Frozen as a picture of what is wrong with our culture

Frozen is an amazing cultural phenomena.  And people are going to be trying to figure it out forever.  And since people hate formulas, all these attempts are going to fall short.  

But I am more interested in what culturally popular things say about us than how to reproduce it.  Yes, I believe good story telling is a dying art and people still love a good story.  Frozen is a good story.  But what worries me as a pastor is the fact that Elsa is the one everyone likes.  Elsa is the name jumping in popularity not Anna.  Elsa's song is the one that won the awards despite the fact that the movie itself is trying to tell you everything Elsa is saying is a lie and wrong.  The movie has great themes.  Being alone is not the answer.  True love is self sacrificial and should be found in places other than romantic love.  It is foolish to jump to romantic love.  And you can even see the dire consequences of parenting as the parents pathetic and awful advice to their daughter ruins her and her relationship with her sister.  

Yet, the song everyone loves is the song that is being sung while Elsa endangers everyone with her self centered behavior.  It is the song that ultimately has to be undone to save everyone.  And people seem to be identifying with Elsa rather than with Anna, who is the actual hero of the movie.  

This is not a one time thing either.  Take a look at the popularity of the Hunger Games.  Katniss is not a good person, and in the books at least, she knows it.  Yet, she is loved by millions.  Or the popularity of Twilight where a Vampire is the main love interest and people are supposed to be cheering for a young girl to become a vampire.  

Don't just stick with movies.  You name it, our culture gets it backward and wrong.  Take wrestling as an example.  John Cena is good guy on WWE wrestling.  Never does anything wrong, does not break the rules and gives fans gifts.  Yet, he is often booed, and the bad guys who break the rules are cheered.  This is not the way it was when I was growing up.  

Take Lebron James.  People love to cheer against this guy.  They don't like him and maybe his live decision to go to Miami was in bad taste, but the money from that went to the Boy's Club of Cleveland.  And it is not like Lebron has been accused of rape (Kobe Bryant) or has a massive gambling problem (Michael Jordan) or has committed adultery with thousands of women (Magic Johnson).  And no one even cares about Tim Duncan who just seems to be a good guy who does not get in anyone's way.  

Look at the world of superheroes.  People hate Superman and Batman is beloved.  Why?  Because Batman is dark and almost over the edge to being a bad guy.  Superman is a boy scout who does what is right and that is that.   He stands for truth, justice, and the American way.  People hate that now days.  Or just looking broader DC Comic Superheroes (other than Batman) do not do so well while Marvel Super Heroes (like the Avengers) do great.  Why?  Because Marvel's superheroes were always flawed and broken while DC usually had heroes that were morally upright and motivated by right.  The DC Comics sold much better than Marvel in the 50's and early 60's.  Now not so much.  You can probably look at any industry and see this very thing.  

I believe we have gone beyond a society that just does not know the difference between right and wrong.  We live in a world that can tell the difference between right and wrong, but has decided to idolize the wrong, and despise the right.  Even when a movie like Frozen hits us right between the eyes and tries to tell us right is right and wrong is wrong, we still screw it up and attach ourselves to the wrong.  And since it is a kids' movie, it makes it all the more worrisome.  The message that we should love the wrong is getting to us early and often.  

The answer of course is the gospel.  However, we need to make sure we are administering the gospel early and helping even our young children begin to discern right from wrong and love the right and hate the wrong at a very early age.  This I believe is one of the reasons that we lose so many young people.  As studies have shown, we have often lost them while they are still attending.  We have not helped them see through the lies of the culture about evil being a lovable thing.  This is one place where the culture is way ahead of us.  They want kids to love evil.  They get kids emotionally involved.  They go to their heart strings and attach them to the wrong places.  We as the church too often are still telling our kids "No don't hate.  It is not nice to hate."  While that may be true if we are talking about people, we need to be teaching our kids a heartfelt hatred of sin that makes them turn from it, and a heartfelt love of God that makes them run toward Him.  It is never too early to start.  

Three Forms vs. WCF Sabbath - Final Quote

As a nice summary of the difference between the Continental View and the Westminster view, I found a good quote from Dr. Lewis Mayer.  Since some have also thought the difference went away in the 16th century as the view evolved, Mayer should serve as good proof that is not true.  Mayer was born late 18th century and did most of his work in the early 19th century.  He was a professor at Mercersburg Theological Seminary and a member of the German Reformed church, the early RCUS.

"The German Reformed Church, like the Lutheran, considers the Lord's Day a sacred season, set apart for the performance of the ordinary public worship of God, and deriving all its sacredness from the service to which it is appointed; the Presbyterian regards the day as intrinsically holy.  Presbyterians consider it the sabbath linked to the Fourth commandment, but modified by our Lord as to the day and the penalty of its violation and derive its sanctity from the fact that the seventh day is the day of God's resting from all His work."  -pg.20-21 the History of the German Reformed Church

In fairness Mayer has a list of ways the German Church is different than the Presbyterians and this is but one.  I agree with most of them, but one of them does show the beginnings of Mercersburg Theology.  But it is a late German Reformed theologian writing about why it is wrong to consider Reformed Continental Theology the same as English Presbyterian Theology.

WCF vs. 3FU Holiness (Sabbath part 3)

WCF vs. 3FU Sabbath – Part 3

So what is the practical difference between the Continental View of the Sabbath and the Westminster view?  First should be obvious.  The Continental view of the 4^th commandment means the 4^th commandment applies every day of your life, and the Westminster applies only 52 times a year (once a week). 

Second, I do think that there is a disagreement here that goes much deeper.  The Westminster holds to “keeping holy to God such express times as appointed in his word, expressly one whole day in seven” (WLC #116).  The logical question is how do you keep a day holy.  That is answered in the Larger Catechism 117.  “The Sabbath or Lord’s Day is to be sanctified by an holy resting all the day . . .” (WLC 117).  The question goes on to list not only avoiding sin, but also recreation, worldly business, and everything that is not public or private worship or a work of necessity or mercy.  In other words the day is kept holy by avoiding work and attending to worship or mercy.  This is a “holy resting”.  This holy resting is a work we do.  We do it by avoiding most things and worshiping all the day long. 

The Three Forms of Unity has a different concept of keeping the Sabbath Holy.  The concept found in the Heidelberg Catechism is one of “all the day of my life rest from my evil works and allow the Lord to work in me by His Spirit and thus in this life begin the everlasting Sabbath” (HC 103).  Notice the different emphasis.  The Westminster is saying that we make the day itself holy by our “holy rest” or our righteous keeping of the commandment.  The Heidelberg is equating holiness more with allowing the Holy Spirit to work in us.  The Westminster is again focused on our works and our righteousness and the Heidelberg is focused on the Spirit working in us. 

This is the same disagreement we found in the Westminster’s doctrine of assurance.  Assurance in the Heidelberg is found mainly in the Spirit working in us through the sacraments and preaching.  Our assurance was mainly in looking to Christ via the Spirit.  The Westminster’s focus for assurance was our walk in good conscience before the Lord.  So then we should not be all that surprised at the difference on the 4^th Commandment.  The Westminster has work that can be measured and pointed to so that when you look at your walk in a good conscience, you have something to look upon.  The Heidleberg does not put works as a very high priority for assurance, and the 4^th Commandment view is in line with that.  Rather the Heidelberg makes assurance directly related to looking upon Christ, and this is exactly what the 4^th Commandment is about.  Letting God work in us as we acknowledge what is good in this world.  On the seventh day the Lord acknowledge as he had made was very good.  This is what we are to be doing.  Acknowledging it is God who is very good and His work is very good, and our sanctification and holiness is from His work in us. 

This points to a possible disagreement about holiness or at least a different emphasis.  The Westminster holds that one day is more holy than others (or at least we are to keep it holy).  It also emphasizes our work in holiness.  It our holy rest, our keeping.  The Three Forms are different.  It emphasizes God’s work in holiness and holds all days the same.  All the days of our life are to be kept holy, and that is by the Spirit working in us.  The need for the holiness of Christ is repeated in questions 36, 60, and 61 and our holiness is only mentioned in what was lost in the fall of Adam.  The Westminster usually uses it in reference to our holiness.  They mention it as what was lost by Adam (4.2), that we are sanctified to works of holiness without which we will not see the Lord (13.1), our spiritual war leads to our perfecting holiness thanks to the strength of the Spirit (13.3), in the chapter on good works about our fruit unto holiness (16.2), serving the Lord in holiness and righteousness is the goal of Christian Liberty (20.3), and being made perfect in holiness at the Second Coming (32.1). 

Thus the Heidelberg speaks of Christ’s holiness and our need for it and Christ giving it to us.  The Westminster speaks of Holiness as a result of our sanctification and what we grow in and work on during this life.  This is a difference between the Westminster and the Three Forms that is all throughout and finds its clearest difference in the 4^th Commandment. 

Why I think Youth Groups fit in the Reformed Tradition

Youth groups are a hot topic; people love them or hate them.  There is an article that is getting a lot of attention that points to Youth Groups as the reason so many young people leave church in their twenties.  

I pastor a church in the RCUS, and I would bet that our church is in the minority in the denomination in having a youth group.  I agree that this is a very flawed survey, and is sponsored by the Family Integrated Church movement, which is probably leaning toward Patriarchy.  But put all of that aside and we are still faced with the question, are youth groups bad?  

It is hard to read responses from many youth pastors and not think, "Youth groups are indeed the problem".  Any defense of youth groups that includes blaming parents, blaming boring church services, and quotes YoungLife as a positive is more likely part of the problem than part of the solution.  In fact I am willing to say if your church's youth group is creating worship services for the youth, then it is clearly part of the problem.  Yet, I still think there is a place for Youth groups.

I know there are many who think that segregation of the church by age is dividing the church.  I agree and disagree at the same time.  Whether we like it or not, the world around us is age divided.  Unless your kid spends all his or her time at home and never goes outside to play with friends, your child is age divided.  My 11 year old plays baseball in a different league than my 9 year old.  And have you ever tried to make a Sunday School class that teaches both the 3 year olds and 65 year olds?  Age division makes some logical sense.  

I think Youth Groups can be a great positive for the youth.  I think it can actually bind them to the local church rather than divide them.  But several things have to be present.  First, you can't have a worship service for them.  Worship is not age divided.  And if it is, then you are sending a message of separation rather than unity.  It will also train youth to grow up and expect church to be like it was during youth.  This generation's church service is last generation's youth group.  Second, the whole idea of Youth Pastor has to go.  This is another message of separation.  Your youth pastor is not the head pastor.  Your youth pastor is a special guy who just does one thing.  Oh and your youth pastor does not really participate in worship either, except maybe on one or two Sundays a year.  It is another separation.  However, if the actual pastor spends time with the youth, would it not help bind them to the church?  

This is how I currently envision youth ministry.  The pastor sitting down with the youth and leading a bible study.  Yes, in my church this often involves pizza or candy, but you will have a hard time convincing me that anything cannot be improved with food.  But the pastor sitting down with the youth and having Bible studies that help them with the particular trials they are facing is a good thing.  Probably most of the adults in your church are not struggling with dating or how to choose a spouse.  And thus, your church is probably not teaching on it very often.  But this is something the college students are facing.  And can't high school students get a head start on knowing what to look for in a potential mate?  Having a time and place for the pastor to lead a bible study on this with those who are facing it can be a valuable thing.  

If we believe Bible study is good, why would be against bible study for a particular age group that faces particular challenges?  And is there a better way for a pastor to get to know the needs of people who are valued members of his church than to sit down with them and talk to them over a pizza?  Maybe your youth group needs to have a lesson about why age divided worship services are bad.  Maybe you need to explain how wonderful it is to be in worship with people of all ages.  It is a timely topic for college students who are often being invited to church services geared for the young.  Explain to them why they should not abandon your church that sings hymns and has 80 year olds in the service.  Our youth group talked about it, and I think it was a discussion they needed to have.  

I know that Youth groups are a hot button issue.  I understand the desire to not be replacing parents, and on the other hand, I understand the desire to draw in young people.  There are always ditches on both sides of the road.  But for me the issue comes down to the call of the Lord: "Feed my sheep."  Each church needs to ask that very question.  Are the youth getting fed, and are they being equipped with the word to face the challenges they face?  I think the youth group is one way a church can try and feed the sheep.  It is not the only way at all, but I think it can be a possible way.