like for a Christian woman to wear?" Well my answer will surprise you.......I think that a beautiful Christian woman should wear overalls (but not the Hardware Hank handyman kind) and toe socks....rainbow toe socks. Now some of y’all might be laughing at this, but let me explain my reasoning.

I’m a plain old country boy at heart, and thus I tend to like women who dress with a countryish element to them; at the same time I like the urbanish element and thus the overalls cannot be Hardware Hank handyman overalls...they have to be the descent kind that you see on a girl who majored in studio art or literature. As for the toe socks....well I just happen to like toe socks, for some reason they look really good on a woman’s feet...especially the rainbow kind. Rainbow toe socks are not only cute, but they give off a kind of kiddish/playful element that says, "Yes I love the Lawd and take my faith seriously, but don’t worry, I’m not a church lady 3000 LOL."

2008-03-30T07:51:00.001-07:00

Life Together = The Abundant Life

Due to a co-worker getting incarcerated and another going to the psyche ward, I had to stay late at work and ended up missing Sabbath Meeting this morning. You better believe that I was not the least bit happy about missing a Sabbath Meeting, and it sucked calling elder Jim to tell him that work was keeping me away from my ministerial responsibilities. While weeping and gnashing my teeth at the thought of missing weekly fellowship, the opening words of St. Basil of Caesarea’s liturgy came to mind:

"Blessed is our God at all times, now and always and for ever and ever. HEAVENLY KING, Consoler, the Spirit of Truth, present in all places and filling all things, the Treasury of blessings and the Giver of life, come and dwell in us, cleanse us of all stain, and save our souls, O Good One."

I really love the part that talks about God being present in all places and filling all things (it’s so deep), but it implies more than just God being in all things; it implies that God is participating with us in the very life that we live. Such a thing brings tears to my eyes as I write this, I mean think of it....the most relevant being in the universe participating in the life of beings that are nothing compared to all the other wonders in the universe. But what makes me shed tears even more is the fact that God not only participates in my life, but He also demands that I participate back; He demands that I simply do life together with Him. One of the downfalls of the holiness teachings that I grew up with was that they only emphasized what I was saved from and failed to tell me what I was saved to (in many cases Reformed teachings fail in this area at times). It is wonderful to know that I am not saved to simply abstain from sin, but to do life together with He whose grace was and is greater than all my sins. As our Dear Lord says in John 14:23 "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him."

When I visit other people’s homes, they always say, "Make yourself at home", but in truth I wonder if they would really let me make myself at home. To me "make yourself at home" means that I can kick off my shoes and walk around barefoot, open the fridge and eat whatever I want, walk around in my boxers in the morning, leave a dish or two unwashed, drink out of the carton at times, and leave a few articles of clothing on the floor (y’all can see that I’m a bachelor LOL). Now regardless of whether my definition (or anyone else’s) of "make yourself at home" is orthodox, there is a universal principle for us all, and that is that lives must be rearranged. You see, when God steps into anyone's life and says, "Let’s do life together", it means that they must rearrange the way they have always lived; they must rearrange things so that He can walk around the house of their heart in His most Holy undergarments, open the fridge, and drink from the carton. Sure it sucks at first, but after a while one gets used to it; nevertheless the changes one make in order that He might be at home do not leave them short-changed, but benefit them greatly, make them into a better person who is in right relationship with their Creator.

But the greatest benefit of life together with God is that it enables us to do life together with other people in a way that crosses all types of barriers. Being in right relationship with God just doesn’t stop with you and God, it overflows into relationships between you and other people and allows you to be in right relationship with them. The reason I hate missing Sabbath Meeting so much is because it is a chance to be with God’s people and publicly reflect to a world of wrong and broken relationships, what it looks like when people are in right relationship with one another. I believe that life together with God and other people in right relationship is the abundant life that so many who follow the prosperity pimps are seeking.....I tell you the truth, I would rather have the good heart-felt relationship that I have with my mother than all the money and perfect health in the world and the conflict that she and I had for years. People ask me why I have embraced pacifism as a way of life, and my response is that I want to do life together with people, be they Christian or non-Christian, and in this reflect my life together with God that they might be drawn unto Him by His grace in my life.

In light of my last post, I would like to say that the ultimate reason I don’t want the Proverbs 31 woman is because I can’t really do life together with her. Oh how I look forward to the day when the unlucky woman who cages me will do life together with me, and together we will reflect this abundant life to our children. I pray that through life together within my own family, that those around me will look upon my house and see God extending His hand in all His grace, seeking to do life together with them.

2008-03-27T09:36:00.000-07:00

Hey Proverbs 31 Woman.....
KEEP AWAY FROM ME

As a minister it really bugs me when I'm told that I need to find me a good ole stereotypical Proverbs 31 gal, and everytime I find one that says she is one, she ends up looking like the sister in the picture to the left. Worst of all, she is nothing like the woman that is described in the text; I'm like this, "So you love Lord...thats cool. But where is the vineyard you planted (v.16)? Why ain't you got wool and flax (v.13) to make me a new sweater (v.19)? Why ain't you up cooking my breakfast at dawn (v.15), and why can you not cook at all? And speaking of cooking, why is it always something American and local, where is the food from afar? (v.14)..... make me some Ethiopian food."

What is sad is that they will end up accusing you of eisogeting the text (reading your own meaning into it), and say that it is talking about being a "virtuous woman". But then I ask them are they really virtuous, or are they just donned in the vestments of what we think is a virtuous woman in the 21st century?....you know the TBN female minister type, that is like a militant preacher and dresses as if she is Church Lady 3000. The one who flaunts her independence and makes you say, "Good God....she is like a Hilary Clinton in the Spirit." Such women I find are anything but virtuous, and many of them use the Bible as a means of emasculating a brother rather than affirming his manhood in Christ. Also such women don't really want to be challenged when it comes to being a woman of God and letting you lead as the man in the relationship. In the end in order to be with her and be happy you must be the man she wants you to be, and not the man that God demands you to be in the Holy Scriptures. The ultimate reason I don't want a stereotypical Proverbs 31 woman is because she does not challenge me to be a man of God in the right way, and she does not wish to be challenged to be a better woman of God. I have had too many dealings with these women and every time it's me who needs to change, every time it's me not following the Spirit's guidance, every time it's me who is doing all the work and ending up becoming a Pslam 102 man.

At the same time I feel really bad for sisters sincerely seeking to be virtuous women, but are donning the vestments of the stereotypical Proverbs 31 woman because of the current examples they are being given; such an appearance will immediately ward me off. Sometimes I wonder if our happy Christian culture has any idea what the Proverbs 31 woman really looks like, and if we are even interpreting this passage correctly. In light of a recent class I had on Biblical Wisdom literature, I wonder if this verse is even meant for 21st century believers. Nevertheless until something is figured out, I'm gone take the advice of King Lemuel's mother in Proverbs 31:3 which says, "Do not give your strength to women, your ways to those who destroy kings." I'm tired of being weakened from giving my strength to the so-called Proverbs 31 woman, and with this I say "Proverbs 31 woman....KEEP AWAY FROM ME."

2008-03-25T13:17:00.000-07:00

The Birth Of A Book: "Buktu's Well" Illustrations

I have decided to fill my spare time with a new hobby so that my mind is not idle, but at the same time doing something productive. So I have taken up the hobby of book making, and am currently working putting one of the longest poems I have ever written (220 verses I believe) into book form with my own personal illustrations to it. The name of the poem is "Buktu's Well". These are a few of my illustrations of the main characters found throughout the poem.

This is the Amanitore the Kandake of Meroë, and the main character meets her in the the City of Ages where he finds Aletheia in her care. She is one of the second of the three guides that leads the main character throughout his journey to the Scholar's Paradise. Amanitore leads him through the City of Ages. The Symbol on her forehead is the letter "K" in old South Arabian, and the markings on her face symbolize the constellations and her knowledge of the many ages that have passed and are yet to come.

This is St. Athanasius the Great, who is the first of three guides that lead the main character throughout his journey to Scholar's paradise. Athanasius leads him through a place called the Confinement of Vanities.

This is Aletheia (Truth), and she is the daughter of the main character and Buktu. He meets her in a place called the City of Endless Ages, and he learns that he must guide her to the Scholar's Paradise.

This is Buktu the Tuareg girl as she appears at the end of the poem when she is met by the main character in Scholar's Paradise.

2008-03-24T06:59:00.000-07:00

The Suffering Christ: Do You Really Want to know Him?

In my quest to know who Christ really is, I looked to all the great Christian thinkers, and found them emphasizing something that we in the modern era fail to emphasize; the sufferings of Christ. I urge you to look at Christian songs and writings of old, and then look at our current songs and writings and you will see a big difference. Our current songs seem to talk about the love of God centering around us, but the in old songs the love of God was centered around Christ and His holy passion.

After delving into Christology I learned that Christ is not a Patriotic Prince of Peace trying to "get God back in America" or a Divine Kool-Aid man who bust through the wall into our world to give us magical juice that will make us all live in endless peace and prosperity (OH YEAH!). Christ is the King of All Things who comes to us as a Suffering Servant, and He comes to us in no stately form or majesty; He comes to us weighed down in shame, He comes to us despised and rejected, He comes to us in sorrow and acquainted with grief. The Apostle Paul wanted to know Christ in the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, but it seems that we only want to know Him in the power of His resurrection. But what about the fellowship of Christ sufferings? Why do we embrace the Resurrected Christ, but like the Apostle Peter we do deny the Suffering Christ?

We don't want to know the suffering Christ because
(1.) He shows us that it is not all about us- When He was in Gethsemane, He struggled with the thought of His Passion, He even said "My Father if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me;", but despite this struggle he still said, "Nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." Jesus do not simply think of us above all when He laid down His life....He ultimately did it because He loved His Father, and this motivated Him to place His Father's will and glory above His own.
(2.) He shows us what happens when it is all about us- Christ was both God and human, and when humanity mistreated Him, they mistreated both His humanity and divinity. The crucifixion was not only our unjust treatment of an innocent man, but our telling God, "WE DO NOT LOVE YOU, WE DESPISE YOUR GLORY AND WILL, AND WE WISH YOU NO LONGER EXISTED". When it is all about us we mistreat our fellow human beings and the Divine.
(3.) He is the reflection of us when it is all about us- The Holy Scriptures (2 Corinthians 5:21) say that Christ became sin while He was upon the cross that we might become the righteousness of God. Some theologians say that Christ was beaten to the point that He did not look human, and in this He was a reflection of how we really looked in our sinful condition. The Suffering Christ puts the mirror in front of us in His Passion and says, "See how ugly and distorted your humanity is because of your sin, and see how it make you distort and destroy the goodness of God."

If we continue to cease to know the Suffering Christ then we will continue to have churches filled on Paschal (Easter) Sunday, but almost empty on Good Friday. If we believe that God is the most relevant subject in the universe and that Christ is God, then all the parts of Christ' life on earth are relevant to us. American culture and its Christian culture are all about having or being a winner, and the Suffering Christ is not a winner in the eyes of many. But not only is Christ a relevant winner in His glorious resurrection, but also in His sufferings; a Resurrection Christ without Suffering is not Christ at all, and is really a divinized irrelevant loser of our own creation. It was by suffering that our Risen Lord wrought our redemption, and He constantly reminds us of this through the bread and wine of the Eucharist. Yet when we fail to know the Suffering Christ, then the Body becomes no better than cookies and the Blood turns to Kool-Aid.

2008-03-20T11:11:00.001-07:00

Becoming A God-Bearer

When looking upon the mother of my Lord in Michelangelo's Pieta I cannot help but hear one word over and over again; Θεοτόκος-Theotokos. Theotokos is Greek and it means "God-bearer" or "one who gives birth to God", and it has been a title of the Virgin Mary since the time of the ancient church. Origen, Athanasius, Augustine, John Chrysostom....many of the great church fathers called Mary by this title, and defended it when those such as Nestorius claimed that she only gave birth to Jesus' humanity and was simply Christotokos (the one who gives birth to Christ). But Mary did indeed bear Christ' full divinity and humanity, and when she gave birth the Theanthropos (God-man) came into our world. While contemplating upon these things I realize that as a minister I am to not simply be a father, but I am to also follow the example of Mary and be a God bearer.

In order for one to become a father in the ministry, they must first be a God bearer. Now at this some may asks, "Well aren't all Christians called to follow Mary's example and have Christ on the inside of that they might present Him to the world through their lives?", and my answer is YES. But we ministers are to present Christ to the world in another way different from that of laymen, for unto us has been given a most special ministry, and that is the ministry of the Eucharist (Communion). When one thinks about it Mary served the world the very first Eucharist and by way of her giving birth to the Incarnation of God, God became totally present with His people and imparted unto them His marvelous grace. The Eucharist is a sacrament and despite differences in sacramental views, all Christian traditions hold that the sacraments (Baptism and the Eucharist) are a means by which God shows up and gives His grace to those who are in Christ. [1] Added to Mary giving the first Eucharist, we must realize that she did nothing to deserve such a privilege, but God had chosen her in His great love to take up the task of presenting His Son to the world.

Like Mary, the minister has been given a call that he has done nothing to deserve....oh, he has done nothing to deserve the wonderful privilege of consecrating the Eucharistic elements that Christ might be present with His people in a most marvelous way, and in giving them His grace He binds them to Himself and one another. I am appalled at how many in contemporary Protestant Evangelical circles downplay the Eucharist as if it was just another thing that they do; I am sorry, but the sacraments are serious rites given to us by God that we should in turn take seriously. I am also appalled at how the Eucharists has been coated with individualism, and anyone can seem to consecrate the elements by themselves in the comforts of their own home rather than being with other believers (that's why it is called communion people, it's a COMMUNAL thing)....there is even an industry that caters to this.

And where are our ministers? Many of them are encouraging these things rather than taking up the wonderful privilege given to them, and guarding the Eucharist that parishioners might not eat and drink in an unworthy manner. Yet this modern failure to be God-bearers and properly care for the Eucharist does not surprise me, for we ministers have also failed to be fathers and care for our spiritual children. I realize that in the end I cannot tell other ministers what to do in their churches, but in whatever churches I serve in, I will be sure to take up my call as a God-bearer, and my responsibility to properly administer the Eucharist and guard it from those who might consciously and unconsciously abuse it.

[1] In his work Christian Theology: An Introduction, Alister McGrath cites French theologian Hugh St. Victor when giving the definition of a sacrament. Hugh St. Victor writes, “Anyone wanting a fuller and better definition of a sacrament can define it as follows: ’A sacrament is a physical or material element set before the external senses, representing by likeness, signifying by its institution, and containing by sanctification, some invisible and spiritual grace.’”

2008-03-19T00:00:00.001-07:00

Becoming A Father

"That’s it! You can do it......pronounce the words buddy", I said to him with a smile; smiling back the little boy said, "Epouro ente ti.....hirini.......moi nan entek hirini. Semni nan entek.....hirini, can enovi nan evol." "VERY GOOD!", I said happily praising the three year old as he clapped his hands in excitement, "You speak Coptic very well." For the next hour I watched the little lad’s eyes grow wide as I taught him about St. John the dwarf and how he decided to live as the angels, only to return to the monastery cold and hungry to once again live as a man. It is times like this with my brother Noah that I long to be a father, and pass on all the wisdom that I have acquired over the years. Seeing my little pal’s happy face as I teach him makes me wonder how some men can just walk out on their children. Truth is that pregnancy today is almost seen as a sickness, and being a father is seen as a curse.....overall we have deemed our offspring as set backs that hinder our own progress. As I have went on in the ministry, I have come to understand why certain church traditions call their ministers "Father". The minister is be a father to his congregation and to patiently guide and train them up in God’s ways, teaching them to walk upright on the path of true holiness that they might be conformed to the image of Christ.

But just as one is not a father simply by impregnating a woman, a minister is not a father simply because he can preach or has attended seminary. One becomes a father when they realize that their life is no longer their own, and with joy accept this reality that they might nurture the life of another. A minister is not a father until he too accepts the reality of his call, and lives to nurture the lives of those in Christ. Yet like so many men today, many of our ministers are simply sperm donors; their evangelistic efforts are but one night stands that produce spiritual children who are made bastards because there is no one to disciple them that they might grow in Christ. It is not simply the joyful times of nurturing that make one a father, but also the horrid times of misunderstanding and disconnection with their children. So is it with the minister who not only experiences the joy of seeing a parishioner grow in Christ, but also the times where the parishioner despises Christian life, and becomes detached from his guidance.

Oh how I long to be more than a simple minister, I want to be a father in the service of the Father of fathers. This desire is what makes me teach and preach on Sunday morning after working the overnight shift at Byerly’s, this desire is what moves me to learn more and seek wisdom that I might be well equipped to meet the needs of those who have been placed in my care. And just as I am becoming their father, so are those under my care becoming my children, for as they see my example they imitate me and become like me.....yet they do not become like me, for I learned my example from another who in their example imitated Christ to me. So as my spiritual children imitate me, they do not become like me, but like He who saved us all by His marvelous grace. It is through being a father that my parishioners will continue to step into what they were predestined for, to be conformed to the image of God’s Beloved Son. Oh how I desire to become a father, and have the same love for my parishioners as Padre Pio who once said, "When I die I will wait outside the gates of Heaven until all my spiritual children are safely inside."

2008-03-08T06:50:00.000-08:00

What Prosperity Preachers Are Really Saying

I almost beat the tar out of a fellow pastor the other day, and to be honest I still want too. But the Anabaptist in me said, "Just let it slide, pray for him, and leave him in the hands of God . After all this is a Seminary....NOT a Cemetary." Nevertheless I had a really good reason for wanting to knock him into next week, and that reason was his arrogance in regards to his doctrine. You see this young brother is a local prosperity pimp...I mean preacher, and he began to attack me because I think the prosperity gospel is just plain old heresy and pimpery. He had the nerve to look at my colleagues and say things like, "This is why I can't stand theologians like him. They rationalize everything and try to put God in a box." Wow....whoopty freakin doo "brother".....that's what it always is isn't it? When someone says that the Christian is saved to community and loving their neighbor as themself (which is the greatest commandment by the way) rather than individualistic prosperity, then they are "putting God in a box".

What was worse than his statements about me was what he said about two good friends of mine who feel called to give up the middle class life, and live in an apartment among the poorest of the poor in downtown Minneapolis. This wingbat nutjob had the nerve to imply that what God had layed upon their hearts was not of God at all; then he says, "Well the Christian is called to prosperity so that they might share their wealth with others." But isn's this what all the prosperity preachers say, and then turn around and buy private jets and mansions galore? They tell you the plan of blessing is so that you might bless others, and this is true, but in the end they end up getting the blessing and leaving those who listen to them stuck with the plan.

After giving in to my Anabaptist leanings, I ended up walking away and contemplating upon my possible altercation and realised what this brother and all other prosperity preacher are really saying. Behind all that flowery language and arrogant charismatic rhetoric are men saying, "I'm scared". They are afraid of what it really means to follow Jesus, for our Blessed Lord did not say, "Take up Thy blessing and follow Me", but "Take up Thy cross". These men are afraid of the sufferings that come from following Christ, and they are afraid of actually dealing with the sufferings of others. They are afraid of entering the discourse of enigmas in regards to God's sovereignty over the problems of this world. They are afraid to buck against the grain of the world where humanity markets religion. They are afraid that they will loose their jobs by bucking against the grain. They are afraid to stand alone and encourage people laden with sufferings to embrace the sufferings of this world once more for Christ namesake. They are afraid to know Christ like Paul wished to know Him...in the Power of His Ressurection and the Fellowship of His Sufferings.

Rather than just admit their fear and look to God, they would rather dissillusion themselves and use faith as a means to catapult themselves from the harsh realities of life. Truth is that beating the tar out of them will only make them go further into their illusions, and with this I name and claim something for them. In the name of Jesus I claim that they would listen to the words given through the Prophet Isaiah who said, "Feart thou not for I am with thee, and be not dismayed for I am thy God. Yay I will help thee, yay I will uphold thee with the Right Hand of My Righteousness." In the name of Jesus I claim that they would grab hold of the words of Christ who said, "In this world you will have trouble, but take heart, for I have overcome the world."

2008-03-01T12:57:00.000-08:00

Walking Contradictions

A few weeks ago I was at work, and a co-worker of mine told me that he had seen a seminarian I know in downtown St. Paul in act not befitting a Christian. I know this seminarian somewhat and have also spotted him in downtown St. Paul on the few occasions I have been there at night, and let's just say that I was not surprised at what my co-worker told me. But what shocked me the most is that this co-worker, who is not a Christian, said, "Scotty, you ought to tell him to drop out of school and work towards another profession, because what he is doing is not Christian, and just plain wrong." Later on that night the co-workers friend who was with him when he saw this seminarian said, "I find it hard to believe that he is a Christian at all, and I had no idea he was in seminary until my friend told me."

As I thought about this seminiarian's sad witness, I began to think of my own....in what ways am I being a walking contradiction? Am I raising eyebrows like the "bong hits 4 Jesus" picture above? While thinking about these things I fell into a state of sadness, and talked with my senior pastor about these things the next day. Sad to say but this seminarian is one of the many walking contradictions that I know; I know of so-called believers who sleep around, and others who uplift causes that are just plain Anti-Christ. I pray to God that I never have someone speak of me as my co-worker spoke of this seminarian, and if they do I pray that it was simply a misunderstanding that can be cleared up. I'm not saying that I want to be "holier than Thou"......I simply want my walk to be consistent so that I am not seen as a walking contradiction.

2008-02-10T18:51:00.000-08:00

Upcoming Lectures

In a week I will have the privilege of being one of three speakers in a lecture series taking place at Bethel Seminary (St. Paul, MN) from the 20th to the 22nd of February. These lectures will be a part of the seminary's very first Black History Month celebration, and they will be dealing with the subject of Christianity and people of African descent. My lecture will cover the African presence in the Holy Scriptures, and ancient Christianity; I will also do a small segment on Islam in West Africa and the rise of slavery. Along with this lecture I shall also be giving three smaller lectures on Islam and people of African descent. I am overjoyed that in the process of seeking to live out the reality of Biblical race relations, Bethel is allowing these lectures to go on and is willing to listen to this crazy Black-Creole boy LOL. I am also overjoyed that these coming festivities have been advertised all over the city, and that people are waiting in great anticipation. Brothers and Sisters in Christ, please pray for me as continue to prepare for the tasks ahead; pray that I will speak with clarity and in the most complete honesty. Also pray that minds would be opened, spirits would be lifted, people would be empowered, lives would be changed, and above all that God would receive all the glory. The lectures shall eventually be posted on youtube.com, so be on the lookout for the word on when they will be uploaded.

Blessings,
~Scotty (a.k.a. Frere Williams)

2008-02-06T22:38:00.000-08:00

Don't Forget Your Humanity

If there is one thing I loath about Western Christianity, it has to be its high emphasis upon the soul, while giving little to no emphasis upon our humanity itself. As I looked over a story from the life of Abba John the Dwarf, I began to think about the importance of reflecting upon my own humanity:

It was said of Abba John the Dwarf, that one day he said to his elder brother, 'I should like to be free of all care, like the angels, who do not work, but ceaselessly offer worship to God.' So he took off his cloak and went away into the desert. After a week he came back to his brother. When he knocked on the door, he heard his brother say, before he opened it 'Who are you?' He said, 'I am John, your brother.' But he replied, 'John has become an angel, and henceforth he is no longer among men.' Then the other begged him saying. 'It is I.' However, his brother did not let him in, but left him there in distress until morning. Then, opening the door, he said to him, 'You are a man and you must once again work in order to eat.' Then John made a prostration before him, saying, 'Forgive me.'"

As I reflected upon my own humanity, I began to think about the humanity of Christ Himself; after all He was not only God (for us Christians at least), but He was also human. Like we mere mortals He too ate, drank, slept, had to relieve Himself, faced temptation, and felt pain....HE WAS HUMAN. But more important than His sharing in the things that we experience everyday is His sharing in our purpose; Colossians 1:15 calls Christ the eikon tou theou or "the image of God", and when we look at Genesis 1:26 it says that humanity (male and female) is created in the image of God. To be the image of God is to reflect the character of God, and so to be human is to reflect the character of God; nevertheless our sinful actions cause us to fail in our reflection of God, and in our sin we fail to be human. The reason one should shun sinful behavior (pimping, stealing, lying, murder) is not because they want to be holier than thou, but because they want to be human...sin is bad because it hinders our humanity.

Yet Christ who was human and tempted in every way possible did not sin as we do, and in this He is not only the perfect expression of divinity, but humanity itself. Also in living a sinless life, from infancy to adulthood, He redeemed our humanity and completed our redemption by redeeming our souls through His passion. If we wish to see one who is fully and truly human then we should look at Christ, but if we wish to be fully and truly be human then we should imitate Christ. Will it be easy to be like Jesus? HECK NO...in fact it will suck royally in this world, but it is better for one to struggle for their humanity than to never attempt to obtain it. I pray that we all would look to Christ, and in our imitation of Him embrace our humanity with gladness.

2008-01-31T23:02:00.000-08:00

Praying For Kenya

To be honest I'm almost speechless in my prayers about the whole situation. When I was in Kenya I was made happy by its endless beauty, but I was also made angry by the abuses of certain factions that left their mark of ugliness upon the country. Right now I'm just angry at this whole thing, and the senselessness of all the killing makes me even more angry, and this anger is what leaves me speechless in my prayers. Right now I have no idea how a dear friend of mine is fairing over there....is John-Baptiste dead or alive? Such questions make me even more angry at those who have began this bedlam, and I count them among my enemies. I want God to end this craziness immediately, and I want to see it all end quickly so that Kenya might have peace in its endless beauty.

But in my unrest as I pray, God gives me relief through His precious saints, and He has relieved me through the words of Abba Zeno who once said,

"If a man wants God to hear his prayer quickly, then before he prays for anything else, even his own soul, when he stands and stretches out his hands towards God, he must pray with all his heart for his enemies. Through this action God will hear everything that he asks."

More than relief I find humility in these words, for it's hard to pray in sincerity with all my heart for those in Kenya who are responsible for the craziness. Yet if I only pray for the innocent and those I care for and love, then I do not pray for all of Kenya. It is hard for me at times to accept that God cares for the trouble makers of the world, and that He wishes for me to pray for them. Abba Zeno's words point out to me that my speechlessness in prayer is not only due to not knowing what to pray, but in many ways it is also an avoidance of what I know I must pray. I must pray for those in Kenya who hurt those that I love, while praying for those that I love, and in this I will be praying for all of Kenya. Does it suck? Heck yes it does....Am I still angry? Heck yes I am. But to not pray for my enemies in Kenya is to sin in my anger, and to go contrary to the very nature of God who loves and cares for them as well.

Lord,
May You open the eyes of the wicked in Kenya, may they cease in their quest for personal gain and work for the good of the country, may they be renewed by Your perfect grace and love, may You have grace upon them as they bring distress to the innocent and those that I love, may You have mercy upon them in their wrong doing, may You forgive them of their sins. Let it be so Lord no matter how much it sucks for me to pray this....let it be so; always, now and forevermore, and world without end.

AMEN

2008-01-25T14:49:00.000-08:00

Take Your Time...Relax...Don't Go So Fast

I do not know how I could live without the witness of the saints of antiquity, and during my meditations today I learned yet another powerful lesson from the life of one of them (Abba Moses the Ethiopian):

He was zealous of everything he undertook, but became discouraged when he concluded he was not becoming a perfect monk advanced in all the degrees of spiritual perfection. Early one morning before dawn, St. Isadore, abbot of the monastery, took Brother Moses to the roof and together they watched the first rays of the dawn come over the horizon. They stayed there until the new day had begun. Then Isidore said, "Only slowly do the rays of the sun drive away the night and usher in a new day and, thus, only slowly does one become a perfect contemplative."

Being the busy beaver that I am, I always find myself trying to accomplish great feats, be they physical or spiritual. Spiritual feats are the hardest it seems because they require a constant change of self and a perfection of the virtues that I seek to see incarnated in my own life. I get frustrated at my lack of patience at times, or my moments where I lack love for my neighbor......I bury my head within my hands when I yet again find myself failing to trust God and start leaning to my own insufficient resources. Out of this frustration I feel as if I have dropped the ball completely, and start to wonder if I will ever make it, but as good old Isidore put it, only slowly does one come to perfection in such things. It is a relief to be reminded that I do not have to do it all so quickly, that I can slow down and take my time as I am seeking to be conformed to Christ. May we all slow down, and be relieved as we are seeking to be conformed to Christ.

2008-01-23T23:29:00.000-08:00

The Purpose Of Christianity

What bothers me the most about much of today's presentations of Christianity are the selfish ends that they give people. Many have been taught that the purpose of Christianity is to know God for what He can do, and they "accept Jesus" with the intention of just getting blessed. But the purpose of Christianity is not to know God for what He can do, but to know Him for who He is; to know complexities of His divinity, and to experience the mysteries that are in Him that we might appreciate Him in the fullness of His glory. To lay aside our agendas of simply getting blessed, that we might meditate upon His very attributes and bless His name. When we see that the purpose of our faith is to know God for who He is we will live differently.....we will pray differently. We will go before our God placing His glory and exaltation before our needs, and when we ask Him to move in our lives, it will not simply be for our relief, but so that He might teach us more about who He is through His actions, and be glorified in the process. Such a Christianity is that of Desert Fathers of old, a faith that draws us from the religious norms of the world, and helps us to endure the dark night of the soul when it seems that God has withdrawn His hand from us. I pray that we will truly press on to know God for who He is, to know His character and from there be conformed to the image of His Son. And as we are conformed to the image of His Son, then His character will be reflected to those unregenerate, and they will have the chance to know God through us. Such a thing reminds of Josephine Bakhita of Sudan who said, "Be good. Love the Lord. Pray for those who do not know Him.....oh what a grace it is to know God."

2008-01-12T19:07:00.000-08:00

R.I.P. Bishop Jones

I usually shy away from the "bishopmania" of the present day Black church, but I feel that we have truly lost a great asset within the ranks with Bishop Jones passing. May God raise up leaders within the COGIC church and the Black church at large who will tell it like it is, and bring us back to the cross. R.I.P. Bishop Ozro Thurston Jones, and may the Lord God be mindful of your family and congregation; always, now and forever, and world without end.

2008-01-04T03:46:00.001-08:00

Dyma Gariad Fel Y Moroedd (Here Is Love Vast As The Ocean)

Originally from Wales, this hymn was a means by which our most gracious Lord brought about a great revival to the Welsh people during the early 20th century. I have to say that this is in my top ten hymns, and as I hear its beautiful lyrics and instrumentals I wonder why our churches today throw away such beautiful songs for man-centered contemporary crap that cannot even compare. God open our eyes and let us appreciate and never forget what You have so graciously given us. AMEN.

Dyma gariad fel y moroedd,

Tosturiaethau fel y lli:
Twysog Bywyd pur yn marw—
Marw i brynu’n bywyd ni.
Pwy all beidio â chofio amdano?
Pwy all beidio â thraethu’I glod?
Dyma gariad nad â’n angof
Tra fo nefoedd wen yn bod.

Ar Galfaria yr ymrwygodd
Holl ffynhonnau’r dyfnder mawr;
Torrodd holl argaeau’r nefoedd
Oedd yn gyfain hyd yn awr:
Gras â chariad megis dilyw
Yn ymdywallt ymâ ’nghyd,
A chyfiawnder pur â heddwch
Yn cusanu euog fyd.

Here is love vast as the ocean
Loving kindness as the flood
When the Prince of life, our ransom
Shed for us His precious blood
Who His love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing His praise?
He can never be forgotten
Throughout Heaven's eternal days

On the Mount of Crucifixion
Fountains opened deep and wide
Through the floodgates of God's mercy
Flowed a vast and gracious tide
Grace and love, like mighty rivers
Poured incessant from above
And Heaven's peace and perfect justice
Kissed a guilty world in love

2008-01-03T12:52:00.000-08:00

John 14:2: Better than Heaven Itself

I remember staring at this picture as a child thinking, "Yep, Jesus is building my mansion in my father's house.....I wonder if He will add a pool if I'm good enough". Sometimes I find myself missing those days of divine imaginations where I would ponder upon the wondrous holy city that I would one day enter to shout glory outside my mansion door. It seemed that the church encouraged my divine imagination, and I recall the many times we would sing the words, "I'm a Pilgrim, I'm a stranger, trekking through this barren land. To make my home in yonder city, for my home's not made by hands." Along with the church the Evangelists would quote John 14:2 and plead with the sinner to "accept Christ" so that they too might have a mansion in glory.

But as I got older and went through catechism in preparation for baptism, I found that those in our town deemed as backsliders would always quote John 14:2 and claim the mansion waiting for them, and their acceptance of Jesus was its down payment. Christians in good standing seemed to use their mansion as a means to not look at the world or be concerned about it, sure they would tell people to get their own mansions, but this old world was going to hell in a hand basket. For many years I was bothered by this interpretation of John 14:2, but as I furthered in biblical studies I found that the original context shows that we are not interpreting it correctly. First of all John 14 has nothing to do with heaven, but is a part of the what is called the "Farewell Discourse" (John 13-17) where Jesus is telling the disciples how they are to live on earth once he is no longer with them. At this point in time the average Jew was not even thinking about the after life; what was more important to them was the restoration of the people of Israel, and the Temple (which was built by an Idumean king, and whose high priest was elected by Rome). Also when we look at verse 3, we see that Christ says, "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. " If the place where Christ is preparing for us is heaven, then why does he say "that where I am (ego eimi in the Greek, and it is present tense)"? So from our observation in verse 3 we are left to ask, Where is Jesus? The answer is quite simple. As Gail O'Day points out, in Christ' use of the term “Father’s house”, He is drawing upon traditional Jewish imagery to get across an idea of not a literal place like the heavens, but a relationship. [1] Christ is telling them that through Him they will be able to have a share in the same relationship that He has with God. Unlike all the past and future false messiahs, Jesus was not excluding His followers from the relationship that He claimed to and did have with God. In verses 10-11 Jesus tells the disciples of the type of relationship He has with the father, that type of relationship is one of both abiding in each-other. In the preceding verses Philip ask Christ to show Him the Father, Christ is then astonished and this is evident in verse 10 where He asks, “Do you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?”. The image of God cannot be adequately depicted in the physical sense, so Christ relationship was one where He lived out the character of and reality of the Father through His words and works; which verse 11 points out.[2] By living out the character and reality of the Father, Christ was able to make Him known, and this is why He says to the disciples in verse 9 that anyone who has seen Him has seen the Father.

This is the relationship that Christ had with the Father, and this is the place which He went away for (or died upon the cross) so that we who are saved by His grace might have a share in it. With all that said let us realize that the Father's house is much better than heaven, it is a union with Him that is so deep that it allows us to fulfill our original purpose in being His image, and that is to reflect His character to this fallen world. When we see this as being the Father's house Christianity fulfills it's purpose which Mother Angelica so wonderfully states when she writes, "The Father wants to look down and see His image on your soul. That is the purpose of Christianity."[3]

[1] O’Day, The New Interpreters Bible: Volume 9-Luke and John, pg. 741

[2] Tenney, The Expositors Bible Commentary with the New International Version: Volume 9-John, pg. 145

[3] Arroyo, Mother Angelica's Little Book of Life Lessons and Everyday Spirituality, pg. 14

2008-01-01T08:39:00.001-08:00

I LOVE THE LORD!I love the Lord; He heard my cries,

And pitied every groan;

Long as I live, and troubles rise,

I'll hasten to His throne.

I love the Lord; He heard my cries,

And chased my griefs away;

O let my heart no more despair,

While I have breath to pray!

Do you love Him too?

2007-12-26T05:27:00.000-08:00

The Best Christmas Gift Ever

The best Christmas gift I have ever received other than Christ is my Word of Faith-Prosperity -Charismatic family's acceptance of my seminary education, and encouragement to press forward. I thank God for the opportunity to not fall into the religious anti-intellectualism of this present day, and having the opportunity to be a means by which Christ lifts others from it. I see Him working in my family as they actually think about what they believe, and no longer just blindly accept everything the prosperity pimps propagate. May it be so for all in God's church, and may others in the same boat as myself find peace and reconciliation with their families. May the abuses and pimpery of the prosperity gospel and its magisterium be brought to an end. May we have a God ordained, Christ led, Spirit filled reformation in all our churches. May the masses of so called Christians in all Christian traditions realize that religious anti-intellectualism is not biblical, and be free to worship God with their entire being; heart, soul, and mind. OH SOLI DEO GLORIA! Δόξα Πατρὶ καὶ Υἱῷ καὶ Ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι, καὶ νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων! AMEN! AMEN!

2007-12-23T22:35:00.000-08:00

My Yearly Christmas Card

Every year I make a Christmas card to everyone, here is 2007's card.
Blessings,
Scotty

2007-12-23T17:56:00.000-08:00

Nofri Sai-Merry Christmas In Coptic

I thought I would send everyone Christmas greetings in Coptic, with this Coptic Christmas hymn.

NOFRI SAI!

2007-12-21T16:15:00.000-08:00

Does Marriage "Complete" One's Ministry?

I came across an interesting blog yesterday, and to be honest I was rather annoyed by it. First of all it was someone prophesying about how God is raising up Esthers to be wives to all us unmarried ministers out there. They claim that these Eshters will not be your traditional church women, and they will bring "NEW WINE" into the church, and they shall have a "shamar" or "prophetic anointing". If I may serve my usual cocktail of religious cynicism laced with a bit of sarcasm I would like say that God has been raising up "Eshters" throughout the centuries, and not only that but Ruths, Rahabs, Tamars, and Deborahs too. There have always been pastor's wives that are not your traditional church women, and to say that this is a new move of God is like saying that Wonderbread is a new thing.....YOU'RE REINVENTING THE WHEEL.

Oh and speaking of reinventing the wheel, they also write that God gave them a vision of half a wheel, and said that a lot of minister's ministries are simply rocking back and forth because they are incomplete and need another half to make a full turn and go forward. So they are saying that in order to have a complete ministry, one must be married. Now I'm not knocking marriage or the authenticity this person's vision, but as one who is in seminary and has served in the ministry for some time now I can tell you that there are a lot of married ministers who have "half a wheel". Truth is that the very problem lies in thinking that getting married completes one's ministry or one's life in general; in reality one's ministry should be complete before they find a wife and she too should have a complete ministry which is able run parallel with and compliment their ministry. God is not calling us to a place, person, or people group, He is calling us to embark on a journey that leads to Him, this is why He tells us to seek His kingdom first.

As a single minister, I'm not looking for some woman who puts the end of her journey in a marriage. I want a wife who was on the journey towards God long before meeting me; in the end being married to such a woman could in no way be boring (tough of course) because she would challenge and encourage me to be a man of God, and stick to the journey towards Him. I want a woman who loves God more than she loves me, and possesses such a fiery passion and zeal to be conformed to Christ' image that she would descend to the pits of hell and wrestle Satan himself to obtain such a endeavor. But in order to have such a woman I must be complete myself and seek the Kingdom of God first and even after she and all other things are added, I must still seek the Kingdom first and submit to the will of God for my own life.

2007-12-15T20:13:00.000-08:00

When I Was A Muslim

For those who know me, there was a time in my life where I had converted to Islam. Now I'm back in the faith once delivered to the saints of old, and I praise God for opening my eyes one again to the truth of His wonderful Son. This poem was written to convey how I felt at the very moment of my return to the faith; it was like falling in love with a beautiful woman I had fallen out of love with. The means by which God had brought me back were the Christian traditions of old penned down by the church fathers, and the woman in this poem symbolizes those traditions and the salvation wrought through the Christ that they point to.

ملك Malak (Angel)

Malak....Malak....sweet Malak, Iblis (the devil) he waits this morn,
He waits to steal the gift from Thee, and keep between us scorn.
Thy gift beseeches me to grasp the moonlight and arise.
Arise this wretch to heavenly courts and there with Thee abide.

This is my composition……
The ballad of my soul, as I behold the wonders of her being, and ask myself if I’m dreaming.
A dream that warms the cockles of the heart.
A dream that praises love divine at its very start,
And beholding the wonders of her being, I see a timeless enlightenment gleaming.
Enlightenment beyond that of sages, with wisdom made before the ages,
By the voice of He who measured time and formed the woman of which I rhyme.

Oh man behold the intricacies of sacred bliss, as you receive her blessed kiss,
And with the heavens rejoice as she makes you defy gravity, leaving radical depravity grounded with earthly insanity.
Oh man behold a new dimension as you taste the fruit of accomplished redemption
And answer the irresistible call, to submit your will to He who made all.
And through it all be made anew, with an amaranthine heart flowing with blood so true.
For by your strength you can’t subdue the fallen will, and rhyme of her too.

In the radiant heavens we are wed, a union before the creation was said.
Upon my finger she places a ring of righteousness, in exchange for my ring of licentiousness,
And in a cathedral of sacred bliss, Malak receives my blessed kiss.
Embracing we see the Son this morn, as Iblis flees and takes his scorn.

2007-12-14T02:02:00.000-08:00

I Support Palestine

In the past few years I've found myself disenchanted and even disgusted by much of Evangelical Christendom's position on the Israel/Palestine conflict. It seems like most Evangelicals immediately flock to Israel and treat it as if it has done no wrongs in this whole thing; many of them even get what I call Hebrewmania (an obsession over Jewish things) and start doing things like wearing kippahs and blowing shofars in worship services. Now before I go on I want to make it clear that I love the Jewish people and nation of Israel, am fascinated by Jewish culture, and hate any form of anti-Semitism with a passion. But in the end I am disappointed with Evangelicalisms complete embrace of Israel, and disregard for Palestine.

Not too long ago I got an email from a Palestinian Christian who told me of how his mother was strip searched by Israeli soldiers, and this was only the tip of the ice burg when it came to the injustices committed against him and his family. It is sad that many Evangelicals have no idea that there is a Palestinian Christian community, and much of it is goes back to antiquity. The Palestinian Christian community is suffering, but we are so entranced by the star of David that we fail to see the red triangle on the black, white, and green field. In failing to see Palestine, we fail to see the sufferings of our Palestinian brothers and sisters in Christ. I wonder what it would be like if Evangelicalism got an obsession with Palestinian culture; imagine hearing the Holy Scriptures read in Levanite Arabic, imagine hearing the Christian God being called by the name Allah (oops that's a taboo "buzz word") and His blessed Son being called Isa al Masih ibn Mariam. Imagine folks doing the dabke (Palestinian line dance) to praise songs in Levanite Arabic instead of doing the Hora (Jewish circle dance) to praise songs in Hebrew. The sight of such a thing would be enough to make John Hagee drop his premillennial dispensationalist eschatology LOL.

I'm not saying that we should cease in our support of Israel or totally support Palestine (for it has its share of wrongs as well), but we should not be one sided with this whole thing. Let's not just pray for Israel, but pray for Palestine also, and let us take a stand against the injustices committed against them; especially the injustices committed against Palestinian Christians. I was so angry at this one Evangelical brother who had the nerve to say that this is a straw man argument and that since many Palestinian Christians are a part of non-Evangelical churches that they shouldn't really get as much attention as Israel should. Do we not know that just as Christ identified with the church when Saul persecuted it that he identifies with the Palestinian church as it suffers as well? To all those who put all their eggs in Israel's basket I proudly say that I support Palestine, and not just the Christians, but the Muslims as well for injustices are committed against them also. Some like brother Hagee will say that we have a biblical command to support Israel, but to that I say we also have a biblical command to support Palestine St. Paul says in 1 Timothy 2:1-2

"First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. "

2007-12-12T00:07:00.000-08:00

The Proper Role of Ritual

In a few weeks I will have the privilege of meeting Fr. Duane Pederson, an Antiochian Orthodox priest and one of the big names in the Calvary Chapel and Jesus movements during the 1960's. As an aspiring church historian I am eager to meet this giant in modern church history, but it also seems that he is very eager to meet me as well. Now I am no big name in any field, I'm just a simple Reformed Baptist seminarian, but the reason he wishes to meet is because I do something that most Reformed Baptists don't do; I pray the Jesus Prayer with an Eastern Orthodox prayer rope (pictured above).

I first began doing this form of prayer after meeting a fellow Baptist seminarian who is now attending St. Vladimer's Orthodox Theological Seminary to become an Orthodox priest. For one of our formation courses we were required to look into parts of our family's Christian heritage and knowing the Reformed Baptist side, I decided to explore the Creole Catholic side. I had recently received a rosary as a gift and decided to kneel before the cross and pray the "Protestant friendly rosary" (no Hail Marys involved) when this guy comes up next to me, pulls out a one tract Orthodox rosary, begins to pray the Jesus prayer, and prostrates himself several times. Initially I was floored because I felt like an idiot; here I was a Reformed Baptist, kneeling in the midst of other Protestants and using a rosary. Nevertheless I found that I was not the only one that day, and after talking with my this brother, I realized that he had initially felt the same way.

When fellow Protestants learn that I pray with a prayer rope, they immediately look upon me with scrutiny and say things like, "Why engage in empty ritual when you have a personal relationship with Jesus?" My response is that the ritual is not meant to be some sort of saving act to gain me merit with God, but it is an expression of my love for Christ and my constant desire and love for His grace and mercy. For me true and Christ-centered rituals are the signs of true Christian tradition, which J.I. Packer defines as the living faith passed down from the dead in Christ. This living faith differs from traditionalism which is the dead faith of the living and in this we also find ritual, but these rituals are dead, meaningless, and vain to those who practice them.

When I pray with my prayer rope, I am meditating upon the wondrous incarnation which entered our fallen world, enlightened all of creation, and freed God's elect from sin that they might be reconciled unto Him. There is a higher dimension in Christ and I WANT IT! I THIRST FOR IT! I want more than to just have a "personal relationship" with Jesus, I want to know the complexities of His divinity, so that I might love and appreciate Him for who He is....not simply for what He can do for me. As I engage in my prayer ritual, it is a constant reminder to me of why I have been predestined unto salvation in Christ; Romans 8:29 (ESV) says, "For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers." I have not been predestined to simply go to heaven and have pie in the sky, I have been predestined to be like Jesus in this life and the life to come, and this is the greatest part of the higher dimension that is in Him. I get to be like Jesus in the reflection of His character so that those who do not know Him might see Him working in my life and be drawn unto Him. It is my destiny to be like the risen Christ (but not in regards to His divine attributes and essence), and nothing will stop Him from conforming me to His image. Such a great thing is only possible by God alone who deserves all glory, and when I pray with my prayer rope I am reminded of this humbling thing when I say, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner. AMEN."

2007-12-05T23:49:00.000-08:00

Calvin’s Thoughts on Unio Cum Christo (Union With Christ)

Unlike Luther, John Calvin attempted to explore the doctrine of unio cum Christo in depth, and drew conclusions similar to those of the Eastern Church.[1] A major difference he has from the Eastern Church in his approach to unio cum Christo is that he does not approach the issue from a monophysite (Christ having one nature) point of view, but the view of Christ having two natures. To make up for the loss of a single nature that is the unification of humanity and the divine in the Eastern view, Calvin stresses the concept of the hypostatic union that came about from the Council of Chalcedon. To Calvin a believer’s union with Christ has its foundation in their election to salvation in the will of the Father before the foundations of the world. Despite the union having it foundations in the will of the Father he states that it is not exclusive to the Father’s will alone, but also the other members of the Trinity for they share a common will.

Calvin’s approach to the doctrine also has great Augustinian leanings, where he holds that the true distinctions of the members of the Trinity can be found in their personal names. The Father is the beginning of all things including the union itself, the Son orders that union, and the Holy Spirit is assigned the power and efficacy in the process of that union. Unlike the Eastern Church which sees Christ as the bond of unity for humanity and the divine, Calvin sees Christ as the bond to a believers union with God. This bond is not in the unitive sense, but in the sense of an intermediary between humanity and the Father, and makes it so that those in Christ experience a fatherly love and faithfulness in God and become His children.[2] The unitive bond on the other hand is the Holy Spirit, and He is the means by which Christ unites believers with Himself; in this bond humanity is also further united with Christ and God.

The end result of this union to God by Christ and the union to Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit is the double grace of justification and sanctification. To back this point up Calvin then refers back the hypostatic union of Christ’ nature, and states that in that union justification and sanctification are side by side and are given to the believer as one. Out of this giving of grace and sanctification, the believer is then able to put on or be engrafted in Christ. In putting on or being engrafted in Christ, they then put on holiness, and this leads on to glorification, the ultimate end of justification and sanctification which is as Calvin puts it, “that believers may at length be partakers of eternal life and glory as far as it will be necessary for our complete felicity.”

Calvin seems to have written more on the believers union with Christ than any other Protestant Reformer, and he in many ways counted it as a matter of spiritual life and death when he wrote:

“How do we receive those benefits which the Father bestowed on his only-begotten Son—not for Christ’s own private use, but that he might enrich poor and needy men?....First, we must understand that as long as Christ remains outside of us, and we are separated from him, all that he has suffered and done for the salvation of the human race remains useless and of no value for us. Therefore, to share with us what he has received from the Father, he had to become ours and to dwell within us. For this reason, . . . we . . . are said to be ‘engrafted into him’ and to ‘put on Christ’; for . . . all that he possesses is nothing to us until we grow into one body with him.”[3]

[1] Calvin, Institutes of Christian religion: Doctrine of Our Union with Christ

[2] S. Foutz, Calvin's Doctrine of Our Union with Christ, section 7

[3] Calvin, Institutes, III.i.1.

2007-12-03T22:52:00.000-08:00

The Craziest Sermon Illustration I have Ever Seen

What Do You Think?

2007-11-30T18:28:00.000-08:00

Komm Jesu Komm, Ich benötige Sie diese Stunde

(Lord Jesus I hope my German is ok, I'm having a tough time right now LOL)

Komm Jesu Komm,
Ich benötige Sie diese Stunde

Komm Jesu Komm,
Gekommen mit Ihrer Energie
Gekommen mit Ihrer Gnade
Gekommen mit Ihrer Liebe

Wach.... Wach Meine Seele
Wach....Er kommt
Er kommt für Sie

Singen Sie, mein Herz
Singen Sie ein Lied der Freude
Nicht ein von Schmerz oder von Elend, aber von Freude

FREUDE.....Er kommt
Er kommt für mich
FREUDE....Er kommt von seinem Thron von Anmut
Zu meiner schrecklichen Welt.....Er Kommt

Zu seinem Thron von Anmut....Ich gehe
Er kommt für mich, und Ich gehe
Ich gehe nach Hause

Komm Jesus Komm....Retten Sie mich
Retten Sie mich
Denn Dein ist das Reich und die Kraft und die Herrlichkeit in Ewigkeit.

2007-11-13T00:04:00.001-08:00

Am I the Only One?: Being a Louisiana Creole Pioneer

Gilbert E. Martin had to be one of the greatest Louisiana Creoles to ever live in the 20th century. After gaining an interest in our culture, he set off on a path that would lead to him being dubbed as a pioneer of the Non-Violent Creole Revolution. Martin was one of the first to go against the stereotypes about our people, and in aiming to spread Louisiana Creole awareness he wrote the book entitled "French-Creoles: A Shattered Nation".

Not too long ago I got an email from a Cajun brother who came across my blog, and seeing that I am Reformed he commented;

"A Reformed Cajun and a Reformed Louisiana Creole. We need to stick together because, as you know we are rare."

Every time I see this comment, I end up realizing that like Gilbert B. Martin I too am a pioneer, but my Non-Violent Revolution is in the area of theology (specifically Reformed Protestant Theology). If you don't believe me then Google "Reformed Creole" or "Creole, Reformed Theology" or "Louisiana Creole, Reformed Theology" and see what you get; the only things that will come up are my blogs, and my old website. Truth is I feel alone in this, and sometimes I wonder if I really am the only Reformed Louisiana Creole on earth. At times I ask, am I the only one?

Nevertheless I believe that there are more Creoles who hold to the Reformed faith; somewhere out there in a Presbyterian or a Baptist church, there is another Louisiana Creole with the same convictions as me. But even if I find them I am still a pioneer, for no Louisiana Creole has ever come to the Reformed Protestant or any Protestant table and shared some theological gumbo. I pray to God as I enter into uncharted territory as a pioneer, that I always keep Christ in mind and humbly offer another useful Creole contribution which is one of many lagniappes (meaning an extra small gifts) of His to our beautiful world.

2007-11-10T08:37:00.000-08:00

White Folks.....It Doesn't Take All That

One of the most interesting pieces of news is the recent scandal of Duane 'Dog' Chapman. Now I personally love the guy and I really like his show, but I was really shocked to find out that he wanted his son to break up with his Black girlfriend. What is even more shocking to me is that he went as far as using the N-word when referring to the girl, and when a tape of this was released he went to his Black pastor for help. As a Black man and fan of Duane, I am appalled by his actions, but what is even more appalling is the lengths he is going to with his apology. One article says:

Chapman also said he is making a deal to be buried at a historic slave burial ground near George Washington's Mount Vernon home.

"I want to be buried right where they're at because I will never be forgiven as (long as) I'm alive," Chapman said.

Now I understand he is sorry, but it really doesn't take all that; to White Celebs and White folks in general, it doesn't take all that. If you say the N-word, get caught, and are truly sorry then apologize and move on. Don't waste Black folks time and your time meeting with Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson (who by the way do not represent all of the Black community). Also don't start doing Black things like watching Roots, giving to the United Negro College Fund, and inviting a Black caucus over to your house to discuss how you can "help" the Black community. If you really want to do something, then move on by actually working on yourself; look into your inner issues and how you need to change. Look into how you can better relate to the Black man that you see everyday; heck, look at how you can better relate to people in general.

I see it this way, when a person (be they Black, White, Asian, Native American) shows hatred towards one part of God's created humanity, then they show hatred towards all of humanity. When you do things like Imus, Cramer, or Chapman, you are defacing the image of God and this is an attack on all of humanity, not just Black folks or whatever specific race you demean. To Chapman I say, "Dog...if you want to say anything to the Black community, then say that you want to obey the greatest commandment; to love the Lord your God with all your being, and to love your neighbor as yourself." All this talk about being buried with slaves is...well.... stupid. You're no good to us dead, heck, some of us need to learn to forgive the living and give them a chance to actually do reconciliation. The way I see it, the problem was here before the doctor smacked you on the bum, and it will be here after death smacks you on the bum.

2007-10-26T09:35:00.000-07:00

Some Pentecostals Crack Me Up

The funniest chastisement I've recieved from a Pentecostal about my Reformed beliefs was a few weeks back while chatting with a fellow from a church I used to attend. After learning that I am Reformed he asked, "Scotty....Is the Holy Spirit a Calvinist?" At this I almost fell over and died of laughter, I'm thinking "What the heck is that supposed to mean?" Honestly people, of all the arrogant, and assinine things I have heard, this one outdoes them all. With all the calmness I could muster, I responded in a Christ-like manner.....I answered a question with a question . My response was, "Well is He a tongue talking Pentecostal?" The look on his face at my response was even more classic, it was like I got him to actually think about what he was saying; it was like watching a kid realize there is no Santa Claus.

True the Holy Spirit is not Reformed, but at the same time he is of no other theological persuation, and in the end I just find it hilarious that deep down this guy actually believed the Holy Spirit is Pentecostal LOL. Now I'm not knocking Pentecostals at all, but it seems like many of them in America never think critically about what they believe (except for Dr. Gordon Fee). Then after not thinking critically themselves, they charge you to think critically about your own beliefs if you're not of the Pentecostal persuasion. Some of them will even go as far as saying that every other Christian tradition besides their own does not believe in the gift and needs an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. What is so sad about this accusation is that most of the time they are basing it on the fact that these other traditions don't openly practice speaking in tongues.

But regardless of all this I can't stop laughing about that one brother, LOL.....he actually actually believed that the Holy Spirit is Pentecostal. I can just see it now, the Holy Ghost getting filled with the Holy Ghost at a revival. After that encounter I was like, "What's next, God doesn't want Kenneth Copeland to eat cold pancakes?" Oops.....that has already happened.

2007-10-15T08:42:00.000-07:00

You Must Get This Album!

If you like or are interested in good Creole music, then check out Cedric Watson's soon to be released CD with Valcour Records (November 2007).

2007-10-11T08:53:00.000-07:00

Pimpery in the Black Church: The New Vicars of Christ

It's obvious the the present day Black Church is in need of a Reformation, and as I have studied Reformation history, I have found four major similarities that confirm this fact.

1. During the Reformation age laypeople were caught up in superstition.
(Many Black laypeople are caught up in the superstition of Word of Faith)

2. During the Reformation age the laypeople did not have or know the Holy Scriptures, and blindly followed what the church came up with.
(Though Black laypeople (or many American Christians in general) have the Bible, many of them are Biblically illiterate and have no idea of how to study the Holy Scriptures. In the end they are left to only rely upon their ministers (who are themselves biblically illiterate), and what ever they come up with).

3. During the Reformation age there was the selling of indulgences or salvation itself.
(In much of the Black church there is the selling of indulgences in the form of love offerings, special blessing, and anointing that can only be received by "faith seed" a.k.a. money. But unlike, and even worse than, the Reformation age we have an endless supply of Johann Tetzels that don the titles of Bishop, Prophet, Apostle, Evangelist, and Prophetess).

4. During the Reformation age laypeople were told to not question the church and church leaders used scare tactics and Scripture out of context to keep them from questioning things.
(In much of the Black church when one questions a certain leader, it is quite common to hear someone use the verse that says, "Touch not my anointed". Then they add curses and other rubbish that will happen if you go against "the man or woman of Gawd". This is nothing but cheap scare tactics and Scripture taken completely out of context).

I could go on and on with comparisons, but the biggest comparison I've seen is that just as the Catholic Church has it's popery during the Reformation age, the Black church has it's own form of popery; I call it pimpery. Truth is that pastors and all these leaders with their spiritualized, empty pomp and grandeur are pimping. They are pimping in the name of Jesus, and their parishioners are too turned out to see it for what it is. I guess these are the new vicars of Christ LOL; wearing these outrageously colored suits (neo-vestments) and looking like spokespersons for Skittles and Fanta. Some of them should be called Reverend (or Prophet, Prophetess, Apostle, Evangelist, and Bishop) Magic Don Juan LOL. The worst part of all this is that as these pimps and pimpettes sell their indulgences, the proceeds go to the building of their own St. Peter's Basilicas.

Now I'm not hating on anybody or trying to look all holy (cause Lord knows I have my own faults), but there comes a point where someone has to say something. Thank God that there are brothers out there (Xavier Pickett, Anthony Carter, Thibiti Anyabwile, and Micheal Leach to name a few) speaking out against all this foolishness. I just pray that parishioners start waking up, and that pastors stop being pimps and be pastors.

Semper Reformanda,
~Scotty

2007-09-23T23:41:00.000-07:00

New Hymns, Check Them Out!

I know most people don't like hymns these days, but for those who do here are some new hymns I found, and they are so cool. Please..Please...check them out.

HYMN #1
Title: As I Recall Thy Love
-A Communion Hymn-
(Written to the tune of Melchoir Teschner’s “Val¬et Will Ich Dir Ge¬ben“ http://www.cyberhymnal.org/mid/v/a/valet_will_ich_dir_geben.mid)

(1.) In broken bread I worship; Thy body broke for me.
In humble cup I worship; Thy blood shed on that tree.
Oh Remedy of Heaven, come down from up above,
And grace me with thy presence as I recall thy love.

(2.) Thou art the Bread of Heaven, with which I worship thee.
Thou art the wine of newness, true promise unto me,
That thou will never leave me; though thou hast gone above.
Within me thou art present, as I recall thy love.

(3.) Oh gather round His table, behold the Prince of Peace.
Oh subjects of His Kingdom, grieve not His Spirit free.
Bask in His grace sufficient, and join Him up above.
Foretaste the heavenly banquet, in joy recall His love.

HYMN #2
Title: My Sun Forever You Will Be
-A bedtime prayer and hymn for parents to pray and sing with their children-
(Written to the tune of John Hus’s hymn “Jesus Christ Our Blessed Saviour”
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/mid/j/e/s/Jesus_Christus.mid)

(1.) Jesus Christ, oh Son of David.
Be with me, Jesus, have mercy.
Away you have sent the sun.
Now from this day I go to rest.

(2.) As I close my eyes Lord keep me.
As I sleep, Jesus, have mercy.
Guide me through the realm of dreams,
And let me rest within Your peace.

(3.) In Your peace may I awaken,
To know You have not forsaken.
But if day I shall not see.
My sun forever You will be.

HYMN#3
Title: Holy Trinity So Glorious
(Written to the tune of Girolamo Savonarola’s “Jesus Refuge of the Weary” http://www.cyberhymnal.org/mid/o/d/oduliebe.mid)

(1.) Holy Trinity so glorious,
From whose Word all worlds began.
Shine upon this world in darkness,
Free thy people by thy hand.
Loosed from sin, yet bound to thee Lord,
I shall boast in none but thee.
Turn the tide of sinful ages,
Reconcile all things to thee.

(2.) Three in one I see thee clearly;
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Mighty God who reigns forever;
Glorious King and Lord of Hosts.
Bless me with thy radiant presence.
Never hide thyself from me.
Teach me by thy Word so perfect,
Set my will at liberty.

(3.) Father, Lord of all creation,
Grant me in thy courts abide.
Christ, oh fount of my salvation,
Draw me to thy wounded side.
Precious Spirit ever flowing,
Fill me with thy saving grace.
Raise me beyond the heights of heaven,
There to see thee face to face.

AMEN

2007-09-14T13:22:00.000-07:00

It’s Not About Staying In Love....It’s About Covenant

In a few months my sister will be getting married, and there is a big chance that I will be doing the ceremony. If I officiate, it be will my first wedding and it is so cool to have it be none other than my precious sister's wedding. As I have thought about this joyous occassion I have pondered upon what to say, and the thought that comes to mind is that marriage is not about staying in love. Now some will sarcastically reply, "Well you're not married....so what would you know about marriage?" My answer is that there are many who have been married, and still know nothing about marriage; I have watched as my pastor (who has been married for 51years) has counseled such people.

Marriage is about covenant, and being a covenant keeper; when you say, "I do" you are making a covenant with God and your spouse that you will remain as one no matter what happens. It is also a covenant that you will reflect the same relationship that Christ has with His church no matter what the circumstances; Ephesians 5 tells husbands to love their wives as Christ loves His church, and for wives to respond to that love by submitting to their husbands as the church submits to Christ. Not only is this covenant sealed by word, but by the consumation of the union, and some have said that the blood that comes when the woman's hymen is broken implies that marriage is also a blood covenant.

In our society marriage is all about Luther Vandross, candles, feelings, and sweet nothings, and though keeping the love flames burning is essential, we overlook the importance of being true to covenant. Marriage is a serious thing, and it breaks my heart to see Christians not taking it seriously. To a certain co-pastoring couple I say that it doesn't matter if your ministries are going in different directions, that is no valid reason to divorce. Christ tells us that adultery is the only reason to divorce, and why? Because it is a breaking of covenant. It's not about staying in love, it's about keeping the covenant.

2007-09-12T07:46:00.001-07:00

Our True Aim in Racial Reconciliation

Out of the many friends God has brought to me, I thank Him greatly for bringing Elijah into my life. Though we are of different races he and I share many of the same passions, and one of them is RR (racial reconciliation) within the church. As we chatted last night we discussed how sold out we are for RR, and with all the humility and discernment I could muster I said that I believe we are. The greatest evidence to me is that in our training for ministry God has brought us under the leadership of pastors of different races and contexts; Elijah has worked under a Black pastor, and I was trained in ministry under a White pastor. After bidding my friend goodnight I recalled my past work in RR, and was saddened. During that time I made the grave mistake of having the wrong aim; my aim at that time was simply RR. But if RR is what I wanted, then how was it the wrong aim? In truth RR is a byproduct of another pursuit, the pursuit of Christ Himself. Often times I have found that many Christians’ pursuit of RR is like this:

We tend to use Christ like a ladder to ascend to the higher plain where RR is said to be, and once we achieve the cross-cultural friendships we boast about how we got ourselves there. Now there are others who use Christ as a means of avoiding the issues, they will say “Since we have Jesus we are reconciled…so there is no race problem”; this of course is not true and reeks with ignorance and denial. The truth is that Christ ought to be our one pursuit and a church with the greatest potential for RR is not one that is just multi-ethnic, but one where Christ is treasured and loved. I have been a member of multi-ethnic churches and neighborhoods, and have watched as people go for years without even talking to each other or establishing relationships; yet we rejoice in the fact that we have members from Hong Kong and Nigeria (and we don’t even know them).

When you have a church that truly treasures and loves Christ they will seek to obey Him, and in obedience they will seek to love their neighbor as themselves which is not easy. As they seek to love their neighbor as themselves they will get into their neighbors world and issues and many of these will be cross-cultural ones. Through this process they will continuously cry out to God for strength to maintain the friendship and be real. In the end Christ will be the one with all the glory, not the programs and intentional cross-cultural living situations; those things will be byproducts of a pursuit of Christ and the fruit of them will be RR. I pray that Christians with the goal of RR will start the pursuit treasuring Christ above all, then and only then will we have real RR.

2007-09-11T08:58:00.000-07:00

My Favorite John Piper Sermon

2007-09-08T17:59:00.001-07:00

Should Ministers Be Disciplined?

Without hesitation I will answer with a big YES. In light of the recent domestic situation with Juanita Bynum I can only shake my head as it gets more and more out of hand. I'm glad she decided to forgive her husband (Bishop Thomas Weeks III) for beating her into the ground, and I'm also glad she is telling him it's over (though I don't believe in divorce). Yet forgiveness does not take away the fact that Bishop Weeks needs to be disciplined; I don't care who is at fault, there is no way in heaven, hell, and purgatory that you put your hands on your wife or any other woman at that. What's worse is that it is said that Bishop Weeks had the guts to put his hands on another woman previous to beating his wife, and these things always get covered up.

I don't care what religious title a man bears (Bishop, Sri, Imam, Shaman) if he commits a wrong he should be corrected for it. As Luther said, in the church the minister is to do publicly what the layman is to do in their personal life; this being a public example goes in both the positive and negative directions. If our parishioners are to see the blessings wrought from good works that ring out across the globe, then in bad works that ring out with such force they should also see the consequences. Did God not discipline His prophets such as Moses who disobeyed His command and could not enter the promised land? But even though Moses was punished God was still gracious to him, and continued to work through him as a prophet; the book of Jude tells us that He also sent the archangel Michael to bury Moses.

Folks I'm not crying for blood, for God knows that I have made mistakes and had egg on my face on numerous occasions. What I'm saying is that Bishop Weeks should face the consequences like any other minister has to. People should stop spiritualizing the man's actions and saying, "Well he is under spiritual attack"; I'm sorry but we are all constantly under spiritual attack. Bishop Weeks needs to be sat down and taken from all ministry, and when he is reinstated to ministry he should gradually work his way back up again. This should be the standard of discipline for ministers who fail; when we fall it does grave damage to the church, and we should be steady in the process of healing and reconciliation. We must also face the fact that ministers are people too, and that in their time out they should be working on their own issues and coming before God in prayer; Bishop Weeks obviously needs to deal with his anger and views of women. With all that said as a minister I say a big YES to ministers being disciplined, and I pray that Bishop Weeks church makes the right decisions as they go about the process.

2007-09-04T09:46:00.000-07:00

Eating and Drinking In A Worthy Manner

I love the Lord's Table (a.k.a. Holy Communion, Eucharist, the Sacrament)! Since I was recently given the rites of ministry I have had the privilege to consecrate the elements, and give them to the congregation. It's really different being on the other side of the communion table and not in the pew as things go on. When you're in the pew you sometimes don't give thought to the words of consecration where the pastor says, "Take this and eat of it, this is my body which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me until I come again". Often times those words are just something that are expected, and we treat the elements as if they were common food from the dinner table. I weep now at the many times where I ate of the sacrament in an unworthy manner, and I continuously repent of it. Truth is that the Lord's Table is not just a ritual, but an act of worship, and God's response to our worship is His grace. As we remember Jesus in broken bread and the cup that we share, let us truly be mindful of Him and His death just as He is mindful of us and our death to ourselves in our service to Him. To the pastors that read this I ask, do you ever observe your congregation taking the sacrament in an unworthy manner? If so what ways do you properly address it?

2007-08-27T08:26:00.003-07:00

Music for Creole Poetry

If there was a ever a song to go with my poem "Once Upon a Childhood Dream", this would be it:
CREOLE WALTZ

2007-08-23T20:46:00.000-07:00

Creole Poetry
I wrote this poem after hearing the story of a light skinned Creole girl and dark skinned Creole boy who were childhood friends. They were the best of friends until the social constructs of their day tore them apart, and the girl chose a rich White man over her childhood sweetheart. These two were not the only ones to suffer such a fate, there are countless others who experienced this in the past. This poem is a memorial to their childhood dream.

Once Upon A Childhood Dream

Not long ago I walked with thee, on edge of childhood dream.

Behind the willow tree we stood, young friends about sixteen.

Why do you now flee from me?....Why do you look away?

Is it my skin as dark as night?.....Not fit for you as light as day.

Move mountain for you that I would; move ocean, sea, and tide.

Write your name in the stars I would, and in your heart abide.

As moon to sun, I am to thee; without me incomplete.

As sun to moon, thou art to me; thy radiant beams so sweet.

See and love my skin so dark, cherish my mortal frame.

For like your frame so light and fair, from God Himself mine came.

Look not beyond what I am, and see a kindred soul.

The colorblind see what they wish, and I am left unwhole.

Tis not a waste to love thee.....tis not a hopeless endevour.

I vowed to thee my faithful heart, and bound it up with fetters.

Walls of partition strong and still, built by men so depraved.

They look upon my kind and kill, not wishing to be saved.

Why do you flinch when I draw near?.....Why does my blackness bring you fear?

Was I not your dearest friend once upon a childhood dream where I was coffee, and you were creme?

You I dreamed to carress and undress, and love with a tenderness, within a union God had blessed.

Alas our dream is past, yet I keep on dreaming.

Dreaming of us at the pond, watching moonlight gleaming.

Dreaming of a love which the hateful cannot sway.

In love we'll be together.....

Forever....

Someday.

2007-08-22T20:25:00.000-07:00

A Gift From Beyond the Grave

It's funny how even though MawMaw is gone she still reaches out to me, and gives me something I need. Now don't think I'm getting into necromancy (talking to the dead), but just the other day I was in need of encouragement and material for my sermons and spiritual enrichment and I found something that Grandmother would try to get me to read and I wouldn't give it the time of day. As I was going through a box of old books she had given me I found a rare treasure; Charles Spurgeon's (pictured above) "Treasury of David". Granmother loved Spurgeon, and was proud to be of the Reformed faith, heck if it wasn't for God working through her I would not even be Reformed. she loved Spurgeon, and whenever I felt unfit for the ministry because of my age she would remind me that Spurgeon was younger than I (19 in fact) when he became a minister, and he had much success. Already I have been gleaning from the wisdom of this gift she has given to me, and I have recieved more than I initially asked for. But as wonderful as this gift of hers is, I can only find myself saying Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God alone). All glory is due to God alone, and Grandmother would not have had it any other way. Grandmother I miss you, and as I go forth in ministry and life in general I'll remember that old hymn that was your lullaby to me in my infancy:

Near The Cross
Jesus, keep me near the cross,

There a precious fountain.

Free to all, a healing stream

Flows from Calvary's mountain.
In the cross, in the cross,

Be my glory ever;

Till my raptured soul shall find

Rest beyond the river.

2007-08-13T10:51:00.000-07:00

The Voice of Truth

Lately I've been dealing with this dude who is about 55 years old, and captive to a drug addiction (crack to be specific). It sad how much it has a hold on him, and how it has affected his marriage and relationship with his daughters. One day I caught him listening to the Casting Crowns song titled "The Voice of Truth", and he asked me what I thought of it. I replied that I did not really listen to Casting Crowns, and I told him the song sounded OK to me; then he looked at me and said, "Oh, well I guess you have to live a bit longer for it to mean something to you." Later on that day I just laughed to myself, believe me when I say that the song's message means more to me than anything in this world.

Like the artists I too have listened and believed the voice of truth, and at the age of 8 it told me that I was a rotten sinner unble to save myself by ritual. It told me that I needed to stop depending on others to make God real to me, and that I had to encounter Him for myself. The voice of truth told me that I needed to not just be a "good boy", but that I needed to be changed into a new person. The voice of truth told me that even though I went to church and read my Bible, I really didn't love God. It told me that my goodness was not really good at all, for it was tainted with selfish motive. Rather than make me feel good, the voice of truth broke me off and shut me down, it gave me the reality check that I was on my way to hell, I deserved it, I couldn't do anything about it, and that the only thing keeping me afloat was God's mercy.

When I look at this 55 year old brotha I wish that he would really hear the voice of truth, I'm not judging him, but from seeing his life up close I can say that he does not know God. It is people such as this who are the hardest to reach because they have fooled themselves into thinking they are saved simply because they have been emotionally touched by a religious song or a Bible verse. Jonathan Edwards put it so well when he wrote:

"A person by mere nature, for instance, may be liable to be affected with the story of Jesus Christ, and the sufferings he underwent, as well as by any other tragical story: he may be the more affected with it from the interest he conceives mankind to have in it: yea, he may be affected with it without believing it; as well as a man may be affected with what he reads in a romance, or sees acted in a stage play." (From Edward's "A Divine and Supernatural Light")

I'm a living witness when I say that when one truly encounters the voice of truth they are changed. Are they perfect? No. Will they still mess up and struggle? Yes. But through it all they will desire more than ever to cleave to Christ, and submit to the will of God. A changed person does not only hold Christ as their friend because of what He has done, but their Lord as well. A changed person no longer takes God's grace and mercy for granted, but daily thanks Him for them and out of gratitude is obedient and does good works. As I look at this brother I just wish that he would see all these things, and for once in his life admit the truth and truly cling to God for salvation. I do pray for him always, but ultimately the decision is not up to me; it is God who saves, not me. He knows who His elect are, all I can do is keep on living the life in Christ and praying in hopes that this brother is one of them.

2007-08-08T20:53:00.000-07:00

Picking Up The Bagpipes Again

About two summers ago after being badgered by a good friend, I decided to learn to play the bagpipes. Most folks looked at me like I was crazy while trying to visualize a Black Southern man in a kilt playing "Flower of Scotland". Nevertheless I went ahead and got a practice chanter for uilleann bagpipes, and after a bit of practice started to get the hang of it. But after a while a certain individual who had played the tuba once upon a time and thought he knew everything about wind instruments kept getting on my nerves about technique, and so I stopped my pursuit of the bagpipes. Well folks, this morning I decided to pick them back up again, but this time I have decided to take a crack at the highland bagpipes, and have sent an order off for a new chanter, as well as an instructional CD and booklet. My hope is to once again have the hang of it by the end of the summer/middle fall, and then purchase a set of practice pipes (which has the drones and bag). So that is my new project, I will take up the bagpipes once again.

2007-07-26T10:48:00.000-07:00

Knowledge Without Wisdom

Out of all my favorite proverbs I love a particular old Japanse proverb about knowledge and wisdom which goes:

"Knowledge without Wisdom is a load of books on the back of an ass ("donkey" for those who want to act like the FCC).

Having the role of teaching as part of my profession I know this to be completely true. There are many teachers who simply have a load of facts, but facts alone are not good enough. How one applies and communicates the Knowledge they possess is just as important, and this application and communication of Knowledge is Wisdom itself. Wisdom makes it so that Knowledge is put to good use, and impacts people rather than going over their heads; though even with wisdom, some knowledge still goes over people heads. When wisdom causes Knowledge to impact people, it in turn gives Knowlegde meaning.

In the church there are so many people who have a Knowledge and understanding of the Word of God, but when it comes to Wisdom they lack it. They do not take to time to look at why they believe what they believe, and the sources of their religious knowledge. All they seem to do is aquire the list of facts that make them Catholic, Lutheran, Baptist, Non-Denominational, or ect. ect. ect. and never look at them through the scope of Wisdom. Wisdom makes it so that a Knowledge of the Word of God impacts one and has a profound effect upon their life, and in this faith becomes a lived out daily reality rather than something for 11:00 Sunday morning.

One more thing I would like to add is that in seeking Wisdom one must get true Wisdom. In the case of us Christians it is the Wisdom of God which is Christ Himself (1 Corinthians 1:24 "but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.") Christ is the Wisdom of God, and though one might gain all the Christian Knowledge in the world, without Him it is all meaningless. Christ makes it so that the Knowledge of the Word of God impacts people, and at the same time gives this Knowledge meaning; in truth He is its very meaning for He is the Word itself (John 1).

An old preacher once said that where there is no contact there is no impact, the same applies with Christ being the Wisdom of God. If one never comes into contact with Him they will never be impacted by the wonderful Knowledge of the Word of God.

2007-07-10T09:06:00.000-07:00

The Naked Truth: My Response about Tonex

It recently came to my attention that the gospel artist Tonex went off the deep end, he just released a song titled "The Naked Truth" which is laced with profanity and him apparently claiming that he is gay. After listening to the song on his myspace page, I looked at his comments sections and just shook my head; people were slandering Tonex as if he were the devil himself. Is it right for Tonex to be doing these things? Should he be excused from his actions and avoid church discipline simply because he's a gospel artist? No, but at the same time what this really is is a cry for help from a broken human being. Though he cusses and makes claims to be gay, at the same time he talks about a preacher who molested him when he was six years old.

What we see in Tonex is truly "the naked truth". We see the naked truth about those in the church who are hurting, and how their pain goes unaddressed for the sake of the "Christian image". I can so relate to Tonex about being hurt (especially by Christians) and when I told people of this hurt in a blog titled "Jesus says F-You (which means Forgive You)" I cannot tell you the number of Christians that got to trippin over the fact that I wrote the "F" word (even though most of it was in web-dings faunt) when I wrote:

In all that time I found that when a church hurts people, Jesus really does say, "F-YOU" and he encourages the hurting to say F-YOU along with him. But that F-YOU does not mean F@$K YOU it means FORGIVE YOU.

I had so many Christians (even one from a church I work with) talking about how they would never listen to me preach again. My character and call were brought into question, and in the end I was the one that had to go and apologize for "letting my brothers and sisters in Christ down". Folks only cared about the "Christian image" (which is somewhat important) and saying, "Your words are not becoming of a man of God." Well my friend I'm sorry, but neither were the words "becoming of a man of God" when my old Word of Faith pastor condemned me for not believing in the prosperity gospel and going to seminary. Neither were the words and actions "becoming of people of God" when church folks (and their rotten kids) talked about my mother having me out of wedlock and saying that I would be gay because I didn't grow up with a father. In thier quest for the preservation of the "Christian Image" those who needed church discipline got off the hook and I had to pay.

Thanks be to God that in this past situtaion my senior pastor understood and helped me tame the lions, but still it was ridiculous. Rather than saying, "Brother I'm so sorry these things happened, and I'm glad that by God's grace you came out alright", I was prosecuted and burned at the stake by a Baptecostal Inquisition for defacing the "Christian image" . A few months later I preached on the subject of being hurt, and what was cool was that one of my church's deacons came up to me in tears and just held me; that got me to crying. But still what gets at me is that this type of stuff goes on all the time, and peoples pains are being overlooked for the "Christian image". It also urkes me that it is happening to people who are not at the same point I'm at; not everyone can take a lot of crap like I can. This happens to people new to the faith, and Christians suffering from things like clinical depression, and after they express their pain in ways such as Tonex's we condemn them.

To the Righteouss Right I say that instead of going after Tonex, go after that dirty old Apostolic preacher that touched him at the age of six. Stop talking about the need for justice and start being agents of justice. Stop saying "Amen" when a preacher talks about addressing people's pain the right way and start doing what Amen means and that it "let it be so". To Tonex and all those hurting in the church, I say I'm sorry that we didn't come to your aid when you needed us and I'm sorry for the suffering you have had to undergo for telling the naked truth. Tonex I wish I would have been there when you were six years old, because (though I wasn't sexually abused) I was abused in other ways as a child and can somewhat feel where you're coming from.

Well that's my response on Tonex, and if you don't like it oh well. It is time out for giving up on people for the sake of a "Christian Image".
Peace

2007-06-13T10:41:00.000-07:00

Reconciliation With My Father

While back home in Louisiana this past weekend I got to do something that many men who grow up without their father never get to do; I completely reconciled with my father. The first time I saw him I was 17, and on that day he simply told me to keep my head up and keep doing good. Despite all that happened, my mother always told me to love, honor, and forgive him with gritted teeth I weathered the storm of bitterness to now find myself sailing into the sunshine of reconciliation. I tell y'all it is such a joy to have your father tell you that he loves you, and that you are his; my father told me that I was his only son and along with my sweet sister I am all he has in this world. He even told me why he left, and apologized for the foolishness of his younger years to which I said that I had already forgiven him for and loved him. Despite what has happened my father is a good man, and I get my caring spirit and patience with people from him; all he did was make one mistake, and though it was huge, it does not negate the fact that he is a good man. My father also told me that he was proud of me, he is there for me, and that I am a good son. To hear those words after 24 years is like coming upon an oasis after a long trek through the desert.

Besides meeting up with Papa, I met up with my sister whom I had not seen for twelve years, and that meeting will continue to give me joy for the rest of my life. She showed up to my mother's family dance, and I proudly introduced her to everyone before getting on the dance floor. What was funny was that many of my family members knew her and my father, and never thought to put two and two together. They were all wide eyed and shocked to see that she is my sister, and she was shocked to learn that some of her best friends are my cousins. In fact my cousin/adopted brother Jack is also her cousin, and she was especially shocked to find out that his father is my mother's brother. Many a times when she would visit my cousin, I would be over and she had no idea of who I was LOL.

I also met my two nieces and nephew for the first time, and my oldest niece of age 6 (whom I affectionately call Krokodi; Creole for crocodile) recognized me when I walked through the door. Krokodi reminds me of myself for she loves to talk, play pranks, and is very intelligent; the whole time I was at my sister's house, she just stuck to me like glue and I almost cried every time she would say, "Hey Uncle". After blessing and kissing my nieces and nephew goodbye, my sister and I went to Buffalo WildWings and talked. It was amazing to see another person who shares traits with me that I thought I would never share with anyone else. It was amazing to say, "Our dad" with someone else, and not have it as some step-father, but my real father.

To all who read this and have been blessed with your father, I pray that you hold him to you tighter than ever before. It is a joy to be a son to a father who loves you, and it is an even greater joy to forgive and reconcile with your father after years of his absense. Meeting up with my father and my sister really helped me because I saw part of myself in them, and I understood why I am wired the way I am. I shall cherish this past weekend for the rest of my life, and I look forward to the days ahead with Papa and Sis. Christ is truly good to us, and I am forever in His debt not only for His election and accomplished redemption of me, but for His power to restore. I am now whole at last, and it feels great; I not only have a Father in heaven, but I have one on this earth who calls me his beloved son.

2007-06-02T21:34:00.000-07:00

Christology and Good Hermeneutics

It is amazing to see the misconceptions of Christianity that are not only pumped out by non-Christians, but many supposed Christians as well. Christianity is seen as a Eurocentirc religion, endorsed by the Empiricist White Majority/Hoodwinked Minorities, and based on a twisting of the Holy Scriptures and a misunderstanding of God's missions. The real problem is not the true Christian religion, but a lack of authentic, biblical, and historical Christology; people just have the wrong idea of who Jesus is. Some see Him as a White skinned divine justification of Western values and ideologies, while others see Him as a Black skinned divine liberation of the oppressed and downtrodden.

But true Christology sees Him from the perspective of the Holy Scriptures (the Bible in my case); now at this point some will say, but aren't all these views based upon the Holy Scriptures? Don't the people who supposedly have it wrong have the Bible as well? The answer is yes, and this is why good hermeneutics is important when trying to understand the Biblical text; or any text, sacred or secular. Good hermeneutics gets you to look at the orginal audience, languages, social setting, and pushes you to get outside of youself and your assumptions/agendas so that the text might speak for itself. Now some may say, but the tools to get these things are flawed; to this I say yes many tools are flawed, but not all of them. There are people out there with Godly convictions, who out of integrtity go beyond the best of their abilities to set the record straight so that truth might be known.

Good hermeneutics is not only considered a "must" in the Christian faith, it is also considered a "must" in many other faiths. In Islam for example, most of it's scholars will agree that you can't just pick up the Qur'an and have it all together, you must have good hermeutics in order to interpret it. Like the Bible, the Qur'an also has it's own orginal audience, language, and social setting that one must look at (here's a good article on hermeneutics in Islam). Now there will be differences in opinion on things, like Jesus turning water into wine or a nice non-alcoholic grape beverage , but regardless of these differences we must continue to strive for good hermenutics in pursuit of a good Christology. We will not have perfect hermeneutics or a perfect Christology at that, for we are subjective beings looking at a text that conveys objective truth from a contex different from our own.

The road to good Christology is not easy, but neither was the road to Christ's making atonement for our sins that we might be regenerated and reconciled unto God. We must strive for good hermeneutics no matter how hard the road, so that we might have (not a perfect picture), but a clearer picture of who Jesus is. In the end when we look upon this clearer picture, we will see what we are to become for the Holy Scriptures tell us in the book of Romans that we were called before the foundations of the world to be conformed to the image of God's Son. This is image is neither White nor Black, but it is God incarnating Himself in human flesh and drawing fallen humanity unto Himself. May the Lord God by the work of His Spirit incarnate Himself in us, so that He might continue to draw fallen humanity unto Himself.

2007-05-29T08:09:00.000-07:00

Can This Work In The Predominantly Black Church?

It seems that many in the predominantly White Church are pressing for a more simplistic ecclesiology where clergy/laity distinctions are erased, and there is less institution and denominational structures. An example of this can be found in parts of the Emmergent Church Movement, where free house churches are the craze, and community is the goal. People are desiring to get back to a more apostolic ecclesiology like what we see in the book of Acts, and out of this desire they are even founding communities (such as the Rutba House Community) with a Monastic/Anabaptist flavor. I have had the privilege of dealing with such communities and have sat under wonderful men and women who are leaders in this new movement, but there is always one question I'm left asking; Can this work in the predominantly Black Church? The reason I ask this is because the leaders in this movement only look at things from the White Christian perspective.

Many of them come from mainline Protestant, conservative, evangelical high churches; this in turn adds a different historical dynamic for them. These types of churches have their roots in the magesterial Protestant churches of Europe, and in their hey day they were state churches (example: the Reformed Church of the Netherlands). As state churches they held political power and were invovled in goverment affairs; this involvment with the state resulted in corrupt people getting leadership positions in these churches and giving them a bad name. Despite that fact that America has no state church, the present churches descended from these state churches continued having some form of involvment with the state; even the Baptist churches who uphold seperation of church and state managed to get invovled in goverment affairs. In the end the result was as it had been in Europe; corruption ensued and the church was once again given a bad name.

Added to this is that these churches seemed to also become individualistic social clubs with no concern for the Mission of God; this not only made them get off course, but also made them irrelevent. Seeking to regain the mission and be relevant, many in these churches have called for them to abandon poltical trappings, and as was stated previously, have a more simplistic ecclesiology where community is the goal. But when looking at the origins of the Black church we find something rather different; the Black church began as secretive clandestine religious meetings amongst slaves. They had no support of the state, in fact the state outlawed such meetings, and when they got caught they were severly punished and even killed. In these meetings these lowly people identified with Christ, shared the Scriptures and their possesions, and practiced the custom of extended kin (which is still practiced in the African American community). They were more than a secret religious society, they were an oppressed community gathered together in Christ and encouraging one another in the Word.

Even after these meetings became legal and visible, they still had issues with the state (as well as the predominantly White church) in becoming the institutions we see today. Countless men and women gave their lives so that denominations such as the African Methodist Episcopal Church and National Baptist Church could be founded, and upon their founding they stood as buffers against the nihilistic spirit of oppression. Unlike the predominantly White church that seeks to shed its historic political and individualistic trappings, the predominantly Black church historically has had no such trappings to shed. We have always had community, and when we did get involved with politics there was no entire denomination holding a political seat, but certain clergymen and laymen from those denominations held political seats and worked for the benefit of not only the denomination but the community at large.

In recent years we have seen the predominantly Black Church take on more political trappings, and with the rise of Word Faith teaching, there has been a taking on of more individualism as well. Like the predominantly White church there is also a bit of corruption and the reception of a bad name. Nevertheless (save a few churches leaders, organizations, and congregations) there is still some safe distance between the predominantly Black church and politics. I have also found that the Black church still manages to retain the tradition of community passed down from slavery and still remains a place of extended kin. Looking back at the initial question I find that the simplistic ecclesiology and movement in the White Church in many ways can't work for the Black church (though it can benefit it). I also find that it is almost uneeded in the Black church, for what its movement seeks to get, the Black church has had and already has. Though I believe we need theological reform in the Black church, I believe that we must hold onto our traditional ecclisiology of old and continue to pass it on. What are your thoughts on this issue? Should the Black Church join this movement? Can it work for us?

2007-05-27T12:24:00.000-07:00

Progress On My Book

Some of you have been asking about when my book is coming out and the progress of this project. Well folks I have put things on hold in light of grandmothers death, and a few transitions that I'm about to make. Nevertheless things are chugging along and I hope to have the project done by the beggining of the fall. Right now I'm preparing to do an independent study on Reformation history and Augustinian literature with a phenominal hisotrian; Dr. Chris Armstong of Bethel Seminary. This study will help with a certain section of my book that I hold as the solution to the issue I'm addressing. Please continue to pray for me as you wait patiently for my work, and many thanks to all who have supported me thus far.

2007-05-25T14:26:00.001-07:00

Oil and Water: Christianity and Masculinity

Yesterday my friend Matt and I began to discuss our upbringings, and I told him of the struggle I had for many years in thinking that a Christian man could not be masculine. To this he agreed, and told me of his father and how for years he was passive and his mother was the one who led in spiritual matters (and even matters of the home). I remember church as a boy, and the only men that were consistantly there were the pastor and deacons, but it seemed that the women always held the monopoly on what it meant to be Christian. Save my great Uncle Dubb (R.I.P.), I didn't have any images of a masculine Christian man, and the women's perception of Christ was what it meant to be a Christian man. Following the womens peception of Christ I came out a "nice guy" who didn't drink, smoke, chew, dance, play games of chance, and fight.

So many Christian men can relate to this, in fact this is so prevelent that many men outside of the church are turned off from Christianity. Christianity and Masculinity seem like oil and water, they will never mix, and to be a man some brothers feel they have to leave the church. In the Black community many brothers embraced Islam because it promoted Masculinity, and men were pushed to be the leaders of the mosque, their home, and the community. Thanks be to God that a few brave Christian souls finally spoke out; one of them is John Eldredge and in his book "Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul", he challenges Christian men to reclaim Masculinity. Though there are minor issues I have with the book (like his failure to address Masculinity in contexts outside of the White Evangelical context), I believe that Eldredge still throws down the gauntlet and challenges Christian men to return to authentic Masculinity without resorting to a "macho man" mentality.

He also proposes that we get rid of this nice-guy Jesus put forth from feminized Christianity and the WWJD movement, and see that Jesus was the best example of Masculinity. I agree with this fully, we have feminized Jesus to the point that He is a passive, divine do-gooder; we have taken the Lion of Judah, pared His claws, and made Him into a nice house cat. On top of it we have shunned certain good aspects of Masculinity (such as fighting when needed) and deemed them as un-Christian. Also since church culture has this mass feminine presence and influence, men are ultimately emasculated all in the name of getting them right with God. Also in a lot of relationships with Christian women, brothers find themselves being pushed into this mold and told that this is what God wants them to be. In truth this is merely what the woman wants them to be laced with God language, church culture, and Bible verses taken out of context.

I'm glad we have brothers finally standing up and saying that Christianity are Masculinity are not like oil and water; they do indeed mix. I'm glad that there is this push to reclaim Masculinity in Christ, and that the issues are being addressed. Like the picture above that is my reality, I am a manly man of God.

2007-05-24T10:53:00.000-07:00

Women's Ordination/Will Men In the Church Please Stand Up

In an hour I will possibly loose my head to a few angry women because I will tell them that I do not believe that women can be ordained as ruling elders (a.k.a senior pastors). Let me be clear that I believe that women can be leaders in the church, and can be ordained to numerous holy orders, but never the order of elders. I am a complimentarian believeing that God made the sexes equal, but at the same time He designed specific roles for them to play and He has specific roles for the sexes when it comes to ecclessiastical matters. When it comes to this issue of women's ordination I believe that the biblical text and historical and early church contextual evidence are clear; only men are to be ruling elders.

No where in the Biblical text does it say that women were ordained as elders (though it does say they played a vital part in leadership in ministry as deaconesses). When ever it mentions the qualifications for elders (I Timothy for example) it says that "he" is to be a man of one wife, and even in the Greek text it indicates that Paul was talking about a man. No where in early church history do we have any instance where a woman was a ruling elder; if it were so the Apostles and Church Fathers would have made mention of this. Now we can play around with the notion of Paul being a sexist and the patriarchal system of the ancient world, but the truth is if women were meant to hold the office of ruling elder then it would have been made clear. Before I continue I better restate that I am not against women having leadership roles in the church, preaching in the church, or being ordained to certain offices (for there are many levels of ordination), but I'm not for women being ordained as ruling elders.

So then why are all these women getting ordained? Why are all these sisters feeling called to be ruling elders? The answer is quite simple, because a lot of men are not taking their place in the House of God; especially in the American church. Heck a lot of men are not even taking their place in spiritual leadership (or leadership in general) in their own house. In the end the responsibility for spiritual matters is left up to the women; a lot of brothers out there (such as myself) did not get their spiritual teaching and guidance from their fathers, but their mamas and big mamas. Now I'm not saying that all women end up in the pastorate because all the men are sorry, but in most cases when they got there, there was no man standing up to begin with. Do I put down female pastors? Heck no, in fact I commend them and pray for them to be strengthened because they are not only taking up the men's role, but they are also taking up their own role and carrying all the weight of ministry.

I know many female pastors who have stepped in and raised up wonderful men of God; I too have benefitted from the ministries of female pastors and have found myself challenged to be a Godly man. Yet this does not make me turn my eye from the God given call to men to be leaders in His House; brothers we have been called to be men who reflect the character of God and lead His covenant community. Added to brothers standing up in the church we need to stop belittling and looking over the ministry and God given roles that women play in the church; we need to stop making the office of ruling elder as the most important above all others. We need to encourage women to be as God created them and use our roles and offices of leadership to not lord over them and keep them down, but to lift them up, serve them, and love them. Though I never agreed with her theology I believe Kathryn Kulman was right in her belief that she was not called to be a pastor and that God had orinally called a man who chose to be disobedient. Brothers we need to submitt ourselves unto God, and answer His call upon our lives; we need to stand up and take our place.

2007-05-22T07:14:00.000-07:00

More Deaths In The Family

It has been almost two weeks since Grandmother died, and just when I thought death would take a break it kept on going. I called my father's parents the other day and found out that we had two more deaths in the family; the first was my great aunt, and she was my grandfather's sister. The second was a cousin who folks had prayed through the war in Iraq, but upon his return home he went to Las Vegas to unwind from his year of battle and was murdered. On top of the deaths in my family I'm saddened to also recieve word of the death of a hero and legend in the Black Creole community; Alphonse Bois Sec Ardoin. Added to this my mother's brother almost died right after Grandmother did, but thanks be to God that he is well and resting.

In all this I ask God what is going on? Last year and this current one have been years of death for my family, and truth be told I'm sick of it. I'm especially sick of hearing those cheesy Christian cliches like, "Absent from the body, in the presence of the Lord" or, "They are gone to a better place now" or "God needed another angel in heaven". I'm tired of getting these little lessons and talks about life and death as if I'm some little child or novice when it comes to these matters. What also urkes me is that I ask myself, "When will my turn come to meet Christ?"; not to say that I want to die, but I yearn to see Jesus in light of all these things. But despite me being sick of folks dieing this doesn't mean that I stop living, I pray for endurance until my day comes and I "give up the ghost". Overall I'm thankful that most of these people who have died were devout, regenerate, believers and that I shall see their faces again when I see Him face to face.

2007-05-18T08:48:00.001-07:00

I'm Going Home Y'all! YAAAAAAAY!

Yesterday I got the greatest news from my aunt; there is a family reunion back in Louisiana next month and the family up here decided to go. I'm so excited because I have not been home since Katrina and I've really been wanting to go back. What is the most exciting is that all of my family will be getting together, and I will be seeing folks I have not seen in ages. Added to this I will be preaching at a memorial service for Grandma and we will place her ashes in her mother's grave. Grandma did not want a funeral so we will not hold anything in a church and will not bring in all the funeral trappings that are custom; this will be consistant with her wishes. I'm happy that we are having the memorial service because we can lay Grandma to rest next to her mother with all the memorial rites, and have closure as a family. But the most exciting part is just the fact that I'm going back to the place where I grew up. I get to see old friends and hang out at my old hangout spots; I get to share memories with people and laugh. I get to just be who and what I am and not being questioned about it, I can be around my people and be alright for a while. I'm Going Home Y'all! YAAAAAAAY!

2007-05-14T18:03:00.000-07:00

Throwing Away My Powdered-Wig: Preaching Black and Reformed

I recently went back to Reformed Blacks of America's blog and read one of the articles entitled "Powder-Wigged Negroes"; if you are Black, Reformed, and in the ministry I recommend that you read it. As of lately I have been doing a lot of preaching in my church, and have been working on my style, but until a few weeks ago I had an issue. While preaching I found that I was not being true to myself, in fact I was trying to preach in a style that seemed to be a medley of Piper, Sproul, and Sangston. In the end the sermon was one of my worst, and I ended up getting completely off of my original point; Pastor Whitcomb later commented on it and said that it concerned him. I thank God for Pastor Whitcomb because he is honest with me, and though he is White he is not trying to make me preach as if I am White. He encourages me to be Black (and Creole) in the pulpit, and it's funny to see the look on the faces of Black folks who visit our church and find out that I'm the associate minister.

After talking with Pastor I remembered the blog on RBA, and gave it a quick glance; despite Pastor's efforts and encouragement I ended up being a "Powder-Wigged Negroe". I realized that in my efforts to imitate great men of the Reformed faith that I ended up talking down to the people as if they knew nothing. I threw big words and complex theological concepts at them, and just moved on as if I were speaking to ivory tower academics. Upon looking over that blog on RBA it was like a breath of fresh air, "I can be myself" I thought, "There is nothing hindering me from being myself here". The truth is that the only thing that kept me wearing my powdered wig was ME, and I held on to it out of fear of what others (Reformed Blacks and Whites) might think of me. Though I am Reformed, I preach charismatic, and I do things like telling people to "turn to their neighbors, and say something"; a lot of these things are similar to what Word of Faith charlatons do, and I don't want that stigma. But at the same time I dont want the frozen chosen, tight-butt, White evangelical stigma either; so I must be true to myself.

My prayer is that the new Reformed Black preachers and churches will preach and worship like Black preahers and Black churches. Though I don't agree with his theology Bishop Carlton Pearson said it best, "We need to get over being afraid and ashamed of the way we worship". We as Black Reformed clergy and lay people need to throw away our powdered wigs and be true to who we are. I'm not saying that we need to whoop or get the shout music going if we attend a non-Black church, but we need to be ourselves. I refuse to be afraid of getting some Word of Faith stigma any longer, the important part is what I'm preaching and being true to my biblical convictions. I thank God for the Reformed Black leaders such as Anthony Carter, Cory Ruth, and Reddit Andrews for they are open and honest about issues of Black Reformed identity and they preach like Black men. I pray that I can follow their example; I've thrown away my powdered wig and I've let my fro out.

2007-05-13T03:55:00.000-07:00

Young Preachers and a Ministry of Rebellion

When it comes to colleagues in the ministry I tend to stick around the older preachers; most of the time I hang around my 76 year old senior pastor and his friends. My reason for not hanging around a lot of young preachers my age is because they always seem to have this spirit of rebellion that makes them minister out of rebellion. They are always seeking to change things in church simply for the sake of changing them or because they don't personally like them. On top of this their sermons are laced with themes of "getting away from tradition" and "being radical for Christ". They also tend to make it seem as if the older preachers, seminary training, and all denominations are irrelevant, and have it all wrong. What really urkes me is that I used to be the same way, I used to put down my pastor and denomination simply because they did not do things the way I thought they should be done, and I took things into my own hands and preached out of rebellion.

Thanks be to God that I got in check before I got too out of hand and did a lot of irreversable damage. I remember going before my pastor, and upon repenting for my arrogance he just laughed and said ,"We live and we learn". What worries me is that we have a lot of young preachers ministering out of rebellion to points where they are almost heretical, and they are being given big-time platforms to speak from and ecclesiastical offices (such as bishop). As a result I find that we have a church culture forming that is quite unstable in doctrine, practice, and leadership. This is a huge problem in the mainstream Black church with its young celebrity preachers who are drawing in the big crowds. My hope is that as I go further into the ministry that I can take these hot shots and show them the benefits of avoiding the spirit of rebellion, and the right way to make change happen in the church. I thank God that despite this issue that we still have older preachers (such as my pastor) out there who are taking young men under their wing and discipling them in the ways of the ministry.

2007-05-11T21:23:00.001-07:00

Jesus The Feminist

One of the arguments against Christianity is that it is a sexist religion, and I always hear this from secularists and certain Christian/non-Christian feminists of both genders (because men can be feminists too). It never fails to have someone say that the church is a male dominated institution, and that when wives are called to submittance to their husbands that it is a call to oppression. Jesus tells us in the parable of the wheat and tha tares that not everyone in the church belongs to Him, and because of this we see corruption in the church. This corruption makes itself known through sex abuse scandals, racist acts, sexist acts, and the list goes on in various ecclesiastical bodies. But just because these thing exist in the church does not mean that Christianity in and of itself is sexist, in fact Christ Himself empowered women and gave them recognition.

In ancient Greco-Roman and Jewish society women were considered property, and male to male relationships were held in higher regard. In Christ's day rabbis looked down on women, and in most cases did not speak in depth with them. When a man was caught in the act of adultery (despite the Law's calling him into account with the woman), it was presumed that the woman had done something to cause the man to stumble, and this resulted in the man going unpunished in many cases. Added to these things rabbis would never allow women to assist them in their work, and refused to teach them. But WDJD (What Did Jesus Do?). He came to the defense of women caught in adultery (John 8:1-11), He spoke in depth with women (John 4:6-42), and He allowed women to assist Him in His earthly ministry and taught them (Mary and Martha). Added to these things that the first person He spoke to after His ressurection was a woman, and He sent her as the first person to announce that He had risen.

When it came to women Jesus recoginized and affirmed them, and for this some have dubbed Him as a feminist in His own time. Butto all this one might say, "Well that was Jesus, but what about His followers?" Well let's fast forward to when the Spirit came down at Pentecost, who were some of the people in the Upper room? Women. When we look at the writings of The Apostel Paul (who is sometimes considered the most sexist of the biblical writers), we find him praising women such as the mother and grandmother of Timothy. We find the Holy Scriptures also giving testament to great women such as Dorcas who in Acts 9 is recognized for her good deeds and almsgiving. I could go on and on about the the treatment of women in the early church, but I think I've made my point; women played a vital part in the early church and they are given proper recognition in the Holy Scriptures.

So often I feel that we project our present context onto the Biblical text, and Christianity itself and try to say that the way we treat our women today is the way it was done back then. But the truth is that everyone who does something in the name of God is not always of God, and we must realize that we have examples of this in church history. If we really want to know how to treat women maybe we need to let the Biblical text project its original context on us, maybe we need to look to the example of Christ and the early church and follow it. Yes the Bible tells wives to submit, but it also tells husbands to love their wives as Christ loves His church; which means lay down your life for and be a servant leader for your wife. Yes the Bible gives roles for the each sexes which cannot be assumed by the other, but this is not to put us in boxes, but to show us what it means to be male and female.

With all that said I say that Christianity is not a source of sexism; the source is radically depraved human beings acting out in selfishness. True Christianity affirms women and men for who and what they are, an empowers them to live out their gender roles to the fullest for the glory of God.

2007-05-09T13:09:00.001-07:00

R.I.P. MawMaw

It is with sadness that I anounce the death of my grandmother, Mother Eva Maria Williams who went to be with Christ in the life everlasting today. Though I cry, I rejoice for her for at last she hears those wonderful words of our Lord in the Holy Scriptures:

"Well done my good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master."

R.I.P. MawMaw. Enter thou His paridise, and I'll meet you in Zion, in a house not made by hands.