'Who decides what is truth?' asks GA preacher By Jeremy Grant The Layman Online Tuesday, June 22, 1999 FORT WORTH – "What if we use faith and truth in the same sentence? Do we create a non sequitur?" quipped the Rev. Sheila Gustafson, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Santa Fe, N.M. In so doing, Gustafson, preaching at the General Assembly's second morning worship service, raised the question of how the church fulfills the Great End of the Church, "the preservation of the truth." Gustafson's message was heady and remarkably short on illustration and practical application, yet her thoughts came through loud and clear. In answer to her own questions about "the Jesus Christ," Gustafson insisted that truth in the gospels "doesn't come in the form of a law book or a list of instructions," but rather in the person of Jesus Christ. Underscoring her point, Gustafson added that the New Testament is concerned less about propositional truth than the living truth. The Gospel is not about what we do, but what we must become. The New Testament remembers aspects of Jesus' life in order to transform people; it doesn't offer standards for us to be judged by but shows us what we can become, she says. Gustafson's message is a good example of the question, "Has God spoken – and what difference does it make?" Truth, said Gustafson, is slippery. The footnotes of the Book of Confessions show us, she says, that we have changed our mind on truth. And yet what was most evident to this worship participant was that Gustafson does not believe the Living God has given us a clear description of the holy life we are called to live as Christians. It appears that, in her view, we now live in a dispensation of grace in which there is no call other than to raise up the "unconditional voice of love and acceptance," as Gustafson charged worshipers to do. Such preaching ignores the majority of God's Word. On the other hand, this morning's worship service included a marvelous arrangement of "Blessed Assurance" sung by the Binnerri Church Choir from Richardson, Texas, in both English and Korean. Such beautiful voices raised in praise are encouraging and refreshing to all those commissioners, advisory delegates, staff, and other observers who make time in a demanding week to participate in the worship of God. |
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