What Can We Expect In 2006?

I make no claim to the ability of predictive prophecy. Since the close of the canon, this charismatic gift is no longer extant or necessary; the revealed precepts of God in Scripture alone are sufficient for all concerns of faith and conduct. Yet, as I gaze over the deteriorating American evangelical landscape, the beliefs and patterns of yesteryear bequeath us both a solid basis and copious room for plausible anticipation.

For example,

WE CAN EXPECT THE CONTINUING ATTACKS ON THE FUNDAMENTALS OF EVANGELICALISM.

This is easily predicted from the already established teachings of such popular soi-distant Bishops as Eddie Long; TD Jakes; Clarence McClendon; Kenneth C. Ulmer, and of Dr. Creflo Dollar, and others of that class. It is sad that these leaders and institutions are still counted as genuinely Christian when their theology has been consistently, irreverently and unapologetically flaunted contra the salient doctrines of the Faith: God, the Trinity, the Person and work of Christ, the humanity and eternal deity of Christ; etc. It is shocking that they are continued to be viewed as evangelical. We stand in grave need of aligning our assessments with the revelatory truth of Scripture.

These infidelities will assuredly wax more and more in frequency and in intensity.

WE CAN EXPECT AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF BLACKS EMBRACING REFORMED THEOLOGY

The growth in the number of Reformed blogs, websites and the increasing attendance at the Ligonier and other conferences are salutary trends. It is heartening to see more Blacks embrace the Reformed distinctives. In the least, it signals our:
· desire to grab hold of our faith in its most accurate, sound, consistent and robust presentation.
· recognition of the inability of other doctrines to present and preserve the sovereignty of God in His glorious, voluntary Self-manifestation in creation and redemption -- the latter, through the Person and atoning work of Christ.
· understanding of the primacy of God in the entire order of salvation, from election in eternity past; to effectual calling, regeneration, conversion, justification, adoption, sanctification and perseverance in time and history; to glorification in eternity future.

While these are good ground for rejoicing, a caution must be sounded here. There is a tendency for many of us to equate Reformed Theology with a personal acceptance of the Doctrines of Grace (the Five Points of Calvinism). It is true that Reformed Theology does include these five points but it is also crucial that we realize that it is not limited to these designations.

Reformed Theology is, above all, a worldview -- a way of viewing and understanding God, man, sin, life and death, etc. It is the framework from which we view our world and the presuppositions we hold about it. In short, it forms and informs our views and our actions on immediate as well as ultimate issues. To limit Reformed Theology to a personal acceptance of the five Doctrines of Grace is to compartmentalize it and to reduce it to the particular, though crucial, realm of soteriology, the doctrine of salvation, and to neglect its context of and impact on the covenant community. The danger here is both patent and pressing. Such a reduction allows us to:
· remain in churches dominated by Arminian theology, singing the old Arminian songs, holding a defective view of the meaning, nature, unity, purpose, offices, sacraments, etc., of the church; a deficient view of eschatology; an adulterated perspective of worship, etc.
· reject Covenant Theology as an inseparable component of Reformed Theology and as the controlling hermeneutic of iredemptive history.
· be biblical in our soteriology but "cultural" in our thoughts about politics, art, sports, etc. Culture takes priority over Christ.
· adopt a minimalist position regarding this system of doctrine.

We cannot append Reformed Theology to our other ideas about life and accurately designate ourselves as truly Reformed. As stated before, this body of doctrine is a controlling, incorporating category, the grand rubric of all theological reality. As such it precedes and defines all epithets.

My concern is that all Reformed Blacks (as opposed to Black and Reformed ) will graduate beyond these initial steps into the full-orbed richness of Reformed thought.


OTHER EXPECTATIONS:
· The TBN empire will expand in number of stations as well as in the number of high-profile performers appearing on its programs. Granted their theological content, how can they not?
· Churches in the Black community will feature more celebrities in their worship.
· "Christian music" will be more and more secular while its patrons continue "to get their praise on."
· The Person and atoning work of Jesus Christ will recede more and more into the spreading umbrage of secular thought that is invading the church.
· The accelerating intrusion of female preachers (a disturbing oxymoron) and Word-Faith theology will cause many traditional Baptist and Methodist churches to drift further away from their historic roots. Many Baptists are really not Baptists anymore. Their designation is still retained but their doctrine and church life are being determined by an eclectic theology.
· The New Black Magisterium will expand. Self-appointed bishops, apostles and husband and wife "evangi-couples” will continue to expand. Mega-churches will thrive and more cathedrals, the mounting symbol of the new magisterium, will also appear. Our people will be plunged further and further into a “neo-medieval“ theological darkness. As the Old Covenant prophet lamented: “An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land: the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; my people love to have it so, but what will you do when the end comes?” Jer 5:30-31.

· As our post-literal culture continues in its epistemological shift from a print-based to an image-driven society, we can count on the insertion of more Power-Point presentations, graphics and images in the services. We will soon have an electronic gospel. Popular sermons will become shorter and will be adorned with more levity, testimonies, urgent political pitches and engaging story-telling. The service will have more drama, skits and “Christian comedy” to relieve the strain of sustained deliberation. We are not far from a service with commercial breaks. Already, some regard the offertory as playing this role!

· The inordinate concern for the care and safety of animals, many times over the interests and concerns of humans, will make more headway in both Black and White communities. While shopping last Christmas Eve my wife saw a Black man proudly cuddling a puppy in an Atlanta mall. Yes, these creatures will continue to exercise dominion over us. As the sign in a vet’s office in Chamblee, Ga says: “Pets Are People Too.”

In the face all this,
· God's remnant will grow stronger in (the) faith through radical self-denial and unjust suffering. The faithful servants will stand and be counted as they live their lives focusing on the things that are above, where they are seated in Christ, as they reflect heaven on earth. They will continue to be bold witnesses for Christ at great cost for they realize their world to be the theater of their pilgrimage, a journey that culminates in the New Jerusalem..

By God’s grace, may we be included in this lot.