Building a Big Tent

 

        

            Recently I was in a conversation with someone when the inevitable happened. What is the inevitable you ask? In my experience, in discussing what it looks like to live in the messy middle, the inevitable is a question that sounds something like this: “Aren’t you afraid of compromising the truth?” The answer to this is a resounding YES!  Of course I care about the truth as it is declared by the creator I love, adore, and seek to serve.  

    

            I never want to believe anything or stand for any cause that goes against the truth of God. But what I have found in this discussion is that many want to hold to some truths while seemingly ignoring those truths that are less convenient or that aren't in line with their preconceived notions of what the truth is or should be. For instance, many of us love to point to commands about judgement of sin while ignoring the multitude of calls to offer grace and kindness to all we encounter. 

           As podcaster and author extraordinaire Dr. Preston Sprinkle states repeatedly “Clarity is kindness”.  So in that spirit I want to spend some time in the next few posts summarizing the key absolutes that drive my theological framework. Of course there is a great deal of nuance to each of these and honestly each deserves its own chapter in a book, but since my goal is to create a practical guide to help people love well rather than engage in deep theological dives, summaries will have to suffice.

            At our church, East Lake Community Church in Irmo, SC where I serve as a member of the executive leadership team we use the image of a Big Tent to describe our basic theological absolutes. One of the reasons I love this word picture is that it creates an image of a protected space where three non-negotiable tent poles hold up a covering to protect us from heresy or false teaching while creating inclusive community. It is in these three tent poles that you will find my first three personal theological absolutes.

Theological Absolute #1:  The Bible is the Word of God

I don’t believe that the Bible is merely a book filled with ancient stories, beautiful poems, or prophetical declarations. I believe that the Bible is the word of God, that was given to guide us to a better understanding of our creator so that we can serve Him along with humanity more fully. I believe that though the Bible wasn’t written directly to us in the 21st century it was written for us. Therefore all theology must rest on a foundation of what we find in the Bible. This is true even when it is messy or inconvenient.

Theological Absolute #2: Jesus is God

 The second foundational theological truth is that Jesus is God. In this statement we find affirmation of a triune God who exists as one God in three persons. In the moment of Jesus’ baptism we see that all three of these distinct persons exist in union with each other. 

“Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. But  John tried to stop him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you come to me?” Jesus answered him, “Allow it for now, because this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John allowed him to be baptized. When Jesus was baptized, he went up immediately from the water. The heavens suddenly opened for him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him.  And a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased.” - John 3:13-17 (CSB)

Jesus as God is essential to understanding the very nature of the theological absolutes we must consider non-negotiable. If God isn’t who He claims to be then absolute truth as we define it as Christians is not trustworthy or a true source of wisdom worthy of our commitment.  For a disciple of Christ it is essential that we recognize that though He was fully human He also possessed all the attributes of the divine. He did not attain Godhood but yet was always God while taking on the attributes of humanity in order to have shared experiences with His creation.

        Theological Absolute #3: Jesus is The Way to God

The final pole in our tent of Orthodoxy is that Jesus is the only way we can be in a fully right relationship with God, or as we at East Lake say Jesus is the Way to God. I believe that Jesus is the way the truth and life and it is only through His sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection that we can have peace with God and therefore experience eternal life.

Jesus himself made it clear that He is the exclusive path to God, affirming in John 14:6: "I  am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."  When He stated this He left no room for confusion or ambiguity: access to God the Father is available solely through Christ. He serves as the mediator between God and humanity (1 Timothy 2:5) and confirms that it is Grace and grace alone that leads to salvation. This leaves no room for any belief that anyone can earn salvation by works, religion, or alternative paths. 

I acknowledge that this is messy because it states that this loving & kind God has created a world where some will miss out on His greatest gift of all. I fully understand how this is hard to embrace and how it can cause many to see God as unjust, unkind, & unloving. But I have come to realize that the fact that choice is part of this equation actually points to God’s goodness as the divine creator who allows His creation to have a choice. He allows choice but ensures that the best possible outcome of eternity with Him is within our grasp regardless of who we are or what we have done. It is once again in the mess that we find hope for ALL.

        To repeat, these tent poles do not exist to create spaces of exclusion but rather a space of inclusion for ALL to wrestle with as they explore what it means to follow the teachings of a loving God who calls us to accept even those who may choose to reject Him.  

In my next post I will explore the tension that exists in living out a Christian Sexual ethic while creating spaces for those who disagree with how I believe it is defined by God.