Teaching in the Church

Being a Seminary student I get the chance to talk about the Church and theology on almost a daily basis, but every once in a while I get a chance to do the same with someone who is not seminary educated. Sometimes I find that the conversations with these people are great and that they are very knowledgeable and well read, but other times I am frustrated and greatly disappointed. What disappoints me is the fact that there are many people in the Church who have no clue what they are talking about. They don't have to be theologians or bible teachers, but Christians should know what they believe and why they believe it. The Church is not doing a very good job of teaching Church members about Christianity, about theological doctrines and history, or even about correct interpretation of the bible. This is a big problem for a number of reasons. The first being that it is fundamentally important to know what you believe and why you believe it. Second, many people live their lives not trying understanding who God is and not really caring. Thirdly, if these last two issues are the case than the Church is made up of a lot of people who don't know what the heck it is that they believe. One of the problems leading to this issue is that a lot of Church's have done away with Sunday school. I grew up in a Church that had Sunday school and myself and my parents went to it every Sunday, before or after the service. I then went to a great Church during college, but one thing I missed was Sunday school. Sunday school is a time apart from the main service where people can gather in smaller groups and classes to learn and discuss topics and issues in Christianity and the Church. For a Sunday service all I want is a simple sermon focused on scripture, a sermon that gives me some context, and then a word on how I can apply that to my life today to better serve God and the Church. I don't want a bunch of theology and Greek or Hebrew words thrown out there. Theology and biblical languages fit in the place of a Sunday school class and not a sermon. Sunday school is a time to dig deep in the word, learn some theology, maybe some church doctrine and history and then to discuss. I am afraid to say that the Church is greatly lacking in this area. Jews go to Hebrew school, Muslims learn Arabic, and Mormons go to classes from the time of their youth until they become adults. Now I don't agree with any of these other belief systems and I believe some of them to be a form of brain washing, but at least they are doing something. What do Christians do? We go to Church on Sunday and then out to brunch. Now, some people are involved in bible studies, some in small groups, and some Church's have Sunday school and other classes on a regular basis, but for the most part the Church isn't doing crap. We need to be teaching in the Church. Church members need to know what they believe and why they believe and they also need to know why they don't believe certain things. I am pretty sure most people cannot coherently talk to you about the Trinity without mistakingly committing heresy. This is a problem. If the God we believe in is Trinity, than we should be able to talk about God correctly as Trinity. I love the Church and will forever be a part of it and strive to do what I can to help the Church teach its members more efficiently and effectively. We need more people to help do this. The Church is lacking in its teachings and it needs to teach more and teach better.

Theology through the ages

I just finished with a class called Patristic Theology. It was taught by a professor named Richard Muller who is from Calvin Seminary and he is an excellent scholar. I have really appreciated this class because it has made me aware of where the things I believe have come from. I think it is important that we do theology from a historical perspective. So often I hear people talking about what they think is correct doctrine, but it ends up having no biblical or historical support. We must look back and see the issues that the Church Father's stuggled with and what they came to terms with and we must do the same things today. It is important to look back see what those who have come before us believed. If you are interested in the doctrine of the Trinity don't just go by what you have been told, but do some critical research and look back and see what Augustine, Ambrose, Athanasius, and later John Calvin and Martin Luther thought. Theology is a progression. It started with Christ and it developed over time. Christ is our starting point and theology must continue to develop from there while understanding the history of theology and its context. We often loose sight and respect for those who have theologized befor us, but without their theology, without their insight, we ourselves would have no theology to deal with. Theology is about looking back and then looking forward.

Andrew Esqueda

The Trinity and The Church

I have been doing a lot of thinking and some reading about the trinity and I keep hearing a lot about the ideas of community and economy within the trinity. I have been reading a little Barth, Moltmann, Volf, and some other stuff from the early Church Father's regarding the trinity. Moltmann and Volf consistanly talk about the Trinity in relation to the Church and often use the language of economy and community. This is something that I am really struggling with. Moltmann and Volf are two theologians who I respect and I know have the sole ambition of serving the Lord, but the language they are using in regards to the trinity is troubling. In my opinion they are leaning towards a tri-theistic and more individualistic view of the trinity. There is also a tendency to compare the community within the trinity to the community within the Church. I am not so sure of this. I find the comparison of the trinity to the Church to be quite erroneous and far from the views of the Church from Nicea onward. Instead of definning the Church by the community within the Trinity we are defining the Trinity by the standards of the community within the Church. It is often that I hear people attributing human or material qualities to God, and to be all honest with you I don't understand how that works. Creation cannot define the creator, rather creation is defined and exist only in part because the creator created and defined it. We define God in terms of what we want and like rather than in terms of what scripture tells us that God is. We must not strive to define Trinity based on the Church and to describe attributes of God based on ourselves. Rather, the Church must be defined by the Godhead and we, as individuals, must strive to align our personal attributes with those of God. God is not defined by us, we are defined by God, who created us.

Saints!

So, I just got done watching Boondock Saints for the "I don't know how many times". What a great movie with great action, acting, a great story line, and terrible theology. The theology in that movie is awful, yet I think we might be able to learn something from it. I do not condone the murder of anyone, nor the attempt to play God as the characters in the movie have done, but is there something to be said for Christians today acting in response to injustice? No, we are not supposed to go out and try and kill all of the bad guys, that would be just as bad as what the bad guys did, but we are supposed to do something. I don't think that everyone is called to go out and do something, but there are people who are called, and if you are called I pray that you embrace what God has called you to do. For instance the International Justice Mission and Invisible Children are just two examples of what it means and looks like for Christians to go out and fight for injustice. The key here is not to fight for injustice for the sake of justice, but to fight for injustice for the sake of Christ. To be able to give people freedom from bondage not only from the principalities and powers of this world, but also to fight for their eternal freedom, which is in Jesus Christ. I find it so important not to just go out and preach the word, but to fight against the terrible things in this world and the injustices happening to people. We must go beyond the walls of the church and even our country and fight for justice in the name of Christ, have the honor of doing God's work and giving those who are captive, maybe just a taste of what the Holy City will one day be like. A place where there is no injustice, a place where all who suffer will one day be vindicated, a place where we can bow before the One who has sacrificed everything to save all those who proclaim His name. I give much respect and props to those ladies and gentlment who have the guts, courage, and faith to fight for others and there vindication here one earth. These people are our modern day Saints. The people who go out and fight for justice on the streets, who have inner city minsitries, who sacrifice all for the sake of the cross. And those who leave our country in pursuit of rescuing young women from the sex trade and who seek to liberate those who are captive. It is so great to see what these people are doing and to see a glimpse of what true redemption and vindication will be like for those who have suffered and those who will one day be honored for their obedience and their fight for injustice in the name of Christ. Redemption, grace, reconciliation, and vindication through Christ and the Cross, this is what the Holy City is about.

what it means to be a husband

So, lately I have been thinking about how I can be a better husband to my wife Megan, and what exactly it means to be a good husband. I haven't quite figured it out. The bible tells us to love our wives as Christ loves the Church. How on earth am I supposed to do that when I am super pissed off and mad at my wife? I am still trying to figure this all out. I know that in spite of my anger I need to love my wife as Christ loves the Church. I have been thinking even more about the homily that was given by Adam Neder (Professor of Theology at Whitworth University) at my wedding. Adam talked about how Jesus doesn't compromise. He doesn't settle for half ass, it's all or nothing. Adam related this to marriage. It's not about compromising it's about sacrificing for each other, laying down your pride and maybe even your life for your spouse. This is really hard to do. It's hard to sacrifice yourself for the sake of someone else, even if you love them dearly. We are selfish creatures, no offense, but especially men. We are prideful beings and we don't lay down our pride very well. We are worried more about sports, beer, sex, and food, than the well being of the ones we love. I know that is stereotypical and a bit of an exaggeration, but it is true to an extent. I don't know if I will ever figure this out (I am pretty sure I won't)! Don't get me wrong I love beer, sports, food, and sex, but my wife is more important on a whole different level. I am just trying to find out how to show her that she is that important, and love her so that she know that she is that important. I think my whole life and marriage will consist of me trying to figure out how to sacrifice for my wife and to love my wife as Christ loves the Church. I hope that any married males reading this would strive for the same things.

Andrew Esqueda