A Theological Crisis - The Civil War

Pastor Wesley Grubb • May 01, 2023

A Theological Crisis - The American Civil War

War is always a crisis. Armies, nations, and civilians are all bound up in the horrors of armed conflict. War is often a historical crisis. Destinies are at stake. War inevitably entails personal crisis. Lives and families are forever changed by the experience of battle and the loss of loved ones. I am writing this article on April 26, exactly 158 years after the end of the American Civil War. The Civil War was undoubtedly a crisis for the soldiers, the nation, and the destiny of the American people. In many ways, that war made us, and continues to make us, the country and the people we are today. Shelby Foote famously described the Civil War as “the crossroads of our being.” It was a great personal and national crisis. However, it was also a theological crisis.

Leading historian Mark Noll wrote a book called The Civil War as a Theological Crisis, published in 2006. The book documents and addresses the fact that Northerners and Southerners experienced the shock and horror of the Civil War as a deeply theological crisis, a test of faith, a dark cloud over the ways of the American God. The crisis centered around two points of contention: does the Bible (and therefore God) sanction the institution of slavery, and which side of the war does God really fight for? Both sides believed in the righteousness of their cause, the truth of their convictions, and the biblical fidelity of their institutions. Both sides prayed in earnest and proclaimed that God in his providence would rise up to vindicate them and grant a glorious victory. Thus, the Civil War became a deeply theological crisis. The outcome of the war would determine whose interpretation of Scripture is correct and whose moral convictions and political institutions were approved by heaven. The nature and character of God was on the line.

This understanding of the connection between war on earth and the ways of heaven did not originate with 19th century Americans. In fact, the idea is exceedingly ancient. In the worlds of ancient Israel and the early church, the deeds of gods and humans were closely linked. Everyone understood that what happened on earth was a reflection of what happened in heaven. When earthly armies clashed, heavenly armies likewise battled. The outcome of war “down here” was sure proof of which gods had prevailed “up there.” Those favored by the strongest gods win. This understanding of war as theological crisis has served throughout history to vindicate the causes and convictions of the victors and to justify whatever treatment they chose for the losers.

I want to suggest that war is not the best approach to determining the correct interpretation of Scripture, or the nature of God, or what God thinks about our political and social institutions. God’s providence does not have such a clear, one-to-one correspondence to what he approves. As Scripture and history make clear, God is willing to allow many things that he does not approve. So we must beware of treating war as a theological crisis. It isn’t. God certainly does not want us to use armed conflict to settle our theological disputes. That idea has been ruinous for the church throughout history. Violence is never a source of divine revelation. Victory is not the test of truth.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Wesley

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A "One Another" Church

By Wesley Grubb • 01 May, 2024

Thirty-five years ago, in April of 1989, my parents became Christians. They were in their late 20s, and I was only two years old (I turned three that December). They were led to the Lord by a team of door-to-door evangelists from a tiny local church in our hometown. After my parents were saved, that door-to-door team invited them to church and made sure they had a place to belong. Mom and dad made great friends and built relationships that have lasted to this day, all these years later. Once mom and dad found their place in the church, they had the opportunity to help others find a place. That small, country church in the tiny town of Denton, NC, felt like a genuine family. People loved each other, spent time with each other during the week, raised their families together, worshiped the Lord passionately, prayed fervently, were hungry for God’s word, shared their faith, and continued doing what they did best—being the warmest, kindest, most welcoming congregation in town. By the time I was in high school, the church had built a new facility, launched two Sunday services, and at its height reached 500 members. Not bad for a town of twelve hundred! There is no magic formula for growing a big church, and there is no guarantee that every church that does what my old home church did will see the same results. God is in charge of the growth of our church. The numbers are up to him, but obedience is up to us. Being a “one another” church like my old home church is not a magic formula; it is the normal expectation of every local church, regardless of its size. If we are the body of Christ, if we are brothers and sisters in the Lord, if we are truly members together in the family of God—then our Christian lives ought to reflect that reality outside of Sunday and outside the walls of our building. We are called to be a genuine family that cares for one another and shows up to support the church. If we all strive more and more to be a congregation that worships passionately, prays fervently, studies the Scriptures deeply, and loves each other selflessly, we will truly be the kind of church that is situated perfectly to receive the outpouring of God’s blessings. We will absolutely grow spiritually, and, God willing, we will be ripe to grow numerically as well. I will never forget one time as a teenager something the pastor of my old home church said. He and I, along with some others from the church, went to lunch at a local restaurant. As we were eating, a man came up to the table who knew someone in our group named Rick. Rick said, “Hey, I would like to introduce you to my minister. This is Charles.” Pastor Charles then said to the guy, “Hey, I would like you to meet Rick; he’s my minister.” Charles wanted the whole church to have that mindset: he was the pastor, but every member is a minister. In Ephesians 4:12, Paul teaches that every church member should be equipped to do the work of ministry and build up the body of Christ. I might be the pastor, but all of us are ministers. We are called to be a “one another” church. I challenge you to give serious thought to how you can join us in this biblical vision for the Forks. Let us walk in obedience to the Lord and watch how he blesses. Grace and peace, Pastor Wesley

A Time for Feasting

By Wesley Grubb • 01 Apr, 2024

With the coming of Spring, the church enters into the joyous season of Easter. During Lent, we traditionally practice the discipline of self-denial. We give up something for Lent. This is an act of fasting for forty days. Easter is the mirror opposite of Lent. Just as we give up something for Lent, we are encouraged to take up something for Easter. Lent is about fasting, but Easter is about feasting. Easter is a forty-day period of celebration and rejoicing. The church greets the new life of Spring bursting forth in the earth by commemorating the glorious morning when our Lord burst forth from his tomb, bringing us eternal life. Here is how the apostle Paul says it: [God] saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Timothy 1:9-10). Here we have the meaning of Easter encapsulated. These are the things we celebrate, and all of them were accomplished and secured for us by Jesus on that first Easter through his resurrection. Our whole salvation is a sovereign work of God . It is not based on our holiness, our works, our purposes, or our merits. We are saved only by God’s purpose and grace, which he ordained to give us in eternity past. God saves us first, and then he calls us to live a holy life. And the way we obtain these gifts is only in union with Christ Jesus in his death and resurrection. As Paul says, “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. . . . So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 6:4, 5, 11). Our ultimate salvation is rescue from death . Being saved means achieving immortality. God’s sovereign purpose and saving grace, which he prepared in eternity and revealed in history, are intended to do for us one day what he did for Jesus on Easter. The symbol of our salvation is not only the cross, but the empty tomb. In his resurrection, Jesus abolished our death and brought us life. Paul says, “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you” (Rom. 8:11). Easter is the celebration of Christ’s resurrection in the past and the anticipation of our own resurrection in the future. This is why we take up something for Lent. We do something joyful for others that promotes flourishing and well-being. We add something to our lives that brings more life to ourselves and others. More life, unending life, abundant life—that is what we celebrate, and we give Jesus all the glory. What will you take up this Easter that is life-giving? Make it your aim this Easter to be the kind of person who brings life and joy to the people around you. He is risen! Grace and peace, Pastor Wesley