So I got a part-time job at Santa Cruz Roasting Coffee shop. It is right downtown and so far a pretty cool place to work. We sell a lot of coffee beans, as you might suspect since we're a roasting house, and I get one free pound a week, which is pretty cool (Ethiopian was my first pound). The length of employment at the roasting house is pretty low, the employee who has been there the longest? 3yrs. I don't know if anyone else there is a Christian, although the manager, Kacki, is sober and has gone through A.A. I assume the people I work with represent a typical slice of Santa Cruz, and what they lack in their representation the customers are sure to make-up for. I have only worked two shifts, both of the closing (we close at 11 and 12pm) and it has been fun. Most of the employees are students, but some are not. Most of the employees are straight, some are not; most of them have tatoos, and, so far, everybody's favorite words are four letters long.

My first night I worked with a gal who moved here two-months ago to get away from a bad marriage of ten years in Wyoming; I was blown-away when she told me twice in two seperate conversations that she had also left her four children; the youngest being 6 or 8 months. She is starting afresh in SC and has already found someone who she is interested in.

Last night I worked with a new guy who is back in town as he waits to be accepted to a law school. As we took the garbage out I asked him why he wants to be a lawyer and he said, "I'm tired of being poor," a novel ambition. He asked me what I was doing in town and I told him I was here to start a church, which really didn't get much of a response. In reality I just don't think people have any sort of grid for starting a church, since it is equated with a building instead of a group of people. We'll see where God takes these relationships.

A big eye-opener came as a result of us not having a public restroom. It was converted into a storage area because of the graffiti and drug use that happened in there. One of my co-workers told me of finding needles, razor-blades, and other stuff in there. But last night one of the girls revealed it was finally closed when some overdosed on Heroin in the bathroom. Come to find out, SC has one of the highest rates of Heroin addiction, per capita, in the U.S; I had no idea. One of the employees told me she can tell when a bad batch of dope is on the streets because the nightime customers come in all messed-up. Here is an exerpt from a local newspaper about the issue:

"Ten years ago, we had one student hooked on heroin," he says. "Today, one-tenth of our students are dealing with heroin addiction. More than half of them are female."

Those in the know agree that girls are more likely to be recruited than guys because once they are addicted, "they are not only working for the drug itself, they often end up prostituting to support their 'boyfriend,' the dealer who got them hooked in the first place," says Garcia.

Over the last few years, especially here in Santa Cruz, the ages of the addicted have continued to drop. Now, there are cases of addicted 9-year-olds and 12-year-old girls prostituting to feed their habit."



No doubt we need to do something.

Mi Casa.

User temporarily out of the office--We're moving.

Here is the final paper for my graduate degree. It was interesting to write, since my professor is opposed to what I assert. Sip on a cup of coffee, read this, and get saved.

Lordship Salvation
Within the past two decades a debate has been going on amongst Evangelicals as to how a person comes to salvation in Jesus. Within this debate there are two main groups: One group believes that a person comes to salvation by faith alone, with or without making Jesus Lord of their life (I accept salvation, now I choose whether or not you are Lord); the other group maintains that salvation comes as a result of a commitment to Christ, and that following Jesus as Lord is an aspect of salvation (I choose to follow you as Lord, therefore, I accept salvation). This is a huge theological issue with large ramifications. I have prayed, read, and researched through various books, hoping to find out which group I belong to. Although, my answers are still in process, it is my intent that through this paper I will clearly demonstrate the theology I believe to be biblical.


Discipleship
Where does discipleship fit into this theological debate? Is it part of salvation?
First let us define discipleship. The word disciple is used throughout the Bible to mean: pupil or learner. The Pharisees considered themselves disciples of Moses; followers of John the Baptist were called disciples of John, this holds equally true for followers of Jesus who were called his disciples. Discipleship was always predicated upon a call from Jesus (Mark 1:16; 10:21) and meant undivided commitment to him, which was expressed in obedience to him. I. H. Marshall says, discipleship to Jesus “went well beyond the normal pupil-teacher relationship and gave the word ‘disciple’ a new sense. Faith in Jesus and allegiance to him are what determine the fate of men at the last judgment (Lk. 12:8f.).” (Pg. 285) Jesus expanded the definition of the word because the evangelists understood him to be more than a mere man, but God himself. The word does not appear outside of the gospels and Acts, but other NT writers refer to disciples in other terms including believers, saints, or brothers. Therefore, from the perspective of the NT a believer was a disciple; and belief entailed commitment to God through the person of Christ.

In the early church being a Christian meant being Jesus’ disciple. What does Christian mean other than Christ-follower? To follow Jesus is to be his disciple and to be a disciple is to be a Christian. Acts 11:26 says, “The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch;” furthermore, in Acts 9:2, and 24:14, Paul refers to the believers as “followers of the Way.” The word translated into “Way” is the Greek word hodos, which is the same word Jesus uses to describe himself in John 14:6 saying, “I am the Way…” Clearly the implications in Acts show that, (a) disciples of Christ were called Christians; they were not Christians first who then became disciples; and (b) Paul identified them, and himself, as followers of “the Way,” who is Jesus; thus, they were followers of Jesus.

Does discipleship necessitate Lordship? The answer is clearly: Yes. A disciple of Christ acknowledges him as “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28) Thomas’ confession is to be recognized as the high point of faith. Too, this confession is not solely Thomas’ but is included in the gospel to be seen as a normative response by a disciple to the resurrected Christ: You are my Lord and my God. Therefore, discipleship means Lordship, and Lordship means adherence to that Lord.

Jesus speaks to this saying, “Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46) Jesus is here pointing out the opposite of a normal relationship to himself: If I’m Lord than you should obey me. He is making it obvious to the multitude, that his disciples were expected to obey him, since obedience to him was a demonstration of his position in their life. The Lutheran theologian and pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer makes this statement, “In the end, the first step of obedience proves to be an act of faith in the word of Christ. But we should completely misunderstand the nature of grace if we were to suppose that there was no need to take the first step because faith was already there. Against that we must boldly assert that the step of obedience must be taken before faith can be possible. Unless he obeys, a man cannot believe.” Later he adds his axiom, “Only those who obey can believe, and only those who believe can obey.” (Pg. 66; 70)

Biblically, being a Christian means following Christ as his disciple. There is no biblical evidence that people became a Christian without committing themselves to Christ in discipleship. Unlike our modern constructs, Scripture makes no difference between discipleship and belief in Jesus, or for that matter, a disciple and someone who is “saved;” belief in Jesus, and discipleship are biblically synonymous concepts. Likewise, “To be a disciple involved an unreserved and exclusive commitment to Jesus.” (Marshall Pg. 576) There should be little doubt that unreserved, exclusive commitment to Jesus means making him “Lord and God” of the believer’s life.


Discipleship: Pre-or-Post Salvation
Almost the whole of Jesus’ ministry was focused on what it meant to follow him, the cost involved, and the benefits to following him. Here are some passages that require our attention if we are to determine whether Discipleship, and therefore Lordship, is a Pre-or-Post salvation decision by the believer:

Mark 10:17-22 describes a scenario in which a rich young man questions Jesus about salvation. “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus then speaks to him of the commandments, which he claims to have kept. Then Jesus, knowing the true issue that is keeping him from following says, “go, sell what you own…then come follow me.” Jesus requires this man to choose discipleship, there is no middle ground; knowing Jesus mandates that he alone take primacy in the man’s life; he alone is Lord. This, as we see, is too much for him to accept, and Jesus freely allows him to go. When Jesus asks the man to sell everything and follow him it is not identical with salvation; it is not a work to achieve it. However, it is the indispensable beginning to the salvation life, which is Jesus. Bonhoeffer says, “Discipleship is the end, voluntary poverty the means.” (Pg. 75) Jesus does not say, “be justified by your faith,” but says, “obey me, demonstrate your belief, then become my disciple.” Too, this parable should be seen in sharp contrast to the parallel story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10) whose actions resulted in Jesus saying, “Today salvation has come to this house…” Why? Because his obedience is belief.

In Luke 14 Jesus puts certain conditions upon discipleship: “If anyone comes to me, and does not hate his own father, mother, wife, children…his own life, he cannot be my disciple;” “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple;” “So therefore, no one of you can be my disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.” (Vv. 26, 27, 33) Jesus is calling people to discipleship, to a commitment in him. He is challenging them to allegiance to either themselves or loyalty to him. It is clear that the disciple must have but one love, one Lord: Self or Jesus; and this decision is a condition of discipleship.

In Mark 8:34-37 Jesus says, “For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.” Jesus says only those who lose their life for his sake will save it. These verses share the common theme with Luke: Denial of self and adherence to Christ is required; if you are to follow Jesus he alone is Lord. But this verse takes it a step further and speaks of what a person must do in order to save his life; only “those who lose their life” for Jesus will save their life. Jesus is here putting a pre-condition on salvation. What else can this verse mean? William Hendrickson, speaking of this verse says, “It is only by losing oneself—looking away from self in order to serve the Master and his ‘little ones’ (Cf. Matt. 25:40)—that one can ever be saved…For the sinner salvation is impossible apart from obedience to this rule.” (Pg. 500) To what rule? An individual must make a commitment to Jesus, losing his life, as a condition of “sav(ing) it.”

In John 12:24-26 Jesus tells the parable about the Grain of Wheat. Speaking of the seed, which falls to the ground and produces fruit he says, “He who loves his life loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to eternal life. If anyone serves me, let him follow me.” When speaking of the grain Jesus is here speaking of himself; however, he is also at the same time speaking of his disciples. D.A. Carson says, “But if the principle modeled by the seed—that death is the necessary condition for the generation of life—is peculiarly applicable to Jesus, in a slightly different way it is properly applied to all of Jesus’ followers.” (Pp 438-439) Once again Jesus is speaking of death, which brings about life; he shares how to save our life, by hating it, which is demonstrated by following him, throughout the NT this is called discipleship.

In Matthew 25 the evangelist includes a parable given by Jesus. Here we are told, “all the nations will be gathered before him” (v. 32) and he will separate them into two groups. One group will inherit the Kingdom, and the other group will inherit eternal fire. The large group is composed of people who should have known the condition by which Jesus would be separating them; they were expected to “love people” as an obligation to their relationship with Jesus. In the end, whatever the followers of Jesus did or did not do will be a defining mark for their eternal punishment, or being declared as righteous in God’s presence. Obedience is a condition to salvation.

Matthew 28:19 is another verse that speaks clearly about the importance of discipleship. “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Here again Jesus speaks of discipleship as being the normative relationship of the believer to himself. Jesus could have just as easily said, “Go, and make people recognize me as Savior, baptizing them…then after this, help them make me Lord.” However, Jesus said, “make disciples who obey me.” Obviously Jesus knows the apostles must get this right; salvation is at stake. They will be the ones who teach the world what it means to be “born again;” and Jesus’ answer here: Discipleship. James Boice asserts, “This theology (Savior first) separates faith from discipleship and grace from obedience. It teaches that Jesus can be received as one’s Savior without being received as one’s Lord…Discipleship is not a supposed second step in Christianity, as if one first became a believer in Jesus and then, if he chooses, a disciple.” (Pg. 13-14) Furthermore, when we read Peter’s words to the crowd at Pentecost “Repent and be baptized” (Acts 2:38) one should clearly understand: only disciples were to be baptized.

Evidently, not everyone who calls Jesus Lord will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only those who do the will of his Father. What is the will of the father? To believe in Jesus, but to believe in Jesus is to commit to him, and biblically, this meant discipleship.


Language and Concepts: Static or Dynamic?
As Westerners (Greek in thought) our whole concept of life is based upon a static system of communication, and therefore, fixed systems of belief. Noted linguist Charles Kraft says this, “Much of contemporary western Christianity seems static.” (Pg. 237) This he concludes is a result of the way we express Christian thoughts: God is love, God is my Father, the Lord is my Shepherd, etc, are static. To demonstrate the contrast he offers these dynamic alternatives: God relates to me lovingly, God treats me as a good father treats his child, the Lord guides me like a shepherd guides his sheep, etc.

Hebrew, on the other hand, is a dynamic language (Likewise Greek is more dynamic than English). Commenting on this Dr. Kraft says, “Greek embodied much action in nouns which, when translated literally into English, result in an impression of staticness.” (Pg. 237) Using the example of the Greek word logos he argues that when John used it he was, like most bilinguals, translating a thought from his native tongue into another language. The Hebrew term John would have translated would have been the word dabar, and this word in its original context carries a dynamic meaning.
Language dictates our thoughts, and our thoughts shape our beliefs, and our beliefs direct our actions. Therefore, our understanding of words (language) directly effects how we view concepts; and this includes the concepts of: Faith and Belief. Leslie Newbigin says, “The language of a people provides the means by which they express their way of perceiving things and of coping with them. (Pg. 3)

Our static concepts effect our understanding of what salvation is. When most Christians speak of becoming Christians they point to a specific point in time. A common question amongst our circles is: “When did you get saved?” answer: Dec. 5, 1989. This is a completely modern paradigm. Nowhere in the NT does anyone point to a specific point in the past to prove his or her salvation. In fact, the NT always asks the present to validate salvation: Paul “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith.” (2 Cor 13:5) or “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed…continue to work out your salvation…” (Phil. 2:12).

The hermeneutical lens by which we approach scripture has a tremendous effect upon how we view its claims on our lives. Our practice will reflect our theology; thus, most Westerners equate being a Christian with knowing doctrines rightly. For example, during the McCarthy era when America was fearful of Communist spies invading their ranks, some advisors of President Eisenhower advised him to create a Christian test for all government workers. This specific test included numerous doctrines a Christian was expected to know in order to be a Christian. They assumed Communists would not know the answers to these questions. Evidently, to be a Christian one only needed to pass a multiple-choice questionnaire. Truman never allowed this test, but this was one of the contributing factors to changing the Pledge of Allegiance and American currency to include references to God.


Faith: Static or Dynamic?
Is the biblical understanding of faith dynamic? Faith is the means by which we are justified, so the argument goes. However, is faith a static event or is it a process by which the believer lives in a relationship with God. Luther derived his “Justified by faith alone” from Romans by using Abraham as his example; however, Paul does not go into great detail about the characteristics of faith, only that we are justified by it.

In Romans 4:3 we read “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” Abraham’s faith in God is the very thing that justified him before God. Abraham believed God’s promise that “…from your own body will be your heir.” And “Look into the heavens and count the stars…So shall your offspring be.” (Gen. 15:5) Therefore, faith is what puts Abraham in right standing with God and not the law.

However, this is not the end of the story; it seems as if God is not yet finished with Abraham’s faith; thus, we get another foundational story in chapter 22. Here God asks Abraham to sacrifice the very heir God had promised to him. Abraham obeys God and God says, “Because you have done this…I will indeed bless you…and by your offspring shall all the nations of the earth gain blessings for themselves, because you have obeyed my voice.” (Gen. 22:16-18) Once again this is a story about Abraham’s faith.

If faith is a static event then why was it necessary for God to test Abraham’s faith? Wasn’t the requirement of the previously made promise to Abraham already fulfilled because of his faith? We must conclude that the answer is: no. The first promise is openly conditional; not upon Abraham’s belief, but upon Abraham believing. Again, the positive outcome of Abraham’s obedience was a renewal of the before stated promise; therefore, we must also presume that disobedience would have led to a denial of that same promise. Furthermore, Abraham did not point to the past as proof of his faith saying, “I’m already justified, the promise is mine whether or not I obey this command.” Abraham was required to demonstrate his faith in the present. Biblical faith is not a one-time event.

Likewise, Biblical faith is not described as an intellectual decision alone, but is exhibited through obedience. The book of Hebrews gives us the greatest amount of material as to what biblical faith is. It is “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Heb. 11:1) The author then highlights certain people who throughout the Bible displayed faith in God, and most of these through their actions of obedience (the smaller portion point to a faith without an action attached).

From these examples we can confidently claim that faith is a dynamic concept and not, as is popular in our theological paradigms, inactive. Moreover, faith is not, from Biblical examples, a purely psychological event; it is often equated with an act of obedience. As a result, acts of obedience are called faith, and faith is often determined through an action (although this is not always the case, it does not lessen the strength of the argument).


Jesus: Lord or Savior?
Much of the issue within this debate stems from this question: When is Jesus Lord, and when is he Savior in the creation of a believer? Those who hold that Jesus must be Savior first and then Lord after salvation, hold this principle because requiring a convert to “give his life to Jesus,” thus making him Lord, is seen as something other than faith, it is a work; and therefore from a NT perspective it is unbiblical.

In the NT Jesus is referred to by many titles or names including: Master, King of Kings, I Am, Servant, Son of Man, Son of God, Messiah, Teacher, Prophet, Lord, Lamb of God, and Savior. These titles sometimes refer to actual specific functions that Jesus is performing at a given moment, i.e. Teacher; his person or his attributes, i.e. I Am; or both, i.e. Lamb of God. The titles Savior and Lord are both titles that describe a function and attribute of who Jesus is (see Acts 2:21and 5:31b).
In the early church, including the writings of Paul, these two terms seemed fairly interchangeable. Apparently, as is common today, there was not a separation of the two titles for Jesus. He was not viewed as Savior or Lord; he is Lord Savior or Savior Lord.

However, out of the two titles in consideration here, Lord was the title and position the early church sought to establish in the lives of its earliest converts. Consider these verses: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven…” (Matthew 7:21) “For Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord of the dead and the living.” (Romans 14:9) “…so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend…and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” (Phil. 2:10- 11) Lord was the title used by the early church because it best defined Jesus’ high-ranking status in the cosmos. Marshall says this concerning the title Lord, “If Jesus was now Lord, it followed that the task of the early church was to lead people to recognize the status of Jesus. New converts became members of the church by acknowledging Jesus as Lord.” (Pg. 589) This agrees with, Romans 10:9, “If you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Marshall again adds, ”Lord primarily expresses the exalted position of Jesus and this rule over the universe and especially over believers who accept his Lordship. It is thus especially used when the responsibility of Christians to obey Jesus is being expressed.” (Pg. 590) Why didn’t Paul say, “confess Jesus as Savior?” Because there can be but one Lord in a believer’s heart, God alone sits upon the throne of his Temple.

Confession of Jesus as Lord was the indicating feature in a Christian’s life. Therefore, submitting to the Lordship of Jesus simultaneously or as a pre-condition to salvation was normative within the early church; calling Jesus Savior and then deciding whether to make him Lord is a practice not advocated in Scripture, it is a modern distortion. A.W. Tozer makes this point, “We have no basis to believe we can come casually to the Lord Jesus and say, ‘I understand that you are the Savior so I am going to believe and be saved and then I am going to turn away and think about the other matters of lordship, allegiance, and obedience at some other time.’ I warn you, you will not get help from Him in that way for the Lord will not save those whom he cannot command. He will not divide His offices. You cannot believe in a half Christ.” (Pp. 14-16, 18-20) Regrettably, it seems in America we have advocated a half-Christ; 75% of Americans claim to be Christian, by what standard?


Conclusion
In the early church to be a Christian was to be a disciple of Christ. (Matt. 28:19). Jesus seems to emphasize this point with his various parables, which speak to conditions of a relationship with him; and this is his invitation to a relationship with him: in order to live you must die. Therefore, Jesus makes it clear that commitment is a condition of salvation.

Biblically, faith is a dynamic concept. Unfortunately, our enlightenment worldview renders this concept as fixed; this leads to the misunderstanding of salvation being a one-time event. As we follow certain characters in the bible we see that faith is an ongoing process. Likewise, justification through faith is also a repeated event in the life of the believer; thus, faith is about a relationship with God, through Jesus.

Belief infers obedience. Jesus puts the condition of obedience upon his followers. It is not enough to call him “Lord;” this conviction must be actualized within the life of the individual who believes. It is impossible to separate belief from action, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” (John 14:15) Too, although not speaking about salvation James says, "Faith without works is dead." (James 2:26) Your actions indicate what you believe, as it is impossible to do anything (outside of external force), which is contrary to what you believe.

The title most commonly used by the early church as a designation of the person and position of Jesus within the believer’s life is Lord (Read Acts!). This is in agreement with Jesus’ emphasis on discipleship, since those who follow him must recognize him as Lord. Too, the NT writers had access to other words with which to define Jesus, but use the title Lord in pivotal verses such as: Acts 2: 21; 25; 34; 36; Romans 10:9, etc. Paul uses no other word for Jesus during his conversion. Paul says, “Who are you Lord?” (Acts 9:5) “What shall I do, Lord.” (Ibid. 22:10a) “The Lord said to me” (Ibid. 22:10b) He was then baptized (via. Matt. 28:19) calling on his name. (Ibid. 22:16) Why would Paul assume lordship was optional for others is if wasn’t’ for him? Clearly Paul recognized Jesus’ position in his life and consequently says we must call Jesus Lord. Moreover, to think Paul would say, “confess Jesus as Lord,” and imagine he intended believers to acknowledge Jesus’ Lordship of the cosmos, but not their life is a ridiculous idea. To suggest that Paul asserts Lordship as optional is a clear example of eisegesis.

Discipleship is not works! It is only by grace that we are saved and this by (dynamic) faith. However, our understanding of discipleship must recognize discipleship as God’s call to grace. Obedience is not works, “Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'" (Luke 17:9-11) Discipleship is our duty to God. We are only doing what is expected of us, nothing extra.

Savior first theology is dangerously close to idolatry. In allowing people to consider whether or not God is LORD, and this after salvation, makes self-lordship optional. God is very clear there is but one LORD; as it is, this theology allows a person to choose if they will allow God to be LORD or not. And why would you make him LORD, seeing as your salvation is secure; you can escape hell and love the world too. Advocating anything but complete Lordship is idolatry; you cannot serve two masters, you must love the one and hate the other. The Bible is painfully clear at this point.

“Yet the outcome of the Reformation was the victory, not of Luther’s perception of grace in all its purity and costliness, but of the vigilant religious instinct of man for the place where grace is to obtained at the cheapest price.” (Bonhoeffer, Pg. 49) We have been unfaithful to Luther’s revelation; thus, turning justification of the sinner to mean justification of the sin. Salvation isn’t a doctrine; it’s a person.


Which sounds more like Jesus? Do you want to go to heaven? Then please mark the box on the welcome card; or, “Follow me.”


Boice, James Montgomery, Christ’s Call to Discipleship, Moody, Chicago, 1986.
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich, The Cost of Discipleship, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1959.
Carson, D.A., The Gospel According to John, Erdmann’s, Michigan, 1991.
Hendrickson, William, New Testament Commentary, The Gospel of Luke, Baker,
Michigan 1978.
Marshall, New Bible Dictionary, 2nd Ed, Intervarsity Press, Illinois, 1962.
Newbigin, Leslie, Foolishness to the Greeks, Erdmann’s, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1986.
Tozer, A.W., I Call It Heresy, Christian Publications, Camp Hill, 1974.

Here are some pic's from the college camping trip. It rained on us through the night, but as you can see the morning was incredible. We had the chance to baptize some of our friends in Shasta Lake.

Holy City for sale

Holy City is up for grabs.
The 150-acre ghost town tucked into the San Jose side of the Santa Cruz Mountains is for sale, RE/MAX realtor Jim E. Miller said Tuesday afternoon. The asking price is $11 million, Miller said.
Gone are the giant Santa Claus statues festooned with weird religious slogans, the peepshow booths and the radio station broadcasting William E. “Father” Riker’s racist diatribes. The last of the commune’s disciples died or apparently moved away years ago.
Tom Stanton — reportedly the only full-time resident and self-appointed mayor — has run a glass blowing business in the town’s old post office for 30 years. The property is owned by three retired contractors who purchased it more than 40 years ago to develop the land into a recreational park, but never did, Miller said.
Holy City was created in 1919 by Riker, an ex-waiter who billed himself as the “Chief Comforter” and “Wisest Man on Earth.”
At its height in the mid-1920s, Riker’s commune had about 300 disciples and Holy City boasted a dance hall, an observatory, a bottling plant, a radio station and a zoo on the 180-acre property. Visitors were greeted by music blaring from red loudspeakers while visitors lined up for the 50 peepshow booths, which had titles such as “The Legs of Queen Elizabeth.”
Many of the Holy City buildings were reduced to rubble by fires in the mid-1950s and Riker lost control of his commune. The town disincorporated in 1959 and, in 1960, a San Jose company purchased it with plans to develop the land.

In the course of writing several papers I need to define what the gospel is. Not a new subject, but always a gear turner, I would like to read your (graceful!) comments about my proposed: The Gospel in a nutshell. As always, sarcasm is greatly appreciated.

The gospel: the redemptive act of God for all mankind, achieved by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. This redemption is attained by belief in Jesus as the messiah; and is demonstrated through obedience to him.*

*By him I mean the head-Christ, & the body-the Church.
I understand belief and obedience as inseparable.

So when did evangelicals...



































become the enemy?

Can you have orthodoxy without orthopraxy?

Another day at UC Santa Cruz.


"The regents — making an official campus visit for only the second time in 40 years — were forced to cancel the remainder of their campus tour when roughly 150 students protesting a host of issues, from cuts in humanities programs to UC nuclear research, blocked the doors to a campus lecture hall aoround 4:30 p.m."

"The activists demanded the release of three protesters who had been detained inside by university police."

"In a scuffle at the hall's entrance, police pulled the three into the building and used pepper spray and batons to subdue the crowd outside. The three — two students and an alumna — were arrested; one will face three felony counts of battery against a police officer, according to campus spokeswoman Liz Irwin, while the others face misdemeanor charges of disrupting a public meeting. One officer was injured, though the extent of his injuries were unknown."


"With clusters of students blocking every exit to the new Humanities/Social Sciences lecture hall, administrators in the building used cell phones to talk to officials who were negotiating with student leaders outside to clear the way for the regents to leave."

"This isn't the best situation — people are essentially being held hostage inside," student leader Samantha Aranke told fellow students."

Don't trip, we'll be down there in two months. I've put in 5 different applications at the University. I want to meet these folks and put that passion to it's intended purpose: Jesus; and his church.

Pastor Ambushed by Hindu Mob - VOM sources/persecution.com
Pastor Bhadikar Barshi was on his way to conduct a regular service at his house in the Barshi area of Solapur district in Maharashtra state on July 5th, when two youths approached him. Asking him to join them in a prayer for a friend who had been suffering from a sickness over the past 15 years, the young men walked alongside the pastor for some time until a Hindu mob ambushed him. He was violently struck with wooden clubs all over his body and received a deep gash on his right eye. After hospital treatment, including stitches on his forehead, he was released and remains faithful to his ministry. Give thanks to God, asking Him to strengthen this faithful servant who is following his Master. Luke 9:23, 24

The preacher delivered a compelling message, but what made me send in my $1000 was this statement at the bottom of the screen:
"Send in your $1000.00 seed gift and recieve your free copy of The Secrets of the Richest Man who ever Walked the Earth."
Evidently for $1000 I can learn his secret.

"Discipleship means adherence to Christ, and, because Christ is the object of that adherence, it must take the form of discipleship. An abstract Christology, a doctrinal system, a general religious knowledge on the subject of grace or on the forgiveness of sins, renders discipleship excessive, and in fact they positively exclude any idea of discipleship whatever, and are essentially opposed to the whole conception of following Christ. With an abstract idea it is possible to enter into a relation of formal knowledge, to become enthusiastic about it, and perhaps even to put it into practice; but it can never be followed in personal obedience. Christianity without the living Christ is inevitably Christianity without discipleship, and Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ." (The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer pg. 59)

Interesting stuff.


By Clark H. Pinnock, Professor of Theology at McMaster Divinity College.
GOD AND THE OPEN VIEW
In contrast to other, more abstract approaches to theism, the open view of God is a relational model of understanding. In conventional theism, God is seen as an all-controlling and unchangeable Being who determines directly or indirectly all things that happen. He exists out of time and is unaffected by anything. He knows all things in advance and sovereignly ordains what he knows. The open view, on the other hand, sees God as a relational and triune God who exists as a community (Father, Son, and Spirit) and seeks loving relationships with creatures. In order for such relationships to be possible, God imparts genuine (or “libertarian”) freedom to human beings. This freedom allows them the possibility of loving God or of acting in ways unconstrained by God’s will. God chooses to achieve his goals by means of collaboration with humans rather than by predetermination.

















Second, I have noticed that the debate over the openness of God has opened up an area in which evangelical thinking needs to experience reform. Surely the glory of God does not consist of his exercising total control over the world but of his self-giving and self-sacrificing love. This is not just a partisan interpretation. According to the gospel, God has the properties of a lover, not the properties of a tyrant. While God is certainly the “most” and the “best,” there are different kinds of goodness and greatness. It is a divine perfection, not only to rule, but to be vulnerable for love’s sake. God is not an impassible Buddha, untouched by the troubles of mortal existence. We do not endorse the Aristotelian ideal of a self-sufficient God, who devotes his time to contemplating his own existence. We worship a God who became one of us and shares in our condition. 




We just got back from our camping trip to Santa Cruz. God did some wonderful things in all of us and we are all expectant of the new season ahead. Each day was filled with good God stuff and each night was filled with raccoons! (at one point there were 14 of them in the tree above my tent).

It is sobering to think we will be down there in 3 1/2 months. We are all challenged by this. However, where God guides, he also provides, so our task is to rely on God.

I am about to take my last class and am pressed to accomplish what I need to, but once again God reminded me through his word that he is the source of all my accomplishments.

Isaiah 22:8-11
Judah's defenses have been stripped away. You run to the armory for your weapons. You inspect the walls of Jerusalem to see what needs to be repaired. You store up water in the lower pool. You check the houses and tear some down to get stone to fix the walls. Between the city walls, you build a reservoir for water from the old pool. But all your feverish plans are to no avail because you never ask God for help. He is the one who planned this long ago.

1Peter 2:4
Come to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God's temple. He was rejected by the people, but he is precious to God who chose him.

Let us: ask God for help at all times being dependent on his ability to both test and rescue us from any situation; and remember to come to Christ (daily), since he is both living (not dead), and the cornerstone (the most important piece) of God's temple (you, me, us).

SANTA CRUZ — The number of killings is climbing.

It's not a return to the "Murder Capital of the World" era, when two serial killers ran loose in the county, but with 13 homicides already this year, 2006 could become one of the deadliest since the mid-1980s.

"We're on pace to have a very busy year," sheriff's Lt. Phil Wowak said.

The Sheriff's Office has investigated six homicides in unincorporated county areas since the Jan. 28 stabbing death of 23-year-old Chris Carr at a La Selva Beach house party. Santa Cruz police have arrested four people suspected in three homicides in the past month, and Watsonville police have recorded four homicides so far this year. No killings have been reported in Capitola or Scotts Valley.

According to Relevant Magazine
Vineyard City Church is a relevant church. I had my concerns, but my worries are behind me; I can now start inviting my friends to Vineyard knowing they will find relevancy here. They listed pastor Steve Schenk as the young adult pastor (this is important to know in the world of relevancy), so rest assured Buffalo is in for a real relevant revelation revealed rightly by Steven.


Something else struck me as I found out our church is relevant:





I guess pastor Mike is cool after all.
Who knew?

Well I've been back from India for over a week and have adjusted well.

Our trip to Chennai was incredible. Our group worked with a local Vineyard church there that has their hands in many things: sunday services, small groups, church planting, a weekly rock-&-roll concert (we played there--Sweet Home Alabama!), a school for fisherman's children, a shirt making group of widows, feeding of widows, etc. Basically, we helped them do what they normally did within any given week. Most of the team that went is going to Santa Cruz in January, so it was also a great team building time for us.

I am in the middle of 5 graduate classes in 5 months, so my blog is one of the low men on my totem pole. I was reading another guys blog who is in the middle of defining (for his life?) the apostolic five-fold ministry. Needless to say, I won't be unpacking subjects like that (by choice) anytime soon.

I'll have pictures up from our trip before 2007. Promise.

I haven't been a good blogger lately.





















These asian gals make it look easy.












Sadly, I am still learning how to spin many plates at one time. I have been praying, so the spiritual gift of platespinning is about to be released into my life. Please pray for an increased anointing of plate spinning in my life.


We leave for India today. We are staying there for two weeks and will be working with Acts of Mercy, which is a relief organization who has been working with Tsunami restoration. Not totally sure what we will be doing. We'll probably do similiar things to what we do here; however, there will be more Indian folks than we normally see in Redding.

*This is not a knock on people trying to spend money alone on the ills of the world; although I believe Jesus is the answer. Nor is it a knock on the people involved, although one of them said it, and they might all believe it. I only wanted to highlight the "Being good gets me to Heaven" thinking to the billionth degree.













Buffet's contribution of about $1.5 billion a year to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will be used to seek cures for the world’s worst diseases and improve American education, Bill Gates said Monday.

“There is no reason we can’t cure the top 20 diseases,” Gates said while appearing with Buffett during a donation ceremony at the New York Public Library.

The Buffett and Gates families, as well as onlookers, were beaming as the so-called Oracle of Omaha officially made his benevolence a reality.

“There is more than one way to get to heaven, but this is a great way,” said Buffett. He presented the biggest gift to Gates, and $1 billion donations to his own foundation and the foundations run by each of his three children.

Today is the first day of our (the Santa Cruz church plant +1) Daniel fast.
















We are taking the next 21 days to fast: meat, sugar, processed foods, caffeine (ouch), nicotine, alcohol, fried foods, and that’s right, burritos too!













We have also set up numerous prayer times for the fast, so that we stay focused on Him and not on what we are not eating: This Friday we will have a 24hr prayer time in which each of us (9 people) take shifts throughout the night praying (I drew 1am to 3:40am!?!!?); Sunday nights we will worship and pray together; each person will have a nation to pray for; and each member will share a prayer request for the group to pray for during the fast.
Too, we are praying for our trip to India. We go July 14-28 and are eager to see what God would have us do in this nation, both long and short-term. India has the greatest amount of unreached people groups (those who have never heard of Jesus!) on earth. God our Santa Cruz church wants to be a part of what you’re doing. What would you have us do?








We would love for you to join us; just a small buy-in cost: your life.

This has been an interesting bit of posting. Join in.
I dedicate this post to my friends.

Here are two churches that do a great job at raising disciples and releasing them to make more disciples. As a matter of fact, both of these churches have planted over 30 other churches out of their communities to various parts of the world (including Iraq & Redding!). What do they do that's so special: cool Sunday services, awesome music, relevant messages, fat salaries, great locations, best-selling books? Maybe. The one thing both of these churches focus on and measure success by: Christ-centered discipleship relationships through small groups.

Waco Texas: http://antiochcc.ccbchurch.com/app/w_page.php?id=1&type=section
Santa Cruz California: http://ctw.coastlands.org/

I just got done with a great class at Simpson U in World Religions. My prof. said some great things and one comment was really great. She said, "we've replaced discipleship with education." By education she meant a western school style approach to information transfer: teacher speaking to students.














With all of the "conversations" happening I still think this is one of, if not the main issue. How do we communicate the gospel vs. how did Jesus communicate the gospel? "Come follow me" vs. "Welcome to our 'What is a Christian' class;" or "Imitate me as I imitate Christ," vs. "Come, listen to my sermon on...."











Yeah, you got a degree in pastoral studies, and that's great, but who have you: pastored, loved, discipled, prayed for, admonished, reached out to, argued with, or released into ministry? Yeah, you preach to 1000 people each Sunday, but where are your (They would still do what they do without you paying them) Timothy’s?

Well, we are officially in fund-raising mode for our India trip. God was tugging on my heart about India, and after sharing my thoughts with others, God spoke through many “coincidences” and we are going to India hoping to find our next clue as to what God wants us to do.

Although the typical way of raising funds for missions is: bake, garage, yard sales, or support letters, I have always felt pressed to get out and work (any jobs that come up) for our support. “For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow. For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: ‘If a man will not work, he shall not eat.’” (2 Thess. 3:7-10). I don’t think inviting others to support us in our missionary endeavors is wrong; in fact, many people want to be a part of what God is doing in our lives and they might not be able to physically go, but can financially support us. However, we, like Paul, should contribute as much as we can so as not to be “a burden to any of you.”

So, last week we (Laben, Paul, and I) painted a two-story house for a woman in the church. We did a good job and did it for about half price, so she was also blessed. I had a great time hanging out with the guys “modeling” for them what (in part) Paul modeled to the churches he fathered: no spiritual bums please. “Or is it only I and Barnabas who must work for a living?” “In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel. But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this in the hope that you will do such things for me. I would rather die than have anyone deprive me of this boast.” (1 Cor.6; 14-15) “I would rather die…” Why, when he had all the rights in the world to be paid by the churches he started did he choose to “not have anyone deprive (him) of this boast(?)” WDPD