Tony Jones Profaning God's Word

An article appeared recently on the blog "The Church and Postmodern Culture: Conversation" by Tony Jones, a recognized guru of the emergent church movement. "Why is the Emerging Church drawn to deconstructive theology?" The latter question being the title of Tony's article is a good question. I believe the answer lies in dissolution with what the professing body of Christ has come to embrace and identify with that in no way reflects the Truth of God's Word. However it appears from what we hear from Tony and other postmodern proponents and emergent types is simply a sideways move from the traditions of men established by our fathers to traditions of men established by the postmodernist way of thinking. While I in no way embrace the unwholesome language by the writer (Scripture commands that we abstain from it) deconstruction is something I embrace. Along with deconstruction there must be new construction. Deconstruction has to tear everything down to and including removing the footers of the foundation so as to build on the only authorized foundation. If all the old building is not thoroughly razed anything built on what is left of it will be weak and beggarly. It will not stand the tempest of storm that surely comes against all.

The non-biblical traditions and practices of the modern day professing church lie in an improperly laid foundation by men as far back as the beginning in the garden. The foundation becomes suspect and compromised at the very first hint of subtracting from or adding to what God has said. Jah, the God of the Bible, has told us in very clear terms who He is and has given us instruction as to how to live and worship Him. But man, being puffed up in knowledge, believes he has some autonomy that he really doesn't possess to determine who Jah is and how to relate to the Almighty. It didn't work for Adam and Eve, those who died in the flood, Nimrod and those at Babel, the Israelites and Aaron when they made the golden calf, the many other accounts of rejecting Jah's Law in Scripture and it will not work for us today. Somehow the 21^st Century professing Christian believes he has evolved into some intellectually spiritually superior state that allows him to determine for himself how he should live. The creation is saying to the Creator, I have now evolved into a state in which I no longer need your instruction. I can take it from here. The professing body of Christ has been in reality devolving into this apostasy for a long time and the emergent church is sadly following in the same path thinking they have the answer to the problem. In fact they are adding to the confusion - to the Babel that the professing church has become.

Tony Jones, in his article, proves the lack of reverence for the Divine Word of Jah by using vulgar language to describe Him. I say Him because He is the His Word. Tony says, "I think the Bible is a f***ing scary book (pardon my French, but that's the only way I know how to convey how strongly I feel about this)." This flies in the face of what the Word says our reverence for it should be. When we consider the fact that He Himself said that he considered His Word higher than His name. And when we consider what Tony has said in light of Philippians 4:8 we should be very concerned. "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy - meditate on these things."

What is true? Yahshua - Jesus said in His prayer for us to our Father, "Your Word is Truth." That sets the stage for the rest of the descriptive language in the verse. The words "noble...just...pure...lovely...good report...virtuous...praiseworthy" speak of the Living Word. How then does "I think the Bible is a f***ing scary book" fit into these parameters and exhortation? The Word of God is a scary thing for a person who is not willing to embrace it. For those who do, by faith, it is holy and pure and a delight. If you doubt that, see what Paul says about it in Romans Seven. In particular Paul is speaking of the Law - the Torah. How many of you have ever really stopped to consider that? When Paul, Jesus, John, Luke, Mark, Matthew, Peter, and others in the New Testament referred to Scripture and the Word they were speaking of Torah! That is a foreign concept to many, but it is the truth! Now can you, in light of what we've read what Paul exhorted in Philippians Four, believe that he would ever utter a word such as the one Tony Jones said in any context, let alone concerning God's Holy Word?

The doctrine of deconstruction is at the heart of Tony's article. In his article he writes "As Jack Caputo writes in Deconstruction in a Nutshell, anyone with half-an-ear for the Jewish or Christian scriptures will recognize that "deconstruction has a very messianic ring to it."

This connection between deconstruction and the Bible is especially meaningful, methinks. I am quite convinced that the Bible is a subversive text, that it constantly undermines our assumptions, transgresses our boundaries, and subverts our comforts." As far as I can take this statement on the surface it has an element of truth that I can embrace and build on. The problem is that this statement is actually being taken in such a way as to drive the one who embraces the thought contained in it to simply go into a different man centered direction than the man centered direction the church is already steeped in. Would it be that this thought would cause such a one who considers it to reject anything man established, man centered and maintained, for the simple Truth of what God - YHWH has established in the written Word.

Again, Caputo said, "I am quite convinced that the Bible is a subversive text, that it constantly undermines our assumptions, transgresses our boundaries, and subverts our comforts." This concept of the Bible, biblically applied would cause it, and in Truth Him, to be in the process of deconstructing me and you. Deconstruction, as I see it biblically, is putting off the old man. Construction is then putting on Messiah. In the professing church our deconstruction falls into the category of seeing our long held traditions that are in opposition to God's Torah (the foundation of all Scripture) for the lie that they are, rejecting those lies and coming out of those practices. The construction part is putting on Messiah (the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world... that takes away the sin of the world... Jah's Passover), the Truth embodied in God's Instruction; walking as He walked. He did only what His Father said. So we should do likewise. Grace, the causative action of the Holy Spirit, through our faith - believing what He has said, working in our hearts (inner man/woman) making us His workmanship, created in Yahshua Messiah for good works, which Jah prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. The Word of God certainly "transgresses our boundaries, and subverts our comforts." Our self imposed boundaries and comforts place us on a wide road with a wide gate. But the True God - Jah shows by His Law - Torah that our boundaries and comforts are transgressing His established boundaries. Continuing on that wide road, smoothly paved by our own self imposed religious asphalt leads to destruction. Real comfort only comes from the Holy Spirit - who is God - who writes Jah's Law on our hearts and puts it in our minds. He, by grace through faith, puts us on a narrow road with a narrow gate that is very lonely if we are seeking fellowship with a carnal world - be it called Christian or not.

We who profess to be disciples of the True God must set all the prideful arrogance of self imposed religion, haughty intellectualism aside and seek the wisdom from above found by Spiritual discernment of Scripture. We must hear the call of the prophets of old and the Son who now speaks the same message to us as they: Repent from man centered religion and return to the Law of YHWH and live! It is really very simple but is complicated by our self seeking flesh. I struggle with it and so do you. That is why Messiah said the gate that leads to life is narrow and difficult and few go in by it, but the gate that leads to destruction is wide and MANY go in by it. So we must choose. We can continue to argue whether my man centered practices are better than yours, or whether your emergent direction is better the traditional church's continuing slide into apostasy... or better than all of that nonsense we can hold them all and every thought we have up to the blinding light and scrutiny of Scripture.

"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (fleshly-worldly) but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Messiah, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled." -2 Corinthians 10:4-6

Our belief and obedience to what is written and rejection of every "high thing that exalts itself against" that knowledge is scripturally accurate deconstruction and construction. It is the process of dying to the flesh, denying self and living for Him the way He has commanded us to. He said it better than I could ever say it. In John 14:15 Jesus, better to be called by His given Hebrew name Yahshua, said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments." Coming from the One who gave them in the beginning, established them on stone at Sinai, and desires to write it on our hearts and put it in our minds, we would do well to have ears to hear what He is saying to us. I suggest that Tony Jones and those who believe the Word is anything other than the black and white, absolute Word of an Almighty God who executes judgment on those who reject it or associate profanity with it consider what He has said. If there is any one of us who doesn't have a fear of the Lord that places His Word in an unassailable reverential position, may we be warned.