From Sampler to Sower

Dr. Nina Gunter; General Superintendent, Church of the Nazarene

Session five began in College Church on Monday evening of the Holiness Summit at Olivet Nazarene University.  Our time of corporate worship was especially encouraging as the song selections focused on God’s promises to stand beside His people.  The Olivetians sang the song “Through the Fire” which encourages

Just hold on,
My God will show up
and take you through the fire again.

Together we sang the chorus “I Will Sing Praise” which restated the promise in these words:

No matter the storms that come my way,
No matter the trials I may face,
You promised that you would see me through.
So, I will trust in You.

And perhaps most powerfully, the Olivetians sang a rendition of the third psalm which declares:

But you, O LORD, are a shield about me,
my glory, and the lifter of my head. (Psa 3:3, ESV)

Dr. Gunter began her message with the classic illustration of the boy who went to a wise man with bird in hand to ask “Is the bird I hold dead or alive?”  To which the wise man replied “The answer is in your hands.”  From there she went to a second question, this one asked by the Wesleyan-Holiness Study Project, “Is the subject of Holiness relevant for the 21st century or is it a thing of the past?”

Gunter wasn’t willing to leave that answer in our hands.  Instead she argued that holiness is not only relevant, it is essential for our age.

The problem for the Church of the Nazarene is not a problematic doctrine, it is with problematic communication. “If Nazarenes would invest more effort to preach and teach Holiness with conviction and clarity and would bear witness to the Spirit filled life,” said Gunter,  “we would experience unprecedented growth.”

The critical question for us is not will holiness remain relevant, but will the doctrine of holiness continue to be the message and mission of the Church of the Nazarene? There is no doubt this doctrine stands near the foundation of our past.  “Holiness is our calling.  Holiness is our impetus.  Holiness is our passion.  Holiness is our fire.”  What is more, Gunter said, in the eleven page Historical Statement contained in our Manual, Holiness and Sanctification are referenced more than 70 times.

Clearly the doctrine of holiness is essential to our history, but will it be a central part of our future?

At this point Gunter cited ten descriptors of the holiness movement identified by Dr. Kevin Mannoia, chaplain of Azusa Pacific University and co-author of The Holiness Manifesto which rose out of the Wesleyan-Holiness Study Project.  These ten descriptors help to describe holiness in terms of what it is for rather than what it is against.  Gunter provided her own comment on each of the ten descriptors.

Holiness stands for:

Transformed Character based in large part on the otherness of God.

Sanctified people are a different people, who live life by a different principle that becomes transformative in our lives as we place our trust in a holy God.

Responsible Engagement based on God’s incarnation in the person of Jesus Christ

We place our trust in a wholly other God.  But God was not content to remain wholly other.  Instead he became incarnate in and among us.  This leads us to social and missional engagement.  Holiness is not merely a personal reality, it is a social imperative.  “You cannot separate holiness from missions, nor from service that seeks to redress the injustices in our world” said Gunter.  “This is the radical optimism of grace, that God brings order out of chaos and we unite with Him in this work.”

Healthy relationships based on the triune nature of God.

In the Godhead, we see a kingdom model of mutuality in which we are invited to participate.  “Without diversity, there is no unity.  And without unity, there is no power.”  What is more, the proof of the Spirit is the work of love, or what Wesley would call “the pure love of God and men.”

Wise decisions based on the free choice of God to impart the freedom of will.

We do not believe in determinism.  Instead God gives us the freedom to exercise wisdom which comes from the Spirit of Christ in us.

Creative thinking based on the awesomeness of God.

God is not a micro-manager, but gives us creative responsibility.  As a result we seek God in all the disciplines of learning and ourselves become life long learners so we might exercise that creativity responsibly.  This lies behind our denomination’s commitment to higher education.

Holistic faith based on the prominence and pre-eminence of God.

“God is God of all we are and all we do.  Our whole existence is predicated by God’s presence.” As a result there is no place for compartmentalization in our lives.  No part of our lives can be walled off from God’s presence.  All we do is offered to God as worship.

Purposeful hearts based in large part on the otherness of God.

Our theology of love is not based on good works or perfect performance, but the grace, mercy and goodness of the love of God himself.  We are who we are because we are filled with God’s love, and this love empowers us to live lives of integrity and authenticity.   Yet we always remember that being comes before doing.

Servant Leadership based on the servant-mind of Christ.

“Jesus was not interested in toys, titles or trinkets.  He was interested in the towel of service.”  Jesus did not die for ideas or strategies, but for people.  And we are called to be of the same mind – not to give our lives on behalf of ideas or strategies, but for people.

Meaningful work based on the call of God.

The meaning of our work does not come from our results, but rather from the call of God on our lives.  As a result, we believe in a God-called ministry and seek to stay close to God’s voice.  We serve a God who says “I have redeemed you.  I have called you by name.  And you are mine. (Isa 43:1, NASB)”

Restored image based on the image of God.

The sense of our own brokenness leads us to seek restoration.  And the distinctive good news of Wesleyan-Holiness theology is that such restoration is possible.  “No one is so lost he can’t be found.  Now one is so bad he can’t be redeemed. No one is so far gone he can’t come back.”  And our ministries must reflect that conviction.

Holiness is relevant because God still seeks to transform us into Christlikeness.  And our world is desperate for that message of hope.

The question isn’t “Is holiness relevant.”  Instead, the crucial question is: Will we live it, preach it and teach it with conviction and clarity? For those struggling with that, Gunter pointed out that there is both crisis and process in this.  There is hope and help for both the person who has not experienced the liberation of complete consecration, and for the person who is struggling with the frustrations of living out that consecration.

Gunter concluded with a quote from Wesley’s Thoughts on Methodism:

I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist either in Europe or America But I am afraid lest they should only exist as a dead sect having the form of religion without the power And this undoubtedly will be the case unless they hold fast both the doctrine spirit and discipline with which they first set out. (The Works of the Rev. John Wesley By John Wesley)

Will we become a dead sect? Is the holiness movement dead or alive?  It’s in our hands.

I was thrilled to hear this message, especially in the fact that it broke out of the individualism of personal holiness to demonstrate that holiness must have social implications.  I especially appreciated Gunter’s clarification that the radical optimism of grace does not apply to the life of the individual alone.  Far too often the people called Nazarenes, so optimistic about the potential of individual believers to experience full salvation, are far too pessimistic, even fatalistic, about our chances to impact our world.

The emphasis on service, vocation, education and an integrated faith are essential elements for holiness that our movement needs to hear.  I can’t express how encouraged  I was to hear these vital themes advocated by our General Superintendents.

My one hesitation with this message was that it was so general, I may just have heard what I wanted to hear, imputing my understanding of the broad and sweeping terms employed in Gunter’s message.  Obviously there is not time to deal in depth with each of these ten descriptors in a single sermon.  (In fact, in a great laugh line, Gunter wrapped up the list of descriptors with a word to pastors – “There, I’ve just given you topics for your next ten sermons.”)  However, dealing with them as quickly as we did means we could only address each at a very superficial level.

As a result we ended up with something that may not have been distinctly Wesleyan (or Holiness).  As Dr. Carl Leth wrote about the Holiness Manifesto, “It must also be said that the Holiness Manifesto articulates an understanding of holiness that virtually any tradition of the Christian Faith can affirm.”  Or as he said more succinctly on Wednesday, “There isn’t a Christian tradition out there that doesn’t believe in wise decisions and healthy relationships.”

That’s not necessarily a bad thing.  But at a Summit whose purpose appeared to be to call us to rise above a “generic evangelicalism” one wonders if these ten descriptors accomplished this purpose. Gunter’s specific remarks about the very generic descriptors helped to mitigate this weakness.  I still would have loved to hear more on each of these themes.