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August 14, 2020

Should Christians “Lift Jesus Higher” in Their Worship?

By Clarke Morledge

I will quote one of my favorite Scripture songs that I learned as a young believer in the 1980’s:

Lift Jesus higher.  Lift Jesus higher. Lift him up for the world to see.  He said, “If I be lifted up from the earth I will draw all men unto me.”

Written by an American song writer, it has been exported all over the world, and sung perhaps millions of times. Of course, we should lift up the name of Jesus, as He is worthy to be praised. The problem is that this song is largely taken from a single verse, John 12:32 (KJV), in a passage that few Christians bother to read carefully.

If you read that verse in context, this particular passage does not say what most Christians think it means. Look at the verse, and then read the very next verse:

(v.32) And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

(v.33) This he said, signifying what death he should die.

When we sing “Life Jesus Higher,” what are we really singing about?

As New Testament scholar Craig Keener demonstrates, John explicitly tells us what this text actually means, or signifies, as Jesus is prophetically saying that he would be physically lifted up on a cross, in order to die.

In other words, when we sing this song, it is like shouting out, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

Oooops….

Ponder that for a moment….

To borrow from that great philosopher, Inigo Montoya, in The Princess Bride, this verse does not mean what most Christians think it means.

Mmmph!!…..

But there is more to the difficulty concerning this verse: When we read that Jesus’ being lifted up “will draw all men unto me,” what does that mean?

Some have suggested that this verse is a prooftext for universalism, the belief that all people will be saved in the end …. as in every human being. Former evangelical megachurch pastor, Rob Bell, hinted at it in his wildly controversial 2011 book, Love Wins. Well known theologian, David Bentley Hart, has made this very case, quite explicitly and forcefully in recent years, culminating in his 2019 book, That All Shall Be Saved. For if “all men” are “drawn” to Jesus, would this not suggest that everyone… as in every single human person….. will come to know Jesus?

There are a couple of issues to consider, in an effort to clear things up:

First, the word “draw“, as in “draw all men unto me,” requires further consideration.  In John 6:44, we see another reference to “draw,” where we read, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day“(ESV). This would suggest that not everyone is necessarily “drawn” to Jesus.

This leads us into the thicket of the Calvinist/Arminian controversy, whereby advocates of limited atonement (Calvinist), those who believe that Jesus dies only for the elect, might say that John 6:44 teaches about God drawing the elect toward salvation. John 6:44 would thus restrict the scope of “all” in John 12:32, to only include “all of the elect.” Advocates of unlimited atonement (Arminian), those who believe that Jesus dies for every human person, might insist that the “draw” in John 12:32 is about Jesus’ death for all persons, but only in the sense of allowing for the potential of everyone’s salvation.

Secondly, it bears taking a closer look at who the “all” is about in this verse, from a different, hopefully more productive angle. Jesus’ speech takes place during a festival, where some “Greeks” (or Gentiles) had arrived (John 12:20). This has led many scholars to conclude that the “all” described by Jesus is not about all individuals, but rather it is about all kinds of people, including both Jews and Gentiles. In other words, Jesus’ death is not for Jews alone, but for Gentiles as well.

This does not resolve the Calvinist/Arminian controversy, but it refocuses our attention on a constant theme throughout the New Testament, regarding the relationship between Jew and Gentile, that does not receive as much attention as it should. It is very easy to get caught up theological debates that have raged throughout the evangelical movement over the past few hundred years, including the Calvinist/Arminian controversy, as well as the occasional interest in universalism. But a closer reexamination of the Jewish/Gentile conflict, that captivated the attention of the first century readers and writers of the New Testament, is a more responsible way of reading passages like this in John’s Gospel. A few modern study Bibles, such as the ESV Study Bible and the Zondervan NIV Study Bible, contend for this interpretation in their study notes, concerning John 12:32.

For years, I have sung this song, thinking that we are celebrating the glory of God, as Jesus is lifted up. The song has a very “happy-clappy” feel to it. But “lifting up Jesus,” in the context of this verse, is about how human sin drove Jesus to the cross, which should engender in believers a sense of sobriety, in view of how much we have rebelled against a holy and righteous God. In the most immediate sense, this is not very “happy-clappy.”

However, it is the Resurrection, in which Jesus had victory over sin and death, that should cause us to celebrate. So, yes, we are to lift up the name of Jesus, and it is in this way that we can joyfully sing praise to the Lord, thanking him for giving up his life, so that we as believers might receive new life. Furthermore, this new life is for everyone…. all kinds of people,….. whether they be Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female, black or white.

Though I still like the song, it makes me think twice about what we think and do as Christians, in our worship. Sometimes, we as Christians get the right lesson to be learned from the wrong text!

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August 3, 2020

2020 Updates for English Bible Translations

By Clarke Morledge

Newcomers to the English Bible often lament the seemingly never-ending proliferation of Bible translations: Which one do I pick? Long gone are the days when the King James Version of the Bible ruled them all!

The past ten years have seen a particular spurt of growth of newer English Bible translations. The late 20th century classic, the New International Version (NIV) 1984, got a major facelift in 2011. The English Standard Version (ESV) got its last update in 2016.

But while the well-known NIV and ESV battle it out over which one is more popular, other English translations have emerged. The New English Translation (NET) Bible, known for its extensive footnotes, and all available online, got a major revision in 2019. The Holman Christian Standard Bible was replaced by the Christian Standard Bible (CSB), in 2017.

Bible translations. How many do we really need?

Just when you thought we would be worn out by all of these new translations and updates, we learn in 2020 of yet another round of updates.  First, the Christian Standard Bible (CSB) got a minor revision of updates, of less than 1% of the text, in early 2020. The CSB project was driven a lot by Dr. Thomas Schreiner, of Southern Baptist Seminary. Dr. Schreiner was once a graduate student of Dr. Donald Hagner, at Fuller Seminary. Hagner was my primary New Testament professor, when I went to Fuller. An interview with Dr. Schreiner, about the CSB, can be found here on YouTube. The CSB committee suggests that the small update this year will be the last one, for perhaps the next 10 years. Find out all about it here. A downloadable PDF of the changes can be found here.

Secondly, the venerable New American Standard Bible (NASB), developed by the Lockman Foundation, first published in 1971, was last updated in 1995. A new update for 2020 is expected to hit the printers by early 2021. But you can see a preview of the changes on Facebook.

Finally, we learn that Southern California pastor John MacArthur is planning on yet another revision of the NASB, to be called the Legacy Standard Bible. The impetus behind the Legacy Standard Bible is to provide an “accurate” translation, based on the latest advances in the study of ancient Bible manuscripts, while shying away from some current interpretive trends in certain modern translations.

Here is my take: The positive side of having all of these Bible translations is that it helps to compare different nuances in how English words and phrases can be used to translate the original Hebrew and Greek. All of the major translations available today are very good (only a handful, like the Passion Translation, generally should be avoided). That is why I make regular use of websites like BibleGateway.com, where you can compare different Bible translations, side-by-side, as part of my devotional and study reading, in addition to normally reading from my English Standard Version (ESV) study Bible.

But sometimes we can go too far. The downside to having so many Bible translations available, the situation will continue to lead towards more tribalism in English-speaking Christianity. Different Bible translations, with different perspectives, will compete for different readerships in mind, and individual believers and churches will find themselves gravitating towards one silo, or another, thereby undermining widespread trust across multiple segments of evangelicalism, a case that Bible scholar Mark Ward strongly made most recently.

In other words, the plethora of Bible translations will thrill the Bible nerd, like me, but it will surely frustrate and confuse the average Christian, for whom a regular pattern of Bible reading and study can be a struggle…. and it is simply better to have in mind the plumbers, Soccer moms, and restaurant table waiters, than in trying to cater to the Bible nerds.

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July 30, 2020

John Lewis Crosses the Edmund Pettus Bridge…. One Last Time

By Clarke Morledge

A pretty powerful moment. Listen for the cicadas and tree crickets. The late John Lewis crosses the bridge in Selma, one final time. He originally tried to cross the bridge, on the way to Montgomery, before being stopped by a police riot, 55 years ago.

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July 24, 2020

What is “Critical Theory”?

By Clarke Morledge

Have you ever heard the term “critical theory”? Specifically, have you heard of “critical race theory”?

With all of the discussion about “Black Lives Matter,” many are not aware that the concept of “critical theory” has made “BLM” the watchword for today. For some, critical theory is simply a tool for understanding how power dynamics work between oppressor and oppressor groups, in societies. Historically, this is fairly close to how Christians have talked about “social justice” and “fighting racism,” etc. Yes, there are genuinely oppressed people…. and yes, justice is a theme that runs all through the Bible, as is combatting racism. In this sense, we as Christians can surely affirm the idea that “black lives” really do “matter.” What could be wrong with that?

But is there more to this movement? Many are not aware that “critical theory,” whether it is applied towards race, gender, or sexual orientation, also has its roots in postmodern philosophy (think Michael Foucault, Jacques Derrida, JeanFrancois Lyotard, etc).

(Photo by DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP via Getty Images)

As it has been taught in many American universities, since about the early-mid 1990s, “critical theory” in this sense has come across as being very, very different, even to the point of being antithetical to the Gospel. According to James Lindsay, a scholar at New Discources, this version of critical theory has almost become a new religion, where there is no such thing as absolute truth. In this sense, “critical theory” goes even beyond “politics.” Many Christians lump all of this into “identity politics,” but this is merely a symptom of a deeper problem, rooted in postmodernism.

So, what is the fundamental idea, associated with the “critical theory” approach to postmodernism?In a nutshell: Claims to truth are simply attempts by an oppressor group to oppress others, in order to hold onto their power. Gone is the vision imagined by Martin Luther King, Jr., whereby a person should be judged, not by color of their skin, but by the content of their character. Now, the color of a person’s skin means everything. In other words, what Christians have historically meant by “social justice” does not mean the same thing as what “critical theorists” today mean by “social justice.”

So, what do people actually mean when they say, “Black Lives Matter?”  I do not really know. Perhaps it means something like what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. envisioned… OR, perhaps it means a NeoMarxist view of reality. The meaning appears to differ from person to person.

Confusion about critical theory is causing a crisis for Christians. Sadly, as a result, critical theory is dividing the evangelical church today. Some, like popular Christian author Jemar Tisby, referenced in an earlier Veracity blog post, believe “critical theory” to be very useful for Christians. Monique Duson, of the Center for Biblical Unity, on the other hand, rejects this use of “critical theory,” as actually undermining Gospel.

What makes this even more difficult is that a growing number of secular thinkers are catching onto what is going on (see atheist, mathematician James Lyndsay, in this provocative and alarming YouTube video) , while many Christians remain puzzled. When we can not even agree on what the words mean, we get into serious trouble (Where is C.S. Lewis, when you need him?).

We need a conversation about this. How should we respond, yet as followers of Jesus?

In recent months, I have blogged about conspiracy theories, on the right, that fascinate a number of my fellow Christians. But the “uncritical” acceptance, without sufficient nuance, of critical race theory, among other of my fellow Christians, has a lot of the same properties of being a conspiracy theory, but this time, on the left. It is as though we are all caught in the middle of ideological cross-fire, where one extreme is the mirror image of the other extreme. We live in strange times, that require great amounts of wise, Spirit-led discernment.

Here below is a helpful video, where Christian apologist Alisa Childers interviews Monique Duson, of the Center for Biblical Unity, who explains, why she, as a black Christian, rejects critical race theory. If the first 10 seconds of the video do not interest you, I do not know what will.

YES: I recognize that the video is an hour long. I am sorry, but this type of stuff is exceedingly complex, and can not be summed up in a Twitter tweet or a sound bite.  But if you really only have 4 minutes to spare, I have also included a 4-minute clip of an interview by Bobby Conway with Neil Shenvi, one of the top Christian thinkers who understands critical theory, where he sums up his advice for Christians and Christian leaders (link to full interview):

Let the conversation begin: What do you think?:

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July 19, 2020

Comet NEOWISE!!

By Clarke Morledge

Last night I had the chance to go out to a bridge crossing the Chickahominy River, and view Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3), as it followed the sunset. What makes this astronomical event so wonderful is that the tail of the comet could be viewed by the naked eye.

We have not had something like this in 23 years, when Comet Hale-Bopp flew by in 1997, and we may not see anything like this again for another 10 years. I first got turned onto comets when I saw Comet Kohoutek just over the horizon in 1973.

I had a pair of binoculars, which helped me to spot Comet NEOWISE, around 10pm, below the Big Dipper, in the northwest sky. Cars passing occasionally on the bridge, with their lights, took away from some of the experience, but it was still really special. Unfortunately, I had no decent camera with me, but I really like this photo below taken by photographer Declan Deval, at Stonehenge, in the UK.

Comet NEOWISE is a 5-kilometer wide ball of ice, traveling 40 miles per second, leaving a trail of gas and other particles, that produce its tail, as it has recently gone around the sun, and is now on its way out to the far reaches of the solar system. For the next week or so, it will be making its closest approach to earth, so if conditions are right, it could become spectacular. But do not wait too long, as you will not see NEOWISE again for another 6,800 years.

Some other fun comet stuff below….

A brief church history note on comets: 17th century theologian William Whiston alarmed citizens of London when he predicted that a comet would crash into the earth (he turned out to be wrong). Whiston was one of the first researchers of comets, during the era of Isaac Newton, and his work in astronomy helped him to promote work in identifying methods for ships to determine their exact longitude at sea.

Whiston also sought to connect comets with events in the Bible, where he notably suggested that the Great Flood of Noah was caused by a comet, publishing a book on the topic that received praise by philosopher John Locke. Whiston suggested that the earth must have passed reasonably close to the tail of a comet, such that the atmosphere became soaked with moisture from the passing comet, thus triggering the great deluge. A similar proposal was also advocated by Edmund Halley, the astronomer who identified the periodic comet that bears his name. Whiston was also known for translating some of the works of Josephus, which are still in print. Whiston’s other theological ideas became suspect, however, as he was known to be an advocate of denying the doctrine of the Triune nature of God.

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