Family and Christianity

Children are excellent candidates for disciple-making. They come into the world with no presuppositions and no cultural baggage, just them and their sinful tendencies to fight against. They quickly learn to trust their parents for knowledge about the world. When dad gives explanations for how things work, they’re true...because he said so. Because children have the tendency to believe and learn, the faith of a Christian is often compared to that of a child. In choosing disciples to invest in, why would it be foolish to chose the most teachable individuals who just so happen to spend all their time with you. 

Think about this: when a kid grows up in a home where the parents are bilingual, the kids will grow up knowing two languages like the back of their hand. In a similar way, when kids grow up in a Christian home, they grow up knowing and understanding the biblical faith, especially difficult aspects like God’s sovereignty and predestination. That doesn’t mean there won’t be plenty of kids who take up contention with Christianity, but I think we underestimate the testimonies that begin, ‘I grew up in a Christian home.’ Seeing things this way makes having a large family a much more reasonable and strategic decision, despite American arguments to the contrary.

Not only is the family one of the strongest areas of disciple-making, but it provides a strong core for robust Christianity. Strong families ground individual believers, while doing much to integrate and support new converts into the Christian community. Also, by adding into the mix grandparents, newborns, young adults, men, women, etc., the family unit keeps the Christian community from being a group of people just like you. 

Since not everyone in your family is believers, it’s always a center for evangelism. Whether it’s cousin Bob who ran away from the faith but still comes to the family gatherings at Christmas, or your brother Joe who doesn’t love Jesus but still loves and listens to you. It also allows you to invite unbelievers to your home where they can tangibly watch godly fellowship. This is often a more comfortable context for unbelievers than local Church gatherings. In talking about discipleship and evangelism, I don’t think the role of the family can be overstated. I certainly don’t think it should be overlooked.

Can Christians Chop Down Fruit Trees?

Are Christians allowed to have tattoos? Do Christians have to take a Sabbath? Is tithing mandatory for new covenant believers? Can Christians cut down fruit trees during a siege while the Jews under the Mosaic law couldn't? (cf Deut 20:19-20)

These questions come up all over the place (except the fruit tree one).

This blog post has one simple point: These questions, all of these questions, are the wrong questions. As all Will Smith lovers know, "You must ask the right question" (I-Robot).

"For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself'" (Gal 5:14). Christians have one command. One. Keep that command and fulfill the entire law! Rather than asking, "Is it allowed?" ask "Does it love?" Now that is the right question.

Theological Resolves Regarding Tradition

1. To never believe something the Church has never taught.

2. To ask both 'What does the Bible say about this issue?" AND "What has the Church traditionally said about this issue?"

3. To see authority in the Church as well as the Bible, albeit different in nature and degree.

4. To not hold a position on a theological issue without understanding the other major positions and properly located myself on the theological landmap.

5. To discern whether a theological issue is highly disputed or highly unified within the Church.

6. To establish the points of theology in which the Church is most unified (e.g. God as Trinity, Christ's Incarnation, Salvation by grace) as deserving the most conviction and the highest value.

7. To not defend a theological position before others without fairly describing the alternative positions and the support they have within the Tradition.

8. To be more teachable if the issue is more highly debated within orthodoxy.

9. To never criticize the Church from the outside. If I am part of the Church, I am necessarily engaged in a type of self-criticism, of reformation and not revolution. But if I am not part of the church, I have no business correcting it.

10. To go to church primarily to hear and receive from the shepherd God has placed over me, and not primarily to be a tester of their teaching.

11. To find humility in tradition, knowing that my views are neither new nor original.

12. To only embrace theology that leads to loving God and loving others.

13. To pray for wisdom and clarity when the Bible presents truths that appear to contradict true love.