realmealministries.org

This story seems to be on the back-burner, but we need to be praying for these courageous Christ-followers who are prisoners of the Taliban. They have been held for over a week now. Their pastor-leader has been executed and a second hostage has allegedly been murdered.

Here are some links: Jesus Creed and Silence in the Godblogosphere.

“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” Matt 16:24

Essential Traits for Missional Leadership: Lifelong Learning

This is the first essay in an occasional series that I will be offering over the next few months.

“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.”
John Wooden
Hall of Fame Basketball Coach

2 Timothy 4:13 When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.

What was Paul’s request from prison? A cloak”¦books”¦and the parchments. Even near the end of his life, Paul was committed to learning and growing.

As we seek to participate fully in God’s mission in our day and reach the world with the Gospel, we need to commit ourselves to a vigorous program of lifelong learning. In our fast-paced, rapidly changing world, we have little option.

What does a learning program look like for missional leaders today?

1) Here are my recommendations for a reading program:

Scripture
Missional leaders stay in the Scriptures. As a seminary professor, I can tell you that biblical illiteracy is not merely a problem among the rank and file Christ follower. Astonishingly, growing numbers of future leaders are arriving at seminary without in some cases a rudimentary knowledge of the Old and New Testaments. More than ever, our generation needs leaders who are profoundly shaped by the Scriptures and continue to drink deeply from this wellspring of life.

Biblical Studies and Theology
Smart leaders keep a major work in biblical studies or theology going at all times. Recent titles that all missional leaders ought to read are Christopher Wright’s The Mission of God (InterVarsity, 2006) and John Goldingay’s Old Testament Theology (the first two volumes are now available ““ both from InterVarsity, 2003 & 2006). I recommend works in biblical theologies because these sweeping studies help us to maintain the big picture in the Scriptures.

Missiology
As the Western world continues its shift from a Judeo-Christian worldview, it is vital for missional leaders to equip themselves to reach a neo-pagan world. This shift can be daunting. The temptation is to go for quick fixes by reading “How to” books written by current practitioners. Invest your time instead into theoreticians who empower you to think missionally and contextually. This way you will learn to adapt your language and strategy to the context in which you serve. Get started by reading studies by my colleague George Hunter (e.g., The Celtic Way of Evangelism), missional thinkers Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch (their Shaping of Things to Come is outstanding), or anything by Leslie Newbiggin.

Leadership
Leading well is not easy. Stay sharp by reading books that enhance your capacity for creativity, team building, vision casting, and leading others.

Book Reviews
Peruse book reviews to fill in gaps in your reading program. There are thousands of books published each year. If you have access to a library, you can read book reviews in the backs of periodicals in subject areas of interest. You may find it helpful to subscribe to a Book summary service. I think that the customer reviews on Amazon.com can be helpful. There are some good reviewers who offer well crafted summaries of essential content of books.

Magazines
I subscribe to several magazines each year. I like to dabble in areas of limited expertise to stretch my mind and to become conversant in new areas. This will expand the scope of your illustrations for teaching and preaching. It also serves to help you engage the new people that you meet by expanding the range of your conversation skills.

Fiction
I don’t read much fiction. This is to my detriment. When I read good fiction, I always grow in my understanding of the human condition and I gain insight into great writing. Read the classics. Allow Hemmingway, Steinbeck, Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Twain to serve as your mentors.

2) Think outside the box to craft a plan that works with your learning style. Read with a friend or colleague. Attend a seminar. Take a class (there are increasing numbers of good On Line programs available. Don’t neglect utilizing what leadership guru Zig Ziglar calls “Automobile University.”  Many outstanding resources are available in an audio format. Moreover as MP3 players become more affordable missional leaders now have access to hundreds of free Podcasts. This literally opens up the world of learning to those who take advantage.

Bottom line: Do what ever it takes to grow as a leader.

Let me end with a couple of extended quotations from 18th century evangelist and theologian John Wesley. Wesley rode over 250,000 miles on horseback and delivered more than 40,000 messages during his lifetime. Yet his missional fire was fueled by a commitment to lifelong learning. He expected the same of his team of itinerant preachers. Listen in to some of his advice:

MINUTES
OF
SEVERAL CONVERSATIONS
BETWEEN
THE REV. MR. WESLEY AND OTHERS;
FROM THE YEAR 1744, TO THE YEAR 1789.

Q. 32. But why are we not more knowing?

A. Because we are idle. We forget our very first rule, “Be diligent. Never
be unemployed a moment. Never be triflingly employed. Never while
away time; neither spend any more time at any place than is strictly
necessary.”

I fear there is altogether a fault in this matter, and that few of us are clear.
Which of you spends as many hours a day in God’s work as you did
formerly in man’s work? We talk, “” or read history, or what comes next
to hand. We must, absolutely must, cure this evil, or betray the cause of
God.

But how?

(1.) Read the most useful books, and that regularly and constantly.
Steadily spend all the morning in this employ, or, at least, five
hours in four-and-twenty.

“But I read only the Bible.” Then you ought to teach others to
read only the Bible, and, by parity of reason, to hear only the
Bible: But if so, you need preach no more. Just so said George
Bell. And what is the fruit? Why, now he neither reads the Bible,
nor anything else. This is rank enthusiasm. If you need no book
but the Bible, you are got above St. Paul. He wanted others too.
“Bring the books,” says he, “but especially the parchments,”
those wrote on parchment. “But I have no taste for reading.”
Contract a taste for it by use, or return to your trade.

John Wesley in a letter dated Aug 17 1760 wrote this to a preacher:

What has exceedingly hurt you in time past, nay, and I fear to this day, is want of reading. I scarce ever knew a preacher read so little. And perhaps by neglecting it you have lost the taste for it. Hence your talent in preaching does not increase. It is just the same as it was seven years ago. It is lively, but not deep; there is little variety; there is no compass of thought. Reading only can supply this, with meditation and daily prayer. You wrong yourself greatly by omitting this. You can never be a deep preacher without it any more than a thorough Christian. O begin! Fix some part of every day for private exercises. You may acquire the taste which you have not; what is tedious at first will afterwards be pleasant. Whether you like it or no, read and pray daily. It is for your life; there is no other way: else you will be a trifler all your days, and a pretty, superficial preacher. Do justice to your own soul; give it time and means to grow. Do not starve yourself any longer. Take up your cross, and be a Christian altogether. Then will all the children of God rejoice (not grieve) over you.

© 2007 Brian D. Russell

Here is the pentultimate draft of the NT section of my article “Signs and Wonders.”

The NT use assumes the OT tradition of signs and wonders as revelation of God, but it pushes the motif forward to focus primarily on the authorization of God’s agents in the New Era of salvation announced and initiated through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The book of Acts contains nine of the sixteen occurrences of “signs and wonders” in the NT. Acts draws upon the motif of “signs and wonders” from the OT. In Acts 2:19, Peter alludes to Exod 7:3 (see above) and Joel 3:20 to explain the manifestation of “signs and wonders” occurring in the presence of the gathered worshippers at Pentecost. Peter’s sermon deploys “signs and wonders” two additional times (2:22 and 2:43). The force of these usages is that God’s eschatological work of salvation has begun, first in Jesus of Nazareth and now in in Jesus’ apostles. Thus, “signs and wonders” attest to the authority and authenticity of the apostles as persons through whom God is unleashing a New Age of salvation (cf. 4:30, 5:12, 6:8, and 7:36). Moreover, in these contexts, there is a link between miraculous act and the proclamation of the Gospel. The “signs and wonders” are not left uninterpreted. In the remaining two occurrences within Acts, the authenticity and authorization of the Gentile mission is at stake. Acts 14:3 and 15:12 mark Paul and Barnabas as persons who performed “signs and wonders.” These actions serve to demonstrate the presence and blessing of God on their work in the Gentile world.

There are seven additional occurrences in the remainder of the NT. These may be examined in three groups. First, “signs and wonders” are used to authenticate persons as legitimate agents of God (Rom 15:19; 2 Cor 12:12, and Heb 2:4). Second, “signs and wonders” will be performed by counterfeit messiahs (Matt 24:24//Mark 13:22 and 2 Thes 2:9). In these contexts, the faithful will not be deceived because of their prior commitment to the truth of the Gospel. “Signs and wonders” can demonstrate a new work from God only if they can be linked to prior revelation (see above on Deut 13:1-2). Last, John 4:48 records Jesus saying, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” On the surface this text reads like a rebuke, but a closer reading suggests a more nuanced response by Jesus. Jesus acts to heal a man’s son (vv. 49-50). Jesus’ point seems to be this: those watching for “signs and wonders” may miss God’s work of salvation that Jesus has indeed come to do.

Any comments or corrections?

Here is my pentultimate draft of my article on “signs and wonders.” This is based on a study of the Hebrew phrase ‘otot umophetim.

The OT deployment of “signs and wonders” focuses broadly on the revelation of God. For the OT faith, God’s saving actions in delivering Israel from Egypt served as the locus for God’s self-revelation.

The initial occurrence of “signs and wonders” occurs in Exod 7:3 “But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart and I will multiply my signs and wonders in Egypt.” This verse is proleptic for the coming struggle between God and Pharaoh. The wider context demonstrates that the “signs and wonders” served a revelatory function. As a result of God’s unleashing of “signs and wonders” against Egypt, the “Egyptians will know that I am the LORD…” (Exod 7:5) Thus, God’s mighty actions in Egypt served to establish God’s reputation not only before Israel, but also among the nations. Knowledge of God was a primary goal and effect of the deliverance of God’s people from Egypt.

Deuteronomy contains the majority of occurrences in the OT. The phrase “signs and wonders” becomes part of a living tradition within Israel. Seven of the ten occurrences in Deuteronomy cite explicitly the Exodus tradition of God’s mighty actions. God’s actions in the Exodus however were not merely past historical events; they had profound implications for the present and future of Israel’s faith. Deuteronomy establishes four key categories for understanding “signs and wonders” around the rubric of revelation.

First, “signs and wonders” performed against Egypt served to make a claim about God’s uniqueness (Deut 4:34-35). Deut 4:35 draws out the expected response of Israel to God’s actions: “To you it was shown so that you would acknowledge that the LORD is God; there is no other besides him.” In other words, “signs and wonders” revealed enough of God to establish a relationship between Israel and God and to assert God’s uniqueness vis-à-vis the “gods.”

Second, “signs and wonders” of the Exodus are appealed to as the basis for Israel’s ongoing faithful obedience to God (Deut 6:22, 26:8, and 29:3 [Heb. 29:2]). The recitation of God’s mighty acts grounds Israel present life firmly on a foundation of grace. God acts—Israel responds with faithful obedience. Moreover, the “signs and wonders” of the Exodus secure Israel’s future (Deut 7:19). Israel need not fear encounters with future enemies because the same God who delivered the Exodus generation guarantees Israel’s future. Deuteronomy 28:46 describes the curses that result from disobedience to God’s Torah as “signs and wonders.” In the same way that the “signs and wonders” of the Exodus serve as the basis for faithful obedience, the curses stand as a witness to the dangers of disobedience.

Third, the language of “signs and wonders” is deployed in a context that gives a stern warning against apostasy initiated by a false prophet (Deut 13:1-2 [Heb. 13:2-3]) who performs a “sign or wonder.” It should be noted that these occurrences are in the singular, i.e., “a sign or wonder” . Even a “sign or wonder” cannot serve as the grounds for an exhortation to worship or follow other gods. God’s revelation with Israel was grounded in the “signs and wonders” of the Exodus. All further revelation must begin with God’s historical relationship with Israel. This is the beginning of a movement that makes subsequent claims of new revelation subservient to previously received revelation from God. See below discussion of this phenomenon in the NT data.

Last, “signs and wonders” are used to buttress the authority of Moses (Deut 34:11). Moses’ authority as preeminent prophet in Israel is authenticated by the “signs and wonders” that God worked through him in the events of the Exodus.

Subsequent OT occurrences of “signs and wonders” are mostly derivative of the Pentateuchal core surveyed above. In the Psalms, “signs and wonders” are used as a short-hand for recounting God’s salvation of Israel from Egypt (Ps 78:43, 105:27, and 135:9). God’s actions in the Exodus are the basis for Israel’s praise in these psalms. In his prayer of confession, Nehemiah praises God for the “signs and wonders” of the Exodus (Neh 9:10). On the basis of these acts, Nehemiah prays, “You made a name for yourself which remains to this day.” This again emphasizes the role of “signs and wonders” in the Exodus as a means of revelation to Israel and the nations about the character and person of God. Jeremiah 32:20-21 recount God’s “signs and wonders” against Egypt and which have continued “to this day.” God’s actions established God’s name in Israel and all humankind. This revelation stood as a witness against the apostasy of Israel. In Isaiah 8:18, Isaiah proclaims himself and his children to be “signs and wonders” from God in the midst of an apostate generation. Isaiah and his children are “signs and wonders” that announce a new work of God in the midst of Israel.

Only the occurrence in Isaiah 20:3 does not fit neatly into the rubric of the Pentateuch. Isaiah goes around Israel naked and barefoot as a “sign and wonder”. This physical sign served as a foretelling or portent of the ill fate that awaited Egypt and Cush at the hands of Assyria.

A teachable spirit is vital for anyone who desire to be shaped into the person whom God created him/her to be.

Here are some of my favorite quotations in the issue of teachability:

“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.” John Wooden, Hall of Fame Basketball Coach

“If I am through learning, I am through.”
John Wooden, Hall of Fame Basketball Coach

“A winner knows how much he still has to learn, even when he is considered an expert by others. A loser wants to be considered an expert by others, before he has learned enough to know how little he knows.”
–Sydney J. Harris, journalist

“People cannot be expected to learn one expertise and just apply it routinely in a job. Your expertise is in steadily renewing your knowledge base and extending it to new areas. That lifelong cycle of learning really is the foundation of the new information organization and economy.”
George Gilder

“As long as you’re green, you’re growing. As soon as you’re ripe, you start to rot.”
Ray Kroc, founder of McDonalds

“Value your listening and reading time at roughly ten times your talking time. This will assure you that you are on a course of continuous learning and self-improvement.”
Gerald McGinnis
President and CEO of Respironics, Inc.

“You can learn from anyone even your enemy.”
Ovid, classical poet

“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.”
John F. Kennedy

“It is better to learn late than never.”
Publilius Syrus
First Century BC, Maxim 864

“To be conscious that you are ignorant of the facts is a great step to knowledge.”
Benjamin Disraeli, 19th century English Prime Minister

“The most important thing about education is appetite.”
Winston Churchill

“In the Western tradition, we have focused on teaching as a skill and forgotten what Socrates knew: teaching is a gift, learning is a skill.”
Peter Drucker

“In a humble state, you learn better. I can’t find anything else very exciting about humility, but at least there’s that.”
John Dooner

“No man ever became great or good except through many and great mistakes.”
William E. Gladstone

“Feedback is the breakfast of champions.”
Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson

“We have an innate desire to endlessly learn, grow, and develop. We want to become more than what we already are. Once we yield to this inclination for continuous and never-ending improvement, we lead a life of endless accomplishments and satisfaction.”
Chuck Gallozzi

“Signs and Wonders” in the OT

Here is a survey of all occurrences of mophet and ‘ot when used within 3 verses of each other in the OT. Since we already looked at the occurrences in the Pentateuch, these are omitted. In reality, this word search shows that the words consistently are used together if they are used in the same context.

1) NRS Nehemiah 9:10 You performed signs and wonders against Pharaoh and all his servants and all the people of his land, for you knew that they acted insolently against our ancestors. You made a name for yourself, which remains to this day.

This verse occurs within Nehemiah’s prayer of confession to the Lord. “Signs and wonders” are clearly associated with God’s work in delivering God’s people from Egypt. Note that the result of the “signs and wonders” is in view here: God made a name for Himself through His saving actions. In other words, there is a missional angle to signs and wonders. They were a means by which God made himself known to the world.

2) NRS Psalm 78:43 when he displayed his signs in Egypt, and his miracles in the fields of Zoan.

Ps 78:42-54 describes God’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt. Signs and wonders are explicitly associated with the “plagues” (44-51), guidance through the wilderness (52), and passage by/through the sea (53).

3) NRS Psalm 105:27 They performed his signs among them, and miracles in the land of Ham.

This psalm is similar to Ps 78. Again the deeds surrounding the exodus are recounted. Signs and wonders seems to be a rubric or summary of God’s actions.

4) NRS Psalm 135:9 he sent signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants.

God is acclaimed for sending “signs and wonders” against Pharaoh and his servants.

5) NRS Isaiah 8:18 See, I and the children whom the LORD has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion.
In this text, Isaiah and his children serve as “signs and wonders” in Israel from the LORD.

6) NRS Isaiah 20:3 Then the LORD said, “Just as my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and a portent against Egypt and Ethiopia,

In Isaiah 20:3, we find Isaiah personally functioning as a “sign and wonder” for Israel. Following God’s command, Isaiah walked around Judah barefoot and naked. This serves as a “sign and wonder.” Here as in the previous Isaianic text, this suggest more of a “portent”, i.e., a symbol. Isaiah acts out a message from God. Just as he walks about naked and barefoot, so will the Assyrians carry away the Egyptian and Cushite captives.

7) NRS Jeremiah 32:20 You showed signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and to this day in Israel and among all humankind, and have made yourself a name that continues to this very day. 21 You brought your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and outstretched arm, and with great terror;

Jeremiah deploys “signs and wonders” in relationship to God’s work of salvation of Israel from Egypt. Note that in v. 20 Jeremiah writes of God, “…have made yourself a name that continues to this very day.” Notice that in vv. 22-23 the reality of the “signs and wonders” on behalf of Israel serves as a witness against Israel for turning away from Yhwh in later years and the impending judgment.

Conclusions:
Other than the two occurrences in Isaiah, all of these miscellaneous texts link “signs and wonders” to God’s actions in the Exodus. Once again in several texts this linkage is for a missional goal – revealing the LORD to the world.

© 2007 Brian D. Russell