Sharing Transcendent Values with those who may not

Sharing Transcendent Values… with those who may not share them

The Identity of the Church; a Bride and a City “And I John saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ” – Revelation 21: 2 (1 st Peter 2: 5 -17) The Bride of Christ Holy City

What is Culture? “The application of labor or other means to improve good qualities in, or growth, as the culture of the mind; the culture of virtue. ” - Webster’s 1828 Dictionary “Culture is religion externalized, and it is the development of man and his world in terms of the laws of his religion. ” - R. J. Rushdoony

What produces Culture? “Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life. ” – Proverbs 4: 23 (see also Matthew 12: 34; James 3: 2) Issues – (Hebrew) – “to go out, to go forth” – produce, germinate, promulgate Issues – “event, consequence; end or ultimate result. ” – Webster’s 1828 Dictionary Culture is the atmosphere created by behaviors that flow from the heart – it is reason incarnate

God’s Sovereignty created man with The Law of Reason POWER – God is all-powerful “I will make a helpmeet for him” - Ge. 2: 18 FORM – Reasoning is multi-jurisdictional Plan - “It is not good that the man should be alone. ” Evaluate – “there was not found a helpmeet for him” Execute – “…God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam” Genesis 2: 18, 20, 21 Men and Women are created by God to reason – a mark of being the highest of God’s Creation

GOD, Logos and Logic (truth) • “In the beginning God…” – Genesis 1: 1 • “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ” – John 1: 1 – Word is “logos” in Greek – “the divine word or reason incarnate” (a complete expression) – Logos also means “computation, proportion, explanation, argument, principle, law, debate… – Logic is reasoning on premises, using principles to apply this in wisdom for real solutions

Reasoning: Face to Face Relationship • Isaiah 1: 18 – “…let us reason together, saith the Lord, though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow…” – Revelation first (spirit) – revealing the Word – Reason second (soul) – based on the Word • Exodus 33: 11 – “…the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh to his friend…” – Reasoned with the Word – an intercessor – Mark of maturity (1 st Corinthians 13: 12)

1 st Peter 3: 15 – Preparation of the Heart and Mind • “…sanctify the Lord God in your hearts…” – God (and His Word) must be our source… • “be ready always to give a reason for hope” – Plan ahead – be ready… prepare to think clearly… – Evaluate – a reason - clothing faith relevantly – Execute – to all who ask… timing of leadership • “…with meekness and fear…” – The right attitude makes it easier to be received – An assumed relationship with the culture (v. 13)

The Nature of Biblical Wisdom “…that he would show thee the secrets of wisdom, that they are double to that which is!” – Job 11: 6 1 - Knowledge (from Hebrew) – analysis “to take things apart” (rudiments) 2 - Understanding (Greek) – synthesis “to put things together” (usefulness) Wisdom is living according to God’s Word

Seven Pillars of Wisdom merged with the Ten Axioms Genesis 2: 15 -24 reveal creation wisdom for mankind Note: Transcendent Values applies to all the others… (1) “dress the garden” – Genesis 2: 15 (labor – service) (2) “keep the garden” – Genesis 2: 15 (management - limits) (3) “of all trees thou mayest freely eat” – Genesis 2: 16 (liberty – self-govt) (4) “…you will surely die” – Genesis 2: 17 (consequence – localism / results-based reality) (5) “I will make a helpmeet for him” – Genesis 2: 18 (power – jurisdiction Note: family is one of the jurisdictions) (6) “and Adam named the animals” – Genesis 2: 19 (variety - justice) (7) “and shall cleave unto his wife” – Genesis 2: 24 (covenant - trust)

Relating / Reasoning to those without Transcendent Values • Colossians 4: 2 -4 – Pray for relationships – “doors of utterance” to open… – Speak the “mystery of Christ” as I ought to… • Walk in Wisdom – toward those without – Understand jurisdiction – church / community (Creator / Redeemer distinction) – Seek common ground (unity) wherever found – Redeem the time (buy back lost years) – Speak with grace seasoned with salt (service)

Understanding Wheat and Tares Mt. 13: 24 -30; 36 -43 • • Know when to unite and when to separate… Enemy sows tares “when the righteous sleep” Wheat and Tares are together by God’s design Separation is insulation, not the extremes of… – An indulgence with tares leading to isolation which undermines the growth of the wheat – An ignorance of the wheat leads to mixture which accepts tares as if they are wheat (compromise)

Luke 16: 1 -8 - Why Transcendent Values? • These are principles, values that transcend cultures, creeds, saved and unsaved… • They are put by God in all Creation (natural) • Principles shared with cultural terminology – What is God doing in the heart of your culture? – How can you build relational bridges to those in your neighborhood, marketplace and city? – Principle-based policies are primarily sharing biblical values that work efficiently, and it is here that we will find common ground

Examples of Transcendent Values • Self-Government – internal obedience to laws – Take the initiative – volunteer early and often – Do your job – return emails, accomplish tasks • Service-Based Power – service-based power – Bless those you serve – be interested in others – Attempt to make others successful and get credit • Localism – decision making on lowest level – Emphasize local responsibility and jurisdiction – Encourage those closest to the problem to provide the solution – most efficient

Luke 16: 9 - Making Friends of “unrighteous mammon” • The marketplace is the joining ground • We can avoid being unequally yoked if we understand jurisdictions of church / culture • We serve together every way we can… – Mammon is the love of money – It cannot overcome true love, service and giving – When it fails to solve the problem, we will be asked to “give a reason” for the hope within – These are the “everlasting tabernacles”

Three-dimensional Christianity • Friend of “publicans and sinners” – Publican – “tax collector” – civil magistrates – Sinners – people – let us love working with them • Blessings of friendship with people in the culture but outside the church – Lk. 16: 10 -13 – – – We love and serve vs. revenge (Mt. 5: 43 -44) We listen more than speak (James 1: 19 -27) We serve rather than be served (Mt. 20: 25 -28) We are legitimate vs. illegitimate (1 st Peter 2: 12) We are allies vs. being enemies (Eph. 6: 10 -18)