by Mark Douglas. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2005. ISBN 0-7425-1432-3. Pb., 262 pp., $27.95.
Years from now, people who take their Christian faith seriously will still be reading and reflecting upon this exceptional work. Mark Douglas has written a book that will surely stand the test of time. Confessing Christ in the 21st Century is one of those rare books that will stimulate discussion and challenge thought for generations to come. The larger hope, however, is that it will serve a useful purpose for us even now. Indeed it does.
Having acknowledged the changing cultural landscape of our day, this author returns to the earliest and most basic creed of the New Testament Church–Jesus is Lord. More importantly, he encourages us to embrace this faith for our own in the 21st century. Douglas doesn’t argue that Jesus is Lord. Rather, he simply assumes, or affirms, that this creed is central to the Christian church. Page by page, Douglas carefully and consistently explores the implications of this affirmation. Woven throughout are suggested Scripture readings that await further study.
The format of Confessing Christ is based on two essential questions addressed by the author. Douglas advocates that contemporary American Christians seek to answer these related challenges: (1) What does it mean to confess Jesus as Lord in our time and place? (2) What are the political and ethical implications that follow from this confession? Most helpful to the reader, the book is divided into two distinct parts. The first is a theological treatise of what it means that Jesus is Lord. The second is a set of practices that naturally flow from this conviction. The first half of the book is more demanding to read. The second half is more demanding to live. Both parts are worthy of our best efforts. As Douglas attests, this work “is for the thinking church–for theologically mature laity, pastors, seminary students, and others who wish to explore their faith rather than simply have it reaffirmed.”
If the old adage is true that timing is everything, then Confessing Christ is truly a gift. And the timing could not be better, for at least two reasons. First, the community of faith has once again made its way to the empty tomb. We have wrestled with the reality of Christ’s resurrection and its power in our lives. This experience is given a missional perspective by Mark Douglas, who maintains that the church by definition faces outward. The church, of which we are a part, “lives in the confidence that the same Lord who came, lived, died, and was resurrected in the past is returning to make all things new.” How we live in the meantime is in large part what it means to confess Christ. With the resurrection as the basis for Jesus’ Lordship, the book has an Easter ending.
Secondly, the vivid and vital reminder that Jesus is Lord is timely for many mainline denominations that are debating potentially divisive issues. Those of us in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) are literally bracing ourselves for the continuing controversy over ordination standards that will take place at the General Assembly and beyond. How refreshing it would be to base our most passionate opinions on solid theological grounding. Confessing Christ offers us this opportunity, and more. We are already, through our constitution, a confessional church that values a faith that is Reformed and always being reformed. Using our common commitment to Christ as Lord is perhaps the best path forward in this tense time.
Douglas offers illustration and adds a word of caution in his section on interpreting Scripture. His insights here might well apply directly to our denominational issues. “As a result of their own preoccupation with words,” Douglas asserts, fundamentalists and liberals alike “turn Scripture into a tool for their own purposes rather than trusting that it is an instrument through which God works.”
His delightful example comes from Winnie the Pooh. Pooh and Piglet go woozle hunting. Finding tracks, they follow the trail of these potentially strange and scary animals. As they walk farther, the number of woozle tracks grows greater, and their fears grow stronger. Finally, Christopher Robin, who has been observing from a nearby tree, puts things in perspective, pointing out that Pooh and Piglet have been going in circles, tracking themselves the entire time! The moral of the story, says Douglas, is that if we go looking for something we may well find it, whether it is there, or not. Careful attention to the Lordship of Christ clarifies and enlarges this conversation.
Mark Douglas has given a gift to the church with a book written for our times. The personal tribute to the life and witness of the late Shirley Guthrie–as mentor, colleague, and friend–is worth the price of its purchase. An added bonus is the self-contained chapters on topics that will preach and teach (not to mention the well marked index for ready reference!). But the real value of Confessing Christ in the 21st Century is a message that dares to shape our ministry and our mission. After all, concludes Douglas, the goal is that through the power of the Holy Spirit, we might “learn to live gratefully and gracefully.” And we might indeed give greater thanks to God for the Lord of our lives.
John Brearley is the pastor of John Knox Church in Greenville, S.C.
