As a pastor in an Evangelical Free Church (that’s the denomination Brookside is a part of), however, I’m aware that observing Lent may be new(er) to many in our congregation who may not have grown up in some of the more formally-liturgical churches (both Protestant and Catholic) that do follow the church calendar.  Over the last few days, I’ve had the opportunity to point people towards the rich history Lent has in the Christian church and the ways it can be a means to form us as followers of Jesus.

To help all of us “wrap our arms” around Lent as we approach Easter in April, then, let me simply point you towards three resources written from an evangelical Protestant perspective that can help us appreciate the history and opportunity of Lent. Click on the links below to get re-directed to the articles.

• The Beginning of Lent (Christianity Today article by Ted Olsen)
• Lent – Why Bother?  To Point us to Christ.  (Christianity Today article by Michael Horton)
• How Lent Can Make a Difference in Your Relationship with God (Patheos.com post by Mark D. Roberts)

Last week we had some great interaction about the Christian doctrine of the Trinity – I’m grateful for a class that’s willing to ask some tough questions, think deeply, and be formed by God’s Word.  One of the things we had the chance to discuss was whether or not the doctrine of the Trinity is really that big of a deal.  Does it really make a difference whether we worship God as “one God in three Persons” (the traditional understanding), as “one God in three manifestations” (an early heresy commonly known as modalism) or as three aligned but ultimately independent gods (tritheism)?  Are the differences between these views really big enough to impact the way we live and how we worship?  And most importantly, what’s the clearest way to formulate how the God of the Bible reveals himself?

Ultimately, I drew discussion to a close and concluded that the God of the Bible does reveal himself as one God in three Persons.  We looked at verses supporting this belief.  We considered a few ways God-as-Trinity should actually impact us, including the followings:

• God-as-Trinity (God in community with Himself) tells us something about God…and us.   The doctrine of the Trinity teaches us that God didn’t create us (or anything) because He was lonely.  Creation is an act of God that flows out of & magnifies His character; it’s not something He did to prop up His character.  The doctrine of the Trinity also teaches us that we – as created in God’s image – at least partly reflect that image as we live in community with others ourselves.  Sin and fallenness is isolating (cf. Prov 28:1; Luke 8:29b).  We were designed to live & participate in community.

• An appreciation of the Trinity should help us relate to God as three-in-one.  God has chosen to reveal Himself to us in a certain way.  The more we relate to God within the terms He has provided, the better equipped we are to really know Him and interact with Him on His terms.  What does it mean that God is Father?  That God is Son?  That God is Holy Spirit?  What does it mean that each of these Persons is distinct from the others, yet united in some true (but impossible to describe) way?  How should these truths impact how we worship and live before the one true God?

• The Trinity reminds us that God is bigger than our formulas.  I can’t perfectly quantify how God is one-yet-three.  When pushed long enough on this doctrine, there’s gets to be a point where my analogies and explanations fall short.  But I’m OK with that.  It’s OK for our ears to smoke a bit when trying to describe an eternal Creator God…especially when I’m a finite, created being.  There are plenty of reasons for believing in the Trinity – but there’s plenty of mystery you need to bake into it as well.  And even this mystery should prompt our worship of God – the Triune Deity has chosen to reveal Himself to us so that we can worship Him truly, but is at the same big enough for there to be wonder, and mystery, and awe in our worship.

Yes, the Trinity really is that big of a deal.  Yes, what we believe about God will trickle out in how we worship and what we do.

Wayne Grudem (Bible Doctrine, p. 115) includes some wise words that serve as a fitting conclusion to this post (formatting and emphasis is my own):

“[The doctrine of the Trinity] has implications for the very heart of the Christian faith:

First, the atonement is at stake.  If Jesus is merely a created being, and not fully God, then it is hard to see how he, a creature, could bear the full wrath of God against all of our sins.  Could any creature, no matter how great, really save us?

Second, justification by faith alone is threatened if we deny the fully deity of the Son….If Jesus is not fully God, we would rightly doubt whether we can really trust him to save us completely.  Could we really depend on any creature fully for our salvation?

Third, if Jesus is not infinite God, should we pray to him or worship him?  Who but an infinite, omniscient God could hear and respond to all the prayers of all God’s people?  And who but God himself is worthy of worship?  Indeed, if Jesus is merely a creature, no matter how great, it would be idolatry to worship him – yet the New Testament commands us to do so (Phil. 2:9-11; Rev 5:12-14).

Fourth, if someone teaches that Christ is a created being but nonetheless one who saved us, this teaching wrongly begins to attribute credit for salvation to a creature and not to God himself.  This teaching wrongfully exalts the creature rather than the Creator, something Scripture never allows us to do.

Fifth, the independence and personal nature of God are at stake: If there is no Trinity, then there were no interpersonal relationships within the being of God before creation, and without personal relationships, it is difficult to see how God could be genuinely personal or be without the need for a creation to relate to.

Sixth, the unity of the universe is at stake: If there is not perfect plurality and perfect unity in God himself, then we have no basis for thinking there can be any ultimate unity among the diverse elements of the universe either.

Clearly, in the doctrine of the Trinity, the heart of the Christian faith is at stake.

So whaddya think?  Why else is the Trinity really that big of a deal?  What other implications does God-as-Trinity have for our lives and worship?

Working through and overcoming these preconceptions is one of those ongoing things I deal with as a pastor who oversees the adult education ministry of the local church I serve.  However, working through and overcoming these preconceptions is a joy, as it provides the chance to ground our approach to church education in church history (catechesis) and biblical study (the key role of instruction of God’s people throughout the Bible) – and not just in what some church somewhere else is doing or has done.

Grounding our approach to equipping ministry in God’s Word and the history of the church is important.  But once this sort of foundation has been laid, the next equally-important task is that of working out the details of how the equipping “arm” of the church (again, as taught in Scripture and faithful churches throughout history) should now take shape in our contemporary society.

This is why I’m grateful for the recent Nine Marks eJournal, Don’t Be Too Cool for Sunday School.”  The contributors to this journal may at times disagree on some of the how regarding equipping ministries (i.e. how it take shape), but they all seem to have a good, unified grasp on the why (i.e. why it’s important) and the what (i.e. what’s at stake).

Click here to be taken to this issue of the Nine Marks eJournal.  Choose an article or two to read and consider (since most of us probably don’t have time to read all of them).

Got thoughts or questions?  Comment on this blog and let’s get some discussion started.

• …as peoples’ eyes are opened to the beauty of God’s Word & its message
• …as people are formed theologically and given good “lenses” through which to look at life
• …as people are equipped with tools & practices that will help them grow personally and serve the church meaningfully

All of our classes have been on the adult ed page of our website for a couple of weeks, so you may already know what’s coming.  To get the details on any of our classes (meeting time & location, costs involved) please visit that adult ed page, as they won’t be duplicated in this post.  However, there are other “things” (since I couldn’t think of a better word) about each class that can be tough to put on our website, but that nevertheless may help you (1) know more about the individual classes and (2) discern which class might be the right fit for you.

With this in mind, here are a few of these other “things” for each class that you may be interested in:

• Fuel for Faith: An Important Class About Christian Theology

• Check out the book we’ll be reading parts of, as part of this class: Wayne Grudem, Bible Doctrine.
• Check out an outline of the class with notes from the first class, to give you a taste of things.  Here’s the attachment: Fuel for Faith.session #1
• Click here to read a blog by Kevin DeYoung that reinforces the importance of theology in the life of the church.

• Is the Bible Reliable?  Building the Historical Case

• Click here for a 2-minutes video preview of the class and an overview of what’s covered in this 10-session DVD series.

• Gospel Change: Getting to the Root of Personal Growth

• Check out the book that will be available for purchase, complementing the content of the class: Timothy Lane and Paul Tripp, How People Change.
• Check out an outline of the class, to give you a taste of things.  Here’s the attachment: Gospel Change

• Financial Peace University

• Not familiar with Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University?  Click here for a 22-minute video preview of the class (and lots of other heads-up type help as well).

• Miqra Institute: Genesis Seminar

• Visit Miqra’s newly-updated website (www.miqra.net) to learn more about this ministry and how it equips people biblically and theologically.  Click here to learn more about the upcoming seminar on Genesis and what it will cover.

There you have it!  So – what class are you most interested in this upcoming Spring?  (Remember to visit the adult ed page at www.brookside.net to sign up for those classes that require registration, and for all the logistical details for the classes!)

There’s just one problem:  I don’t have time to spend sitting and learning for 40-50 hours each week (or even a fraction of that).  And even if I did, that probably wouldn’t be enough time to satisfy my love of learning.  In fact, the time I have to devote to learning seems to be shrinking as my kids get older and other responsibilities (understandably) demand my attention.  What’s a philomath (“lover of learning”) to do in this situation?  Here are some of the ways I’m learning (pun intended) to answer that question:

• Just because you can’t learn everything doesn’t mean you can’t learn something.  Don’t let the volume of learning you can’t get to keep me from whatever learning you are able to find time for.  This mindset is an important place to start.

• After you’ve decided that you’re going to make time to learn, the next decision is “what will I learn?”  This is where we need to be intentional about what we learn.  I can spend all my time scrolling through and reading results brought up by a google search for “Madagascar,” but that probably wouldn’t be the best way to use the limited time I’ve slotted specifically for learning (even though I really like Madagascar).  Instead, we’ve got to focus on certain areas.  If you’re able to slot aside time for reading work-related material, make sure that’s one of the categories you include.  (Don’t use work time for reading unrelated stuff.)  If you’re reading and learning entirely for leisure, choose a hobby that’s grabbed your interest, dig more deeply into something you learned at church, or land on 1-2 areas of personal interest and dive in (these areas of personal interest will likely change over time).

• Be realistic about what you can accomplish given the time and budget you have available.  How many hours will you have each week for learning?  Will you devote a little time each day to learning, an extended chunk once a week, or some mixture of both of these?  Your answers to these questions will likely need to be flexible, as they’ll change depending on seasons of life and many other circumstances. Similarly, how much money can you spend on learning (books, audio downloads, etc.)?  Budget in an appropriate amount given your income, and don’t go broke trying to feed your “learning habit.”  If your budget for books & learning is pretty small, remember – there are lots of free ways to learn (something called a library, free online resources, etc.).

• Set goals.  Keeping all of the above points in mind, how many books do you want to read this year?  What new areas do you want to learn about?  How do you want your learning to shape your life?  These questions – and many others like them – are good ones to ask (and answer) to keep us moving in the right direction and stretch ourselves a bit.