Monthly Archives: October 2014

Book Reviews, Theology

Book Review: Kingdom Conspiracy: Returning to the Radical Mission of the Local Church, by Scot McKnight

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Kingdom ConspiracyScot Mcknight’s latest book, Kingdom Conspiracy: Returning to the Radical Mission of the Local Church, takes on contemporary understandings of the “kingdom of God” and offers his own. He initially sets up two straw men: 1) the social justice loving “Skinny Jeans” kingdom, full of millennial youngsters who (according to McKnight) simply focus on working toward the “common good,” and 2) the heavy thinking, not-so-pragmatic “Pleated Pants” kingdom, associated with scholarly theologians, typified (according to McKnight) by the kingdom interpretation of “God’s rule.” It is rightly pointed out that, at least in so far as they are generalized, these two exaggerations (they are exactly that) don’t learn from the other and have both, in fact, missed it altogether. McKnight offers his understanding of “kingdom” as a proper balance of “definition” and “doing” in its appropriate context. The problem here is that McKnight does not bridge the gap between the straw men, but, if we are to only consider these three perspectives, creates a third point on a triangle, in the center of which the actual kingdom of God may be found.

The most hammered and significant point McKnight makes concerning the kingdom of God is that it is the church, noting no distinctions between the two and arguing a great deal against those who have differing perspectives about how the may indeed be referring to two distinct things, the most common being that the church is a part of the kingdom but is not the kingdom. He argues that anything done without the sole purpose of trying to convert someone to Jesus, and consequently coming to that end, is not “kingdom work,” rather it is only “good work.” It is also to be understood that anything outside of corporate, local church work is not kingdom work—individuals cannot do kingdom work; kingdom work is only the work of the church (because they are the same thing). McKnight attempts to work out a number of nuances, but never satisfactorily equates “kingdom” and “church,” but does continuously remind the reader of the equation to further his larger work.

Admitting that a kingdom needs a king, people, land, and law, McKnight offers the following: Jesus = King (sufficiently noted in Scripture); church = people (by definition); wherever a Christian is standing = land (no support offered, only a claim and never mentioned again); law/Torah = the Sermon on the Mount (no support offered, only a claim, though used later in the book). However, even after acknowledging all of this, even if in passing, he keeps coming back to “kingdom = people = church,” arguing throughout the book from this perspective.

Ironically, McKnight, through arguing against other perspectives, provides much support for perspectives contrary to his own. On a number of occasions he contradicts his own conclusions, yet fails to see it, even to the point of writing that “the kingdom is the church, and the church is the kingdom—that they are the same even if they are not identical” (206). I preordered book hoping to use it for a course I’ll be teaching, but even though there is a lot of good stuff here (I really appreciate his work on varying assumptions of the kingdom that was to come by those before and during Jesus’ life, especially by not shying away from apocryphal texts to illuminate the culture of a particular time in history), there’s just too much inconsistency and unhelpful material to include it in the required reading. However, if I were emphasizing an extended exercise in critical reading and wanted to increase the level of debate, I think this would be a great book to critique.

McKnight shows his hand at the end of “Appendix 2: Kingdom Today,” wherein he takes on liberation theology and notes the real intent of writing the book: to oppose the “social gospel.” Perhaps a shorter and better book could (should) have first been written to this end, but it likely would not have garnered the attention a book about “Kingdom Conspiracy” would have for marketing and sales. I recommend reading at least chapter 13 of Ken Wytsma’s book Pursuing Justice: The Call to Live & Die for Bigger Things for a well-articulated argument and explanation of the controversy between “social justice” and “social gospel,” which may be helpful in better understanding the positions of fellow brothers and sisters in Christ as it concerns “good work” and “kingdom work.” There ought not be an equating of “kingdom” and “social justice,” but there can also be no separation. (My review of Ken’s book may be found here.)

As a whole, I cannot recommend this book to just anyone, though I would certainly use parts of it. Just as McKnight, in support of his own arguments, often cites N. T. Wright and Christopher J. H. Wright, both theological giants and neither of whom would in my estimation concur with McKnight’s conclusion, I would cite McKnight in support of my own while knowing full well he would not agree. We both believe in our Lord, Jesus Christ, bringing his love to others through pacifism and peacemaking, and desire others to want the same. May all our efforts be for the glory of God and the furthering of his kingdom, even if we disagree on its definition.

Book Reviews

Book Review: Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary (New and Enhanced Edition)

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Nelson's Illustrated Bible DictionaryNelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary (New and Enhanced Edition), edited by Ronald F. Youngblood, is Thomas Nelson’s thoroughly revised and updated edition to the original 1986 publication. This is a hefty tome (5 lbs.!) with all full-color pages and a font size that is typical of any normal reading material, which is larger than most other dictionary and encyclopedic texts. It is thorough, containing entries for virtually every person, place, thing, idea, and action explicitly stated in the Bible (the list of plants and animals alone are quite lengthy) regardless of the brevity of mention in Scripture. (Do you remember Arphaxad? No? Well, he’s in there.) It also includes important topics that are necessary to Bible study (e.g., literary genre, historical entries, etc.), a great number of charts and graphs, and the like. A brief “Study and Teaching Outline” and important theological themes is provided for each book of the Bible.

What I appreciate:
1) The sheer number of entries, references, and its 2) readability are quite wonderful, but it’s also 3) a beautiful, well put together volume.
4) There is a brief, charted history of Bible events and themes that comprises roughly twenty-five pages of the introduction.
5) For those new to more in depth Bible study, the text begins with a step-by-step approach to using this resource, one I believe many will find quite helpful so as to discourage simply finding an entry, reading it, and assuming that’s the end of the matter.

What I don’t appreciate as much:
1) When much interpretation is necessary, this dictionary leans heavily on a dispensational, premillennial perspective (if that means anything to the reader of this review), not to the utter exclusion of other perspectives (there is sometimes a sentence or phrase nodding to others, or the mere mention of there being other “more complex understandings” without noting them), but also not very helpful for those who are interested in serious inquiry. However, though they are often of considerable importance to those looking for a study reference, considering the number of these related entries to those not so related, they are miniscule in number and may not sway one in whether or not to pick up this resource. (I should include a positive note here, in that if particular words are not explicitly found in the Bible, they are likely not to have an entry in the text. Relevant to my complaint about the given perspectival leaning, there is surprisingly and encouragingly no entry for the dispensationalists’ definition of “Rapture”—there is simply no such entry.)
2) Though this is an “illustrated” dictionary, one may not be so impressed by the way in which it is so. Many (certainly not all) of the pictures found within seem to be haphazardly placed without consideration of context. It’s as if those in charge of design layout thought, “What if people read a dictionary like they would a book, from page to page, and we wanted them to serendipitously discover something new or just see a pretty picture about a place or thing that really has nothing to do with its origin? We have all these pictures available to us, so let’s use them!” A thorough revision of the use and placement of such “illustrations” would be helpful. A number of maps and charts fall into this category, as well.
3) Due to the aforementioned, a separate index of illustrations (pictures, maps, charts, etc.) would prove to be helpful so one may find them.

When considering acquisition of a study resource, one must consider the need and depth to which one wants to go. This is a single volume meant (I believe) for “just give me some answers and references” kind of study. This is not an exhaustive, nor exhausting, set that can get the non-scholar bogged down in weighty detail. For those looking for the former, the text at hand may suffice. For those looking for the latter, this is not that resource. (For the latter, I recommend looking into a larger set like the Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary.)

 

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Reviews, Theology

Book Review: Scripture and the Authority of God: How to Read the Bible Today, by N. T. Wright

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Scripture and the Authority of GodIn typical, well-articulated fashion, N. T. Wright, in this updated, 2013 edition of Scripture and the Authority of God: How to Read the Bible Today, tackles questions concerning the nature of Scripture (the Bible) and how it is authoritative, going well beyond the simplistic “it’s the Word of God” statements by addressing deeper application and important questions with much needed nuance. It is impossible to consistently and effectively take Scripture at “face value” without any method of interpretation—even the old adage “let Scripture interpret itself” will fail on a number of levels to withstand our interpretive interaction with passages we hope will help interpret others. So, if “because the Bible says so” isn’t very helpful when the Bible appears to disagree with itself in such superficial readings and the same “obvious” reference is equally used for opposing views, how do we use the text?

Wright fundamentally approaches the Bible as narrative, the story within which we find ourselves, that which has in a number of ways been handed down to us. We must then read everything within its larger context (e.g., verse, chapter, book, style, genre, history, culture, etc.) in order to understand what it meant and what it means. This requires diligent study and scholarship. To ignore this fact is to ignorantly and/or arrogantly dismiss generations of careful work through language translation alone—translation is inherently interpretive—not to mention the centuries (millennia!) of dialogue and debate that have lead to where one may find him/herself in one’s walk with God. (Again, statements like, “I only use the Bible,” and, “If the Bible says it, that settles it,” are not quite that simple, belittle the Godly work of others, and assume one has cornered the hermeneutical [interpretive] market.)

In this edition, Wright includes two case studies at the end of the book to demonstrate the argued biblical interpretation and how he views Scripture as being authoritative on the issues: Sabbath and Monogamy. These are quite helpful in working through some of the pragmatics of Wright’s work.

This only scratches the surface, and I highly recommend this read. For some, keeping a dictionary of theological terms and an encyclopedia of historical moments and movements within Christianity may be help, per Wright’s depth and style, but I suggest the reader allow this to be an opportunity to learn rather than become a barrier or distraction.

Book Reviews, Theology

Book Review: Pursuing Justice: The Call to Live & Die for Bigger Things, by Ken Wytsma

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Pursuing JusticePursuing Justice by Ken Wytsma, founder of The Justice Conference, is the introduction to pass along to others for understanding the need and instilling a desire and passion for justice as we live for God, assuming they haven’t already grasped it from the Bible. Although Wytsma does not take anyone through a specific form or topic of justice, he brings his reader face to face with it is, its necessity, and the door through which one walks to begin living it and looking for those specificities one may have wanted within the text itself. There are, however, plenty of injustices mentioned—some with accompanied anecdotes—but the reader is not necessarily provided a path by which to remedy the injustice; rather it is hoped that the reader will be given a heart for wanting to bring about justice and discover on one’s own ways in which that may come about.

If one who is already on fire for participating in the righteousness and justice of God and has the time to read another 300+ pages, I offer this book as a great resource for fueling that fire. However, for those questioning the phrase “social justice” and the inclusion of “justice” as part of the “gospel,” I offer Pursuing Justice as a “must read.” For those who confuse the phrases “social justice” and “social gospel” and don’t want to make it through the first 200 pages with a persistent bias against anything written on the subjects, I recommend first jumping to Chapter 13, “Justice in Society,” for a well-articulated argument and explanation of the controversy and how to play one’s part in ending the perpetuation of certain misunderstandings thereof.

I have two specific critiques, though minor, I hope others will consider when reading this book and others. First, Wytsma peppers the text with lists of perceived injustices, some of which I believe are mere preferences and desires for a happy life and have no direct connection to bringing about “justice”—I would put universal health care and education provided by a government in this box. Though injustices may certainly be found within the methods by which some of these things and those associated therewith are discussed and implemented (e.g., discrimination between race and gender), I do not think the lack of such things are indicative of injustice. I would have hoped for a bit more careful nuance to be made in the given examples of injustice, but found many of these remarks to be side comments that are not necessary to come away from the text with a changed perspective for the better. Second, I often caution others in how they use statistical information, encouraging a better understanding of how the information has been gathered and disseminated. All too often numbers are used to sensationalize and reinforce a point that may be good but not actually appropriate. I’m careful to not call this way of using statistical information in all circumstances “dishonest”—some simply do not know what they are doing—but I would have expected a bit more of an honest approach to some information used in such a large and well-thought-out work as Pursuing Justice.

Overall, I do not know how someone can walk away from a thorough reading of the book without a heart for pursuing social justice, but I say the same thing about the Bible! Blessings upon all who pursue the heart of God, a heart of love—a heart of justice!

 

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”