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Andrew spaceOn life and ministry in Chinese churches! 7/2/2009 Topical Bible studies on the Affections 1. Topical studies...The difficulty about topical Bible studies is that you have lots of passages that you could look at. So how do you do it well? Do you try to look at all of them? do you only look at only one of them? In these studies what I try to do is firstly give people a quick overview of what a number of passages say. We would get people to turn up and read out different passages, and then process what they've read in a simple and quick way - perhaps by filling in the blank in a sentence that summarises that verse, or connecting that verse to the correct summary. This allows you to have breadth - but quickly. But there will also be a second part of the study where we slow down and look at one passage in some depth. This might be a longer passage, and we'd have several questions for us to explore its meaning and implications. This allows you to also have depth - informed by the breadth they have just seen. Of course, you have to choose the passages well to provide an adequate survey, and make a good choice about which passage will be good to stop and reflect on more. But I've found that this tends to work really well for topical studies.
2. ...on the affections This set of studies in particular was about godly affections of a Christian (see previous posts from Jan 25, 26, and Feb 04, 11, 13 and 28 last year). There were eight studies, addressing the following affections:
The idea was that often we focus on godly actions (eg. read your Bible, turn from sin, don't be greedy) - but we don't focus on the godly affections that underlie and give power and stamina to these actions (eg. thirsting for God's word, hating sin, longing for Christ's return). And yet when we turn to the Bible we find that the Bible is actually very much interested in our affections. A warning also that we found that as we went through the series, they were quite 'big' - in the sense that the kind of change in life and priorities and affections demand was massive. And to have eight in a row like that would have been somewhat overwhelming. And so we actually broke up the studies with two reflection / review studies so that people could stop and reflect on what they'd heard, and how they were going in the things they'd heard the previous few weeks. You can get this set of studies from here as a PDF file. Feel free to download and use them - though be aware that they are very much written for my way of leading studies! In hindsight I think I would have also added a final study about being born again (John 3). Because really, it's impossible for an unregenerate person to grow these affections inside of themselves. It actually takes a new birth for this to happen - and for some long-time regular churchgoers, this new birth may never have actually happened... [ PS: how do you write topical Bible studies? ] 6/25/2009 Narrative-criticial Bible studies on MarkA while back I wrote about narrative criticism - one of the things we learnt at Bible collge (see previous post).Intstead of merely reading biblical narratives as though they were plain matter-of-fact accounts, this is an approach to reading biblical narratives that tries to look out for what narrative techniques the author is employing, in order to see what he is trying to evoke in the reader. In our culture we're not used to sitting and listening to long stories. Instead we sit down to watch stories in the form of a 60 minute TV show or a 90 minute movie - and so we're used to picking up narrative cues in different ways. This means we have to work hard to discern the narrative techniques used in biblical narratives. How is he using irony? how is he describing this character? what themes keep cropping up in this section of the story? And what is the author trying to evoke in us, the reader, with these narrative techniques? These (and more) are the kinid of questions we have to ask. Well, last year for our Thursday night Bible study group I had a go writing Bible studies on Mark using a narrative-critical approach. I thought I'd share with you the results of my efforts. You can download them for free here as a PDF file! We took two weeks to read through the gospel of Mark, with me pausinig the reading from time to time to highlight things. Then we had seven studies, and one final wrapup studies - for a total of ten weeks. The wrapup study is probably a bit puzzling - basically we played a game where people had to guess the phrase. It might have been pictionary or charades - I can't remember. And the last few pages of the PDF file contains some information for leaders. Be aware that it's kind of written for my way of doing studies - so sometimes I would add things that weren't on the sheet. But feel free to download and use them! [ PS: more on Bible study writing soon... ] 6/22/2009 Transactional analysis - and conflict in Chinese cultureIt's said that harmony is greatly prized in Chinese culture - and conflict is avoided at all costs. For instance one of Confucius' sayings was that the only kind of conflict that should be allowed is the 'conflict' of an archery contest between two gentlemen. But even in that case, they way in which they 'compete' is to be civilised (see post on Confucianism here)! Master said, 'There is no contention between gentlemen. The nearest to it is, perhaps, archery. In archery they bow and make way for one another as they go up and on coming down they drink together. Even the way they contend is gentlemanly.' However, it's not actually entirely true that conflict is to be avoided at all costs. Conflict - and the disharmony that comes from it - is actually very much allowed, but only in certian circumstances... And this comes about because of the heirarchical nature of Chinese culture - another feature of Confucianism.The five li, or key relationships in Chinese society were: emperor-subject, father-son, husband-wife, older-younger, friend-friend. And apart from the last one, those li established strongly heirarchical relationships where the emperor ruled the subjects, the father ruled his sons, the husband his wife, and the older ruled the younger (see another post on Confucianism here). Of course, what is ideal is for the superior person to relate to the subordinate in a harmonious way - perhaps providing for them, instructing them, gently chiding them, as in the following diagram (borrowing from Transactional Analysis, see previous post).  Older: Oh, you did a good job there. That's so good. Next time make sure you get some sleep, okay? 
Older: How dare you do such a thing! However conflict that exists outside of this heirarchical structure is definitely not allowed. For instance, if the younger was to be rude and demanding, that is a serious breach of the heirarchical structure. This would cause more than raised eyebrows - it would attract a loss of lien for the younger, and the condemnation of the community. 
Younger: No, I've had it! I'm not listening to you any more! Here is another diagram that is even worse than the previous one. This would be even more shocking in Chinese culture - because not only is the younger speaking out against the older, the younger is also treating the older in the way a younger person would be treated in Chinese culture, thereby denying him the status and respect that an older person would normally expect to be shown! In the eyes of the community, it wouldn't have mattered what the older person did. The community would overlook that, and focus all its condemnation on the terrible rift in social fabric caused by the younger. 
Younger: How dare you do such a thing! This all goes to show how important social heirarchy is in Chinese culture! Hsien Chin Hu, in her article "The Chinese Concepts of 'Face'," recounts an incident when she happened to slap the face of a servant boy for dishonesty. She reflects that, "it is bad manners to hit anyone, for a young lady to administer physical punishment to a male servant is altogether beneath her dignity. For a long time I had to endure the reproaches of my family and in the eys of the servants I had definitely 'lost lien.' No one had sympathy for me, but the boy went unreprimaded by the others." It is true that harmony is a highly prized value in Chinese culture. But from this we can see that Chinese culture isn't about harmony per se, nor is it about absolute conflict avoidance. It's actually harmony within a particular heirarchical social order, which does in fact allow conflict - but only in a certain direction! [ PS: what do you think happens when the gospel comes to Chinese culture? ] 6/5/2009 Transactional Analysis - and Chinese culture 1. About Transactional AnalysisTransactional Analysis (or TA) is a way of mapping inter and intra-personal relationships developed by Eric Berne, in his book Games People Play. It essentially says that people operate out of one of three ego states: the parent, the adult, and the child (see diagram on the right). The Parent ego state, in its Nurturing mode, is empathic. It demonstrates, explains, and shares. It appreciates and sees what is right. It provides firm, not harsh structure and limits. Theologically sharp readers will already pick up the inherent positivism about humans, in describing 'natural children' in such positive terms. Underlying this is a humanistic philosophy that is obviously quite different from biblical Christianity (although it is quite similar to the assumptions of Chinese culture - read about it here). However putting that aside, Transactional Analysis is actually a helpful way of mapping out what happens when two people interact with one another - and particularly in identifying what makes a relationship dysfunctional... 2. Reciprocal transactions When people interact with each other, each person will do so out of one ego state or another. And the resulting transaction can be described as reciprocal /complementary - or not. More about the other sort later on, but here are some examples of reciprocal transactions. These can be considered healthy ways of relating. In this first example, these two individuals are both relating to each other out of their Adult ego states.  Alex: "I think we need to rethink our business stategy." (Adult) In this second example, the first person interacts playfully with the second, who responds in kind. They may be adults, but sometimes adults interact out of the Natural child ego state.  Alex (smiling): "Wouldn't it be funny if we put decaf in the coffee machine!" (Natural child) In this third example, the first person relates playfully with another person as a Natural child. This second person then responds (equally playfully) by taking on the role of the Nurturing parent.  Alex: "Oh no, I can't find that report! Panic! Panic!" (Natural child) This fourth example, however, is a little different. Here you have the two people taking on the roles of Not OK child and Critical parent - and those roles are certainly reciprocal. But if this represented the norm in a relationship between two adults, it would in fact be an unhealthy relationship!  Alex: (fearfully) "Um... can I please have this approved?" (Not OK child) 3. Crossed transactions There are other unhealthy ways of relating to one another. These are called crossed transactions - when there is a mismatch in the ego states chosen by the two individuals. In this next example, the first person engages with the second as an Adult - however the second person responds back as a Critical parent!  Alex: "I think we need to rethink our business stategy." (Adult) This next one has the first person engaging with the second as an Adult - but the second person responds back as the Not OK child!  Alex: "Can you make it to the team meeting in ten?" (Adult) In this final example, you have the first person taking on the role of Critical parent, while the second person responds as an Adult. This would probably infuriate the first person, because they expected the second person to fall into the Not OK child ego state - but he doesn't!  Alex: (barely contained rage) "Can you explain what you were thinking?" (Critical parent) 4. Transactional Analysis and the Chinese Transactional Analysis can be used to analyse relationship patterns in Chinese cultures. And interestingly, what you may often find is that people relate to each other out of ego states that reinforce Confucian social heirarchy... Leaders take on the parent ego state, and expect subordinates to relate to them from the child ego state. And in Confucianism this involves obedience and reverence (see article on Filial Piety). If things are going well, there will be peace - but peace that comes from a 'Nurturing parent' - 'Natural child' relationship. If however things are not going well, there will be conflict - and that conflict will manifest itself in terms of a 'Critical parent' - 'Not OK child' transaction! But when subordinates choose to transact out of the Adult ego state, it is seen as rude and disrespectful! 5. Transactions - and the gospel However when the gospel comes to the Chinese, it transforms everything - even the eyes with which we see one another in our Christian community. The predominant paradigm for Christian leadership is no longer authoritative parent - but humble slave! 42 Jesus called them together and said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." It's interesting that when the New Testament talks about the early church, we hear of masters and slaves being addressed ... as brothers. Of women no longer being invisible in the Christian community. Of Jew and Gentile relating to each other ... as equal partners of the one family. And this because the gospel dismantles the old structures of society in its wake, and creates a new community that is astoundingly egalitarian! And in particular what transforms the self-understanding of Christians is, on the one hand, having our eyes opened to see the depth, the extent, the horror of our own sinfulness. This creates a true humility in us, and takes away all self righteousness. And on the other hand it is seeing with greater clarity the glory of God in his righteous perfection. This takes our focus away from our own ego, our own position and rights - and instead centres it in its rightful place - the glory of God! [ PS: try mapping out some of your relationships - what do you discover? ] 5/31/2009 List of postings: Mar '09 to May '09 Here is an index of this quarter's postings (March '09 to May '09). Clicking on the titles will take you to that post.During this quarter the blog again clocked up over 10,000 page views - thanks everyone for reading! It's always encouraging to hear how these articles have informed ministry and stimulated reflection. This quarter featured a series of articles about the Chinese concept of 'face' (March 22, April 08 and 21, May 01, 15 and 30). These have taken a significant amount of time to process and write - which is why there have been longer gaps between posts. A number of people have already mentioned to me how helpful these have been in shedding light on Chinese culture. Also significant this quarter was a post on how to strengthen ourselves against temptation (March 13) - an area that I find most Christians have very poorly thought out answers! If you're looking for some short articles to stimulate discussion and thought for your ministry team, I recommend checking those out! March 2009 13 The affections - and fighting temptationApril 2009 08 Face in Chinese culture: what face revealsMay 2009 01 Face in Chinese culture: jealousy for God's face[ PS: during this period, which were your favourite posts? which ones did you feel strongly about? ] 5/30/2009 Face in Chinese culture: just us Chinese? We've looked at a lot of stuff about 'face' in Chinese culture. And not just Chinese - 'face' also plays a big role in Korean and Japanese societies as well!And we've seen that 'face' can be so important that it becomes an idol for us. We consider our own 'face' more important than God's. We are prepared to put the preservation of our 'face' over and above the good of other people and relationships. It overrides the concern for truth - and sometimes even of life itself! And such a preoccupation with 'face' can become ungodly. But face consciousness is not just an Asian thing... To a lesser extent, the concept of face also occurs in non-Asian cultures as well! In his article on face, David Ho notes the Western phenomenon of keeping up with the Joneses, gentlemen fighting gun duels they know they will lose, and codes of honour in elitist groups in society. How strange that such powerful factors can be at play in the Western world to make people spend unnecessarily, and even face certain death! Especially in the Western world, which is so much in the grip of individualism! And that's because cultures are never purely one thing or another... Yes, people in the East may be mostly driven by collectivism - but they aren't bees! there is still an element of individualism in the culture. And on the whole, people in the West can be characterised by individualism - but there is still a significant element of collectivisim still there. It may be unacknowledged, and even denied. Especially so since, in the West, the ideal person is the self-sufficient individual, and to admit to following others is to be less than a complete person! Yet there is an element of face consciousness in the behaviour of Western people. Consider:
This is not to say that Western cultures are face conscious in the same way, or to the same extent as Chinese cultures are. No! But there is a concern for what others think, and for one's own reputation and dignity, that cannot simply be explained by Western Individualism. It may have different names (such as pride, or common decency, or good manners) - but at its core is a kind of collectivism. It's not just a Chinese thing! In fact at the end of his article David Ho writes that, "Face is distinctively human ... While it is true that the conceptualisation of what constitutes face and the rules governing face behaviour vary considerably across cultures, the concern for face is invariant." Yes, face consciousness is a massively significant element in the workings of Chinese social groups - and instead of being ignored or protected, it must be brought under the Lordship of Christ, when Chinese people come to the gospel. But we musn't also lose sight of the fact that face consciousness also plays a role in the social behaviour of Westerners... [ PS: any last thoughts about face from you? ] 5/29/2009 GFC - not enough of a crisis? For some people, the Global Financial Crisis is exactly that - a crisis.It's a crisis for for economists who have seen the sudden collapse of financial systems and institutions they thought were very strong. And it's such a crisis that governments have been pumping billions of dollars into economies to prevent them from stalling. And it's also a crisis for retirees and those close to retirement who have suddenly seen their retirement savings disappear almost overnight, or their retirement plans placed on hold indefinitely. For these people, their whole lives - their worldview - will have changed dramatically. But for many others, it's hasn't really been very much of a crisis... Oh sure, some of us may have been fearful of losing our jobs, or have even lost jobs. It's a crisis on that level - but it's not actually been a very great crisis in the end. Because those of us who are still relatively young and marketable, we believe we still have a long time to build up our wealth - we are not really all that worried! You see, our world really hasn't changed very much. In reality, many of us will still trust in wealth! In a few years many of us will still be investing feverishly like we were before. In a few years many of us will still look eagerly for the stockmarket to again increase our wealth inexorably. Once we know our jobs are secure, many of us will get right back into looking for that next promotion to take us higher and further in our careers. In the end, the Global Financial Crisis will not have shaken our same basic trust in wealth. Yes, it will have been an inconvenience - it may have put our plans on hold for a few years, and it will definitely mean higher taxation for many years to come! But for most of us, the GFC won't really have taught us that wealth is unreliable... 10 Whoever loves money never has money enough; [ PS: how much has the GFC really affected the worldview of your friends and colleagues? ] 5/25/2009 Looking for property for a church plant? In the Sydney Morning Herald last week I read an article, titled Goodbye, deli: shops closing by the dozen. Here is part of it:Glebe Point Road has become littered with empty shopfronts since the financial crisis hit, with at least 12 businesses shutting down. Signs in empty windows reveal that many have been locked out by landlords impatient for rental arrears. In case you didn't know, this is actually an effect of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). In terms of impact of the GFC, so far you've probably seen people in certain industries lose their jobs as companies lose business. But this is what's in store in the next phase of the GFC. And what you see here is actually only the start of it, as more and more businesses find it hard to renew their business loans.
In order to lend money, banks need more than just the deposits from people's bank accounts - banks also borrow from each other. However the GFC eroded trust between lending institutions, and therefore banks became unwilling to lend to one another. This means that banks suddenly have less money available to lend to to home buyers and businesses.
So what do these banks do? They can either stop lending to home buyers - or they can stop lending to businesses. You still see ads for home loans on TV - and that's because banks are choosing to stop lending to businesses. This means that when a small business (eg. a shoe shop, or a deli) goes back to the bank to renew their business loan, they are refused - because the bank just doesn't have as much money to lend as they once did. Even if that business is doing well, they may still be unable to renew their loans - because banks just don't have the money to lend to home buyers as well as businesses. And so that shoe shop can't get the capital to buy more stock.
The result? More and more small businesses closing up. More and more empty shopfronts in your local shopping centre.
The implication of this for pastoral ministry is pretty obvious - pastoral care for those who have lost jobs, or who have seen the business they have built vanish overnight.
But there is something else as well... the flood of busines property onto the market will mean that prices to buy and lease will drop towards the end of this year. It's the simple mechanics of supply and demand - lots of supply, not enough demand. And so if your church is thinking of a church plant or a new location, then the GFC provides a rare opportunity to secure business property for a church plant at a very good price - if your church has the money. Because over the next few months you'll increasingly find that warehouse sites, shopfronts and office lots are becoming much more affordable!
[ PS: thanks to Robin for the insightful chat in the car! ] 5/15/2009 Face in Chinese culture: the good face of respectable ones 1. The foundation of a good faceIf you recall, there are two kinds of face: lien, and mien-tzu. While mien-tzu is the kind of face someone can increase in by success in life, and visible displays of position and status, lien is not the kind of face you can grow in. But more importantly while a person starts off in life with no mien-tzu, everyone starts off with the same level of lien. This is the same basic level of moral uprightness that everyone is assumed to have as honest, decent members of society. Loss of mien-tzu is embarrasing - but loss of lien is catastrophic. When someone loses lien for immoral or socially disagreeable behaviour, society loses their trust in that person, and they are no longer able to function. And so catastrophic is the loss of lien that it can even lead to suicide! Lien is important. And as a result, people will do anything to preserve their lien - they will even compound lie upon lie, they will even hurt others if it will only preserve their lien. But underlying this belief that everyone starts off with good lien is the deep-seated notion in Chinese culture that people are essentially good... The San Zi Jing (or Three Characters Classic) is a 13th century work used to teach children to read and write - and also infuse good Chinese behaviour. And the very first lines of the San Zi Jing teach this essential goodness of humans: Men at their birth,It is this view of the human being that lies beneath the Chinese ascription of a good lien to everyone (read more about it in an earlier post). And it is only when people show their nature to have deteriorated, that their lien is subsequently discounted by society. Failing that however, society is ordered as though all people have a good lien - they are treated as though they will be upright and virtuous. Which is nice. 2. The false foundation of a good face But this is important because it is the exact opposite to the Christan view of what humans are like. Consider how different the following passages are from the San Zi Jing: The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.The Christian doctrine of original sin is important in Western societies. This awareness of how deeply the problem of sin runs in humans has led to political and church structures that purposely built in checks and balances to account for the presence of sin - even in people who may be friendly and well-meaning (see very old posts here and also here). There is an inbuilt assumption that leaders may do what is wrong - even if they were popular and trusted enough to have been elected in the first place! 3. Implications for the dynamics and structure of leadership By contrast in Chinese culture there is an inherent assumption that leaders will do what is right. There is an inbuilt tendency to believe that the elderly patriarch of the family will do the right thing. That the society leader will not abuse his power. That the one in charge will look after us. And as a result, there's no need to worry about the details. What - don't you trust me? And that's because the Chinese concept of leadership assumes a good lien. The leader is seen as virtuous and 'right' - and so why not allow them to have complete control? why would you want to question their actions? what are you saying, by wanting to put in checks and balances? You can see this working itself out in the dynamics of leadership - in how relationships play out within leadership structures. Because of course, the facade does slip. The patriarch is a drunkard - the leader embezzles, or lies. And abuses his power. But even then, all those around the leader will maintain the facade. They will fight to preserve the lien of their leader - because it is too traumatic for the group to acknowledge that they have a leader who does not have a good lien. And so all through Chinese history, even though emperor after emperor is revealed to be corrupt, trust is still placed in the concept of the emperor - and yet another emperor is installed. And today even though corruption has been a newspaper issue in Asian societies for many years, it's still there. Because underlings cannot bear to damage the lien of their leader. It is too traumatic! But not only can you see this trust in the inherent goodness of leaders in the dynamics of leadership, you can also see it in leadership structures themselves. An interesting example is how committees tend to function (see earlier post).You would have thought that the collectivism of Chinese culture would lead to flat structures and equality among people in a committee - but here you're wrong! Chinese (even ABCs) tend to prefer committees with strong chairpersons and compliant members. And that's because the assumption of the lien of the chairperson brushes aside any worry that he might misuse his power, or have misconceived ideas. And even if leadership structures do have checks and balances (such as structures adopted directly from the West), it's really poor form to actually consider making use of them - if not downright dangerous to call for a vote! Or openly question the government in a newspaper! Or put forward an opposition party! Because - what are you saying? 4. Original sin and Chinese Christians Among Chinese Christians the doctrine of original sin is taught, of course. But does it actually inform the behaviour of Chinese Christians? or is it merely given lip service? is it applied unevenly? Because trust in the essential goodness of people - even if they are respected Christian leaders - is dangerously misplaced trust. The biblical doctrine of sin tells us that the problem of sin is deeper and more significant than we imagine. And so we must affirm that:
Because it's not only young people, or subordinates, or people from lower professions who are prone to sin and need to be watched over - but the honoured ones also! But not only that, the biblical doctrine of sin shows us that the 'good' face that we fight for and protect so vigorously, isn't as real as we imagine. Instead it's always been as substantial as shredded paper, as real as smoke! [ PS: it might seem as though checks and balances are the answer - but they aren't - not the complete answer, in any case. Why do you think that is? ] 5/1/2009 Face in Chinese culture: jealousy for God's face 1. The face of the clan
So far we've been talking about 'face' as it relates to an individual. However in Chinese culture it is more than that! One's face can also be linked with the face of others in your social group... Imagine a high school child, who fails to get into university. That high school child will not be the only one who loses face before his family and peers. His parents will also lose face among their peers - and this is a serious thing ("Hey Tommy, I hear your eldest didn't get in to university!" - or worse still, if everyone knows, but no one says anything)! Or imagine if a boss is humiliated in front of his employees by a stranger. The employees will go to the outsider and demand that he apologise. The employee will fight to preserve the face of their boss - they will feel compelled to uphold his honour. These two scenarios illustrate how face is not just something that affects the individual (like the son, or the boss). The rising and falling of someone's face also affects other members of one's family, friends, gang, or company. So an affront to one, can actually be felt by all. David Ho writes that, "the behaviour of closely related persons is included in the evaluation of one's prestige. Thus, the prestige of a scholar-official suffers as a result of his son's misconduct." And because of this, you sometimes have others in the company (or gang, or family) fighting to preserve the face of their boss (in the example above). You could say that they are jealous for the face of their boss. 2. The face of the 'big man' In this context of the social aspect of face, what is also significant is the face of the da ren, or 'big man'. In Chinese culture, this da ren is the acknowledged head of a group in society. Samel Ling writes that,
The social situation today is greatly different, but the concept of the da ren continues on. These da ren are in effect the important people in each society grouping - family, company, church - to which people accord respect and honour. It could be the elderly patriarch of our family, the boss of our company, even the pastor of our church. And in Chinese culture there is great concern for subordinates to preserve the face of the da ren. In his fourth year project Alistair Chiu draws attention to a widely reported news story in China, illustrative of this face behaviour.
As part of a study about face practices, Wenshan Jia (The Remaking of the Chinese Character and Identity in the 21st Century: the Chinese face practices) shared this incident with some consultants who remarekd that, ‘a superior’s face is more important than the face of subordinates.’ And ‘one should not lose face, especially in front of one’s subordinates.’ Alistair describes what is happening behind the scenes in this scenario:
Even those who participated in Wenshan Jia's study were disturbed by the behaviour that was produced by such face-consciousness, and in fact there was public uproar in China when this incident made the news. As Christians, we have even greater reason to be disturbed - after all, who is this chairman? Merely another one of God's creatures, who will also one day stand naked and trembling before the throne of God. And the unrighteousness of one of God's creatures demanding that he be exalted by another, demanding that others humiliate themselves for the sake of his face, is all the more plainer for those who have come to know their own place in God's created order. 3. God's concern for his own 'face' And indeed we saw in our last post that someone's concern for their own face can become idolatrous (see previous post). However concern for face is not always idolatrous... and you see this particularly when we come to the Bible, and consider God's own concern for his 'name'. Because God is face-conscious! Ultimately God is concerned for his own honour. This is actually God's purpose in creation (Psa 19:1-2). He works salvation not merely for our sake, but for the praise of his glory (Eph 1:11-14). Even when he exercises judgment it is so that people will know that he is the Lord (Exo 7:17). He is jealous to preserve his holy name from being defamed (Isa 42:8). He vindicates his holy name in justifying sinners, by having an atoning sacrifice bear sin (Rom 3:25-26). God's concern, in everything he does, is his 'name'. But while our preoccupation with our own 'name' is ugly and idolatrous, God's preoccupation with his 'name' is not. This is because it is eminently right for God to be concerned for his own glory and honour. But for a creature to be concerned for their own 'name' is not. Because they are giving their own small 'name' the place that only God's 'name' should have. In Desiring God, John Piper puts it like this:
This is why, all throughout the Bible, God is concerned for his own 'name'. 4. Fighting for God's 'face' As Christians then, in the same way that an employee is disturbed to see his employer lose face and works to regain honor for him, we also are disturbed to see the name of God dishonoured (Rom 2:17-24). And positively, we are people who strive, in all things, for the name / glory of God (1 Cor 10:31). We are now his people -a people who declare his praises, that others might see and join in our praise (1 Pet 2:9-10). Which is why when Christians idolise their own face, this is doubly wrong. Not only are they treasuring something that is inferior! More seriously, they are also witholding from God the honour that he alone deserves. And so when we address the world, we do so not just as dispassionate advocates for a better way of life. We are God's own people - who are jealous for the glory of God's name! We don't just disagree with unbelievers. We are disturbed when his name is slandered! We don't just have a different opinion - we are filled with sorrow when we see people choose their own face over God's! In fact we will willingly do things that make us lose face - if only God receives greater honour. Because at the centre of our universe is now the glory of God. It is his name, his honour, his 'face' that is precious - and not ours. [ PS: who are the da ren's in your social groups? When the gospel comes to the Chinese, how does it transform things? ] |
My take on Chinese churches!
Encouragement for those who serve!
Posts on the parent-child relationship for Chinese people!
Posts on going into full time ministry!
Recommended reading that doesn't fit elsewhere!
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