Glen and Paula Davis

March 17 Means More Than Green Beer

2010-03-17T15:27:16+00:00

The man we call St. Patrick was born in Roman Britain around 385 as Maewyn Succat. Two of his original letters survive: his Confessio and his Epistola ad Coroticum, the latter being notable for making him, in Thomas Cahill’s words “the first human being in the history of the world to speak out unequivocally against slavery” (How The Irish Saved Civilization, page 114).

At 16 he was captured in a slave raid and taken to Ireland where he was sold to a Druid chieftain. For the next six years Patrick labored as a shepherd.

Although Patrick was raised in a Christian family, he had not truly believed in Jesus. His slavery gave him time to reflect on life, and as he explained, “the Lord opened my mind to an awareness of my unbelief, in order that, even so late, I might remember my transgressions and turn with all my heart to the Lord my God, who had regard for my insignificance and pitied my youth and ignorance. And he watched over me before I knew him, and before I learned sense or even distinguished between good and evil, and he protected me, and consoled me as a father would his son” (Confessio 2).

Patrick’s devotion to Christ intensified, “More and more did the love of God, and my fear of him and faith increase, and my spirit was moved so that in a day [I said] from one up to a hundred prayers, and in the night a like number; besides I used to stay out in the forests and on the mountain and I would wake up before daylight to pray in the snow, in icy coldness, in rain, and I used to feel neither ill nor any slothfulness, because, as I now see, the Spirit was burning in me at that time. And it was there of course that one night in my sleep I heard a voice saying to me: ‘You do well to fast: soon you will depart for your home country.’ And again, a very short time later, there was a voice prophesying: ‘Behold, your ship is ready.’” (Confessio 16–17).

After receiving this vision, Patrick fled 200 miles to the coast and found a ship preparing for a sea voyage. He journeyed back to his homeland, experiencing miraculous guidance and provision along the way.

After living at home for a few years Patrick had another vision, “I saw a man whose name was Victoricus coming as it from Ireland with innumerable letters, and he gave me one of them, and I read the beginning of the letter: ‘The Voice of the Irish’, and as I was reading the beginning of the letter I seemed at that moment to hear the voice of those who were beside the forest of Foclut which is near the western sea, and they were crying as if with one voice: ‘We beg you, holy youth, that you shall come and shall walk again among us.’ And I was stung intensely in my heart so that I could read no more, and thus I awoke.” (Confessio 23)

So Patrick obediently returned to Ireland. As before, he was a slave. But this time he was a slave of Christ. His mission to Ireland brought fierce opposition from the Irish Druids. He faced them with great faith: “Daily I expect to be murdered or betrayed or reduced to slavery if the occasion arises. But I fear nothing, because of the promises of Heaven; for I have cast myself into the hands of Almighty God, who reigns everywhere.” (Confessio 55)

Eventually, tradition tells us, Patrick found himself debating the Druid leaders before an Irish king. The debate was rancorous, and at one point the Druids began attacking the doctrine of the Trinity. Patrick plucked a three-leaved clover and asked them whether it was one or three. The Druids had no answer, and this debate was pivotal in persuading the king to convert to Christianity.

By the end of his life, Patrick had planted over 700 churches and trained around 1,000 ministers. One third of the tribes of Ireland became Christian through his ministry. He thus ranks as one of the greatest missionaries in history, and became known as the one who “found Ireland all heathen and left it all Christian.”

If you want to learn more, you should read his Confessio – it’s only 62 verses long and is available many places online (at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library, at Robot Wisdom, and at the Catholic Information Network, to pick three).

And so remember – St. Patrick’s Day is about far more than green beer and pinching people. It’s about honoring one of the most effective ministers of all time.

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Best Church Sign Ever?

2010-03-12T02:07:51+00:00

For years I’ve driven past this church sign, and I’ve always meant to take a picture. I finally did it, and so now I would like to introduce you to the Apostolic Original Holy Church of God Incorporated, the most amazing name on a church sign I have ever seen.

After investigating, I’ve discovered that it’s not just the sign for a church – it’s the sign for an organizational (denominational?) headquarters. The proper name of the church is Mount Olive Apostolic Original Holy Church of God (MOAOHCOG, for short) in Menlo Park, CA.

You can find more affiliated churches by googling “Apostolic Original Holy Church of God”.

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The Jesus FAQ

2010-03-10T23:05:49+00:00

I’ve added another essay to my growing pile. This one is called The Jesus FAQ (pdf) It’s a companion piece to Why Jesus? – it explains what we can know about Jesus even if we don’t think that the Bible is inspired. The questions I have in the current draft are:

Is there any record of Jesus outside the Bible?
What did Jesus look like?
Where did Jesus live?
What did Jesus do for a living?
Did Jesus have a family?
What did Jesus teach?
Why was Jesus killed?
How was Jesus killed?
How did Jesus come to be worshiped?

I expect to revise this essay several times as I get questions and feedback. There are nearly 100 footnotes, and I’m pretty sure that I’ve used inconsistent formatting in my references. There are probably factual errors or ambiguities as well (hopefully small ones). Please let me know if you find one!

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Spring Break Infographic

2010-03-05T22:08:19+00:00

Spring break is around the corner for most colleges. Here’s an informative graphic I found at http://www.onlineschools.org/blog/spring-break.

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CityTeam > Conference Center > Home

2010-03-04T02:57:41+00:00

Can handle up to 160 people overnight. 2 nights and 5 meals for $99. Auditorium seats 250.

True Contentment Comes From Wanting Too Much

2010-03-03T20:12:04+00:00

I was skimming through the old Puritan book The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment by Jeremiah Burroughs when a passage caught my attention:

Godliness teaches us this mystery, Not to be satisfied with all the world for our portion, and yet to be content with the meanest condition in which we are. When Luther was sent great gifts by Dukes and Princes, he refused them, and he says, ‘I did vehemently protest that God should not put me off so; ’tis not that which will content me.’ A little in the world will content a Christian for his passage. Mark, here lies the mystery of it, A little in the world will content a Christian for his passage, but all the world, and ten thousand times more, will not content a Christian for his portion. A carnal heart will be content with these things of the world for his portion; and that is the difference between a carnal heart and a gracious heart. But a gracious heart says, ‘Lord, do with me what you will for my passage through this world; I will be content with that, but I cannot be content with all the world for my portion.’ So there is the mystery of true contentment. A contented man, though he is most contented with the least things in the world, yet he is the most dissatisfied man that lives in the world.

Emphasis mine. Wow.

A little before this, Burroughs said:

A man who has learned the art of contentment is the most contented with any low condition that he has in the world, and yet he cannot be satisfied with the enjoyment of all the world. He is contented if he has but a crust, but bread and water, that is, if God disposes of him, for the things of the world, to have but bread and water for his present condition, he can be satisfied with God’s disposal in that; yet if God should give unto him Kingdoms and Empires, all the world to rule, if he should give it him for his portion, he would not be satisfied with that. Here is the mystery of it: though his heart is so enlarged that the enjoyment of all the world and ten thousand worlds cannot satisfy him for his portion; yet he has a heart quieted under God’s disposal, if he gives him but bread and water.

You can see more here.

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College As A Game

2010-03-02T21:44:31+00:00

After hearing rave reviews, I finally blocked out some time to watch Carnegie Mellon’s Jesse Schell talk about Design Outside the Box. It’s purportedly about video games, but it’s much broader than that. It’s about how technology changes us. It’s quite good.

If you’re a professor (or a student who enjoys feeling dissatisfied with your current plight), you should watch the bit from about 18:14 through about 19:50 (or starting at 19:00 if you’re super-impatient). You can see a crisp image of the grading slide at http://www.slideshare.net/jesseschell/beyond-facebook (it’s slide number 26).

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Does The Bible Assert That Jesus Is God?

2010-03-02T15:40:37+00:00

This addition to my list of writings is a two-page Word document answering the question Does the Bible Assert that Jesus is God?

It’s not a question I get very often, but when I do this is a useful outline for explaining why I believe in the deity of Christ. It usually comes up when a student taking a religious studies class is told that the earliest Christians didn’t think that Jesus was God – this belief is alleged to have been invented out of whole cloth centuries later. Total poppycock, but widely believed in some circles.

In case you need something broader, check out The Biblical Basis For the Doctrine of the Trinity by Rob Bowman. It’s an outstanding guide to the Christian doctrine of God existing in three persons.

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I Can Totally See This Happening…

2010-03-01T23:12:40+00:00

I don’t usually post links to videos (I generally note them in Google Reader, share them on Facebook, or Buzz them), but I thought I’d see if I prefer sharing them this way. Feedback welcome.

I find this 34 second video hilarious. The setup: they are playing a game wherein the contestant must quickly identify substances hidden under containers.

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What The Bible Says About Money

2010-02-26T16:34:31+00:00

My list of writings has just grown – I’ve added a new Word document: “What the Bible Says About Money.”

It isn’t really a full-fledged essay. It’s a one-page summary of what the Bible says about money (which is more than most people think) along with some suggested passages for further reflection.

I use it as a handout in the Transitions seminar I do for graduating students.

I have more documents I’ll put online eventually – I’ve produced so many little things like this that I keep forgetting that they’re there until I stumble upon them in the course of my day-to-day ministry.

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Pre-Christian Uses Of “Gospel”

2010-02-25T22:59:09+00:00

some random Greek

In English, the word gospel is laden with religious meaning, but when Jesus and the apostles used the word euangelion (good news/gospel) they were using a nonreligious word from their culture.

There’s a good listing of ancient uses of the word at the Perseus Digital Library, and by combining that list with some other resources I’ve created summary useful for those who don’t know Greek. When I could, I’ve put the Greek word in brackets so you can see the form that is used. This is pretty much just a listing of data without interpretation – I’m merely trying to share some of my research to save time for others who are walking down the same road as me.

This is close to every pre-Christian use of the noun euangelion (I did not investigate the verbal form euangelizomai – click the verb to launch your own research). You will note that the word (which looks like εὐαγγέλιον) is relatively rare in ancient Greek, but common in the New Testament. Also of note, the New Testament often talks of the gospel in the singular (to euangelion), but in pre-Christian literature the form used is almost always different (it is usually plural and often does not have the definite article attached). Even though Jesus and the first Christians used a word from their culture, they clearly invested it with new meaning and placed an unprecedented emphasis upon it.

I have arranged the references into two groups: the first group is from the second-century BC through contemporaries of the New Testament authors, and the second group contains older uses which are less important for demonstrating current usage.

One final disclaimer: this post might make me look like some sort of Greek language guru. I am not. I am about as conversant with the Biblical languages as are most seminary graduates ten years out of their programs… which is to say, not nearly as conversant as I should be.

The Most Important Pre-Christian Uses of the Word Euangelion

The Septuagint (LXX) – 2^nd century BC

The Septuagint (a Greek translation of the Old Testament) uses the word in 2 Sam 4:10

when a man told me, ‘Saul is dead,’ and thought he was bringing good news [εὐαγγέλια], I seized him and put him to death in Ziklag” (view the Greek)

Diodorus Siculus (1^st century BC) – Library 15.74

[1b] Now Dionysius had produced a tragedy at the Lenaea at Athens and had won the victory, and one of those who sang in the chorus, supposing that he would be rewarded handsomely if he were the first to give news of the victory, set sail to Corinth. There, finding a ship bound for Sicily, he transferred to it, and obtaining favouring winds, speedily landed at Syracuse and gave the tyrant news of the victory. [2] Dionysius did reward him, and was himself so overjoyed that he sacrificed to the gods for the good tidings [εὐαγγέλια] and instituted a drinking bout and great feasts. (view the Greek)

Cicero (1^st century BC)

Cicero (writing in Latin) uses the Greek word twice in his Letters to Atticus. I don’t know if that was considered pretentious or not, but I know that I love seeing the Greek mixed in with the Latin (which tells you just how much of a geek I am).

Letters to Atticus 2.3.1 (around 60 B.C.)

First, a trifle please for good news [εὐαγγέλια]. Valerius has been acquitted with Hortensius as his advocate. (view the Latin)

Letters to Atticus 13.40.1 (around 45 B.C.)

Is that so? Does Brutus really say that Caesar is going over to the right party? That is good news [εὐαγγέλια]. (view the Latin)

The Priene Inscription (9 B.C.)

The most famous pre-Christian use of the word is in The Priene Inscription. This is a letter from the Proconsul Paulus Fabius Maximus engraved in stone (picture) in Priene, a city in modern-day Turkey. Other fragmentary inscriptions of this letter have been found in Apamea, Maeonia, Eumenia, and Dorylaeum. This text is tagged OGIS 458 / SEG IV no 490, which means that you can see more about it in Orientis Graeci Inscriptiones Selectae (a 1905 compilation by Wilhelmus Dittenberger usually abbreviated as OGIS, available online) or in Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum (SEG) volume 4. The letter is pretty long, but only the part below is relevant to the gospel.

It seemed good to the Greeks of Asia, in the opinion of the high priest Apollonius of Menophilus Azanitus: ‘Since Providence, which has ordered all things and is deeply interested in our life, has set in most perfect order by giving us Augustus, whom she filled with virtue that he might benefit humankind, sending him as a savior [σωτήρ], both for us and for our descendants, that he might end war and arrange all things, and since he, Caesar, by his appearance…. surpassing all previous benefactors, and not even leaving to posterity any hope of surpassing what he has done, and since the birthday of the god [τοῦ θεοῦ] Augustus was the beginning of the good tidings [εὐαγγέλιον] for the world that came by reason of him…

It’s so famous because it brings the idea of Caesar as a god and savior to the world together with the notion that this was good news to be celebrated.

Josephus (1^st century A.D.)

Jewish Wars 2.420

Now this terrible message [that a rebellion was brewing] was good news [εὐαγγέλιον] to Florus; and because his design was to have a war kindled, he gave the ambassadors no answer at all [to their request for assistance in stopping the sedition before it grew]. (see the Greek)

Jewish Wars 4.618

fame carried [the news about Vespatian] abroad more suddenly than one could have thought, that he was emperor over the east, upon which every city kept festivals, and celebrated sacrifices and oblations for such good news [εὐαγγέλια] (see the Greek)

Jewish Wars 4.656

And now, as Vespasian was come to Alexandria, this good news [εὐαγγέλια] came from Rome, and at the same time came embassies from all his own habitable earth, to congratulate him upon his advancement; and though this Alexandria was the greatest of all cities next to Rome, it proved too narrow to contain the multitude that then came to it. (see the Greek)

Plutarch (1^st century AD)

Agesilaus 33.4

even after the battle at Mantinea, which Thucydides has described, the one who first announced the victory had no other reward for his glad tidings [singular] than a piece of meat sent by the magistrates from the public mess. (see the English context)

Demetrius 17.5

Accordingly, when [Aristodemus] had come near, he stretched out his hand and cried with a loud voice: “Hail, King Antigonus, we have conquered Ptolemy in a sea-fight, and now hold Cyprus, with twelve thousand eight hundred soldiers as prisoners of war.” To this Antigonus replied: “Hail to thee also, by Heaven! but for torturing us in this way, thou shalt undergo punishment; the reward for thy good tidings [plural] thou shalt be some time in getting. (see the English context)

Moralia (Glory of Athens) 347d (and e)

Why, as we are told, the Spartans merely sent meat from the public commons to the man who brought glad tidings [εὐαγγέλιον] of the victory in Mantineia which Thucydides describes! And indeed the compilers of histories are, as it were, reporters of great exploits who are gifted with the faculty of felicitous speech, and achieve success in their writing through the beauty and force of their narration; and to them those who first encountered and recorded the events [εὐαγγέλιον] are indebted for a pleasing retelling of them. (see the Greek, English)

Other (Older) References

Aristophanes (5^th century BC)

You can see the plural of the word used by Aristophanes in The Knights (Equites) lines 647 and 656, both references are plural. This translation is from Translator at Work.

“You! You… Councillors! I’ve got good news [εὐαγγέλια — see the Greek] for you!” I said to them. “News that are so good, I want to make sure that I’m the first to announce them to you. It’s the price of sardines, folks! It’s the best it’s ever been since the outbreak of the war!”

Well, you should have seen their faces then! Turned nice and happy right there and then. They wanted to give me a hero’s garland for telling the good news. So I gave them my advice. I said to them that if they wanted to get their fair share for the price of an obol, they should rush down the market and buy themselves all the plates they can. Corner the market. And keep it all a secret.

They applauded me loudly then and gawked at me awestruck.

But then, that bastard, Paphlagon, who knew how to press the Councillors’ buttons, got up and said, “Men, these auspicious news [εὐαγγέλια — see the Greek] should move us to make a sacrifice to our goddess! I suggest we should slaughter one hundred cows!”

And also in his play Wealth (Plutus) line 765 – (this translation is also from Translator at Work)

So, come on, now, folks! Dance! Come on, all together now: dance and sing and march and be happy because the day will never come again when you come home and find your flour sack empty! Dance!

Wife:

By the goddess Hekate! What wonderful news! [εὐαγγέλιά — see the Greek] Just for that I’m going to hang a long necklace of bread rolls around your neck!

Aeschines (4^th century BC) Against Ctesiphon section 160

But when Philip was dead and Alexander had come to the throne, Demosthenes again put on prodigious airs and caused a shrine to he dedicated to Pausanias and involved the senate in the charge of having offered sacrifice of thanksgiving as for good news [εὐαγγελίων] (namely that Philip of Macedon had been assassinated by Pausanias) (see the Greek)

Isocrates, Areopagiticus (4^th Century BC) section 10.

As if this were not enough, we have been compelled to save the friends of the Thebans at the cost of losing our own allies; and yet to celebrate the good news [εὐαγγέλια] of such accomplishments we have twice now offered grateful sacrifices to the gods, and we deliberate about our affairs more complaisantly than men whose actions leave nothing to be desired! (see the Greek)

Xenophon (4^th century BC)

Hellenica 1.6.37

This they proceeded to do; and when they were sailing in, Eteonicus began to offer sacrifices for the good news [τὰ εὐαγγέλια], and gave orders that the soldiers should take their dinner, that the traders should put their goods into their boats in silence and sail off to Chios (for the wind was favourable), and that the triremes also should sail thither with all speed. (Glen’s note: this good news was, in this case, fake. Eteonicus was pretending that the dead Callicratidas had instead won a great victory over the Athenians). (see the Greek)

Hellencia 4.3.14

Now Agesilaus, on learning these things, at first was overcome with sorrow; but when he had considered that the most of his troops were the sort of men to share gladly in good fortune if good fortune came, but that if they saw anything unpleasant, they were under no compulsion to share in it,—thereupon, changing the report, he said that word had come that Peisander was dead, but victorious in the naval battle. [14] And at the moment of saying these things he offered sacrifice as if for good news [εὐαγγέλια], and sent around to many people portions of the victims which had been offered; so that when a skirmish with the enemy took place, the troops of Agesilaus won the day in consequence of the report that the Lacedaemonians were victorious in the naval battle. (see the Greek)

Menander?

Supposedly the word is used by Menander (Peric. 993), (4^th century BC), but I can’t find the Greek text online anywhere to verify that.

Homer

Homer used the term twice in The Odyssey (8^th century BC) in 14.152 and 14.166, but The Odyssey was so ancient by New Testament times that I don’t think of it as much help in determining contemporary usage. I’m stretching it to include 4^th and 5^th century references. Homer was as ancient to them as Chaucer is to us. Which, in case you’ve forgotten Chaucer, reads like this: “Whilom, as olde stories tellen us, Ther was a duc that highte Theseus; Of Atthenes he was lord and governour, And in his tyme swich a conquerour…” – not much help to a scholar from the year 4,000 in determining how a word is used in 2010. Bringing in stuff from the 4th century BC is about as ancient as I care to get.

If I learn of more references (or if I have any mistakes pointed out to me) I’ll update this post.

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Is Jesus On Fire?

2010-02-23T17:28:58+00:00

Every morning before my daughter heads to kindergarten I read her a Bible story. This morning I read something Jesus said and asked her if there was anything she didn’t understand.

“Well…. where was Jesus when he said this?”

“In Israel. Why?”

“I was wondering if he was on earth or in heaven when he said it.”

“He was on earth, honey.”

And then my three-year old son said, “Or on fire.”

That’s almost certainly not as funny to you as it was to me, but I present it here for your consideration. Whenever Jesus said something, he was either in heaven, on earth, or on fire.

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Change The University, Change The World

2010-02-17T22:47:24+00:00

I just added a new PDF to my growing list of essays and Bible studies: Change the University, Change the World. I wrote it for my seminary’s alumni magazine, Rapport, in 2008.

It looks so much more professional than all my other stuff – it’s amazing what an editor and some graphic design can do to make content sparkle.

I’ll be putting some more essays up soon. Thanks to all who have taken the time to give me feedback in the comments section of my blog, on Facebook notes, and on Google Buzz. I appreciate it very much.

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Half of All Marriages Do NOT End In Divorce

2010-02-16T15:55:42+00:00

Recently I heard it again, “Half of all marriages end in divorce.”

I wanted to take my laptop and hurl it through a window. It’s hard to be sure what the divorce rate in America is, but it’s not 50%.

Here’s how the misleading notion came about: one year someone noticed that there had been 1,200,000 divorces and 2,400,000 marriages. Not thinking clearly, this person concluded that 50% of all marriages end in divorce. And not thinking clearly, our whole culture agreed.

The error is hard to see, so perhaps an example will help. Imagine that there were 100,000 births and 50,000 deaths in one year. Would you conclude that half of all people die?

Clearly not. And that highlights the problem: although it seems like you’re comparing apples and apples, you’re really comparing apples and apple wedges. The real question is: if 10,000 people get married in 2010, how many will remain married until parted by death? And the answer is: we won’t know until 5,000 people are dead.

For a better perspective on this, see the 2005 NY Times article Divorce Rate: It’s Not As High As You Think. For a contrary view, see the normally reliable Straight Dope which maintains that the 50% figure is reasonable.

I’ll give you a thought experiment just to mess with your mind: suppose I pull in $10,000 a month and that my expenses are $5,000 a month. Half of all my income ends up divorced from my wallet. Am I in good financial shape or bad financial shape? Why is your reaction to this story different than your reaction to a story claiming there are 100,000 marriages in a month and 50,000 divorces in a month? And why do we prefer to say that half of all marriages end in divorce rather than observing that twice as many people are getting married as are getting divorced?

Anyway, that’s what I have to say about that. I have little doubt that American marriages are facing great pressure and that for a number of reasons the divorce rate is disturbingly high – but it’s not 50%.

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Why Jesus?

2010-02-12T19:13:01+00:00

I mentioned I’d be adding more writings to my list of essays and Bible studies. I’ve just uploaded an essay called Why Jesus?

I wrote it to give away to guests who come to our worship meetings. It’s relatively short (about 3,600 words). In it I highlight three simple reasons to believe in God and then show the reader how to decide whether Jesus is indeed the way to God that he claimed to be.

I have some more stuff on my hard drive I’ll put up here eventually.

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Stuff I’ve Written

2010-02-09T15:24:49+00:00

I’ve finally put up a collection of essays and Bible studies that I’ve written. I’ve been composing them off and on for years, usually in response to questions I receive from students.

I have more hidden away in the recesses of my hard drive. I’ll add them to the list as I have time.

I hope you find them helpful. Feel free to share them with others or use them for any noncommercial purposes.

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An Unofficial Response to Westboro Baptist Church

2010-01-28T23:18:11+00:00

The notorious Westboro Baptist Church is holding a protest at Stanford this Friday (see a good summary at Fiat Lux: why here, their identity, their beliefs, their legal history). In response, the Stanford community is planning a counter-rally at the same time and place as Westboro’s protest.

A group of Christian ministries signed a joint statement opposing Westboro, ~~but the Stanford Daily has apparently declined to publish it (at least, I can’t find it in the online paper). Perhaps it will appear soon~~ (UPDATE: it was published in the op-ed section the day after I put this post up). But in case it does not, I would like to give my own personal response to them here. The official statement was designed to garner support from several different ministries, but what follows is language that no one else but me has signed off on. Consequently, it is considerably more direct.

I think Westboro Baptist Church is crazy. I also think it is unwise to hold a rally opposing a group which thrives on conflict. Attention is the drug they crave. They have become a recurring national news story merely because of their ability to draw crowds and media.

I refuse to protest them, and I also refuse to ignore them. I am in no way ambivalent about their presence on campus: what they are doing is wrong. It heaps shame upon Christ and it causes people made in God’s image to experience an alienating anguish. I believe that prayer is the most effective possible response to this situation. I, my ministry, and several other Christian groups at Stanford will hold a prayer meeting while the protest is going on at which we will ask God to convict Westboro members of their sin and lead them to repentance.

So yeah. That’s what one preacher thinks about their presence.

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What Does The Bible Require of a Church?

2010-01-21T21:46:47+00:00

An alumna of my ministry recently sent me an email asking what the Biblical requirements of a church were. I thought about it for a bit, and this is what I came up with. I’m sure the list of requirements that I have below is incomplete, and I welcome suggestions for improvement.

But if you, like my former student, are looking for a church home then meditate on these points.

Here’s the email I sent her.

What does the Bible require of a church? Probably not the things you expect. The Bible doesn’t require that a church meets on Sunday morning (although it does set that as the pattern: Acts 20:7; 1 Cor 16:2), nor does it require that a sermon be the centerpiece of the meeting (although that is certainly one way of fulfilling the criteria of Biblical teaching below).

The most important thing that God requires of a church is that it be built upon the confession of Jesus as God’s Son and Christ (Matthew 16:16–18; 1 Cor 3:10–11). What this means practically is that Christ is the center of the church and is the focus of its activities.

The church should be engaged in persuading unbelievers to become disciples of Jesus (Matthew 28:18–20; 2 Timothy 2:2; 2 Timothy 4:5), which the Great Commission defines as baptizing them and teaching them to obey Christ. Disciplemaking also includes taking sin seriously and disciplining impenitent believers (Matthew 18:15–20; 1 Corinthians 5:1–13; 1 Timothy 5:19–20; Titus 3:9–11).

The church should meet regularly and the meetings should be encouraging (Hebrews 10:24–25). The encouragement should not come just from the ministry leaders – the community as a whole should be one that strengthens you. Here is a representative list of passages describing how those in the church ought to treat one another.

Greet one another 2 Corinthians 13:12
Show hospitality to one another 1 Peter 4:9
Honor one another Romans 12:10
Live in harmony with one another Romans 12:16
Serve one another Galatians 5:13–14
Comfort one another 2 Corinthians 1:3–4
Encourage one another Hebrews 3:12–13
Teach and admonish one another Colossians 3:16
Be forbearing with one another Ephesians 4:1–3
Forgive one another Colossians 3:13
Confess sin to one another James 5:16
Bear one another’s burdens Galatians 6:2
Love one another 1st John 4:7–21
Search Biblegateway.com for the phrase “one another” to find more.

There should be singing motivated by gratitude to God (Colossians 3:16; Ephesians 5:19–20). Gratitude for who God is and what God has done (both on the cross and in our lives) is what I believe is in mind here. As part of its worship, churches should also celebrate communion on a regular basis (1 Corinthians 11:17–34).

The church should also be a community devoted to prayer (1 Timothy 2:8; Ephesians 6:18). We must remember that when Jesus taught his disciples to pray, he taught them to pray together (it is, after all, “our” Father not “my” father – Matthew 6:9). These sorts of prayers ought to be emphasized:

The elements of the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9–13, Luke 11:1–4) should always be central: for God to be glorified, for His will to be done, for provision, for forgiveness, and for holiness.
For effective evangelism (Colossians 4:2–4, Ephesians 6:19–20). Note the emphasis of the prayer: it is not for the lost to be saved so much as for us to be bold and wise witnesses.
For government leaders to not interfere with our faith, especially not our ability to evangelize (1 Timothy 2:1–2).
For the needs of the church (Ephesians 6:18). The prayers of the apostles serve as excellent examples of the sorts of prayers one could offer on behalf of the church (Rom 15:5–6, 13; Eph 1:17–19; Eph 3:16–19; Phi 1:9–11; Col 1:9–12; 1st Thess 3:12–13; 1st Thess 5:23–24; 2nd Thess 1:11–12; 2nd Thess 3:1–5).
The elders of the church are specifically instructed to make themselves available to pray for the sick (James 5:14–16).

All the spiritual gifts should be welcomed (1 Corinthians 14:26; 1st Corinthians 14:39, 1 Thessalonians 5:19–20), although they should be deployed in such a way as to attract and not repel unbelievers (1st Corinthians 14:24–25). Their effect on the church should not be chaotic (1st Corinthians 14:40).

A church should be led by Biblically qualified leaders:

Who teach Biblical truth (2 Timothy 1:13–14; 2 Timothy 3:16–17; 2 Timothy 4:2; 1 Timothy 4:13; Titus 1:9)
Who exercise appropriate authority (Hebrews 13:17; 1 Tim 4:11–12; 2nd Timothy 2:22–25; Titus 2:15)
Who are above reproach in both character and relationships (1 Tim 3:1–13; Titus 1:5–9)

The church ought to care for the poor, especially poor believers. (2nd Corinthians 8–9; James 1:27; 1st Timothy 5:16; Gal 2:9–10; Gal 6:10; Acts 6:1–4). And the poor should be welcomed into the life of the community (James 2:1–7).

The church ought to also pay ministers – both those who teach and lead within the church itself (1st Timothy 5:17–18; 1st Corinthians 9:3–14; Galatians 6:6) and those who are sent out as missionaries (3 John 5–8; Romans 16:1–2; Philippians 4:10–20)

In order to facilitate these latter two points the church should be receiving offerings (Acts 4:32–37; 1st Corinthians 16:1–2), although it does not appear that they must be received in any particular way.

There are probably other things churches should be doing as well, but these seem to me to be essential. No church will be perfect, of course. Give them the same grace that you give to fellow believers, but avoid churches that are not at least attempting to fulfill these mandates.

[January 23, 2010 update: after some feedback on my Facebook notes page, I decided to add the paragraph about prayer. I also made a few small changes.]

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