Archive for November 5th, 2007
The emerging church and their pseudobasileia
***Apologies are in order for the following:
1) This was written as a part of a research paper, so it reads like a paper, not a blog post.
2) I may or may not respond to comments on this one, but feel free to leave them.
The ECM is largely driven by their understanding of the biblical concept of kingdom. They accuse evangelicals of ignoring or explaining away passage of Scripture which deal with the kingdom; so, to them, the message of Jesus and the Bible is not about personal salvation, but about the kingdom. Steve Chalke writes, “It [kingdom] advances with faith: when people believe it is true, it becomes true. And it advances with reconciling, forgiving love: when people love strangers and enemies, the kingdom gains ground.”[1] The kingdom, then, is established by the efforts of humans and is possible in this age. Actually, Chalke even takes it further, “…what has been known as impossible is now becoming actual.”[2] McLaren writes,
What if Jesus’ secret message reveals a secret plan? What if he didn’t come to start a new religion – but rather came to start a political, social, religious, artistic, economic, intellectual, and spiritual revolution that would give birth to a new world?”[3]
Chalke echoes, “…the core of Jesus’ life-transforming, though often deeply misunderstood, message is this: The Kingdom, the in-breaking shalom of God, is available now to everyone through me.”[4] The content of the above quotes demonstrates the heart of much of the ECM; unfortunately, this understanding of kingdom is missing only one key element, regeneration. Did Jesus come to start a revolution that would change the world or did he come to offer men life? Even if the first advent of Christ was about establishing a new world, would this new world not include individual salvation? Read the rest of this entry »
