Spiritual Roots

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Church, Ministry, Theology

– December 2011

Spiritual Roots

No one possesses a faith that is self-made.  Each of us are indebted to the whole body of Christ for our understanding of scripture and our view of Christian living.  We have all benefited immensely from great spiritual truths that have been developed over the centuries, shaped by revival, purified by reformation and tested by experience.  We stand on the shoulders of men and movements who have forged for us what we now know as our spiritual heritage.   To unwittingly sever ourselves from these spiritual roots is tragic.  To knowingly do so may well be treacherous. Yet many Christians sell their spiritual birthright as thoughtlessly as they sell their unwanted household junk.

What these yard sale saints can’t see is not hidden to historical scholars. They tell us that movements, religious or otherwise, can only maintain vitality and significance as long as they retain a clear understanding of their historical identity. A religious movement’s identity is determined by their dogma, doctrine, traditions, ideals, values, and culture – all of which have been developed over the centuries.  These are the things that tell us who we are and answer the question of why we exist.  Without them, no movement can affirm a clear mission or cast a uniting vision.

The Call to the Conservative Holiness Movement issued in the October Revivalist pleads for a commitment to historic roots and continuity in Article II. This involves both a renewed commitment to classical Christianity and a renewed understanding of our spiritual heritage as passed down to us through the Methodist Holiness Tradition.   This call is not rooted in a sentimental hankering for the past.  Nor is it some nostalgic desire to re-create methods and means that have long since served their usefulness –that’s what museums do!  It is, however, recognition that we lose something vitally important for our future when we become disconnected from our past.

This appeal to the CHM is particularly urgent for two reasons.  First, the CHM is going through a time of transition. Second, the CHM is too often afflicted with a form of historical amnesia – we have long term memory loss.  Our memory only reaches back about 60 years to the days when we separated from our mother churches.  What happened then is clearly a vital part of our heritage but it is far from all of it.  Nor can that separation point be the sole place from which we draw our identity.  If it is, then we lose the wealth of hundreds of years of rich holiness history.  We also lose important “family traits” and “traditions” that may serve us well in our contemporary struggles. The CHM faces questions today and will certainly face more in the tomorrows that will not be adequately answered without drawing on the wisdom and life experiences of our fore-fathers.  We need our heritage – all of it!

As the CHM seeks to develop a fuller understanding of its historical identity, it is helpful to examine the family tree. We are Christian, we are Reformation Protestants, we are Arminian, we are Arminian/Anglican, and we are Methodist.  From there the branch divides into Wesleyan Methodist, Free Methodist, Pilgrim Holiness and Nazarene.  From there the branches further divide into a dozen denominational groups and a host of independent churches that self-identify as the Conservative Holiness Movement.

The CHM is, for the most part, Wesleyan in its theological opinions, especially in its commitment to the doctrine of entire-sanctification.   However, it can be quite diverse in many other ways.  There is significant variation in views relating to the sacraments, lifestyle practices, social issues (e.g. divorce and remarriage) and church government.  The CHM does find common ground in their opposition to: immodest worldly attire, short hair on women, and the wearing of jewelry. These common ground issues have become the “street level” means of identifying the movement.  As important as these things may be, there are some other very important “family traits” that ought to be front and center when people think of the CHM.  Identity markers that I would love to see become our ”street level” means of identity.  Traits that can clearly be found in our spiritual roots – in particular our Methodist Holiness Heritage!

The early Methodists found their reason for existence and their vision for the future in Wesley’s call “to reform a Nation, and in particular the church; and to spread scriptural holiness over the land.” Responding to that call led them to reap a harvest of souls for God’s kingdom and ultimately altered the religious landscape of England and early America for almost a century.  However, it must be noted that this breathtaking, forward looking, mission statement worked only in a context.  And that context was the theological content and spiritual character of what Methodism truly was.  You could call it their DNA or their family traits. Let’s examine five of those traits.

First, they were known for a distinctive theological understanding of God.  One of the best ways to understand the impact of their theology is to look at how those early Methodists lived it out. Francis Asbury, the founder of American Methodism is a good example to observe. When Asbury arrived in America there were only a few hundred Methodists, but by 1860 one out of every three Americans was a Methodist.  Asbury crossed the Allegheny Mountains on horseback 60 times, slept in 10,000 different cabins and homes, preached 60,500 sermons in 45 years (a little more than one a day), and became more recognizable than George Washington or Thomas Jefferson.  By the end of the 18th century, Methodism had determined the nature of religious culture in America thus setting the stage for the next 100 years.

Why did he and countless hundreds of other Methodist circuit riders do what they did?  It was their theology that motivated them!   Their theology taught them that every man had infinite worth.  They believed that God not only wanted to save every man but that every man could be saved!  To better understand this you need to remember that Calvinism was the prevalent theology of the day and a core component of Calvinism was election.   When the average Calvinist walked down the street he would think, “It is possible that I might even see one of God’s elect today.”  When a Methodist walked down the street he would think, “Every man I see today is one of God’s elect and it is my job to tell him!”

Second, they were known for their optimism of grace.  I am not sure if grace shaped their eschatology or their eschatology shaped their concept of grace but what I do know is that the early Methodists believed so powerfully in the transforming grace of God that they were convinced that they would transform the church, the nation and the world – ushering in the millennial reign!  The optimism of grace drove Methodist circuit riders farther and faster than new invention could drive the feet of commerce.

Third, they were known for a distinctive view of spiritual experience.  The early Methodists believed that every man could be saved, that every man could know they were saved and that every man could be saved to the uttermost!  The doctrine of assurance gave new converts stability and peace.  The doctrine of entire sanctification gave believers victory over sin and power to live a holy life.  Methodism took people out of their “sinning religion” and taught them that they could walk in complete obedience to God!  With such peace, hope and victory, it’s no wonder that the Methodist were known for their exuberant singing and loud shouting!

Fourth, they were known for their distinctive view of the Church and Evangelism. They were flexible and innovative.  They didn’t need a proper church with stained glass windows and comfortable pews. They preached in the highways and byways, in fields and near mines, on the frontier and in the city ghettos.  They introduced a new style of worship to accommodate the large numbers of unconverted people in their congregations. Worship scholars refer to it as “frontier worship”.  It is now the primary worship style we still use today. They operated missions for the down and outer, cottages for the unwed mothers, orphanages for the destitute, camp meetings for the masses, class meetings for the newly converted and circuits for rural churches. They founded training schools, colleges and universities. No aspect of their society was left untouched by the gospel.  Those early Methodist did whatever was necessary to obey the command to “preach the gospel to every creature”.

Fifth, they were known for their stewardship.  The early Methodists looked right through the world that was around them and saw a Kingdom.  It was to that Kingdom and ultimately to its King that they gave their solemn allegiance and perfect love.  Many freely denied themselves the comforts of home, family and marriage to give their lives in His service.  The rank and file who did build homes and raise up families were so well known for their rejection of this worlds values and ostentation that the very name Methodist was spoken in derision and scorn by those who loved to parade their fashion and display their wealth. It was not what could be gained in this world but what could be invested in the world to come that motivated these people called Methodists.

These are a few of the “family traits” of a people and a movement that history says “owned the 19th century”! I see some of these same traits being manifested today in the underground church in China where 20,000 people are converted every day.  It has yet to be decided who will own the 21st century, but I believe it will be owned by the people who have looked long enough and deep enough into the past to see how God will work in the future.  You can figure it out too but you will need to dig deep into your spiritual roots!

Why Marriage Matters

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles

–Summer 2011

Why Marriage Matters

Most Christians know from the Bible that a lifelong marriage between one man and one woman is part of God’s original order. “And the LORD God said, it is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. . .  Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh (Genesis 2:18, 24).

Jesus also affirmed that a lasting, loving marriage between a man and a woman is basic to God’s plan for mankind. “But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mark 10:6-9).

The institution of marriage had not grown very old before Satan began his assault. The first attack on God’s order was multiple wives.  Later it was frivolous divorce. Even Israel because “of the hardness of their hearts” allowed homes to be destroyed by divorce but “from the beginning it was not so.” Since WWII, America has steadily accelerated its willingness to rip homes apart through divorce.  According to studies the divorce rate in America is over 50%.  Divorce has created havoc and hardship on every level of the social order.

The most recent attack on marriage, the diabolical push for same-sex marriage, is the most insidious of all Satan’s schemes!  This is not just a new twist down the old path of self-centered living – this is suicide for the family as we know it!

However it happens, the erosion or destruction of marriage will carry an insurmountable price tag.  No other single force is causing as much measurable hardship in this country as the collapse of the Biblical order for marriage! The American psyche has a collective ambivalence toward the institution that has resulted in “frequent marriage – frequent divorce” as well as a high number of “short term co-habiting relationships”.

The Church has been attuned to this for years but now data from a large body of social science research affirms the importance of marriage for children, adults and communities.  The Center for Marriage and Families at the Institute for American Values has published 26 findings from a diverse group of leading family scholars that summarizes the difference that marriage makes. I want to share with you a selection of those findings:

1. Marriage protects children’s physical, mental, emotional, educational and social health.  On every single significant outcome related to short-term well-being and long-term success, children from intact, two-parent families outperform those from single-parent households.  Longevity, drug abuse, school performance and dropout rates, teen pregnancy, criminal behavior and incarceration – if you can measure it, a sociologist has; and in all cases, the kids living with both parents (male and female) drastically outperform the others.

2. Divorced and unmarried childbearing increases poverty for both children and mothers.  Research by Princeton sociologist, Sara McLanahan, found that children who grow up in a household with only one biological parent are worse off, on average, than children who grow up n a household with both of their biological parents, regardless of the parents’ race or educational background.

3. Just living together (co-habiting) is not the same as marriage.  Robert Rector, of the Heritage Foundation, says that when children are born into a co-habiting, unmarried relationship they arrive in a family in which the principals haven’t resolved their most basic issues, including those of sexual fidelity and how to share responsibilities. The moment the first amount of stress appears things start to fall apart and the man is soon out the door.

4. Children whose parents divorce have higher rates of psychological problems like depression and other mental illness.  David Blankenhorn, president of the Institute for American Values, says it is dismissive of human experience to suggest that kids don’t suffer seriously from divorce.  The truth is that children have a primal need to know who they are, to love and be loved by the two people whose physical union brought them into the world.  To lose that connection, that sense of identity, is to experience a wound that no child-support check or fancy school can ever heal.

5. Children raised in single-parent families are more likely to engage in delinquent and criminal behavior as well as become victims of abuse.  Boys raised in single-parent families are two to three times more likely to end up in jail as adults.  Children that are not raised with their own two married parents are significantly at a greater risk for child abuse.

6. Fatherless households are especially impacted.  Maria Kefalas, a sociologist who studies marriage and family and who happens to a feminist, says that few things hamper a child as much as not having a father at home.  She adds, “Growing up without a father has a deep psychological effect on a child.  The mother may think she doesn’t need that man but her children definitely do”.

If we allow marriage to continue down this path of becoming nothing more than a union of two people ( of any sex) for their own pleasure and convenience, then we might as well hold the funeral for that grand old sacred order now.  But if we are willing to reach back and re-establish marriage as the best way (which is God’s way) to raise our children — to protect, instruct  and instill in the them the conduct of character of successful living – then we have hope for the next generation.  Marriage matters!  And what we teach our children about the true meaning of this God ordained institution will determine a great deal about our fate!

Knowledge Isn’t Enough

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living

–November of 2008

Knowledge Isn’t Enough

I have always been fascinated by what people say when they pray.  The prayers of a great saint are not only edifying but revealing.  They tell you something about the one praying as well as offer insight into the needs of those he prays for.  Reading the prayers of the apostle Paul explains what I mean (read Ephesians 1:15-23, 3:14-21; Philippians 1:9-11; Colossians 1:9-11).  The Apostle’s prayers consistently reflect two great requests: enlightenment and enablement.  Paul’s earnest desire for his spiritual children is that they might have a growing knowledge of God’s will and power to live out that will.

Paul understood the importance of knowledge.  He often began his prayer by asking that believers might be filled with spiritual wisdom, understanding, and an ever-growing knowledge of God.  This knowledge would come from scripture, the teachings of the apostles and prophets, experientially through a daily walk with Jesus, and through the enlightening work of the Holy Spirit.  Paul’s concern that his children grow in knowledge was not simply concern for intellectual attainment but for moral and behavioral transformation. Paul wants us to know so that we can be.

Paul’s companion request was for power, not power to work signs and wonders but the enabling power of the Holy Spirit to live beautiful, holy lives that manifest the fruit of the Spirit.  Knowledge alone can’t take the wobble out of our walk.  For knowledge to effect change it must be activated.  One may be a Greek scholar and a master theologian and at the same time be a failure at living out a holy life.  One needs power to translate what one knows into what one is and does.

The natural question that should follow is, “How is this power activated in one’s life?”  Understanding the source of this power is an important first step.  It is not self-generated. It does not have its source in human invention or determination.  Paul tells the Ephesians that it is “His power”; that we are “strengthened with might through His Spirit”; and “according to the power that works in us” (meaning the power of the Holy Spirit).  To the Philippians he says that we have these fruits of righteousness “by Jesus Christ.”  To the Colossians it is “according to His glorious power” and “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”  To the Galatians he says, “Walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh…but the fruit of the Spirit is….”  Paul makes it clear that the power to live godly lives comes only through divine enablement.

The question still remains, “How is the Holy Spirit’s power unleashed in my life?”  Again, there is something we must understand.  The power of the Holy Spirit is not a thing that we possess. It is not like a high-octane fuel additive that supercharges our spiritual engine.  The Holy Spirit is a person who lives within us in intimate relationship. He is there because we have willingly surrendered our lives to His control.  And whatever He controls He empowers.  And when He empowers, we are able to manifest the character of the God we serve.  The key to this inner strength is total surrender.  As we walk in the light and mature in Christ, we will be enlightened to new areas that need His enablement.    These new areas must be surrendered too, so that the Holy Spirit can give us victory and power in them.  If we aren’t careful we will be tempted to handle these in our strength, and the end result will be failure.

Oswald Chambers said it succinctly when he declared that “to be our utmost for His Highest is not a matter of willing, wrestling, debating or reasoning, but of surrender.”  If you want to close the gap between what you know you should be and what you are — you must close the gap between what is under your control and what is under His.

Pastor – Remember “Your” Sabbath Day!

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Ministry

–October of 2008

Pastor – Remember “Your” Sabbath Day!

A large number of America’s pastors live on the edge of emotional and physical collapse.  Many of the pastors I talk with are battling a frustrating fatigue that vacations and off days won’t cure.  Few seem to be able to diagnose the problem much less prescribe a cure.

Are the clergy just a special class of workers whose occupation demands so much of them that burnout is inevitable?  I don’t think so.  Many accountants, nurses and farmers regularly put in 70 hour weeks.  What about the single mom who works two jobs to meet the needs of her struggling family, surviving on just a few hours of sleep each night?  To isolate the clergy as special class of “over-worked” professionals would neither be fair nor accurate.

However, the ministry does carry with it certain occupational hazards. The local church is often a place of imbedded opinions, unique doctrinal views, carnal ownership and wounded feelings.  Not to mention dysfunctionalisms of varying degrees in many if not all of the families that makes up the local congregation. These problems demand long counseling sessions, special prayer times and well crafted sermons.  In addition, the pastor or his wife may function as the janitor, groundskeeper and secretarial staff.  Couple this work load with unfair comparisons to the church across town or the speaking  talent of a nationally known radio preacher  and it comes as no surprise that most pastors suffer with feelings of inadequacy and failure from the outset!  Nevertheless, these factors are rarely at the core of burnout.

The key to understanding the fatigue factor among pastors lies in understanding that there is a clear distinction between the ministry and all other professions.  Spiritual work is vastly different from selling cars, building houses or planting crops.  The builder or farmer may work a twelve hour day, retire exhausted, but awake refreshed both mentally and physically.  If more rest is needed then a relaxing weekend, a round of golf, a good book or a game of checkers might be the answer.  The minister’s work is also taxing both mentally and physically but it is more.  His work happens in the spiritual realm and it draws on his inner spiritual resources.  These resources are not renewed simply by a night of rest, a trip to the lake, or family time at the zoo.  Replenishing them requires a time of solitude where one can engage the means of grace in an unhurried way with God.  A life without such a time easily becomes destructive. When one is left to do spiritual work with just human resources, doing becomes more important than being and results become more important than the people we serve.  The pastor who possesses a dynamic personality or who has a great deal of natural giftedness may hide this deficit for sometime, but in the end it will shrivel his soul, fray his emotions and exhaust him physically.  The least that can happen is burnout – the worst is ministerial failure.

Is there an answer? Yes!  First, Ministers need to commit to a time of vigorous exercise to support both physical and emotional health. Second, they need to commit to creative time that stimulates the mind and lifts the spirit.  If all a pastor ever does is what he or she has to do, then stagnation sets in and meaninglessness is the result. Third, every pastor needs to commit to keeping a personal Sabbath for the renewing of spiritual energy.

Most pastors neglect God’s Sabbath provision.  The one day of Sabbath rest out of every seven is God’s way of saving us from self-destruction and keeping us spiritually renewed.  I’m not talking about making sure you take one day off each week.  The pastor needs that day just to catch up on the normal chores that life can bring as well as a time to unplug from the normal routine.  I’m talking about a time each week that is spent in solitude with God as a means of grace. Do not confuse this with a daily quiet time.  I mean an extended time each week that is set aside as a personal Sabbath.  Some would have the ability to take a whole day, but every pastor should take at least the time from early morning till noon on a set day each week. There should be extended versions of this at least two to three times a year.  This time should include: solitude, scriptural meditation, worship, reading, prayer, singing and occasionally soul-cleansing discussion with a trusted spiritual advisor. If it is a longer time it should include periods of family worship and fellowship. If habitually practiced the benefits are two-fold.  First, the spiritual blessing and insight that follows will be so self-evident that a skeptical congregation will be convinced of its value.  Second, it will lengthen the ministry and effectiveness of every pastor.

If you’re the self-absorbed CEO type or the workaholic pastor who needs to stay busy to feel valued, then this idea will sound foolish.  If your just too undisciplined to control your time or too full of excuses why this won’t work, then you will just have to live with the fatalism of fatigue.  But to the pastor who isn’t tripping over his ego and has emptied himself of the foolish pride of always having to appear busy, it can be the salvation of both his body and soul.  Not to mention the secret to a long and fruitful ministry.  Give God’s plan a try – take a Sabbath!

Is Your Church Really a Church?

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Church, Ministry

–September of 2008

Is Your Church Really a Church?

America is blessed with a lot of churches.  Some sit astride prominent street corners proudly displaying their architectural glory while others are tucked away indiscreetly between a used shoe store and a day old bakery in a weary strip mall on the side of town where plight and crime prevail.   Some have one word names like “Grace.”  Others have names so long and so full of biblical and ecclesiastical jargon that you can’t say the full name with stopping to breathe. Some look like a church while others look like a warehouse.  However, it is not the architect they display or the appellation they wear that concerns me.  I often wonder how many of these places of worship are legitimate New Testament churches?

Is there a way to know if a church is really a New Testament church?  Can one gauge when a church has gone too far on one hand or not far enough on the other to be considered an authentic Christian church? Can a church cease to be a church even though it opens every Sunday and is filled to capacity?

The New Testament doesn’t provide a definition of the local Church.  The Greek word for church simply means the “called out ones.” So how can one determine what actually qualifies an organization or an assembly of believers as a New Testament church?  The simple answer is that one has to go to the New Testament and look for the biblical characteristics of a local church and arrive at a definition based on them. This process, of course, has been done many times.  The protestant reformers did so in the early 1500’s and said that a local church has two essential characteristics.  First, it is where the Word of God is proclaimed, and second, it is where the sacraments are correctly taught and administered.  This definition is a start but it is seriously incomplete.  Its focus is totally inward and ignores the most central mission of the church – making disciples. Any definition of the church must include not only what the church is but also what the church does.  The New Testament gives seven critical elements that should make up any definition of a local church.

The local church is essential (Matthew 16:18). The local church is God’s only divinely sanctioned institution to reach the world for Christ.  Thus it is an indispensible, vital institution that cannot be replaced by anything else.  To ignore or drop out of church, for whatever reason, is to oppose God’s ordained means of making disciples and maturing the saints so that His Church might be built.

The Church is an assembly or gathering of disciples (I Thess. 1:1, Acts 14:27, Heb. 10:25).  The church is people.  One person does not qualify as a church. It is a gathering of people who are professing believers in Jesus Christ.

The Church is under leadership.  Spiritual leadership is vital to spiritual health. The references are simply too numerous to list that insist upon properly structured and ordained leadership within the church.  Large portions of what the Apostle Paul wrote are instructions as to how to establish the leadership roles of Elder and Deacon in the local churches.  No local church was to ever be a democracy or a consensus meeting.  It was to be led by a group of men who met the spiritual, moral and social qualifications outlined in the New Testament. The problem in most struggling churches today can be traced to a lack of leadership.

The Church is an organization (I Cor. 14:40).  The church is an organism but it is also an organization.  Organization is necessary for the church to function effectively.  Too much organization can stifle, but too little can breed confusion and result in a failure to have unanimity of direction and purpose.

The Church has a mission (Matt. 28:19-20).  Christ’s Great Commission is the mission of the church.  The success of any church must be measured by their obedience to this Great Commission. John Wesley understood this and told his preachers, “We have nothing to do but save souls.” I believe it is both fair and necessary to ask the question, “Can a church be a church if it fails to obey the central command to make and mature disciples?”

The Church has clearly defined functions (Acts 2:42-47).  There are five general functions of the church.  They are listed in Acts chapter two as: teaching, fellowship, worship, evangelism, and service.  Much can be said by way of defining these functions but what is most important for the moment is that these functions are understood to be the timeless, unchanging, nonnegotiable work of the church.  Just as the first century church couldn’t pick and choose the functions they would observe or ignore; neither can the church in the twenty-first century if it wants to be a New Testament church. Yet far too many churches become what are called “niche churches.” They claim to be all about “worship”, or they boast of being a “preaching church.”  Some are known for their children’s ministries or for a strong counseling program.  Some tout the fact that they are a “family oriented church” while others loudly affirm that they are there to “defend and preserve their heritage.”  Even though churches will by the nature of their staffing have certain strengths, they are called to all the functions of the church and are commanded to “make disciples” not to “make niches.”

A church that narrows its ministry to one area is a church that invites the question, “Are you a true church?”  No matter what the reason might be, no church can afford to compromise the God given absolutes that are to be a part of every church’s ministry. No church can afford to negotiate away the fulfilling of the Great Commission through its biblical functions no matter how noble or needed their other work may be.

The Church exists to glorify God (Rom. 15:6, I Cor. 6:20; 10:31).  We glorify God as a church in the same way that Jesus glorified Him while on earth.  He glorified the Father by living his life in submissive, loving obedience to the Fathers will (John 17:1-8).  The church glorifies God as it fulfills its God given mission through its God ordained functions.  To do less is to be less than a New Testament church!

Many will read this article and wave it off with a simple, “Ho Hum!”  They believe they have the right to “do church” any way they want to! They have breathed the air of radical individualism that permeates Western culture for so long until they are convinced that their view is as good or even trumps all other views – even the Bible’s.  They are right on at least one thing.  They can do church anyway they choose.  But they are wrong in thinking that they can be a church in anyway they choose.

The New Testament tells us what a Christian church is and does. Admittedly, it is a rather broad definition that allows for considerable variation in form and method, but it also a very plain definition that uncompromisingly embraces certain functions.  If those functions are absent, then your church is not a church in the New Testament sense even if it has the tallest steeple in town!