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Friends United Meeting |
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October 2005
The Lamb’s War
By Oliver Kisaka Simiyu
(Editor’s Note: The first two sections of the Johnson Lecture are not in Quaker Life. Part one contains highlights of the historical background of the Quaker Movement and an understanding of the concept of the Lamb’s War, and part two is a discussion of the Lamb’s War from the Biblical and theological perspective of wider Christendom. For a copy of the full Johnson Lecture, contact FUM. An edited part three follows:)
….The topic, “The Lamb’s War,” in a Quaker meeting does one of two things: either it raises serious questions or it inspires. On the one hand, it calls Quakers to gather together to focus on their peacemaking Lord in His capacity as a warrior. It ascribes to the gentlest of animals the role of warfare. This is difficult….to the extent that the theme is paradoxical, it is powerful. To the extent that the theme appears to contradict the peace testimony, it amplifies it—for if the Lamb will go to war, it must be a unique Lamb-type war, a matter that should have every Quaker interested….
Facing the 21st Century
The 21st century is gaining momentum with various challenges and issues that need to be addressed. They are not new issues. They just have come in a new way under varying pressure. Are we as Quakers willing to evaluate our worship and ministry in the light of the impact Quakers have had either on individual Quakers or mission work? Evaluation makes us vulnerable, but is the best way to refocus for achievement. Will Quakerism as a movement be effective and relevant in ministry in the 21st century, even if it is called the Lamb’s War?
….very few today have a place for conservatism. What they can’t promote with certainty is modernity or even postmodernity. Elton Trueblood spoke to this when he wrote,
“When we ask seriously how to avoid becoming obsolete, we soon recognize that the good life does not come by the simple-minded effort to restore the past. But with equal clarity we also see that it does not come by any idolatry of what happens to be modern. When human lives have no meaning, they are not saved from their futility by being up-to-date. The man who is wedded to his time will soon be a widower.” He then added, “Because the one-sided man is inevitably a passing phenomenon, we seek wholeness. In order to endure, a way of life must involve at least three elements: compassion, reverence and intellectual integrity. The person who is a new man for today in the sense that he demonstrates this combination, will also be a new man tomorrow.” (Trueblood, The New Man in Our Time, pages 9-10)
By way of reflection, these are some of the critical issues I see facing Quakerism in the 21st century:
First, Relationships
Trust between human beings is on the decline. We face the ugly challenges of racism, tribalism, gender injustice, religious acrimony, rich versus poor, lack of integrity, unfair justice systems and the breakdown of moral values. Rather than be upheld with honest discussions, relationships are becoming more and more short-lived, and often break violently. Divorce is undermining marriage in increasing measure, people groups are in competition with each other, nations are provoking each other to conflict and religious adherents are stepping up their intolerance and unfair play….Impatience has increased, sacrifice has reduced, courtesy is foreign to earth and few are seeking to serve others….Those who are crying for religious freedom in one country are the ones oppressing others in the next. Overall, there is an absence of commitment to relationships and to community.
Friends have the Good News that is needed. Friends have a rich heritage of personal and empowering relationships with God, which is the only foundational relationship for meaningful living. This needs to be shared both by modeling and by teaching.
Friends must begin to witness to effective family and community values. Quakers must provide good environments for children to grow with faith in God and to value the family. Friends must then lead the campaign for effective family values and provide an alternative to the present level of despair. Quakers must demonstrate that a good family takes a lifelong cultivation, and not just the present hop-in and hop-out approach for short-lived fun.
We must be very clear what we believe so we can relate with others. We must draw from our strength in waiting upon God to oppose things which are being pushed as individual rights….Can we, like Daniel, determine not to be overwhelmed by evil, and pray and fast for God’s will? In the 21st century, we need healing for our relationships. Elton Trueblood wrote, “There is a chance for liberty, equality and dignity, when solidarity is felt, and solidarity arises from a real sense that all men are the sons and daughters of the same Father.” (Trueblood, Declaration of Freedom, page 122)
Second, Pluralism and Relativity
Certain forces in our generation are pushing for an anything-goes society. There are no absolutes any longer. In our generation, all religions are right, all sexual orientations are right, all political parties, all business practices, all feelings, all choices—you name it. We hear the expression, “it depends,” more than “I am sorry,” “I missed the mark” or “I was wrong.” If anyone stands up for a particular truth, he or she is labeled narrow-minded.
Where are the Lamb’s warriors? No true Christian hopes to gain popularity by standing for the truth! And why should anyone in the 21st century wish to join George Fox in the hall of society transformers without any level of sacrifice? Taking our cue from the book of Revelation, Babylon, in the view of Quakers, represented the apostate church. They were backslidden from God’s absolute.
….human beings, having forsaken the true God, are finding themselves with a huge vacuum. Although Quakers must love the people of other religions and must do so whether those people become Christians or not, the Bible does not leave us an alternative to Christ. We must share the gospel. Although this sounds intolerant, other people everywhere will relate with us better if we stand for something! They will be confused and not take us seriously if we stand for nothing!…. There is no answer anywhere else. It is only “Christ who can speak to their condition”….
Third, Vision, Mission and Leadership of Friends Churches
Do Quakers today see like Fox did, “a people to be gathered to the Lord?” Have Quakers stopped reaching out to areas where the gospel of Christ is not known? Or have we bought the idea that human beings can know God without the gospel of Christ? Do we Quakers still have a vision to see the world as a peaceful place? Do we still believe that internal peace is crucial to external peace? Do we believe that Christ is the Prince of Peace and that the proclamation of the gospel is fighting the Lamb’s War? Are Quakers waiting upon the Lord and using the brilliant minds they have to define the church’s mission on earth? Are we, as the Quaker Church, satisfied that we are approaching the half million mark worldwide, with a 350-year history?
If the Lamb’s War was concerned with proclaiming Christ so that individuals everywhere come to an experiential relationship with Him, has that need become less? Have we bought into the deception of false religion through the promotion of relativity and pluralism? Have we become ladies and gentlemen who no longer think that Christ is the only way of salvation? When Christ returns, will He find true faith among Quakers? Is our Quaker worship today (silent or otherwise) as true to Christ as it was among early Quakers? Is it producing believers willing to lay their lives before God for ministry all over the globe, or for prayer and fasting, or for supporting those who are called or for ministry in our villages?
Our church government (at least in Kenya) encourages great membership involvement, but is also administratively burdensome. There are too many leaders and very few following. The result is duplication of responsibilities, where everything ought to be everybody’s responsibility and nobody finally takes responsibility, leaving much undone. We must recognize the place of organization. It is not entirely true that organization and sound management leaves out the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a Spirit of order, not confusion. (1 Corinthians 14:33)….Are there Quaker congregations that have addressed this issue and are willing to share their achievements with the rest of us?….
The Lamb’s War aimed to conquer the internal struggles of people through the ministry of the gospel and their external struggles through service and advocacy. Quakerism has a rich heritage in holistic mission. Quakers must not lose out on this. This area is perhaps the most challenging for the future of Quakerism. Our leadership must maximize the individual gifts of women, youth and men. Each of these are gifted and active. But it is only coordinated effort that facilitates maximum achievement. We must ask whether our concept of an individual’s Holy Spirit experience is the best that the Holy Spirit intends.
Fourth, Financial Resources for Mission Work
From the beginning, Quakerism had problems with such practices as tithing! In view of the misuse they witnessed, they reacted against the hollow practices of the apostate church. We, however, must realize that originally the Holy Spirit intended principles that would build and develop His people everywhere. It might have been better for the early Quakers to understand why the churches and government in England misused the practices, so that they could in Christ seek the best use of the principles.
Partnership is a Christian virtue and must remain a significant component of the Lamb's War in the future. It is not, however, the same as dependency. It is true that there are great differences between economic capacities based on regions and developmental achievements. Each Quaker community has the responsibility to be stewards of what they have access to under God’s provision for them and to share out of love for God and His people. The sharing must aim to empower. Each of us has a responsibility in our mission efforts to equip and transfer responsibility to locals in every area, even if we continue to work alongside, or to accept the reality that the Holy Spirit calls people from one corner to serve in another. This is perhaps the reason why Quaker mission work included schools, hospitals, agriculture and industry. A Quaker mission is not successful until locals can take it up in a self-reliant way. Those on the mission field need help to identify productive income-generating practices….
It is not proper that in the places where missions are set up that locals continue to be in great need, even 10 years after the mission has been established! If we do not teach those on the mission field to be self-reliant, the missionary church or movement will need to keep sending funds to support churches that are long since indigenized. And so the disturbing questions are: “What role does lack of funding play in our inability to reach unreached areas? What are our alternatives to fundraising if tithing and other practices are not looked at afresh with the aim of deriving principle rather than law?”
Fifth, Partnership in Training
Another area of partnership we must explore is training. Quakers fell back from training especially in the area of theology. They were justified in their fears, but mistook the principle to be the problem.…We all have different gifts. Good leadership must aim to harness and develop these for the best achievement of the movement. No movement can progress unless it has a leadership that is deeply spiritual and has a balanced intellectual capacity. There must be those who can interpret the times, dream and conceptualize vision, and show direction to the rest.
Quakers, Spiritually Deep and Strong to Serve
The real question is: “How will Quakers remain experiential in their knowledge of Christ, deep in their worship and relevant in the fast-changing modern times?” Clearly the old explanation which claims “that is how Quakers have always done things” is out of step both with God and with humanity. In the 21st century, we seek to apply the unchanging truth of God’s word in changing human circumstances. Traditions must remain vehicles, not absolutes. With this in mind, in which areas should we be modern and in which should we hold onto the irreducible? If the Lamb’s War will be a reality in our time, we need to recover the quality of waiting upon the Lord, Jesus Christ, and not any other lord. We need to reconcile within ourselves the truth that the Holy Spirit will not reveal anything to anyone today that is not consistent with His will as revealed in the Bible….
If we as Quakers do not resolve the issue of scripture, it will be difficult for us to share the message of Christ in an understandable way.…Without a clear understanding of what the Bible teaches, we will be subject to subjective understandings and personal interpretations that may not always stand the test of truth. In this the Holy Spirit warned Quakers very early through the error of James Nayler and the women who misled him.…
Quakers ought to continuously experience the living Christ. If any among us fails to walk in that Spirit, he or she is bound to mess up the church. Situations where we have Friends that fight, that cannot forgive each other, that cannot give proper accounts, that cannot step down from leadership and that have little to show in terms of Christ’s life, are a reflection of our absence from the prayer closet and distance from the Spirit-life….
Fight the Good Fight of the Lamb’s War
In conclusion, this call to war is a worthwhile call. It is a call to individuals to know Christ experientially and to come together as the community of the Lamb. It is a call that has had impact whenever the community of faith rose up to fight it. It is a call that is greatly needed within 21st century Christendom. It is a call that makes us complement, rather than compete with, the rest of Christianity. It is a call that is answered by those who are fresh in their relationship with God. For the Lamb’s War is a war to reverse the effects of all other wars. Each individual Quaker must take responsibility for this call beginning with faith.
The Lamb’s War requires faith. Christ asked, “When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8b) And yet, “without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6) Anyone who puts their faith in Christ becomes a new creature, a child of God. Anyone who hears and obeys God’s word is a true disciple. He or she gets set free and is then able to reach others with the same freedom. He or she is exhorted to grow in faith, and to do so remembering that it is a spiritual warfare. Paul challenged all those who believed in Christ to know that they were involved in warfare.
The Lamb’s War calls for deep spirituality. “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5)
Paul challenged all soldiers in the army of the Lord to put on the full armour of God. (See Ephesians 6:10-19)
The Lamb’s War requires gospel proclamation. As observed above, living godly lives and preaching the gospel is direct engagement in the Lamb’s War. In this way the light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot put it out. Christ’s light breaks into the hearts of people when they hear the gospel and understand both the love and the provision of God for salvation. People then have a choice to turn from darkness to light. For everyone who turns to light, if they walk in faithfulness to the leading of the Spirit of God, walks a transformed life. Society is better when people embody the principles of God’s kingdom in their lives. When they form a community, their impact is even greater.
May the Lord truly grant to the Quaker movement a new spark of renewal in our spiritual walk. May we know Christ the way Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego knew Him.
May we know Him the way Isaiah knew Him. May we know Him the way Fox and the early Quakers knew Him. May we know Him the way many Quakers in later generations have known Him—deeply, in great reverence and worship, and in great commitment to honor Him in our lives. May we once again experience in reality the Lamb in our midst, conquering darkness, with us as soldiers of reconciliation to God and with each other. Amen
(All scripture citations are from the King James Version.)
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Oliver Kisaka Simiyu, MABTS, is Deputy General Secretary, National Council of Churches of Kenya, a member of East Africa North and Nairobi Yearly Meetings, Kenya and a founder of Africa Quaker Vision.