Thoughts on Two Kingdom Theology vs. Neo-Kuyperism

I have been reading a biography of Abraham Kuyper and digging deeper into his theology and philosophy. The more I read the more I like what he has to say and what he did.

Recently, Kevin DeYoung and some of the guys at the White Horse Inn debated the appeal of the Two Kingdom world view versus the Neo-Kuperian world view. Both views have value and biblical merit. See Justin Taylor's discussion for a good exchange among commentators.

I can't promise to add anything to their discussion. But, with the hope of helping us think a little more through these important ideas....my thoughts.

While I like aspects of the Two Kingdom approach I believe it has some serious drawbacks. Here are some thoughts on the advantages and drawbacks of the Two Kingdom view:

Advantages:

1. It is a good understanding in wrestling with the reality that the elect are also exiles living in a world largely opposed to the reign of God.
   
2. It helps protect the church from forgetting its chief priority of proclaiming Christ and displaying the fruit of the gospel first and foremost.
   
3. It allows for participation in the realm of the world, where we often see the work of common grace that is distinct from true kingdom work (it lacks true acknowledgment of Christ as King ie. good government, friendly neighbors, public charities etc.).
   
4. It keeps a healthy tension between the already and the not yet in our eschatology.
   

Drawbacks:

1. It can lend itself to a neo-Gnosticism where our spirituality can be disconnected with the nitty-gritty of life lived in a body that dwells in a world that has cultural, economic, social, civic and relational realities that are intimately related to the spiritual.
2. It can lend itself to an apathetic view of the world and the isolation of the Church from society. Christianity is a comprehensive worldview that is centered on Christ but finds application in every nook and cranny of life, both in a fallen world and in the future re-created world.
3. It can seem to excuse Christians and Christian leaders from thinking through the particulars of how a Christian is to live in the world because of the inherent difficulty in applying gospel truth to the complexities of life and culture. While there are inherent dangers with any church advocating how to shop or how to invest in stocks or which political party to support or what art forms to promote, this is no reason for separating the realm of the church and the world in this way. We do not wash our hands of the application of the reign of Christ to the nitty-gritty because the issues can become too complicated. We must think biblically about every arena of life. Certainly we must be humble and admit we are culturally biased in our applications, but this is no reason for neglect. "There is a lion in the streets" is the excuse of the sluggard. The reign of Christ extends to all things. We must humbly and diligently seek to apply His truth in all arenas of life even if it means coming up with some messy answers at times.
4. It seems where it has been embraced it has evidenced, to some degree, the negative effects of the previous three tendencies (ie. Lutheran & Mennonite vs. much of English, Dutch and American evangelicalism). Certainly Neo-Kuyperism has its drawbacks (a subject of a future post) but humble truthful comprehensive Gospel-centered activism, even with its misapplications and messiness seems to have a healthier legacy than the Two Kingdoms approach.

I am eager to think more through this more and hear your perspectives. What do you think?

Understanding God's Word

I have been using a tool my friend Alex Kirk told me about a ways back. It is called "bible arcing". It is a method for studying God's word by diagramming the flow of thought in a passage. I believe it is something John Piper uses having learned it from Dr. Fuller. It has been a huge help for me. Check out one of my arcs below. (I'm still learning.)



Go to http://www.biblearc.com/ for more info. Enjoy!

Collision

Justin Taylor at "Between Two Worlds" recently posted this preview of "Collision" (based on the book). This looks excellent! I would recommend you check it out and perhaps invite your friends.

COLLISION - 13 min VIMEO Exclusive Sneak Peak from Collision Movie on Vimeo.

Out of the Depths

Here is a "Drabble" from my friend, Nicole McLernon. I think you will find this touching and encouraging.

Out of the depths

“I’m sorry.” The doctor looks into my eyes then back down to the floor. “It’s cancer. Your daughter has lymphoma.”

My world reels.

“But you can treat it, can’t you?” My daughter, my 14-year-old princess? Cancer?

“I’m sorry,” he says again.

This is not happening. I am an oncology nurse. I administer chemotherapy; I hold the patient’s hand when they are too weak to even speak; I call the doctor when the patient does not respond; I am silent with the family after they’ve said their last goodbyes.

“It’s progressed too far.”

“How long?”

“2 months.”

I cannot even cry.

Oh Lord, I cry to You

I stumble out of the room. There is my daughter, sitting there. Her eyes lock with mine. I try desperately to fill my eyes with hope, try to give some strength even in my gaze.

I fail.

Her eyes question me. Oh, God. How am I supposed to answer that question? How am I supposed to deliver my daughter’s death sentence? Nothing in my life had prepared me for the rush of love I felt when she was born, when I first heard her cry, when she was placed in my arms for the first time, when her life began.

When I am tempted to despair

Now, nothing in my life has prepared me for this. For the rush of love I feel for her as I search for words that speak of the end, of the grave, of the long goodbye.

I must sit down.

I walk slowly, haltingly. I lower myself into the seat next to my precious little girl. Her eyes have not left my face.

I take her hand.

Silence.

Was it a minute? Ten seconds? An eternity?

She speaks.

“Mom?”

A deep sigh wells up from within me. I strangle the urge to let it out.

“Piper?” I must do this.

Though I might fail to trust Your promises

“Piper. The doctor said it’s too late. We didn’t catch the cancer in time.”

I am calm. Or perhaps I am dreaming and I shall wake up momentarily.

“What does that mean?”

“It means we…” Oh, God. “We only have a little time left.”

“How long?”

“He said two months.”

Am I really having this conversation?

Only now does she look away. But just because she has flung herself into my arms. I wait for tears to start. For her heart-wrenching sobs that will surely shatter mine.

Here they come.

I stroke her hair, silently. There is nothing to say.

You never fail to hear my prayer

We start radiation, hoping not for a cure but just some comfort. Piper is the bravest of us all. She endures. Still, I do not cry.

I hold her hand, like I’ve held so many patients’ hands before. But this time, I am the weary family member. This time, it is my heart breaking.

I bring in chocolate fudge swirl ice cream one day. Piper smiles at me, her eyes alight with joy. She takes a bite. Her face twists in displeasure and shock. The radiation has changed her taste buds so that she cannot even enjoy her favorite treat.

In every trial and loss

“Mom?” She tries to cover up her disappointment in a brave effort to encourage me. “Thanks for bringing it in.”

She looks so small, sitting there in that hospital bed, wearing that ridiculous gown. We’ve laughed about the gown. We call it her “simply telling us people interesting dragons” or “stupid” for short. Piper has always loved words. She’s always learning new ones, sprinkling her conversation with vocabulary that she’s picked up over the years. She gets that from her dad.

Her dad. My husband. The man is exhausted. I finally sent him home last night to get some sleep.

My hope is in the Cross

We bring Piper home when it is clear that there is nothing more to be done. She said she didn’t want to remember her last days being in the sterile hospital environment. Her words, not mine.

The clouds are rolling in as we pull up the driveway. They are dark. Angry. Threatening.

Piper walks up to her bedroom, possibly for the last time. Weariness shrouds her body. Her shoulders stoop forward and she stumbles on the stairs. She makes no protest when Jack picks her up and carries her.

I cannot follow. I turn and run out of the house.

Where Your compassions never fail

“Are you listening?” I scream to the heavens.

As if in reply, thunder booms in the distance.

“How dare you do this? Are you truly all-powerful? All-knowing? Good or kind? What kind of sadistic monster does this to a child?”

Lightening illuminates the sky, causing the hair on the back of my neck to stand up. The wind swirls around me, whipping my hair around my face, into my eyes and open mouth. Thunder crashes, as if it is trying to frighten me. I am not afraid. I am furious.

“Can you hear me?” I shout again, expecting no answer.

So more than watchmen for the morning

The rain is pouring now. The trees and clouds perform a wild dance in front of me, driven by a relentless wind. I consider going back inside but I am too angry.

“Do you have any idea what it’s like to watch your child suffer and die?” I can still be heard, despite the thunder.

There is a brilliant flash of lightening. The thunder rumbles, far in the distance and suddenly, the tempest is over.

The rain is falling gently now. It looks like heaven itself is crying.

Then I hear it, not with my ears, but in my heart.

I will wait for You, my God

“I killed my Son for you.”

That is all. I hear nothing else.

That is all I need to hear.

Tears begin to well up in my eyes. Tears that have not been shed since Piper was diagnosed. Healing tears for my parched soul.

He killed His Son. For me.

I turn, slowly, and walk back into the house. Up to the second floor. Into my daughter’s room.

She sleeps the exhausted sleep of the very ill. I sit down next to my beautiful, dying daughter and take her hand in mine, gently, softly.

“I love you, Piper.”

I wait.

© Nicole McLernon 2009


HT: Bob Kauflin

Islam and the Glory of God

Recent reading of the Oxford History of Islam by John L. Esposito has made me realize that Islam gets at least one thing right - the majesty of God. At the heart of Islam is the sense of "submission" to the will of the majestic One - God. "Muslim" means "submitted one" and "Islam" means "submission." While there are numerous areas where Islam veers from the truth significantly, this is one area where Christians should take heed. So often we focus on the nearness (immanence) of God to the neglect of His greatness (transcendence.) We mustn't neglect His immanence; but how often have we reduced Him to a sort of cosmic Santa Clause who will gladly let us climb up on His lap and give us a hug to make us feel better. Nothing against feeling better, nothing against God's tender mercy and love, but I think we can miss His incredible and unfathomable glory and greatness in our conceptions of His kindness and nearness .

It is not ultimately about us, it is about Him.

He alone is "I AM" - He is the source of all - He has created all things and He sustains all things, all for His glory. Yes, His mercy and love and tenderness is part of that glory but we mustn't domesticate God. His glory is unfathomable, His purposes are deeper than we can probe, His worth is endless. His holiness and wisdom are perfection itself. We can not know Him fully. Yet, He invites us to know and enjoy Him in His glory.

Let our lives be swallowed up, not in the pursuit of feeling good about ourselves but in the pursuit of glorying in that which is most worthy – God Himself. And let no Muslim outdo us in our sense and worship and submission to the transcendent One!

"Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?" "Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?" For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen." (Romans 11:33-36, ESV)