January 14, 2010

Theology in the NewsChrist-Centered CautionsHow do we be good, be disciplined, and be like Jesus?Collin Hansen posted 11/16/2009 09:29AM You've just heard a moving sermon about the life and teaching of Christ.The pastor concludes with three points: Be good. Be disciplined. Be likeJesus. You leave church with new resolve to love your neighbor, resisttemptation, and read your Bible every day. Then you mutter cursesagainst your neighbor who never mows his lawn. You give in totemptation. You snooze through your alarm and forget to read the Bible.Dejected, you return to church for another stirring exhortation to livelike Christ. You fail again. Your faith dwindles. The cycle repeats. Is it possible that a sermon about Christ might not be Christ-centered?That's the belief of pastors and scholars who advocate Christ-centeredbiblical interpretation and preaching. They teach that Christians sinwhen they fail to believe and apply the gospel of Christ's death andresurrection. Moral exhortations to live a more godly life fail todeliver moral transformation. Many people think Christ-centered preaching is essentially allegorical,the preferred method of many early church interpreters, who foundallusions to Christ even in the scarlet cord Rahab hung out her window(Josh. 2:18, 21). But it's really more akin to the law/gospeldistinction made by the Reformers. Law brings us under conviction ofsin, while gospel points us to the work of Christ and calls on us totrust.Consider the progression of the book of Romans, for example. Paulbegins with the problem of sin, then testifies to the work of Christ,and later works out the implications for living in the power of the HolySpirit. You'll find Christ-centered theology and application in the books andsermons of Tim Keller. For a brief primer, see the seminar he taughtwith Ed Clowney, "Preaching Christ in a Postmodern World," a populardownload at iTunesU. Or pick up The Prodigal God, where Keller treatsJesus' well-known Prodigal Son parable in surprising ways. Heunderstands Jesus to highlight the resentful older brother so that wewill long for a true one. "Think of the kind of brother we need," Keller writes. "We need one whodoes not just go to the next country to find us but who will come allthe way from heaven to earth. ... The point of the parable is thatforgiveness always involves a price-someone has to pay. There was no wayfor the younger brother to return to the family unless the older brotherbore the cost himself. Our true elder brother paid our debt, on thecross, in our place."
You'll also see Christ-centered biblical theology in works by GraemeGoldsworthy, who advocates canonical interpretation. The retiredAustralian scholar teaches that passages must be understood in light ofnot just their immediate context but the whole Bible. Since Christ isthe subject of Scripture, his person and work inform every passage.You'll even find this method in popular children's literature: The JesusStorybook Bible: Every Story Whispers His Name by Sally Lloyd-Jones andThe Big Picture Story Bible by David Helm. And you're much more likely to hear gospel-based sermons these daysthanks to one of the most popular preaching textbooks, Bryan Chapell'sChrist-Centered Preaching: Redeeming the Expository Sermon. The CovenantSeminary president laments pastors who undermine Scripture's work ofinforming and bolstering faith while trying to root their sermons in theBible. "Messages that strike at the heart of faith rather than support it oftenhave an identifying theme," Chapell writes. "They exhort believers to'be' something in order to be loved by God. Whether this equation isstated or implied, inadvertent or intentional, overt or subtle, theresult is the same: an undermining of biblical faith. Such damage isusually inflicted by preachers striving to be biblical and unaware ofthe harm they are causing because they see their ideas supported in thenarrow slice of Scripture they are expounding. They can point to thefive points for a better marriage in the text." Chapell identifies three common problems with sermon application:closing charges to "be like," "be good," and "be disciplined." Whilethis problem pops up in sermons about Jesus, Old Testament characterstories are also ripe for abuse. Clowney cites perhaps the most famousexample of sub-Christian moralizing from the Old Testament: "We dare notpreach David's encounter with Goliath as an example of bravery to beemulated in our conflicts with the 'giants' that assault us. Such anapproach trivializes the Old Testament revelation." Such a sermontrivializes the Old Testament because it does not understand David as a"type" pointing toward the brave Son of God who endured the Cross andconquered the giant of sin and death in his Resurrection. Though Christ-centered preaching may offer a necessary corrective tomoralism, some scholars wonder if momentum has swung too far in theopposite direction. In particular, theologians specializing in the OldTestament fear that Christ-centered preaching ignores the diversebiblical genres and applications. The Bible speaks to us in manydifferent ways, but we lose this variety if every sermon ends withChrist. Besides, even the New Testament leaders, including Christhimself, employ the Old Testament in different ways. Writing in thespring 2009 edition of the Scottish Bulletin of Evangelical Theology,Jason Hood offers such cautions with his article, "Christ-CenteredInterpretation Only? Moral Instruction from Scripture'sSelf-Interpretation as Caveat and Guide" (summarized here by PatrickSchreiner). Hood's major concern is that the positive push to interpret Christ inall the Scripture has led pastors and scholars to sometimes overlook andeven belittle moral instruction. In response, Hood cites several NewTestament examples to make the case for moral instruction. Writing inRomans 15:4, the apostle Paul says, "For whatever was written in formerdays was written for our instruction, that through endurance and throughthe encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." Similarly, hewrites in 1 Corinthians 10:6, "Now these things took place as examplesfor us, that we might not desire evil as they did." According to Hood,these passages show that Christians don't just see Jesus in the OldTestament. They also see themselves. Paul says the Old Testament offersbelievers encouragement and warning. Surveying the New Testament, Hood finds several examples of theexhortation some Christ-centered interpreters denigrate. Chastising theselfish Corinthians, Paul shows them Christ's way of self-sacrifice (1Cor. 2:2). The "hall of faith" in Hebrews 11:2-12:4 showcases OldTestament believers worthy of imitation. And who can forget Jesus'parable of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), which he concludes, "Goand do likewise." After amassing this evidence, Hood writes, "Claimsthat we only teach and preach Christ and that every sermon must befocused squarely on Christ are misguided." Hood acknowledges that a compelling apology for the Christ-centeredinterpretation comes from the road to Emmaus: "And beginning with Mosesand all the Prophets, [Jesus] interpreted to them in all the Scripturesthe things concerning himself" (Luke 24:27). Still, Hood wantsinterpreters to proceed with caution. Luke notes only that many passagestestify to Christ, not that every passage leads to Christ. Hood is right that not every passage is specifically about the person ofJesus Christ. But the Emmaus story, and Luke's subsequent story aboutJesus' appearance to the disciples (Luke 24:44-47), demonstrate thepower of understanding how all Scripture somehow testifies to Christ.Between his resurrection and ascension, Jesus taught his disciples toread the Old Testament in a new, Christ-centered way. Suddenly, theybegan to understand how Jesus fulfilled the prophecies, just as he hadpromised before his death. With guidance from the Holy Spirit, theyfinally grasped the gospel, why Jesus came, died, and rose from thedead. And when they saw the unexpected beauty of God's plan ofredemption, they were transformed. Moral exhortation reminds believersof their obligations. But only the gospel empowers them to be good, bedisciplined, and be like Christ. Collin Hansen is a CT editor at large and author of Young, Restless,Reformed: A Journalist's Journey with the New Calvinists. 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