If "the medium is the message" as Marshall McLuhan suggests, and the message of the Gospel is God incarnated in Christ, then what does that say about the nature of the Christian message and the call to share good news?  What about the relationship between evangelism and discipleship?  Christian faith is incarnational and as followers of Jesus, WE ARE THE MEDIUM.  No DVD, gospel tract, EvangeCube, website, live TV stream, book, article, or any other form of media can replace flesh-and-blood individuals and communities of disciples who share good news in word and deed.  How often do we uncritically utilize methods that bankrupt or short-change the message?

“The most evangelistic thing the church can do today is to be the church – to be formed imaginatively by the Holy Spirit through core practices such as worship, forgiveness, hospitality, and economic sharing into a distinctive people in the world, a new social option, the body of Christ. It is the very shape and character of the church as the Spirit’s “new creation” that is the witness to God’s reign in the world and so both the source and aim of Christian evangelism.”  – Bryan Stone

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Missional Church 05/26/2010
 
What do you think???
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Christ is Risen! 04/03/2010
 
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Are there any who are devout lovers of God?
Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival!

Are there any who are grateful servants?
Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord!

Are there any weary with fasting?
Let them now receive their wages!

If any have toiled from the first hour,
let them receive their due reward;
If any have come after the third hour,
let him with gratitude join in the Feast!
And he that arrived after the sixth hour,
let him not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss.
And if any delayed until the ninth hour,
let him not hesitate; but let him come too.
And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour,
let him not be afraid by reason of his delay.
For the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first.
He gives rest to him that comes at the eleventh hour,
as well as to him that toiled from the first.

To this one He gives, and upon another He bestows.
He accepts the works as He greets the endeavor.
The deed He honors and the intention He commends.
Let us all enter into the joy of the Lord!

First and last alike receive your reward;
rich and poor, rejoice together!
Sober and slothful, celebrate the day!
You that have kept the fast, and you that have not,
rejoice today for the Table is richly laden!

Feast royally on it, the calf is a fatted one.
Let no one go away hungry. Partake, all, of the cup of faith.
Enjoy all the riches of His goodness!

Let no one grieve at his poverty,
for the universal kingdom has been revealed.

Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again;
for forgiveness has risen from the grave.

Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free.
He has destroyed it by enduring it.
He destroyed Hell when He descended into it.
He put it into an uproar even as it tasted of His flesh.

Isaiah foretold this when he said,
"You, O Hell, have been troubled by encountering Him below."
Hell was in an uproar because it was done away with.
It was in an uproar because it is mocked.
It was in an uproar, for it is destroyed.
It is in an uproar, for it is annihilated.
It is in an uproar, for it is now made captive.

Hell took a body, and discovered God.
It took earth, and encountered Heaven.
It took what it saw, and was overcome by what it did not see.

O death, where is thy sting?
O Hell, where is thy victory?

Christ is Risen, and you, o death, are annihilated!
Christ is Risen, and the evil ones are cast down!
Christ is Risen, and the angels rejoice!
Christ is Risen, and life is liberated!

Christ is Risen, and the tomb is emptied of its dead;
for Christ having risen from the dead,
is become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

To Him be Glory and Power forever and ever. Amen!


The Easter sermon of John Chrysostom (circa 400 AD)
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I've had several conversations with the students here over the past couple of weeks on the doctrine of Christian baptism.  It has come up in my Old Testament class, in my Christian Worship class, and in my Faith Development in the Local Church class.  In each case, I have shared the Church of the Nazarene's position on accepting the practice of infant baptism and have faced a common response:  "Our church does not practice the baptism of children" OR "My pastor will not do it."  Now, I realize this is a non-issue for those in traditions that do not practice infant baptism.  How about those within the Church of the Nazarene or other traditions which accept both?  Have you encountered this response within your own faith journey or in your congregation?

Secondly, I almost always receive the same answer: "One must understand what they're doing before they receive baptism."  I understand the logic for those who make this argument:  One must have a cognitive understanding before a sacrament can have any value.  My question is, "When do I have enough cognitive understanding to make it valuable?"  Another question: "If I have more cognitive understanding later in life, should I be baptized again?  And again?  And again?"  This point also comes from the fact that I sat at a table with three lifetime Nazarenes, ALL of which had been baptized MORE THAN ONCE because they didn't feel like the previous ones were valid (and there was no one there to counsel them differently). 

I'll share our own journey in this matter which I think reflects my view on the subject.  We chose to have our son Carter baptized as an infant.  The water was poured over him in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Scripture was read and the promises of God were proclaimed.  He was anointed with oil and prayed for.  Regan and I, along with his godparents (my brother and sister-in-law who commit to helping Carter grow and mature in Christ), were marked with the sign of the cross and invited to remember our own baptisms and therefore our own call to die and rise with Christ.  We had a whole Christian community of witnesses who also committed to nurture Carter in faith.  The day was a celebration of the work of God's grace in Carter's life.  The water was a visible sign of that grace.  What a day!  

Did the baptismal water magically grant him a "get out of jail free card"?  No.  Will Carter have to make his own decisions of faith as he grows and develops?  Of course.  In the meantime (and beyond), every time we witness a baptism, I will tell Carter the story of his own.  I can remind him how much God loves him, is committed to be his gracious God and Savior, and calls him to a life of faithfulness.  It's much like the Israelites who were saved by God through water.  They REMEMBERED by continually telling the story of God's faithfulness in the past so they could be reminded of their own call to faithful living in the present.  I will always consider this my responsibility as Carter's earthly father.

So...when a person is baptized within the context of a believing community, child or adult for that matter, is it because we are so good?  Is it because we deserve it?  Is it primarily a celebration of our own good decision making skills?!?!  NO!  It's a celebration of the free gift of God's grace which calls us into a journey of transformation.  And, it's a commitment to offer our lives in thanksgiving.  It's because "...God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8, NIV)  and because of the greatness of the "love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!" (1 John 3:1). In my opinion, whether you're young or old, that's something worth celebrating!
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