Of Hymns and Hymnals

These days, it's hard to find a good hymnal. We have those of the mainline denominations which have their own liberal bias. They are usually obsessed with their need to be "politically correct." They omit hymns with any military imagery, or other references which they find offensive. Their language must be gender-neutral. Their collections of hymns are theologically slanted toward social messages and modern symbolism which is often hard to follow. As a result, they are not usually very good literature. These hymn books also contain collections of modern hymns which meet these criteria, but which few congregations know or would even care to sing. Then, there are the other hymnals, often produced by independent publishers, attempting to capture the more evangelical church market. They are not obsessed by the need for gender-neutral language; but they do feel the urge to be contemporary and relevant. One result of this is that they try to purge hymns of all language that smacks of the King James Version of the Bible. And since they do want to seem socially relevant, they may include many hymns that are left out of the more liberal hymnals, but with a twist--to make them more acceptable to modern sensibilities. In either case, you wind up with many hymns which purport to be what they in fact are not. Some of the names are the same, but the hymns are effectively rewritten to reflect 21st-century sensibilities. I prefer the older hymnals. I know that even in the older hymn books, the verses which were actually used for certain hymns could vary. But at least, they were not often changed. The choice of hymns would reflect certain biases of a committee or publisher; but at least, the familiar words were not ripped to shreds for essentially political reasons. The theology reflected in those hymns was more in keeping with traditional teachings of the churches. These days, whether trying to appeal to a certain kind of evangelical on the conservative side of the spectrum or the more liberal and "progressive" Christians of another ilk, those who compile and publish hymn books seem to be trying to outdo one another in tampering with the musical heritage of the church. The big losers in all this will be the next generation of Christians.

2 Thessalonians 2, selected verses; November 6-12, Year C:

This passage testifies to the certainty of dark days for the church near the end of the present age. There will be great deception, with Christians following false christs, and with many rebelling against the true faith. There will be delusions and false teachings, and great falling away. I'm sure that these things happen to a greater or lesser extent during every phase of church history; so to some degree, when we see these things happen in our own day, we are right to be on our guard and to be watchful for the Second Coming of Christ. But we dare not be so presumptuous as to predict times or days or years or seasons. Nowhere does the Bible give us warrant to do that. At the same time, this chapter closes on a hopeful note. It speaks of those who have been chosen from before the foundation of the world who will be sanctified and preserved. All of the elements of God's sovereignty are here--His love, His preservation, His election, His decrees. To some, these truths speak of an arbitrary, cold, and aloof God. Instead, we should think of this passage as a reminder that God cares very much for His world and is very much involved in its care--both spiritual and physical. This is an indication of how much God cares for His children. He will make us who believe in Christ more like Christ; and He will preserve and protect us to the end.

2 Thessalonians 1, selected verses; October 30-November 5, 2007:

In our lectionary epistle reading for this week, Paul is acknowledging the faith and the love of these Thessalonians. These Christians are a subject of conversation among all the churches. They have endured persecution and tribulation with patience and steadfastness. Paul expresses certainty that a righteous God will repay with His judgment those who have troubled this church. Those who do not know God or obey the gospel will be visited with the vengeance of Almighty God. Everlasting destruction and punishment will be the final end of those who reject the gospel and hinder the churches, and they will be cast out of the presence of God. But the saints who have followed Christ and have endured will ultimately be glorified. So Paul and the other Christians pray for these Thessalonians who God counts worthy to suffer in this great cause and to participate in this great calling. We are reminded in this text that to suffer for Christ is honorable. Paul gives thanks for this church and encourages them to do even better. They are worthy of praise in part, at least, because they are suffering--not just suffering for *any cause, but for Christ. They are serving, working together like a true family, struggling, but bound together in love by Christ to God and to each other. They are wrestling with the meaning of discipleship, born, as they were, amid persecution. Are we today suffering for God's kingdom? Are we even worthy of such suffering? We do not consider our projects and our missions efforts worthy unless they succeed; and the standards for success are *our standards, not those of God. We do not know too many churches that are persecuted today. Perhaps most churches in our country are not persecuted because they stand for nothing spiritual that can be clearly identified. Suffering honors God only when it is visited upon a church or a Christian that honors God! We need not adopt a martyr complex and say that suffering is good for its own sake; but we know that if we seek truly to live a Christian life, we will, at some point, be persecuted. This is assumed in the pastoral epistles and elsewhere. Andwhen I speak of suffering for Christ, I'm not speaking of that suffering which is often identified by activists of the left or the right politically as suffering for Christ. Suffering for a cause which you or I believe to be Christian is not the same thing as suffering because we *are Christian, or because we affirm the Christian faith. I believe there are many Christians who even suffer within their own congregations or denominations simply because they affirm the Christian faith. And clearly, there are many who suffer because they are Christian and yet are seeking to maintain their faith as they live and work in a hostile world. Other causes may seem good or right or virtuous, and may be perfectly valid areas of Christian involvement; but the world will tolerate an activist and may likely ignore a fanatic! The question is: What will it do with a Christian?

2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18, October 23-29, Year C:

Paul knows, as he is writing this, that he is near the end of his life's journey, and that his ministry is over. In this passage, he gives to Timothy and to us a faithful testimony and a faithful example. This is a particularly significant passage for Reformation Sunday because it reminds us of our responsibility to those who have gone before us and to those who will come after us. We have a responsibility as Christians faithfully to preserve the witness of the past and pass on the heritage of the faithful witnesses of the early church and of the reformers to new generations of Christians. Paul knew that the verdict of the Roman courts had gone against him, and that the sentence of death would soon be carried out. But he also knew that there was a higher court, and that in that court, another judge would award him the crown of life. He knew that his was a faith worth keeping. Paul knew the importance of giving witness to a consistent faith in life and doctrine. How easy it is today to begin well; but how hard it is to stay the course to the end. Even though all his friends and followers had abandoned him, Paul had experienced the confident assurance that the Lord was with him in his moment of trial, and had even used his trials as a means of proclamation. Today, we are so afraid of being seen as unfair or manipulative that we often even hesitate to pass on our beliefs to our children. We are hesitant to stand for the truth because we aren't sure we know what the truth is. Yet, we have a charge to keep--a faith to keep, not only in doctrine, but as we guard our personal faith in Christ. Many struggle with personal doubts, especially in times of crisis. This is where the mature Christian can be a great help and comfort to others. We may not think that what we are doing is very important; but we may be doing that very thing which is necessary in our particular time and situation--that very thing to which God has called us. Paul knew that he was not without sin; but he had a clear conscience as to his testimony and his example. He knew that he had done his best, that it had been possible only by God's grace, and that the glory was to go to God alone. We have wonderful opportunities to set an example for our children, for new Christians, and for those around us as we seek to be faithful to our calling and to the message of the Christian gospel. Let us not for one moment think that we have nothing to pass on to our children and grandchildren. Our greatest legacy is our Christian faith and testimony. For that biblical truth, people have been persecuted and have given their lives. How dare we be so timid that we won't even give a few minutes of our time to pass on these great truths to a needy world?

Jesus as Lord and Savior for Members?

At the meeting of Mission Presbytery in Mission, Texas, last weekend, we approved an overture to next year's General Assembly of the PC(USA.) This overture would include certain questions in our Form of Government of the Book of Order which will be asked of those who wish to join a PC(USA) congregation as members. These questions have been part of the Book of Common Worship; but that resource is simply for liturgical purposes. These questions would be elevated to Constitutional significance. Questions for membership used to be part of the Form of Government of the church in years gone by; but with the reunion of the PCUS and the UPCUSA and other changes which took place over the years, they dropped out of Constitutional importance. Someone who wants to be a member of the church should at least be willing to affirm that they understand that they are sinners without hope apart from the mercy and grace of God; that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior; that they are willing to participate in the work of the church and be subject to its government. I answered questions of a similar tone recently--apart from the affirmation of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior--when I rejoined the Lions club. It should be at least as difficult to join the church as to join a civic organization. Someone opposed making these questions part of the Constitution of the church on the grounds that he "joined the Presbyterian church so I could think for myself." How about thinking for yourself before you decide which church to join, and then affirm allegiance to the teachings of that church? Of course, these days, we want to join an organization and then reshape its beliefs to what suits us; but it wasn't always the case. Those who wish to be officers and ministers in the church should, of course, be held to a much higher standard; but that's another subject for another day. We've discussed it before; but it seems we always need to be reminded. Beliefs are important. Theology matters.

2 Timothy 3:14-4:5 October 16-22, Year C:

This passage speaks of the authority of Scripture and the necessity of sound doctrine. Simply to read these verses of Scripture is to invite controversy. In what sense do we believe the Bible is inspired by the Holy Spirit? How do we determine sound doctrine? Paul tells Timothy that "all Scripture" is given by the Holy Spirit and profitable for correction, rebuke, reproof, and instruction in righteousness, I take that very seriously. I believe the words of Paul or the prophets or the other gospel writers are just as much the word of God as are the words of Jesus. (I think those red-letter Bibles can be confusing.) When I stand up to read the Scripture lessons in church, I do not say, "Listen for the word of God," suggesting that somehow there's a nugget in here for you if you just listen for it. When I was growing up, I never doubted that the Bible is the word of God. At a certain point in my development, I did ask myself quite seriously why I believed the Bible to be the word of God; but I thought it through, came to my conclusions, and went on from there. Many today want to put the revelation of God in Christ above the Bible in terms of authoritative truth or revelation; but where do we learn about Christ if not from the Bible? There is the witness of the Holy Spirit, of course; but even that witness must eventually be tested in terms of the Bible. Then, we come to the warnings about those who will not endure sound doctrine. Where do we find sound doctrine today? Again, sound doctrine must be that which is based on the Bible. How else will you know whether the doctrine of a preacher or a church is sound? But some will say that the Bible has to be interpreted. I agree that parts of the Bible are very difficult. And with the radical Christian preachers and teachers on one extreme and the "prosperity" preachers and legalist fundamentalists on the other, the sincere seeker of sound doctrine may often feel that the quest is hopeless. I wonder however just how much of the Bible is so difficult to understand--at least, at the most basic level of truth. To hear some talk today, you'd almost think it would have been better if the reformers had not been successful in their efforts to get the Bible translated in the vernacular of the people. Some will say, "Ah, but you can't take the Bible literally." That's true because some of the Bible is meant to be poetic, some parable. On the other hand, if you're not going to take a particular portion of Scripture literally and follow its precepts, you'd better have a very good reason! I'd much prefer to be out of accord with culture than out of accord with the word and will of God! Yes, we have to read the Bible in its proper context. And if we know something of the background and culture in which a certain portion of Scripture was written, it can make the meaning clearer and richer for us today. But I like what one person said when discussing the paraphrase called the Living Bible. One wag commented, "My Bible never died!" While I agree that genuine scholarship is helpful in reading and understanding the Bible, I am also convinced that much of what we consider scholarly today is just an attempt to make the Bible somehow conform to our own desires and behavior. When the Northampton Presbyterian Church, in Hampton, Virginia, was considering withdrawal from the PC(USA) and joining the EPC in 1991, a member of the congregation commented that the people no longer felt that the mainline denomination was as clearly based on Scriptural principles as it had been when the congregation was established in 1962. In reply, a Presbyterian minister from a neighboring town said, "Well, surely you don't read the Bible today the same way you did in 1962!" The church member who had made the comment was amazed by this reply; and so was I! Yes, we do still read the Bible today the same way we did in 1962! Why shouldn't we? What has changed?

What Changed?

I received an email recently from someone who had been raised in the Catholic church and is now committed to the reformed faith. She was thinking back to her teen-age years and the consternation many Catholics felt about Vatican II. She said that as a teen-ager, she wondered how it could be that after teaching for many generations that a Catholic couldn't eat meat on Fridays, all of a sudden, it was "no big deal!" What changed? This is the big question that haunts modern Christianity today. How could abortion be seen by the church as such a bad thing in the early '60's and be perfectly acceptable ten years later? How could it be that the Bible was "the only infallible rule of faith and practice" to Presbyterians in the mid-1960's, and then become simply "a unique witness to Christ" only a few short years later? What changed? Well, of course, nothing changed, except that the church decided to pursue what one friend calls "a theology of accomodation." Questions about morality, the attributes of God, the authority of Scripture, and other matters of faith are not questions that require new scientific discoveries or new technological insights. These are eternal, unchanging matters of right and wrong, truth and error. They are matters that have been decided by the church many times; but not until recently has the church been so unsure of the answers. Of course, there have always been dissenting opinions. Because we are sinful creatures, error is always mixed with truth. But the church has usually been able to distinguish heresy from the true understanding of the Christian faith. Are we now losing the capacity to preserve and distinguish the good from the bad, the true from the false? Certain segments of the church once defended some social practices we now find evil, or resisted the discoveries of science which seemed to fly in the face of church doctrine. But these were not questions that struck at the very heart of the gospel; and, in the case of science, it was soon apparent that one could prove that the earth is not flat, or that the sun does not revolve around our planet. Too many today are simply looking for ways to make the church and orthodoxy appear ridiculous. Actually, the ones who wind up appearing ridiculous are the ones who are so eager to destroy Christendom. No, the principles of God's Word and righteousness are eternal. If God's Word teaches a thing in 1961 or 1875 or 2007, it is still teaching it today; and so should we. God's Word requires interpretation, but not revision. If it was wrong to steal or lie or commit adultery in the time of Christ, it's still wrong today. What changed? Unfortunately, in too many cases, it is the church that has changed!

2 Timothy 2:8-15, October 9-15, Year C:

Paul is reminding Timothy here to remember Christ; for this Christ is worth any amount of suffering, even including imprisonment and death. This Christ is the Davidic descendant, the Messiah, the Promised One, risen from the dead. Paul may be in prison, but the word of God is not bound. The gospel is not restricted by earthly authorities or by time or place. And then, Paul quotes a saying which is trustworthy, probably one of the first formulations of a creedal statement in the early church. In order to be a true disciple, the Christian must learn that living is dying, that endurance is reigning, and that to deny Christ is to be denied by the Father. Yet, even if we are faithless, He remains faithful. Therein lies the grace and forgiveness and ultimate power of God--Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. That is the wonder of the gospel message. God has made a promise. He cannot deny Himself. He has set the plan of salvation in motion. This is what will redeem the elect and ultimately restore the creation. The passage closes with a reminder from Paul to Timothy of certain pastoral responsibilities. He is to remind his flock of these truths and steer clear of quarrels about words. He is to do his best to present himself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed. The requirement to study is part of this pastoral duty. Study is necessary because our minds are limited and prone to laziness. A minister, and even one who desires to be a Christian disciple, must be faithful; but faithfulness involves more than just giving assent to certain doctrines. It involves diligence, preparation, and hard work. It involves prayer, and seeking the mind of the Son and the power and illumination of the Holy Spirit. Faithfulness requires a knowledge of the Bible and the wisdom and the willingness to use that knowledge in the service and under the direction of God Himself.

Tradition?

I was listening to a colege football game on my XM Satellite radio yesterday afternoon when an ad. came on for an eatery in the Clemson, South Carolina, area. The tag line caught my attention. The announcer said: "A Clemson tradition since 1988.) 1988? A Tradition? As I write this, that wasn't even twentyyears ago! Why, we already had MTV and CD's by then. I'd had cable TV for more than ten years by 1988; and lots of people already had computers. Heck, 1988 isn't even a generation ago! Tradition since 1988? How long does something have to exist before it becomes a tradition? Of course, if we do something every day, it can become a tradition within a year or two--maybe even less time than that! But 1988 sounds so recent to me as I sit here in my 57-year-old body. Then again, think of 1988 from the perspective of a college student. Many of them weren't even born in 1988. To them nineteen years seems like an eternity. Things move so much faster today than they did back in the '50's or '60's. "Traditions" come and go so fast that we don't even realize that something was becoming a tradition until it's gone. TV shows can become a family tradition after they run two or three seasons, and then they're taken off the air! I don't know how long something has to be around before it becomes a tradition; and I probably won't be in Clemson, South Carolina, any time soon to try out that restaurant. Pastorates seldom last nineteen years; but I sure hope this church and I become something of a tradition in Schulenburg, Texas! I do know about a really good steak place in Nashville that's been around since the days of Prohibition. Now *there's tradition for you!

2 Timothy 1:1-14, October 2-8, Year C:

Several things in this passage merit comment, if not necessarily in a particularly systematic way. We see that Timothy was raised by devout women. They were definitely Jewish, although perhaps his mother or grandmother even came to know Christ. In any case, we clearly see the value and the potentially very significant influence of a godly upbringing for our children. Let us never forget this as we consider our families and the role of the church in the proper training and Christian education of children today. Paul reminds Timothy that we are not given a spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and a sound mind. He encourages Timothy to "stir up" the gift that is in him. This goes well with the gospel reading for this Sunday, Luke 17:5-10, in which Jesus is encouraging a quality of faith and obedience that was a real challenge to the disciples as they sought to understand their new ministry. Let us too take these challenges seriously. Timothy was young. His temperament may have been one that tended to be too cautious or too easily intimidated. He may have also had his share of physical ailments. He no doubt had many spiritual gifts; but the gift to which Paul seems to refer here is the gift of the ministry itself. Paulhad laid hands on Timothy and conferred this ministry, this responsibility, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Now, he urges Timothy to trust God as he exercises this gift. Be brave and fearless in the Lord. Paul knows that he himself is but a weak and sinful vessel; but "I know whom I have believed." (In fact, we're going to sing that old gospel song Sunday.) We are persuaded that God is able to keep that which we have commited to Him. We are sometimes tempted to be ashamed of the gospel message. We see it abused by some, even within the church. We see it ridiculed by the secular media. We watch our churches struggle to do meaningful ministry or, in some cases, even to survive--and we wonder! But the gospel, though it be contained in weak vessels, is powerful truth. It is a mystery, but it is God's mystery! We need not, we dare not, be ashamed of a message that originates with the Father, is lived out in Jesus Christ His Son, and that is given life and breath by the Holy Spirit! Paul was reminding Timothy of his great potential and of the spiritual authority with which he had been blessed by virtue of the laying on of hands. Every Christian, whether ordained or commissioned in an official way for ministry, has been given a specific and wonderful calling. This is part of what we mean when we speak of the "priesthood of all believers." Our calling to service and ministry is not of our own making or choosing, but of God. The gift we have been given is irrevocable, but can become ineffective. We should live a life of discipline and self-control; but we must not doubt that we will be given the power to do what we are called to do. That is part of what it means to trust God. Be ware of trying to discern God's calling for someone else, or of assuming that someone else can discern God's calling for you. The advice and encouragement of others can be helpful, but probably cannot be determinative. Our minds must also be disciplined; and we must walk with intellectual integrity. There is inevitable conflict between the world and the Word. Paul knows that Timothy will face pressures from within and from without. He will be faced with temptation, opposition, and discouragement. Some will reject him because of his youth. Still, he is to put his trust in the truth of God, the grace of Christ, and the power of the Holy Spirit. This passage should be a great encouragement to our youth, or to any new Christian; but it is also necessary for those of us who have been Christians all our lives, or who are involved in Christian ministry, to remember where we get our power and our message. Truly, we have been given a special gift.