Hebrews as a bridge

These reflections come from Gareth Lee Cockrill's book titled "Guidebook for Pilgrims to the Heavenly City"

Have you ever thought of using the book of Hebrews to bridge a Muslim's Hajj? Guidebook for Pilgrims to the Heavenly City does just that. The author of Hebrews uses language and analogies for a journey, or reaching a city (The New Jerusalem, Heaven). What a great way to attract people whose tradition compels them to take such a journey. This method is unique, because it so easily contextualizes the entire book of Hebrews into the Islamic culture. Cockrill's rendition of this bridge is written primarily to an audience bent on one day going to Mecca, or have already taken the Hajj. Here is a short overview; use this to be intrigued, but read the book if you want to use the strategy.

Part One: The Pilgrim Road (Hebrews 10:32 - 12:29)

Introduction to Part One (Hebrews 10:32-39)
This section of Hebrews clearly describes the life of faith as a pilgrimage to heaven. The writer of Hebrews assumes that we are asking the question, "Why should we continue in this pilgrimage when we face suffering?" Introduces Part One

Called to be a Pilgrim (Hebrews 11:1-22)
True pilgrims trust God's promises of future blessing and believe that He is active in their daily lives. By his example Abraham calls us to have this faith and make our pilgrimage to the Heavenly City. From his life we learn that pilgrimage means leaving the things of this world and pursuing the heavenly goal. Like Abraham we may face opposition, but it is vital that we persevere to the end of our journey.

Endure Suffering (Hebrews 11:23-40)
Moses, like Abraham, was a pilgrim to the Heavenly City. Since Moses was willing to leave the horded treasures of Egypt for the eternal homeland, he reminds us of the unsurpassed value of our destination. His courage in face of opposition inspires us to be courageous . God's deliverance of many encourages us to persevere. Our resolve is strengthened by remembering those faithful pilgrims who have had to suffer persecution and death for their faith. We know that victory will be theirs in the resurrection. Because of Jesus the Messiah our resources are much greater than theirs.

Follow Your Guide (Hebrews 12:1-17)
Jesus is both the founder of this pilgrimage and our mutawwif [guide] along the way. By his suffering he has opened the way for us to enter the Heavenly City. By keeping our gaze on him we are strengthened to meet the challenges of the pilgrim way. Indeed, suffering is a mark of the true pilgrim. God uses this suffering to train His faithful pilgrims and prepare them for His blessing just as a loving father disciplines his beloved children. We must not let suffering turn us away from the great blessings that are within our reach.

At the Mount of Mercy (Hebrews 12:18-29)
Through what Jesus has done for us we are able to through prayer and worship to enter the Heavenly City and stand joyfully in God's presence with the angels around His throne. For us that City is on the Mount of God's Mercy. Those who have rejected Jesus the Messiah stand in condemnation before the Mount of Judgment. Just as those who stand at the Plain of Arafat on the 9th of Dhu-l-Hajjah anticipate the Judgment Day, so our present experience at God's Mount of Mercy anticipates the mercy we will receive on that Day if we do not shrink back from following Jesus

Part Two: The Pilgrim's Helper (Hebrews 1:1 - 12:29)


Introduction to Part Two (Hebrews 5:11 - 6:20)
This part of Hebrews explains in greater depth the significance of Jesus as the founder of the Pilgrimage to the Heavenly City and as mutawwif along the way. It shows us how Jesus and Jesus alone is the one who enables us to reach our destination. The writer of Hebrews prepares his readers for his teaching about Jesus' High Priesthood, which they found difficult or objectionable. Gives special attention to the reality of his death and resurrection and the significance of his being called "Son."

Around the Ka'bah (Hebrews 1:1 - 2:4)
Pilgrims to Mecca anticipate the time when they will gaze on the Ka'bah. For them it is the point of contact between heaven and earth. Jesus is the Ka'bah or focal point of heavenly contact for pilgrims to the Heavenly City. He is God's embodied Eternal Word and thus brings us a revelation that fulfills and surpasses all revelations given through prophets and angels. It is vital that we remain loyal to what God has revealed for us in Jesus.

The First Pilgrim (Hebrews 2:5-18, 4:14 - 5:10)
By the "Great Pilgrimage" of 632 A.D. Muhammad established the pattern of pilgrimage to Mecca. In 622 he left the city only to return victoriously in 630 and open the way for pilgrims. God's Eternal Word has opened the way to the Heavenly City by what was surely a "Great Pilgrimage." According to the will of God he established this pilgrimage by leaving the Heavenly City, becoming a human being and offering himself for the sins of all humanity before returning in triumph to the Heavenly Homeland. By his offering he freed us from the impurity of sin which kept us from God's presence and liberated us from the fear of condemnation on the Day of Judgment. Thus he is our High Priest who invites us into the God's holy presence and fulfills the picture of High Priesthood which God has given in the Tawrah of Moses.

The Apostle of God and the Pilgrims who Rebelled (Hebrews 3:1 - 4:13)
Jesus is the Apostle or Rasul of God because he has brought the final revelation of God and because he leads us into the promised Heavenly Homeland. He is as much superior to Moses, the great prophet and apostle with whom God spoke so intimately, as "the maker of a house is greater than the house." Thus if the people who followed Moses failed to enter the "rest" of God's Eternal City because they refused to trust God's power and promises, how much more will we fail if we do not obey in faith? Let us be diligent to enter because the Heavenly City they sought is still available to those who trust and obey. God holds us accountable.

An Intercessor Before the Day of Judgment (Hebrews 7:1-28)
Even now Jesus sits at God's right hand as our Intercessor who cleanses us from sin, brings us into God's presence, and mediates to us the grace we need to be faithful pilgrims. He can do this because he is a "priest according to the order of Melchizadek." As the obedient embodied Eternal Word of God he has replaced the Mosaic priesthood of sinful, mortal men. Since his High Priesthood is backed by God's oath, he can guarantee us perpetual access into God's presence. Since he is eternal he can completely deliver us from sin. He is exactly the kind of High Priest we need and we are invited to draw near to God through him every day of our pilgrimage.

The Feast of Sacrifice (Hebrews 8:1 - 10:18)
Discusses the themes of sanctuary, sacrifice, and covenant. Jesus' sacrifice is superior because it alone provides access to the true heavenly sanctuary and establishes the new and adequate covenant. Thus pilgrims to the Heavenly City have three reasons to rejoice in the sacrifice of God's Eternal Word embodied in Jesus. First, through his perfect obedience and willing sacrifice of himself he has cleansed us of the impurity of sin. Second, by this cleansing he has established a new covenant or din in which our sins are forgiven and we are given obedient hearts. Third he has opened the way for the purified people of this new covenant to enter the presence of God in heaven. No animal sacrifice was sufficient. Only the willingly self-offering of Jesus in perfect obedience to God was adequate for our sin. He expressed this obedience in his talbiya: "Here I am, I have come to do your will, O God."

Stoning the Devil (Hebrews 10:19-31)
Pilgrims to Mecca attest their determination to resist temptation by stoning the three pillars that represent Satan's temptation of Abraham in the valley of Mina. Pilgrims to the Heavenly City are invited to take refuge from Satan and his temptations by drawing near to God through the sacrifice of Jesus. He has opened a "new and living" way into God's presence by cleansing us from sin within and without. He welcomes them when they enter. They are to be unswerving in their pilgrimage and encourage one another because Jesus their High Priest is faithful. This passage closes with a solemn reminder that anyone who professes to experience the blessings of Christ and then turns away will suffer eternal separation from God.

Conclusion: The Way of Ihram (Hebrews 13:1-25)
Hebrews concludes with instructions on how to live in the state of heart ihram provided by Jesus. This purity is not a matter of rituals or of keeping a number of rules. It is the offering of two sacrifices--praise to God and doing good and sharing with others. We do good by sharing with both friends and strangers, helping those in need, being sexually pure, and by being generous and relying on God to supply our needs. We praise God by confessing our loyalty to Jesus and identifying with those who worship him. Hebrews ends with a blessing that the God who raised the Lord Jesus, our caring Shepherd, will bring us to the end of our pilgrimage.

- Taken from Appendix Two: A Quick Reference (pp.171 - 175)

Career Defing Crisis in Mission by Paul Keidel Review

Keidel's book brought up a lot of issues to think about. I enjoyed it so much that I made an outline of it so I could quick reference it. Let me know if you want me to send you the outline. So here are some thoughts on Keidel's book.

The first two chapters re-iterated thoughts I had already had, and information that I had been exposed to. I think those chapters (Language and Culture) are critical to people beginning their journey. I thought the next few chapter really broke down the missionary process (Telling the Story, Deciding for Christ) and brought out key debates (Social Gospel). I really enjoyed questioning the "three self model" (The Crisis of an Indigenous Church). Keidel flips these on their heads and showed their purpose, but inadequacy. I really enjoyed the cultural sensitivity, about transferring the power of the gospel into their cultural appropriate equivalences. The issues he raised about dependency (financially and dependent on the missionary). I liked in the end how he focused on the power of the gospel in our lives (as missionaries) and the clash of doing vs. being (in Christ).

I know that was general, I'd love to continue the conversation about specific thoughts/issues.

Allow me time to re-read it and think over the three self model and I'll add thoughts to it

Universalism

Y'all have probably heard about the question of what happens to a man on an island if they don't know Christ. The mercy side of us that is there in the image of God cries out "Its not fair for a man to die and go to hell if he is seeking God." I was involved in a conversation like this yesterday.

Rarely does the justice we have in the image of God adequately reflect the justice God has. We may not cut in line to go to the movies or we may feel sorrow for the mistreated and innocent, but those just touch the top of the iceberg. If we sincerely look at God's justice, sin is grounds for immediate and unmerciful death. A common statement is "its not fair for bad things to happen to good people, or that good people should go to hell." The bible is pretty clear though: our good works are like dirty rags to God (Isaiah 64:6), not one seeks God (Romans 3:11, Jeremiah 5:1-3), it is by faith alone (Ephesians 2:9-10). The truth is that we deserve to die now, and again and again. BUT by Christ's sacrifice, we take His place.

SO my response (especially to those still having doubts on Christianity) on this issue is: I realize this is a problem. These people can't be in relationship with God unless they become like one without sin. In order to do this they must be saved under Jesus' name. If there are places where Jesus' name is not proclaimed, it is our duty to tell them. This whole thing is why I am involved in missions. It is because God loves these people that we go and give them the chance to respond to the gospel. I tell these who have yet to put their faith in Jesus, "join me in letting the nations know," if you are so concerned than go with me.

Worldview

The typical American Christian worldview is something like this:

What is real? Well, God is real. He is basically on the throne, although a lot goes on in the world that He allows to happen because of man's evil choices. I fit into this scheme of things as His child who doesn't have a lot to say about cosmic events.

What do I believe? Among other things, I believe the Bible. I believe that God chose the Jews to finally bring forth the Messiah so He could start the Church so I could become a Christian -- which means I'm different from the world, but if I live true to God I'll have a good life with His blessing. I also believe things are going from bad to worse, and when they get really out-of-hand, God will give up on humanity, Jesus will return and I'll go to heaven.

What do I think is best? I think being a good Christian is extremely important -- living a clean, godly life, reading the Bible, praying, witnessing,giving money to the church and missions and attending church services.

What is my behavior like? I try to do thinks I know are important; but I don't do them as regularly as I should or would like to. I attend lots of meetings. And I'm basically trying to have the best life I can until Jesus comes back for me.

A more biblical based worldview:

What is real? God is minutely in charge of everything, even to the extent of using Satan and man's wrath to fit into His unchangeable purpose of blessing His people in order to bless every people on earth. I fit into a very specific role in that plan.

What do I believe? Among other things such as the doctrines of the faith, I believe God has been orchestrating His specific plan for all of history. I believe that everything that happens fits into His unchangeable purpose. And I believe there is a time coming when He will finish His plan. I believe that time is soon, and I believe my sense of vision of His plan is not a coincidence: I believe He wants to use me now in some significant way.

What do I think is best? Fitting into that plan [Here are some possible ways]. Seeking first His kingdom. Using all the disciplines of biblical Christianity to point in the direction of that purpose. It is extremely important for me to maintain good health, cultivate good relationships, keep my finances in order so that I can give as much as possible to the Cause, walk in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake, and develop all my skills and spiritual gifts for my part in the big picture. I need to pray against the enemy strongholds so that God's kingdom can come on earth as it is in heaven, and pray that God would thrust forth laborers into His harvest. I must evangelize my own people group through personal evangelism, unite with other believers in this cosmic battle against satanic forces, and remain clean and pure as a vessel fit for God's use in His plans! All of this is extremely important because God is carrying out His purpose through us, His people!

What is my behavior like? It looks like typical Christian behavior, only a little more radical. I've never prayed so much in my life; I become angry over Satan's control over a certain unreached people group and I refuse through prayer to let Satan have his way over them. I'm getting together with Christians who mean business, because I know better than to tackle the strongholds of Satan by myself. I'm also studying the Bible and the world like never before, because I've realized how little I know about the whole picture. I spend a lot of time evaluating everything I do to pull it into captivity to obedience to Christ in His great Cause. I evaluate what I have and do according to the fact that it has a purpose far beyond making my own life comfortable. I find I don't do much in the way of trying to "keep up with the Joneses"; who cares about such small ambitions anymore? I'm feeling less of a need to escape; so I watch less TV and spend less money. I'm beginning to act as if I don't quite belong her in my old Western culture for much longer.

Taken from Vision 2020 by Bill and Amy Stearns, pages 166-168

Missiology: Reaching Muslims using the Koran

Where do religions come from? We know that all mankind came from Adam and Noah. Division begins at the Tower of Babel. God scatters man and confuses their language. Once things settle, God chooses a specific man to share his revelation with. From this point in scripture, it seems that Abraham is pretty aware that there is one God, its not until later that scripture mentions other gods. At this point, God has been distant with man. God calls Abraham into relation with Him and begins a process of renewal for the world through His covenant with Abraham; again, God wants all peoples to know Him. Later on we see scripture say, “Thou shall have no other god before me.” So we know that other people believe in other gods. Exodus 32 shows the process of this transferal from the one true God into other gods. The people want a physical presence of God, but God doesn’t give that to all people. The people turn from their previous knowledge of the one true God and worship a calf instead.

Therefore I believe that other religions are just perversions of the real thing. Other religions thus have connections back to the Truth. Don Richardson explains similar cultural connections in his book Eternity in Their Hearts. There thus should also be redemptive analogies back to the truth, where you can turn back these perversions. Kevin Greeson’s book, the Camel Training Manuel shows ayats (verses) from the Koran that point to the truth of the one true God who redeems His people through His sacrifice. The Koran can be used as a bridge to lift Jesus above prophet status, although it will not share the fullness of Christ’s plan for redemption.

Most people know that Islam has a foundation built on Christianity, thus Judaism, if you look closer into the Koran there are ayats that point to Christ as more than just a prophet. It confers with the new testament that Jesus has conquered death, that Muhammad himself was unsure about his eternal fate, and that Allah tells Muhammad to look at the “before books” (Old Testament and New Testament) for answers. Ayats from the Koran itself actually give more validity to Christ than Muhammad. Most followers of Muhammad feel that the Koran is too holy of a book to read, and that few people can actually interpret the text. Hence, for the most part, using the Koran as a bridge to the gospel is more effective with Imams (Islamic priests) than with the general population of Muslims.

Wrapped up in one passage (Surah Al-Imran 3:42-55), one can see that Jesus is not just a prophet. This text can help raise Jesus up to the deserved position of Savior. This Koranic text says that Jesus was holy, Jesus had power over death, and Jesus knows the way to heaven. This is the crux of the Koranic text to lead seekers into reading the Bible for themselves

Here are some other interesting ayats in the Koran

Surah The Sandhills 46:9 “Say: I am not the first of the apostles, and I do not know what will be done with me or with you: I do not follow anything but that which is revealed to me, and I am nothing but a plain warner.” Muhammad himself testifies that he is not the greatest, he does not know where his followers are going, and he is only a warner.

Surah Jonah 10:94 “But if you are in doubt as to what We have revealed to you, ask those who read the Book before you; certainly the truth has come to you from your Lord, therefore you should not be of the disputers.” This is a direct reference back to “the Book before you” aka the Bible. The Koran de-emphasizes itself.

Surah The Woman 4:136 “O you who believe! believe in Allah and His Apostle and the Book which He has revealed to His Apostle and the Book which He revealed before; and whoever disbelieves in Allah and His angels and His apostles and the last day, he indeed strays off into a remote error.” Again note the “Book which He revealed before” lifting up the Bible along with the Koran.

Surah Cattle 6:115-116 "And if you obey most of those in the earth, they will lead you astray from Allah's way; they follow but conjecture and they only lie. Surely your Lord-- He best knows who goes astray from His way, and He best knows those who follow the right course." Allah’s words can not be changed

Surah The Table Spread 5:65-66 "And if the followers of the Book had believed and guarded (against evil) We would certainly have covered their evil deeds and We would certainly have made them enter gardens of bliss And if they had kept up the Taurat and the Injeel and that which was revealed to them from their Lord, they would certainly have eaten from above them and from beneath their feet there is a party of them keeping to the moderate course, and (as for) most of them, evil is that which they do" Those who follow the Torah and Gospel will be blessed

Surah The Woman 4:171 “but (speak) the truth; the Messiah, Isa son of Marium is only an apostle of Allah and His Word which He communicated to Marium and a spirit from Him” Jesus was sent from Allah in heaven in the form of a baby in Mary.

Surah Ta Ha 20:121 "Then they both ate of it, so their evil inclinations became manifest to them, and they both began to cover themselves with leaves of the garden, and Adam disobeyed his Lord, so his life became evil (to him)." Allah is Holy, and we have sinned against Him to cause evil

Surah The Sandhills 46:9 “Say: I am not the first of the apostles, and I do not know what will be done with me or with you: I do not follow anything but that which is revealed to me, and I am nothing but a plain warner.” Muhammad confesses he does not know where he nor his followers will go after death.

IMPORTANT NOTE: as said before, most Muslims have a high respect for the Koran, therefore while using these bridges we must use a gentle spirit. I would not confront a Muslim about these issues without first reading the book. The book will walk you step by step on ways to ask questions and order and bring it all together. My purpose is to expose the reader to some issues, so that you will be interested and dig deeper.

Worship

Worship is the heartbeat of God. He rejoices when we take time out of our lives to make a display that we desire his presence. It’s amazing how much worship is wrapped around culture. While God accepts many styles of worship, the worshipper feels more or less connected based on the style. This gets very specific. Most peoples worship through music of some sorts. Reading through “All the World Is Singing” showed how culture forms the basis of worship. Many times when a missionary gives the good news to a people group, the message is packaged in a Western form of logic, vocabulary and individualistic connotation. Same goes for worship music and church style. Many times a new church will look like one from the West: 25 minutes of hymns or guitar/keyboard based music, and a 45 minute sermon. Other cultures prefer drums, gongs, and local instruments in timing and rhythms that sound weird to westerners (for an example go to Heart Sounds International). Other cultures listen to bible stories for hours at a time and get frustrated with westerners who can only preach for an hour. From this book it was amazing to see how much joy the local believers had when they could worship God with their own idiom and style of music. Some described it as “God was speaking to their heart, using their heart language.” The church was then more prepared to evangelize their own community. They would go through out the villages playing their new songs and the villagers would stop what they were doing to come out and listen. This is so much better then us as missionaries trying to use our methods. Reading the book gave me a taste of what heaven would be like. Revelation 7:9-10 says, “After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"”. I can’t wait to be praising God in the key of G with 4/4 timing, right beside someone else dancing to an African drum, next to someone from a Muslim background reverently bowing before God.

Missiology: Indigenous Church/When to leave?

This discussion comes from questions raised in a book called "Searching for the indigenous church" by Gene Daniels. Currently I am reading "Career Defining Crisis in Missions" by Paul Keidel which has insights into the same topics, hence look forward to an updated discussion.

So the overall question raised is, can we as outsiders recognize or create a truly indigenous church?
First we need a working definition of an indigenous church. A community of belivers who worship Christ according to thier cultural norms. The structure and methods of the community are created through the host culture seeking God in Scripture.
To help us separate our conception of church with seats and western music and logical/academic sermons I'll use the term Christward movement to describe what may be called an indigenous church.

According to Daniels, we will never be able to explain the indigenous church and it is not something that we as outsiders can search out or find. That was two-part, let me digress and give my thoughts. If we as outsiders come into a culture preaching Christ, we use our Western background as a framework. We need to completely reduce the gospel to it's message and not the Western message we make it. The key message: the God who created us enabled us to have relationship with Him by the means of Christ on the cross. We often make it about progress in Christ, individualism, we are prone to works-righteousness, we use 4/4 timing and modern music. This is not the gospel. So back to Daniels', if we actively seek out the indigenous church/christward movement, we begin by looking for what we know as a church, we may find bits and pieces,but also unfamiliar forms of worship and reasoning. So we feel the need to teach the "right way" In the end we change the movement to fit our interpretations of the host culture instead of allowing the host culture to decide. As a missionary it was Daniels' goal to establish a Church. He began with what he knew and ended up with something his young native leaders did not konw. They looked around and said this was not thier church, but his. Now that is a reality check! Daniels realized that he did not know how to create an indigenous church or what one might even look like! Which brings us back to the question at hand, can we as outsiders ever know or even describe what we desire the world to be full of, a truely indigenous christward movement within every cultural. This book, nor this blog leaves you with no answers, just more questions.




Another question raised: when is it time to go home?
Another reality check for Daniels, is the day his lay leaders told him it was time to leave, that they wanted to run their Chirstward movement. When does a missionary say "yep you're right you don't need me," and when do they assert themselves and say, "I think that you still need me and I'll stick around." One strategy is the Pauline approach of leaving the direct involvement of the new christward movement and starting another evangelistic outreach to another community while overseeing the other movements he started. He often went back and visited and wrote letters to instruct and encourage different communities specifically dealing with their unique situations (hence the epistles). While this is a good model, it is harder to enact. I think Paul was the greatest administrator ever. Agan, since we don't know what we are looking for in order for a Christward movement to be sustainable, our first response is to stick around. Is there a place for the missionary to serve once the fellowship has reached this ambigious state of indigenous? Is the missionary's job done just because they have fulfilled thier "two year stint, and need to return home for forlough?" Can we honestly convince ourselves that we are no longer vital for this movement to continue? is it our place to guide, or the Holy Spirit? That one I can answer, it is the Holy Spirit's job to guide every community of believers. The missionary has the akward job of deciding if the people are prepared or ready to listen with out thier aid. Maybe, if from the very beginning we never put ourselves in leadership, but simply the bearer of a great message, placing the gospel and scriptures in the hands of others we will be able to watch as the Holy Spirit leads a group of believers to do what He created them for, to worship and love thier creator.

Not many answers, but alot more questions.