Pascal

But I figured I could throw out a quote from something I am reading for homework.

Athanasius’ On the Incarnation of the Word

3. For God is good, or rather is essentially the source of goodness: nor could one that is good be niggardly of anything: whence, grudging existence to none, He has made all things out of nothing by His own Word, Jesus Christ our Lord. And among these, having taken especial pity, above all things on earth, upon the race of men, and having perceived its inability, by virtue of the condition of its origin, to continue in one stay, He gave them a further gift, and He did not barely create man, as He did all the irrational creatures on the earth, but made them after His own image, giving them a portion even of the power of His own Word; so that having as it were a kind of reflection of the Word, and being made rational, they might be able to abide ever in blessedness, living the true life which belongs to the saints in paradise.

4. But knowing once more how the will of man could sway to either side, in anticipation He secured the grace given them by a law and by the spot where He placed them. For He brought them into His own garden, and gave them a law: so that, if they kept the grace and remained good, they might still keep the life in paradise without sorrow or pain or care besides having the promise of incorruption in heaven; but that if they transgressed and turned back, and became evil, they might know that they were incurring that corruption in death which was theirs by nature: no longer to live in paradise, but cast out of it from that time forth to die and to abide in death and in corruption. 5. Now this is that of which Holy Writ also gives warning, saying in the Person of God: “Of every tree that is in the garden, eating thou shalt eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, ye shall not eat of it, but on the day that ye eat, dying ye shall die.” But by “dying ye shall die,” what else could be meant than not dying merely, but also abiding ever in the corruption of death?

We want to make three assertions about the relationship between evangelism and social action:

1. Evangelism and scoial action are distinct activities.

Good social action is about harnessing the insights and resources of the poor, but the gospel is a message from the outside that is addressed to us in our spiritual helplessness and powerlessness.

2. Proclamation is central

Social action without proclamation is like a signpost pointing nowhere. Worse still, it is likely to imply either that salvation is synonymous with socioeconimic betterment or that salvation is through good works like those I am doing.

3. Evangelism and social action are inseparable

People often talk about evangelism being the priority, but this suggests a list of actions that you work through from the top down; if you do not have time for the bottom items (like social involvement), then this does not really matter. But evangelism cannot be separated from social action because mission takes place through relationships, and relationships are multi-faceted. As Paul says of his relationship with the Thessalonians, “We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us” (1 Thess. 2:8)

There has been a recent movement toward social action in local churches and thus I think it is appropriate to discern its proper role in the church inlight of Scripture. For a great and detailed study into this topic read Mark Dever’s church’s paper,  What Does Scripture Say About the Poor?

The local church has a responsibility for what is taught and that it is taught. Therefore, it is harmful if the mission of the local church becomes diluted with other things that distract her from her primary purpose. Yet while the primary purpose of the church is the preaching of the gospel, she may pursue that in ways which include caring for the physical needs of non-Christians. Such mercy ministries to those outside of the church are not biblically required to be ministries of any congregation. But they may be employed to the end (whether directly or indirectly) of promoting the gospel in the community.

That quote cannot do justice to the depth and care that went into the research and writing of the paper as the authors unpack the role of the local church and the individual Christian in the lives of the poor.

This means it is never enough to address people’s felt needs. Felt needs can be a good point to start because the gospel addresses the human condition in all its complexity. But people do not as a rule express God’s judgment as a felt need. People are blind to their true plight. They do not see their greatest need, which is to be reconciled to God through the gospel. If we do not keep people’s eternal plight in mind, then immediate needs will force their way to the top of our agenda, and we will betray the gospel and the people we profess to love. The most loving thing we can do for the poor is to proclaim the good news of eternal salvation through Christ. It is by no means the only loving thing we can do for them, but it is the most loving thing we can do. It would be a crime of monumental proportions knowingly to withhold such good news.

From: Tim Chester and Steve Timmis, Total Church