It is the Christians, O Emperor, who have sought and found the truth, for they acknowledge God. They do not keep for themselves the goods entrusted to them. They do not covet what belongs to others. They show love to their neighbors. They do not do another what they would not wish to have done to themselves. They speak gently to those who oppress them, and in this way they make them their friends.
It has become their passion to do good to their enemies. They live in the awareness of their smallness. Every one of them who has anything gives ungrudgingly to the one who has nothing. If they see a traveling stranger, they bring him under their roof. They rejoice over him as over a real brother, for they do not call one another brothers after the flesh, but they know they are brothers in the Spirit and in God.
If they hear that one of them is imprisoned or oppressed for the sake of Christ, they take care of all his needs. If possible they set him free. If anyone among them is poor or comes into want while htey themselves have nothing to spare, they fast two or three days for him. In this way they can supply any poor man with the food he needs. This, O Emperor, is the rule of life of the Christians, and this is their manner of life.
According to McManus, contrary to popular opinion, Jesus Christ came neither to teach Christianity nor to establish the Christian religion.
The goal of the life and teaching of Jesus is not to make the Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, or Jew a Christian. Neither did Jesus come with the goal of showing us how to be Christians. What Jesus wants for all people whether religious or secular, Republican or Democrat, liberal or conservativeis that they turn away from destructive, non-life-giving systems and join him on the quest to find their humanity again.
The multiplying church is an excellent primer on catalyzing church planting movements.
If you’re well-versed in all of this, you might not find too much that’s new other than Roberts’ passion and unique stories. I found that it spoke to me in just the right ways at just the right time in my life right now.
ie. I love the simple burnout deterrence mantra he shares:
1. I am not invincible. I can get sick, sin, and weary.
2. I am not immortal. I am going to die.
3. I am not indispensable. The kingdom keeps going without me.
4. I am not an island. I need friends around me.
I was at the new suburbia conference this past week. I’m not sure how true the conference was of its title, it was mostly about Christian community development in an urban setting, gentrification of city slums, and indigenous leadership empowerment.
There was some good material in there. However, I felt some of us gathered had been experiencing some type of suburban inferiority complex. I know the urban setting is where the needs are often greatest, not to mention hip, cool, and trendy, but suburbia has it’s place too.
What if we took global urbanization seriously, and those of us in the suburbs saw our communities as future urban centers of the world? What if the church began investing and building infrastructure into the suburbs and were on the leading edge of every urban tipping point?
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If you’ve been following Barack Obamamania, you may have seen Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s latest speech. I think he’s quite the communicator and offers some profound insights, but I can’t say I quite agree with a lot of what he says, or the arrogance he sometimes projects.
What caught my attention was his discourse on Black liberation theology. Wright’s passion, and the narrative behind it is quite powerful. Which of course makes me wonder if there is any type of corresponding Asian theology that we can speak of with such pride???
The Chinese immigrant church has been booming in Toronto that past decade. I’ve had ‘white’ pastors tell me a number of times how enamored they are with the life they find in the growing Chinese church. They also ask when the Chinese church will start reaching back out to the rest of culture.
All the while, I know many 2nd generation Chinese Jesus-followers are a bit embarrassed by the mostly ‘ethnic’ church that they’re a part of. They’d love to reach out to others, but can’t get passed the initial ethnic barriers. Is there a story in the Chinese or Asian context with which we can uniquely proclaim as the Black church does?
I know there must be one, my seminary even offers courses specifically on Chinese theology and spirituality. I can’t say I’ve heard much in my time in Chinese church circles though.
I do know that when great oppression meets the liberating Gospel of Christ, revivals are often stoked. This of course is a huge part of the narrative in the black church. It’s also an integral part of the church in China that is exploding, which everyone seems to be raving about these days.
As for Chinese or Asian Christians in the west, I can’t say I hear a unifying story being shouted from the rooftops.
I’m sure part of it is due to a cultural inferiority complex along with some model minority issues, but someone please educate me on this one before I make something up… is there a uniquely Asian theology we should be cherishing? Or is there really a need for one?
May 13, 2008 
Posted in Books, Quotes 
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A new book by 
I just finished 
I’m out of school, unemployed, no longer sick, and my life’s starting to get some rhythm back.
I was at the 
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