The Park Road Pulpit
Sermons from Park Road Baptist Church
Russ and Amy Jacks Dean, Pastors
Study to Show Thyself Approved
II Corinthians 13
Amy Jacks Dean, May 26, 2002
When Russ and I first got married, we had agreed that we would wait about 5 years before having children. Five years came and went. Then 6 years; then 7 years; then 8 years. Our families were wondering if we would ever have children! Sometime during that eighth year of marriage I began calculating my age and how many children we wanted and determined that maybe it was time to start a family. But life was good, and we were having so much fun. We could go skiing out west every winter. We lived about 5 minutes away from the closest boat landing on Lake Hartwell. We had good jobs in a good church in a fun town. Life was good. I was not all that sure that I wanted to mess that up with the responsibility and schedules of parenting. I’ll never forget – one day we were sitting on our front porch when I casually mentioned that if we were going to have children perhaps we should consider starting that family we had always talked about. That was when Russ said, “I think I want to go back to school to work on my doctorate.” That began a process of turmoil and misery for Russ. What degree? Which school? Applications, tests, money – on and on. Since this is a sermon and not a biography, I’ll spare you the chronology and details of the whole experience, but suffice it to say, Russ was destined to continue to study, to research, to question, to read, to write, to think. His professors throughout his educational journey have encouraged him to pursue the next degree. They could see in him a mind that was willing to explore, a mind that was willing to question, a mind that was always seeking knowledge and understanding and truth. And so today he is Dr. Russ Dean, but absolutely nothing has changed in him. He is the same person he always was, and I’m guessing always will be: a person who is always examining himself/testing himself to see whether he is living in the faith.
That was Paul’s instruction to the Corinthian people. At the time of the writing of 2 Corinthians 13, Paul and the church did not have a good relationship. On his second visit to the church, Paul was “wronged by a certain unnamed Corinthian and the rest of the believers did not come to his aid.” (New Interpreter’s, Vol XI, page 175) There had been some dispute, now there was distrust and some questioning of Paul’s integrity. Some of the people wanted “proof” that Christ was speaking in him. (verse 3) And so Paul turns the tables on them and says – why don’t you just examine yourselves and see if you are living in the faith; test yourselves. (verse 5) Paul believed and had taught the Corinthians that self-testing and self-assessment were part of the discipline of the life of faith. (New Interpreter’s, Volume XI, page 175)
We spend our lives continuing to learn - we grow up - we study. Simple addition and subtraction moves on to multiplication and division which moves on to geometry then to algebra then to calculus. What begins as singing the alphabet song moves to recognizing letters which moves on to reading and writing which expands our world to unfathomable possibilities of learning and knowledge and discovery. But many people are willing to leave their faith in their childhood stage of knowledge and learning. We simply take what we are taught at the age of 6, 7, 8, and we are willing to leave it at that. And that is a shame. Why are we not only willing, but eager to learn in all other areas of our lives - but when it comes to faith we don’t want to think, to question, to learn? Are we too afraid, or are we too lazy, or is it a little of both?
At least that is how I was before I met Russ. But he was the first one to teach me the excitement - the joy - of the intellectual pursuit of God. Let me say up front that faith is an experience - it is a journey. It is emotion. It is of the gut. It’s cold chills. It’s lumps in the throat. Faith is unexplainable. God is mystery. God is beyond our knowing no matter how much we pursue. But what Paul had to say to those Corinthian people is much the same as what Russ has to teach us: test yourselves - examine yourselves to see if you are living in the faith. This life of faith must have some balance, and as much as it is an issue of emotion and heart, faith is also intellect, mind, and understanding.
Surely God finds it pleasing when we spend the time and energy digging deep in our hearts in search of faith. And surely God finds it pleasing when we spend the time and energy digging deep in our minds in search for faith.
I have said this before, but our seminary experience opened up a whole new world for me. I spent about half of the time feeling lost, feeling behind, feeling out of place, feeling overwhelmed. I was thinking things I had never even thought about thinking about before. I was reading things that challenged me and made me think, and things I didn’t even understand or agree with, and more importantly, I was reading things that made me examine myself - made me test myself. And our dream of pastoring a church began there because in that place we had the two things that are essential for this journey of faith: 1) community and 2) learning. And we believe that seminary was not just 4 years out of our lives of intensive study - but it was only the beginning. We believe that the church is an extension of that environment. But many times the church sells itself short. The Church wants to leave all of that “knowledge” to the professors and the seminarians. There is sometimes a disconnect between the world of study and work and research and thought and the Church. But Seminaries and Divinity Schools train us to train you. We are encouraged to take what we begin learning there and bring it to the church so that we may all continue to learn - together. So don’t ever sell yourself short.
Our pastoral leadership and vision is very simple. First, we want this church to be community - to be family to one another. This needs to be a group of people of warmth and caring, of hugs and laughter, of tears and Kleenex. Second, we want this church to be a place where faith is explored, questioned, and studied. We want a church that thinks, that wrestles, that challenges. Some of you caught this bug many years ago and have pursued God vigorously all of your lives. Some of you have recently found that passion, the drive to read and explore and dig deep for an understanding of faith. And I say to you just as we say to our children at the time of their dedication: Welcome to a journey that will take your whole life. Always remember that God is Mystery and that the joy of any good mystery is the search for solving that mystery. Finally, we want this church to be a place that, building off of the foundation and energy that can be found in family and in learning, would reach beyond ourselves in an effort to bring Peace to all of God’s children. That is our mission and it is our calling.
Paul wrote to that Corinthian church all those years ago and said, “Don’t make me have to come down there - you straighten this mess out among yourselves so that when I do come it will be a pleasant visit. Why don’t you take a look at yourselves - test yourselves to see if you are living in the faith. Learn all that you can. Dig deep. And bring peace - God’s peace through Christ to this world.” (my paraphrase!)
His words to them still need to be heard and still need to be lived. Let me challenge you this day: don’t believe because your parents believed; don’t travel this journey of faith because you are afraid to do otherwise; don’t believe because it is easy; don’t have faith because it is what you knew as a child; don’t be lazy in your faith; don’t believe simply because of the emotion of it - - but examine yourselves and test yourselves to see if you are living in the faith. It should be work. It should be difficult. It should be challenging and exciting and invigorating. You should be conflicted at every turn. You should be exhausted. Let your mind race about issues of faith instead of issues of money. Let your mind dig deep about issues of faith instead of issues of politics. Let your mind probe issues of faith with the same kind of intensity that your mind probes all other issues - from gossip to worry to family to job. There is nothing wrong with this kind of intellectual pursuit of God. We must think, and we must mature in our faith - for faith is a journey to be lived.
But let me also say: you will never get it - you will never arrive. As I said earlier: God is mystery and not to be possessed, owned or obtained. For all the work you will do in this intellectual pursuit of God - you will return to some unexplainable emotion that is indescribable. Even after this mind-boggling quest, you will return to cold chills and something in your gut. Even after digging deep and testing yourselves, you will return to a puddle of tears that you will not be able to explain, but you will know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is God.
I have observed that the more Russ has pursued knowledge, the more he has cried. There seems to be some direct connection between his brain and his tear ducts. His intellectual pursuit has made him more humble, more compassionate, more emotional. And that is the way is should be. Russ, may you show us the way. In II Timothy, we hear the words in King James English “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth.” (II Timothy 2:15 KJV and NRSV)
Study to show thyself approved. Russ, may you never weary of study. May your mind never stop racing with questions of faith. May you always seek Truth. And may we follow in your footsteps as you walk in the Way that leads to Life. May it be so.
A Word of Blessing for Dr. Russ Dean
(Spoken by Amy at the conclusion of the service)
Russ,
We began our seminary career - together.
We graduated from seminary – together (actually I graduated first since my name begins with “A”)
We began our ministry – together – at FBC, Clemson.
We were ordained – together.
We were installed as Pastors – together – here at PRBC.
It may appear that you have jumped ahead – it may be true – you now have 3 stripes on your sleeves while I have only birthed 2 children! – but today I say to you as your Pastor a good word of blessing that was spoken to us each week in worship as we studied:
May the Lord bless you and keep you
May God’s face shine upon you and may God be gracious to you.
May God give you grace never to sell yourself short;
Grace to risk something big for something good;
Grace to remember that the world is now too dangerous for anything but truth and too small for anything but love.
So may God take your mind and think through it,
May God take your lips and speak through them,
May God take your heart and set it on fire.
Through Christ our Lord, Amen.