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Welcome to Walk the Talk

Welcome to the Walk the Talk class for the LifeLongLearning (LLL) June-August 2003 term at MCBC.

You'll find on this web site a collection of all the weekly handouts, discussions for the week, and discussions started by you. This web site is just a tool to keep us connected throughout the week as we explore the ideas presented in the class and through your discussions, as we learn to be Shalom. Rebecca, Brenda, and myself encourage you to make the most of what's here.

This week's handout is here. Your task this week is to reread this handout and journal your thoughts about “inhabiting the Biblical story”. Come prepared to share briefly next week (it’s a story, isn’t it?)

Have a blessed week.

Walk the Talk: what is this all about
Do you wonder what these words or phrases mean? Have you tried to dig deep into your Bible to understand the importance of these concepts to the people in the Bible, the church fathers, and those who we consider spiritual giants?

  • Shalom,
  • Incarnation,
  • Kingdom of God,
  • “Taking the Gospel Global”,
  • Jubilee,
  • Social justice,
  • Vocation,
  • Social care,
  • Soul care?

Do you wonder how to make these concepts relevant to our own journey of faith… To our own communities of faith… To the world we live in?
This class is an exploration of whole-life faith in action, reaching beyond the notions of individualized salvation and seeking to be disciples of Jesus in all that we are and all that we do. We will seek to answer the question “What is the good news of the Kingdom?” and explore what sharing the good news AND what incarnating the good news means for every area of life – school, work, relationships, entertainment, what we buy and eat and drive.

Writing letters, introducing recycling to MCBC, and visiting the homeless are just few of the practical ways we will seek to honour and obey Jesus’ greatest commandments (Matthew 22:36-40).

Objectives

  • We will explore God’s purposes for Creation, for us as God’s image bearers, according to the biblical narrative.
  • We will seek to answer the question “What is the good news of the Kingdom?” and explore what sharing the good news AND incarnating the good news means for every area of life – school, work, relationships, entertainment, what we buy and eat and drive.
  • To engage our faith purposefully in the public sphere, through deeds and works: i.e. writing letters, visitng shelters, exploring food and water sources and quality, introducing recycling to MCBC, getting people involved and serving in local policy making (either in our neighbourhood, cities, province, or even in MCBC).
  • To inhabit the Biblical narrative.
  • To be transformed through the working out of our faith through deeds, actions, and words.

Posted by on June 1, 2003 3:42 PM |

Comments

Ken brought up a point about bringing church back into our lives (because we are the church) - about scattering people in church into the workplace, etc.

I found this post on this blog, noisyragamuffin while I was surfing tonite.

I share much of his sentiments...

I attend a traditional American church in a small town in Indiana. Regular attendance on a given Sunday is around 100. How do we go from being an event on Sunday to being a community? A group of like-minded friends and family? Everyone is so busy with there lives. How do we go from being spectators to being disciples? How do we bring them up? How can I, being 25,.........ok-Christ is in me. I try to get out of the way to let Him be seen. If I am doing this Christ is present and visible in whatever location and conversation I am in. How do I start a small group? (i couldn't think of a better word than "start" at the moment) How do I, being in my space, make "church" a way of life? As apposed to an event on Sunday where we may come up with ideas to invite people into the building to offer Christ in theory, but don't represent him in practice............We meet together-this is good. Christ is at work. But are we? Are we worshiping in spirit and our daily lives? Not just going through the motions of a way of doing it that was done before us so it must be right? Is it working? Is our community seeing Christ when they look at you and I? Can they SEE that we've got something Monday through Saturday? Not just hearing the fact that we believe this one thing by our words? Why would Joe-Bob at the market want what you got if what you got is just a place in the pew on Sunday? Our church is having a problem paying the bills because "the economy is bad." Shouldn't we, who put our faith and hope in that which is not of this world, be giving ourselves to the needs around us without worrying about how our own needs will be met? ( Or whether or not we will be able to have fast food at least once a weak?) What happened to giving the shirt off our backs? What happened ....what happened...what happened that we've taken our freedom to worship and be "church" for granted? Christians in India, where it's not exactly safe to be a Christian, would give you the last egg...the last coin because it's in their heart to do so! Is it in our heart? Hmmm.........growl! growl! Sorry. Gotta vent sometime.

Posted by: Dan | June 2, 2003 1:24 AM

Thanks for sharing your stories, Dan, Brenda, Rebecca. My ears perked up as Rebecca was talking about Rhetoric. I'm taking an early Christianity course at night school (and for all you graduates who thought Dan's suggestion to take some Christian coursework was too late, let me tell you it's not!!) and my mind was wandering toward this guy I'm reading about, St. Augustine of Hippo.

Turns out it's the same character Rebecca is thinking about. Indeed, Augustine was versed in Rhetoric, about persuasion and he struggled with the lack of need for truth in his profession and eventually came to a conviction that proper speech and style were not sufficient. That one must also seek after truth.

Now Augustine's story is the kind of walking the talk that we're looking at. Augustine went from thought to faith to philosophy looking for truth and having initially thought Christianity was intellectually lacking until he met a pastor named Ambrose. Ambrose's theology cleared a lot up for Augustine and he came to a belief that there was no faulty logic in Jesus Christ. He actually now had a problem of a different kind.

My text book reads, "At this point a battle raged within himself. It was the struggle between willing and not willing. He had decided to become a Christian... He could not be a lukewarm Christian. He wrote, 'When I thought of devoting myself entirely to you, my God... it was I that wished to do it, and I that wished not to do it. It was I. And since I neither completely wished, nor completely refused, I fought against myself and tore myself to pieces.' ... After his conversation, Augustine took the necessary steps to embark on a new life. Requested Baptism, resigned from his teaching (of rhetoric) post, dismissed his concubine..."

No theologian was more quoted that Augustine in the middle ages, and during the protestant reformation (of which the Baptist church tradition comes from) has become the most influential theologian in the entire Western church.

His life is one of integrity. Of walking the talk. It's only a glimpse, but if you're interested, I have a copy of one of his famous books, St. Augustines' Confessions. Rebecca has another one on doctrine, I believe. Definitely a page turner!

God bless everyone, see you next week!

Posted by: Alan | June 9, 2003 2:51 PM

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