Subscribe to Posts
back from ohio and the future mightily encouraged
In one of my other lives, I serve as regional underseer of the Great Lakes Region of Vineyard Churches–about 114 churches in all. We had our regional conference in Cincinatti last week–hence my blogging silence. A wonderful time. We had nearly 200 more in attendance than our previous regional conference, always a good sign. The theme of the conference was 4Ward ’till Kingdom Come, because the theology of the kingdom is the treasure buried in the field of the Vineyard.
John Wimber, one of the founders of the Vineyard movement, was really a popularizer of a dynamic theological undercurrent expressed in the works of scholars like Oscar Cullmann and George Eldon Ladd. It’s a theology rooted in the vision of the Hebrew prophets, fulfilled in the living, dying, rising, ascending, and Spirit outpouring of Jesus of Nazareth, expressed in Jesus’ inaugural address in Luke, chapter four.
Which means it’s as much about bringing heaven down to earth here and now as it about securing an eternal destiny after death. As N.T. Wright says, the focus is on “life after life after death” or the new creation in which heaven and earth are fully re-integrated–a future kingdom breaking into the present by virtue of Jesus’ life and death and rising punching a hole in the dam separating the future from the present. Mind boggling, I know.
Which means the mission of the church is about peace rolling down like a river and justice like a never-ending stream . It’s about bearing witness to the future kingdom making it’s power felt here and now.
Which brings me to Tri Robinson’s climactic presentation on Wednesday night. Tri is the pastor of the Boise Vineyard, and a leader in the emerging field of creation care–bringing biblical principles of environmental stewardship to bear on the mission of the church. Tri made the case that environmental degradation is a justice issue. Well over a billion people don’t have access to clean water. Water borne diseases account for more infant deaths than any other cause. This crisis is exacerbated by a warming climate which increases drought in many places in the developing world which lands heavy on the poor. Whose children are often consigned to walking by themselves for hours each day in order to get a gallon or two of drinkable water. Leaving them vulnerable to terrible things, like being abducted and thrown into the slave trade, which is flourishing in the twenty-first century.
So no, contrary to what you hear on talk radio, concern for the environment is not an issue for the ivory tower or the “cultural elites.” It is a justice issue, which places it smack dab in the middle of Luke 4: 14-28, a concern of the gospel of the kingdom. The environmental crisis is part of the global poverty crisis and the water crisis and the slave trade crisis. Each and every one part of a bigger whole that is meant to be addressed by the gospel–which if it ain’t good news for this bad news, ain’t good enough or big enough.
While Tri has been working this out in the Boise Vineyard and speaking at a national level, many in his own tribe, the Vineyard, have been watching somewhat bemused and perplexed. Some have taken his lead and launched environmental stewardship ministries in their local Vineyard churches. But less than you’d think, to date.
Which is why I was so thrilled to see the Spirit moving on Wednesday night after Tri spoke. More than twenty-five Vineyard pastors who had never addressed our biblical obligation to “serve and protect” the environment, had never released a creation care ministry in their local church, made a committmennt to do something rather than nothing on this kingdom issue. Including one of the mega churches in our region. As I prayed with these pastors, I gave them my cell phone number. I hope to hear from each and every one.
It’s why I was thrilled to go from there to a Vineyard church in Northern Kentucky, where Tri and I led a creation care conference on Friday and Saturday. Because they want to do something rather than nothing. Had a chance to pray with someone in attendance who was responsible for reducing the carbon footprint of one of the nation’s largest utility companies. Small world.
And why I was thrilled on Sunday to speak at the Central Vineyard, in Columbus, led by Jeff Cannell. What a church! Nestled in a wonderful neighborhood near the OSU campus. Jeff and Adrienne well known among their neighbors. The church growing to nearly 400 after four short years. Young people mostly. A new-wine-skins-for-new-wine kind of church. Committed to the gospel of the kingdom. Unapologetic about mobilizing the church to “do justice, love steadfast love, and walk humbly with God.” And there, I prayed with a young woman who wants to launch a green vineyard ministry in their church. Already the church understands that care for the environment is part and parcel of care for the poor.
No, not everyone in the Vineyard sees the connection between the global environmental crisis and the gospel. Many at the conference will take away a vision of the kingdom that doesn’t include this particular concern. No matter, as long as they keep digging for the treasure of the kingdom, and putting into practice those things which they do discover. As many of them do. Praying for the sick, reaching out to the poor, gathering isolated people into community, and all the other kingdom things we’re called to do. I plan to keep learning from them, as I’m sure they’ve discovered things I haven’t.
And so I came home mightily encouraged. Not just because of the progress on this issue. But because of the kingdom of God. The coming kingdom. The unstoppable kingdom. The future kingdom breaking into the present because Jesus punched a hole through the dam separating the present from the glorious future with his dying and rising. And we get to drink from the river flowing back from the future into our present.
I love my job.
May 19th, 2008 at 10:16 am
Ken,
great to hear from you at the conference, as well as at Central Vineyard. It’s been great to see kingdom theology get worked out in the life of a church and a a community…both locally and across the country. Reading Ladd and Wright (one in each hand) is good for the soul and as you say implicitly, a present/future hope.
May 19th, 2008 at 11:16 am
I’m encouraged and pleased to read of the work of Vineyard and the environmental movement. It is absolutely correct that this is about justice as well as planetary stewardship. Amen to all the above.
May 20th, 2008 at 10:36 am
God certainly moved Friday and Saturday amongst our Vineyard on this issue! Watching so many people “get it”–that God is about the whole, not the parts–was amazing! The water cleanup mission to Guatemala in the fall took on a whole new meaning!
And thank you, thank you so much for tying this whole subject into more than just caring for the earth! It really is about bringing the Kingdom to those who need it!
May 21st, 2008 at 7:51 am
ken,
i recently received your book and read it over the weekend. thank you so much for the challenging thoughts! i posted some of the highlights of it over on my blog at flowerdust.net.
May 22nd, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Ken, I want Kingdom Justice too! Thanks to the environmental movement we can hardly afford to live down here in Miami. Let “justice roll like a river” – more domestic oil production, more oil, more refineries, more nuclear power plants, more high paying American jobs so our children can have a future!
Proclaim freedom for the endangered middle class, the American proletariat abused and enslaved as they are by environmentalist elitists bent on keeping us dependent and addicted to foreign oil!
May 23rd, 2008 at 8:26 am
Rafael, I too pray for more jobs for the middle class. I feel the pain of gas prices (w/ my wimpy 3 mile commute) and I can’t even fathom what sort of crisis that puts on the poor who Jesus loves so dearly. Being a Michigan Man, we need innovation in this state and I ask that God give us the genius to think out side the box, to have faith in the form of taking risks, so that we can be blessed and be blessing to our community, while preserving and caring for our natural environment and the poor. My hope is that we can have our cake and eat it too…and that God give us the desire/compassion to share it with those in need. Ken, I appreciate your willingness to walk this out for others to follow. May you have contiued devine excitement poured out over you each morning.
May 23rd, 2008 at 9:39 am
phil and rafael, Phil took the words out of my mouth.
“In him all things hold together,” including our mandate to care for the creation because it’s His and not ours, and God’s concern for the poor, the middle class, the upper class, the down and outers and up and outers. Those who love God’s creation and who care about the economy when it’s not doing well, have to get down on our knees and cry out for wisdom and believe the best about each other.
May 23rd, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Ken and Mike…you know I love you guys…but I disagree..a lot…or maybe we just need to keep talkin’. But if it’s any consolation, you’re in good company, my ecologically conscious daughter whom I dearly love (this is the one that keeps overhead fans running with no one in the room, and uses her laptop as a bed warmer!) agrees more with you guys than with me.
She believed my shtick until she moved to Oregon, enrolled in college, and was promptly absorbed by the “Environmentalist PC Borg-HiveMind.” I’ve lost her, but making every attempt to rescue.
At the moment, I’m not thinking good thoughts about a movement that is forcing us to buy most of our oil from nations that enslave women, persecute our Christian brethren (like Saudi Arabia)and fund terrorists.
Kingdom justice demands that we stop making the House of Saud and that psycho Chavez wealthier. Kingdom justices cries in the streets and her matra is “oil independence.”
As we develop the technology, it behooves us to increase domestic energy production. The move forward is not an either or proposition, it is both and, more production of fossil fuels, and more funding for clean technologies.
I don’t believe the Devil invented petroleum, natural gas, coal, or nuclear power. These are “God” things. He also put them in places that require mining and drilling. Furthermore, how “just” is it to ask for more drilling and mining exclusively outside our country? Someone has to increase production of these resources until the technology arrives.
Lovingly, and in support of the US Economy,
Rafael Gomez
Doral Vineyard
May 23rd, 2008 at 1:47 pm
Why this obsession with “caring for Creation?” That’s a bunch of new-age nonsense. Jesus never made that our mission – you may recall he said something about “making disciples”.
May 24th, 2008 at 4:28 am
Rick, Yes, making disciples, that’s the commission. Making disciples who do all their master commands. Which includes being stewards of his stuff as several stewardship parables make clear. “The earth is the Lord’s.” Caring for poor is part of the commission and the poor aren’t cared for when the environment they do their living in is trashed. So it seems to me something that is part of the commission, no?
May 24th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
Ken, I think Jesus’ Luke 4 commission reference to the poor is an declaration of His mission to preach the Gospel to “poor in spirit” – those who are scattered and in need of God. Look at Luke 6 – in a neighboring context Jesus addresses His disciples as the “poor.” It is implicit in the passage that the hunger and thirst are spiritual in nature.
The physically hungry are another matter. We are to feed those we encounter who are hungry. And not ignore their need. No question there.
Could you be more explicit about the “trashing of the environment of (the poor)?” Where is this happening and how? I don’t quite understand how the environment of the economically challenged is selectively and prejudicially “trashed” as you seem to imply say.
Pollution is blind to demographic and economic distinctions. For instance, I spent a lot of time in Mexico City in the 80’s and 90’s – the smog there was as nasty in the opulent “Zona Rosa” as it was in the city’s most squalid ghettos.
May 25th, 2008 at 5:45 am
I don’t know, Ken . . . all I remember him teling us was to “go and make disciples [I presume that's Disciples of His] of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. And to teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you . . .
I just don’t see in the Gospels that he’s says a whole lot about taking care of the planet. Even in the Torah, except a brief discussion of creation in Genensis, I don’t see much about environmental concerns. Obeying the Sabbath, yes, but not about the planet. I think we give ourselves too much credit when we think we have the ability to destroy what Yehoveh has made . . .
I do remember Jesus saying things like there will be “wars and rumors of wars,” That “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.”
That sounds a lot of destruction of our planet–We can find else where that we’ll increased earthquakes and other signs of nature groaning under the weight of sin . . . maybe that includes increased Hurricane activity and volcanic eruptions?
All that being said, I do agree with you that we shouldn’t consciously set out to destroy the planet . . . it was still given to us by Yehoveh–it was ours to care for! (Until Adam surrendered it to God’s enemy, but it’ll be back in God’s control soon!)
My problem is finding the balance between “laying hands on the sick, preaching the Gospel of salvation, and setting free those held captive to sin and disease . . . and recovering a sound environment.
May 26th, 2008 at 5:13 am
Rafael,
I can be more explicit about how environmental degradation lands heavily on the poor. Example: strip mining in W. Va., (mountaintop removal it is also called) is an environmental disaster, ruins the ground water supply in whole communities–many very conservative churches mobilizing to oppose it, and for good reason. Or take coal burning power plants, which are the dirtiest form of energy–almost always located near the poor because the rich have the power to keep them out of their neighborhood. The heavy particulate toxins fall closer to the people closer to the plants–mercury, for example a very serious neurotoxin. The EPA estimates that 1 in 6 babies born in the U.S. are at risk for memory loss, learning disabilities, etc. due to this. Or in the developing world, the overfishing hurts the poor who depend on fish for their food. Or the clear-cutting of forests, which leads to soil erosion, which makes farming impossible in some places in Africa, or keeps the Salmon from returning to their streams. I won’t mention the effects of the warming planet which increase drought in some areas (like Africa–whole sections can’t be farmed now) and increased flooding in other areas. Because I know many pastors have very strong opinions about global warming
So don’t even count that. There are plenty of other examples that don’t depend on it. The simple fact is that the poor depend on the environment more than those who can live in heated-air-conditioned homes. If you’re living off the land, the condition of the land is more important.
Rafael, if you knew that the poor were hit harder by environmental problems, I think it would make a difference in your view of this issue. It’s not just “the environmental elite” who should care about this; it’s anyone whose religion commands them to keep an eye out for the poor.
On the use of “poor” in Luke. I think the primary reference is to people who are poor, with an extended reference to the poor in spirit. Notice that in the beatitudes in Luke it’s just “blessed are the poor” (Matthew adds “in spirit”) and for emphasis “woe to you who are rich.” Hard words, but I don’t think there’s any doubt that the primary reference is to the economically poor, who were more visible in the time of Jesus than they are to us.
I wonder if your daughter, raised in a Christian home, received God’s heart for the poor there and that’s part of the reason she is interested in ecology?
Blesssings, good man.
May 26th, 2008 at 5:21 am
Nick, On the matter of our commission: Yes, making disciples, that’s the commission. Making disciples who do all their master commands. Which includes being stewards of his stuff as several stewardship parables make clear. “The earth is the Lord’s.” Caring for poor is part of the commission and the poor aren’t cared for when the environment they do their living in is trashed. So it seems to me something that is part of the commission, no? Since the New Testament was written before the industrial revolution, environmental distress caused by humans was probably not as severe as it is now. Don’t you think the stewardship parables apply to this–our care for the realm of nature, which is the Lord’s?
The Torah specified humane care for animals–much stricter laws than PETA ever advocates. So isn’t this clearly a concern for the disciple who wants to please his master? Thanks for your kind words, btw.
May 26th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Ken, you’ll get no debate from me on the need for the Church to care about the issues you outline.
We should all care and do something. But, it seems to me that you and others in the Vineyard are making environmentalism and social concerns the leading edge. And the preaching of the Gospel should be the leading edge. The Gospel looks primarily to a future salvation – “the already but not yet” element not withstanding – we are called to fix our hope on the glory which will revealved “at His appearing.”
My concern is, I believe, is very valid based as it is on the historical fact that the Protestant Church of the early 20th century focused so strongly on social issues that the salvation of the soul, and the doctrines of grace were were jettisoned.
On the heels of the shift to the social gospel comes the compromise of Biblical authority. Out goes plenary verbal inspiration, and inerrancy (both which Wimber held) and in comes neo-orthodoxy and higher criticism.
Best regards,
Ralph
May 26th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
By the way, I think Nickolas makes some very good points. The Scriptures very clearly teach that the Earth is not some fragile little crystal ball hanging, as it were “in the balance” – the Earth is in His hands.
The eschatological destruction of the Planet actually comes at the hand of God as He judges those who refuse to repent and give Him glory. The injunction against those “who destroy the earth” in the Revelation is not a threat to wipe non- recyclers or opponents of Anthropogenic Global Warming – it is an admonition against those who have trampled and corrupted the world with their sin. It is a word directed primarily against Antichrist and his followers.
I’m assuming, perhaps incorrectly, that you haven’t shifted to a post-millennial eschatology.
May 27th, 2008 at 7:40 am
Rafael,
Thanks for your response. I’d be interested in your response to my comments about the effect of environmental degradation on the poor. My understanding of the gospel of the kingdom is that it is especially good news for the poor in word and deed. If environmental degradation causes suffering for the poor (as I think it does–not even a hard case to demonstrate), then it makes it a more important concern for those of us who preach the gospel of the kingdom.
This speaks to your concern about repeating the problems with the social gospel movement. The social gospel movement promoted social concern over and against individual salvation concern. Wimber, who was a “both-and” kind of guy, was criticized for introducing concern for social justice (language used by the social gospel people) into the evangelical lexicon again. Why can’t we stand for the whole gospel? Why do we have to place one aspect of the whole gospel off against the other? Rich Nathan had a conference on social justice recently during which 150 people got saved–came forward to receive Christ personally. Why can’t that happen?
I’ve been advocating Creation Care because we’ve neglected it. So I’ve had to emphasize it more than if it were already part and parcel of our understanding of the gospel. And because God, I think, has given me this assignment to be a voice for integrating environmental stewardship into our understanding of discipleship. Plus I’m in Ann Arbor, where it has some missional advantages.
Tri Robinson has also been advocating this in Vineyard. Tri is pretty conservative in many senses of the word. His church is in the most conservative state in the union. He does a wonderful job, I think of integrating it all. Better than me, for sure.
So on to your other points. I agree with you that the earth is not “some fragile little crystal ball hanging, as it were in the balance”. The earth is in the hands of the Lord. Amen, brother. Environmental concern isn’t regarding the destruction of the earth as a planet, but as a hospitable environment for life–human life and other God created life.
I think it’s part of the biblical worldview to assume that humans can in fact have a very powerful impact on the environment for good or ill. I think this is implicit in Genesis 1 where it speaks of man’s dominion over creation. We were destined to multiply and fill the earth–to be a global species. And we are extra powerful and so it follows that we might well have a huge impact on the environment, which in fact we do. My home state, Michigan, used to be covered with virgin timber. Now there is only a few small stands of it left. No value judgment there, just saying, man has had a big impact on the environment of my home state.
When I came to faith in Jesus back in the Jesus movement days, many of us were hugely concerned about the environment. It was the beginning of a greater ecological awareness back then. I was moved in part, to come to Jesus, because I was concerned about man’s negative impact on the world as we know it–nuclear destruction, environmental degradation, social chaos–it was all connected in my mind. So I find it really odd that many of my fellow evangelicals pooh-pooh the idea that humans can have that much of an effect on the environment. I offer this humble reason: I think many evangelicals have not been discerning enough about what influences our thinking. Some (not all–only some) politically conservative voices have been openly hostile toward environmental concerns. And this hostility has rubbed off on too many of us evangelicals. Test this, brother. (Why aren’t political conservatives leaders in advocating conservation as once was the case? Why aren’t more political conservatives emphasizing conservation of fossil fuels more than they do? It doesn’t fit in my mind that this is so. They seem rather, to be irritated or annoyed with people who want to conserve fossil fuels so there is more left for future generations. Isn’t this a departure from true conservative philosophy?)
On eschatology, you’re probably much better informed than me. I’m not sure where I stand. Post-millenialism–wasn’t that something Jonathan Edwards held? I love Jonathan Edwards. Is post-millenialism bad? Wouldn’t there be room in Vineyard for someone who was post-millenial? Again, I’m not well informed, just asking.
May 27th, 2008 at 9:05 am
Jesus, as a peasant himself most definitely addresses the truly “peasant poor” caught in a domination system of cooperating Herodians and religious types, middle men actually,in his words commenly referred to as “the sermon on the mount”. This was also his fuel for most debates with the scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducee’s. Oppression was something Jesus came to address, it is not an add on to the gospel, it is central to the gospel message of “let my people go from oppression”. Wherever it (oppression) exists it should be important to see how we can alter its destructive path.
May 27th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Ken…time out for some much needed praise and affirmation. Thank you for being accessible to an “average joe” Vineyard pastor like me. You are, as of today, officially on my “most admired Vineyard board member list – (right up there with Happy Lehman!)
We might never come to full consensus, if such a thing exists…but I am learning through this exchange.
I am advocating for a more thoughtful, less reactive, more pro-business, pro-Industry, and of course, non-politicized approach to Creation Care that doesn’t disproportionately hurt the American economy in the short term.
BTW…Edwards was probably postmil, not 100% sure. The view sees Jesus returning after the millennial reign, which postmils view as the Church Age. So, a postmil view would see the church progressively taking dominion over the earth. Christ’s rule is then spiritual – He reigns through the Church until all enemies are subdued, then He returns to usher in the Eternal State – the fullness of the Kingdom.
All the best,
Rafael Gomez
Doral Vineyard
May 27th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
Rafael, Thanks for your kind words. I’m just appreciative of the fact that you care enough about this issue to push back and poke and prod. I’m also concerned that we get an economically feasible solution to these problems, since our church has been challenged by the economy in SE Michigan being so poor. Part of the immense challenge facing the world today is the fact that the American dream is being realized by so many in the developing world. Many more now want what we have–cars, chicken and beef (which put a huge strain on corn crop as it take so much corn to feed the chickens and cattle), air conditioning, etc. This is all an enormous strain on the environment and is driving up fuel and food prices to the breaking point. I’ve got to believe there is wisdom from God if we are willing to seek him. I just don’t think we can rely on the existing political philosophies for that wisdom. The conservative approach seems to be unbridled growth, use more and more energy, use up as much of the oil as can possibly be found as quickly as it can be found. That just doesn’t seem like divine wisdom to me. And surely our concern for the land and other beasts should be as great as laid out in the law of Moses. We’re not even close to that, despite the New Covenant, which fulfills the Law. We must be missing something on the implementation side.
But the main thing I wanted to say was that what has really guided my passion on this has been my concern for people on the outside of faith looking in. I’ve met SO MANY people who care passionately about the environment who don’t give faith in Jesus the time of day because it seems to them to be something that would run contrary to the passion of their heart, which intuitively they know to be good.
After my creation care series at church I had people come up to me with tears in their eyes saying, “This is why I stayed away from church for so long! Why I stayed away from God for so long! THANK YOU!”
We need to be in the business of building bridges to these people not burning them.
By the way, it was reading Jonathan Edwards’ On the Religious Affections that God did a major work in my heart. I realized after reading it, that despite having been a Vineyard pastor, having many experiences of the Spirit, my heart was hard, not feeling enough. When I asked God to change my heart, I had several months worth of sobbing for an hour or so once a week (Wednesdays, for some reason!) and it was regarding the younger generation–their need for a move of the Spirit like the Jesus movement, only THEIRs, to reach them. I think the recovered sense of the justice theme in the gospel of the kingdom and the extension of that to environmental stewardship is part of what God is doing in that department. In my humble opinion.
I’m much obliged and honored by your willingness to, as you say, “learn through this exchange.” Hope I can return the favor.
September 16th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Ken what are your views on homosexuals and abortion. Do you or any pastors of the Vineyard churches support homosexuality or abortions? If so, do you plan to reveal your thoughts on these topics to the lay people in churches? If not, how do you encourage pastors in the Vineyard to minister to gay people, pro abortion people, etc. And is it okay for Christian to vote for someone who supports abortion and homosexual lifestyles??
Thank you for your time
Ted in WVA