New Wine Fellowship Bible Study

We have all seen the latest trend among very large churches.  It is what some call church “franchising”.  The core concept is to take a very successful and well known church and open up additional venues or campuses located in outlying communities.  The church uses video technology to beam in the service from the main church and staffs the remote campus with some paid staff and many lay volunteers.  Most of the churches doing this have large congregations at the main campus, impressive facilities, and generous budgets.  So the question is, where do you stand on this idea?  Frankly, I am struggling a bit with it.  Here are some good things about it:

• Some people will not make the drive to the main campus from outlying communities but they will attend the church if it is right around the corner.  Getting more people into pews on Sunday is never a bad thing.
• Setting up remote campuses utilizing video technology and a scaled down staff allows a church to grow without incurring the cost of duplicating all the things the main campus has to offer.

Now for some concerns:

• I worry about the idea that people are following a “brand” and the personality and popularity of a pastor instead of attending church to serve God.  As these slickly marketed franchises continue to pop up in outlying communities it begins to look less like church and more like a chain restaurant.
• While there are some cost savings, it is definitely not cheap to open a sattelite campus.  The cost of video technology alone can be staggering - $250,000 or more.  Only the wealthiest churches can fund such a project.
• What happens to the smaller, less well-known churches that are already in the community when the big franchise hits town?  Think of the effect Walmart has on the smaller grocery stores and retails establishments when they show up in a community.  Local merchants cannot compete with all it has to offer and they go out of business or barely survive.  The same is true of community churches trying to compete with the mega-church.  Attendance drops off as membership is enticed away to the flashy, trendy, well known franchise.  The small church - likely operating on a shoestring budget already - sees offerings plummet and they find themselves in financial straights.  You can guess the rest.

These are my thoughts, and I honestly don’t know what is right.  On the one hand I can see the good that can come from a church taking a successful formula outside their current physical footprint and into communities that could benefoit from their presence.  If it results in people becoming involved and engaged in church and in the saving of souls, then who am I to question that?  On the other hand, can’t the big church take the same budget and from a partnership with a church already established within the community it wishes to reach?  If the goal tryly is reaching more people with the Gospel, then that seems like a positive way to do it.  But, if the goal is to gain additional recognition, fame and influence for a pastor or a church, then the motives are all wrong and absolutely not Biblical.

I found the attached article addressing this very issue on Slate Magazine of all places.  It is worth ready.  And it is worth forming your own opinions through honest reflection and prayer.  Either way, I would love to know your thoughts.  So, add your comments below.  Let’s see how we feel about this issue.

People the world over stopped their daily routine to observe America on Tuesday as we inagurated our 44th President.  Much has been said of the historic nature of the event and rightly so.  Regardless of whether you voted for Mr. Obama, agree or disagree with his political ideology, or believe his election is good or bad for the country, one thing that cannot be denied is that it represents a proud moment in our history.  I was proud to see our democracy in action through the peaceful and orderly transfer or power - the outcome of free and fair elections.  We need only to look to the examples of China, North Korea, Somalia, Iran, Syria, Libya, Zimbabwe, Sudan and the other among the 70 countries ruled by dictatorships to appreciate the amazing freedoms we enjoy.  I was proud to see the crowds of Americans who made their way to Washington to take in the moment.  I was proud to see that a minority could ascend to our highest politcal office despite the weight of history that once considered a person of hs race less than a human, much less a citizen due the rights, freedoms and protections under our Constitution.  I was proud that someone amoung the staff at the Library of Congress had the foresight to grasp the historical significance of the moment and offer to loan the Lincoln Bible to the President-elect for the ceremony.  The same Bible that Lincoln - the man who through courage, conviction and a will guided by principle preserved our nation’s unity and authored the bill that would emancipate black Americans- placed his hand upon to take the oath of office in 1861.  Lincoln was administered the oath of office by then Chief Justice Roger Taney.  Taney had written the Supreme Court’s opinion in the Dred Scott case just four years earlier.  Dred Scott represents one of the lowest points in our history as it upheld the legality of slavery and was instrumental in stoking the passions that would lead to the Civil War.  Taney and Lincoln were on opposites ends of the moral and political spectrum regarding slavery.  Little did Taney know that he was swearing in the man that would orchestrate an end to Dred Scott and shine a harsh light the court’s decision.  What great symbolism that Barack Obama would place his hand in the same place 148 years later as the ultimate expression of all that Lincoln had hoped and ultimately died for.  I was proud to see that there is still a place for prayer in our civil ceremonies.  I was proud of Rick Warren for boldly invoking the name of Yeshua and the scripture passage “Hear, O Israel the Lod God is your God” during his invocation.   Already a controversial choice for the duty, he could have played it safe but he stayed true to his convictions.  I was proud to hear the President quote scripture in his eloquent speech when he said it was time for us as a nation to “put away childish things”.  He was quoting from 1 Corinthians 13 - the love chapter.  Out of a chapter devoted to teaching us about love, Obama quoted the section of the passage that deals with tough love.  I think that is exactly what we need as a nation.  We have too long allowed greed and immorality to shape our public policy.  We have too long made bad personal choices and then blamed the government for not saving us from ourselves.  Our elected officials have too long acted shamefully when they choose partisanship over citizenship.  It is time we stop acting like children, make tough decisions and grow up out of love for our country.  I was proud of many things I observed yesterday and I am prayerful that God will continue to preserve our nation.

We all observed with either anger or amusement (maybe both) the recent incident involving an Iraqi journalist removing his shoes and hurling them at President Bush as a form of protest.  Why throw his shoes?  Was it the only thing handy to fling at President Bush or is there some deeper significance?  It turns out that shoes and feet have deep cultural meaning in the Middle East that goes back centuries.  To sum it up, feet and shoes are considered dirty.  It is a great insult to show ones feet to another person and the ultimate shame to strike a person with a shoe.  So, while the enraged Iraqi journalist could have flung the notepad he had in his hand, whipping his shoes at Bush sent a far more symbolic message.  To learn more about this custom and its significance, check out this link  - http://www.slate.com/id/2206749/?gt1=38001 .  Does the Bibile have anything to say on the subject of feet or shoes?  Turns out it does.  In Deuteronomy 25:5-10 the use of a shoe as a symbol of shame and insult is actually sanctioned into law!  The issue deals with Leverite marriage.  When a man died and left a widow, the law of Leverite marriage required that the next eldest brother would take the widow as a wife, care for her and bear her children in order to sustain the family line of his deceased brother.  If the brother refused, the widow was to remove one of his sandals, spit in his face and let everyone know what a sorry brother-in-law the guy was.  Futhermore, the official record would show that the man’s line would be known as the “Family of the Unsandled”.  This punishment was public, insulting, highly shameful and carried a lasting stigma along with it.  Most brother-in-laws would avoid it at all costs.  We run across another instance of the sandal of shame in the book of Ruth chapter 4.  Boaz wants to redeem the family line of Naomi; a relative of his who has lost her husband and two sons.  To redeem the line he needs to buy some property she has and take Ruth, the widow of one of her sons, as his wife.  Boaz is willing and eager to perform the duty of the Kinsman Redeemer but he finds out that there is another reative that is closer in line to Naomi than he is  Essentially this closere relative has the right of first refusal on the Kinsman Redeemer deal.  Being an honorable guy, Boaz approaches this closer relative and lays out the situation to him mentioning only the property at first.  The closer relative is happy to oblige until Boaz mentions that a wife comes along with the deal.  And not just any wife, a Gentile from Moab, the archenemy of Israel!  The closer relative passes on the deal and transfers the right of the Kinsman Redeemer to Boaz.  He immediately removes one of his sandals and gives it to Boaz.  Why did he do this?  The reason goes back to the passage in Deuteronomy.  Responsibilities of Leverite marriage were not restricted to just a brother-in-law.  Since both of Naomi’s sons had died as well as her husband the next eldest male relative within the extended family was in line to redeem her family line by marrying the widow of her son - Ruth.  Why would they not marry Naomi instead?  Because she was past childbearing age and one of the main purposes of Leverite marriage was to carry on the family line of the deceased by bearing children with the widow.  By agreeing to buy the property but refusing to marry Ruth, the closer relative was reneging on his duty under Leverite marriage.  He was due the old sandal punishment outlined in Deuteronomy.   Fortunately, Boaz was willing to be the Kinsman Redeemer to the fullest.  He bought the property, married Ruth and redeemed the line of Naomi in the process.  They lived in a small town called Bethlehem and along with harvesting wheat, had several fields of sheep they tended.  Boaz and Ruth had children to redeem the family line of Naomi.  Eight generations later a shepherd boy born into this same family line, tending sheep in those same fields became a hero when he slew a giant with a slingshot.  And we know the shepherd boy grew up to become King David.  Centuries later, his descendants were still tending sheep in those same fields in Bethlehem that were first established by Boaz and Ruth.  One night, those shepherds were visited by angels bearing a message that a child king - The Messiah, Yeshua - was born to them in Bethlehem.  Jesus, a descendant of not only David but of Boaz - the man who refused to be known as the Family of the Unsandled.

In my last post I focused on California Proposition 8 which would reverse the decision of the state supreme court allowing same sex marriage and enter into the California constituion language that would recognize marriage as a union between a man and a woman.  This important measure was taken up on election day last week and was passed by a healthy margin.  It is great to see the citizens of California rally around such a noble cause in the face of much social and political pressure.  Theirs is an example that we all can emulate.  When God’s people focus and mobilize, it is still possible to have our voice heard and to see the results of our faithfulness to fight for what is right.

Dear friends, I have spent the last few days in the Los Angeles area conducting business. I was intrigued by the attention being paid to a bill before the people of California in the upcoming election. While the nation’s eye has rightly been on the presidential candidates, the citizens of California are voting on the issue of whether the sanctity of marriage should be preserved. Proposition 8 has made it onto the ballot through a determined, grass roots effort and is aimed at reversing the 4 to 3 decision made on May 5 of 2008 by the California Supreme Court that allows marriage between couples of the same sex. The language of Proposition 8 states “only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” Why is such a measure being proposed? There are several reasons.

• First, supporters of Proposition 8 believe that marriage should be recognized as a union between one man and one woman. Same sex unions, sealed through a marriage ceremony that is licensed by the state and afforded constitutional protection, violates the traditional definition of marriage as practiced by Americans since the birth of our nation.
• Second, school children in California will likely be required to teach same sex marriages as an acceptable alternative to traditional marriage in health, social studies and sex-education classes. This is despite the wishes of the parents to determine what they wish their children to be taught about marriage and family values.
• Third, if same sex marriage continues to be constitutionally protected, churches and pastors and even public officials who oppose such unions on moral grounds could be sued for refusing to conduct the ceremonies. Churches that refuse to allow same sex couples to use church facilities for their marriage ceremonies could lose their tax exempt status.

This, indeed, is a serious matter. I was impressed to see just how much support there seems to be for passage of Proposition 8. As I listened to the radio, almost every commercial break included an advertisement informing the public of the dangers of the constitutionally protected same sex marriage decision and urging support of the bill to amend the consitition to reverse the effect of the court’s decision. I pray, and I hope you will too, that Californians will turn out to the polls in huge numbers in support of this measure. If Proposiiton 8 passes by a wide margin, it will send a clear signal that Americans are fed up with the assault on our traditional Christian values. If it fails, then I fear many states wil use the California precedent as a guideline for the passage of their own laws recognizing and protecting same sex marriage. I welcome your feedback on this issue and invite you to post your comments to the site. -Steve

So now we have a website! A few months ago my good friend, Michael Lederer, asked me to pray about and consider helping him lead a Saturday evening Bible study. He talked about how he and his wife Jill had done this while they were living in California and how much he had wanted to do it since his return to Dallas. Michael spoke about how the Bible study group in California had started out with just a handfull of people and how it grew in number and spiritual significance over time. I was immediately interested and we began to share our goals and desires for the Bible Study.

We both agreed that we wanted the Bible study to be deep and challenging. As the writer of Hebrews challenges in chapter 5 and 6 “Anyone who lives on milk, being still an (spiritual) infant, is not acquainted with the teachings of righteousness. …let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity…”

We also wanted to have a focus on exploring the Jewish roots of Christianity. This comes naturally to Michael who some will describe as a Messainic Jew. He refers to himself as a “completed Jew” - having found a saving faith through Jesus as his Lord and Savior. Michael relishes in his connection to his heritage and experiences his Christian walk with a perspective that I believe is unique to Jews who have found Jesus. I am not a Jew. In fact, I am probably about as Gentile as they come. But I have become very interested in gaining a more thorough perspective of the Jewsih culture (particularly the culture and customs prevalent during Biblical times) and how it shaped the events of the Bible. Why? Because the Jewish people and the nation of Israel were chosen by God himself as the conduit through which he would communicate his truth and would ultimately send his son. I have found that the better understanding I have of the whole Jewish experience, the more illuminating it has been for my Bible study. This is very difficult to find in mainstream Christian churches and we wanted our Bible study fil that gap.This also where I got the idea for the name of my blog, Faith Roots.
Michael and I both wanted to integrate a time of worship through music into each of our meetings. Michael is a gifted musician. He plays several instruments, has a thorough command of music composition and theory, and has written dozens of incredible worship songs.
So we did it. We jumped right into the deep end and started our Bible study. And in just a few short months we have experienced many blessings. Our worship team of musicians and vocalists - led by Michael - always starts our meetings off on the right note (couldn’t resist) and prepares our hearts to commune with God. The teaching duties have been shared by me and our good friend Les Castro. We have stuck to the charter of pursuing depth with a focus on integrating the Jewish experience into our study. We have a core group of faithful attendees and almost always see new faces at each meeting. The discussion and fellowship are lively and I often hear attendees say that they are learning and feel spiritually renewed when they attend. This is God’s hand at work. May he increase.
And now we have our website as a communication tool for the group, as a place that facilitates and stumilates feedback, and as a way of letting other people know who we are and what we are doing. So, if you are reading this and happen to be in the Dallas area, you are welcome to join us any time we meet. Our meeting schedule and a map to where we meet is posted under the Upcoming Events section. If you have stumbled upon us by surfing the Internet I hope we can be a blessing to you. The full text our our Bible studies are posted on the site under Study Notes. You can also leave a comment - we would love to hear from you.