The View from the West Mesa

Lent 2012

2012-01-23T19:50:00.000-07:00

Last night I was exploring the web and came across whatappears to be the Christian version of The Onion. The website offers a Word ofGod for Today and yesterday’s was taken from Isaiah 1.15a: “No matter how muchyou pray, I won’t listen….” (CEV). So you get the idea of the website.

When I mentioned this Word of God to a few friends, theimmediate responses included appeals to God's eventual relenting, his compassion, and other soft and warmconcepts about God and our relationship to him. This is common amongChristians, emphasizing the goodness and graciousness of God rather than hiswrath (with some notable exceptions in the popular media). God is good, and patient, and compassionate no doubt. However, the God in Isaiah is the same God in John.

This seems like it may be a problem with us Christians from time totime. We get comfortable living our lives, secure in the idea that either Goddoesn’t notice or that we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing. We go tochurch, we tithe, we even give extra money and time to other causes. We staffmission trips, teach Bible classes, and maybe even attend Christian schools. Wedon’t cheat on our taxes or our spouses, we don’t actively hate others, and wedon’t carouse on the weekends. We are in fact, pretty good people, secure inthe notion that God is with us and he likes us. A pretty comfortable life,actually.

Lament is not something us moderns like to do and soberself-reflection of our imperfections is often avoided at almost any cost. Wedismiss the moment by encouraging ourselves with comforting phrases that speakof acceptance and coverings. What is it about us that we seem not able to sitwith our failings? Is it possible for Christians today to spend timeacknowledging and accepting the fact and behaviors of our “bad selves?”

There is a psychological principle that asserts that maturepeople can incorporate the negative side of themselves and their experiencesinto their whole being. In fact, in many cases it is our running from thosenegative thoughts and beliefs that cause psychological pain and dysfunctionalbehaviors. Psychologists and therapists help their clients examine,re-evaluate, and accept the shadow aspects of their lives.

Read God’s Word again. Can you see yourself as the oneaddressed in this verse? Can you acknowledge that your own attitudes andbehaviors have been below par? Can you hold that reality longer than a fewseconds? While holding that thought, can you review your attitudes andbehaviors, identifying habits and views that are not God like? Can you do thiswithout succumbing to the temptation to compare yourself with others or defendyourself because someone else did something to you? Can you pause in thismoment while being aware of your own imperfections and open your heart and mindto God? Can you offer him your imperfections one by one – out loud – and thensit and listen for his response?

In about a month we will enter the Lenten season, a period of reflection prior to Easter. Our Lenten reflection is supposed to be a personal examination of our part in the tragedy of Good Friday. The Word of God for Today with which I began this essay seems a good entre into this reflection. Mankind’s and God’s People’s behaviors and attitudes reached such a depth of disgrace that God was prompted to turn his ear from them – from us.

The period of Lent is forty days, a long time for this sortof self examination. The purpose is not to belittle, humiliate, or beat upourselves. Rather, it is a space – acknowledged by those around us – in whichwe and they can participate in checking the direction of our lives withoutgiving in to the immediate desire to dismiss our misdirections in favor of morepositive thoughts and feelings.

God’s more harsh treatment of his people serves a purpose andthat purpose is to have them stop, think, and return to him and the people theyare made to be. He says as much on more than one occasion, wondering out loudit seems why his people missed all the signs he sent to them. Even in thisGod’s Word for Today, the same purpose is ultimately served. Even in his nothearing, he encourages his people to wake up, to return to him, to accept hischaracter as their character. That will never happen though if they don’t slowdown and examine how they have missed the mark of being his people.

Let’s take this God’s Word for Today and prepare to enterLent ready for some sustained self-reflection, accepting our shortcomings;accepting our part in the death on Friday afternoon. An honest, sober, andsustained period of self-cleansing, openness to the working of God, and being shaped will setour hearts more ready for the coming of Easter.

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

2012-01-16T16:05:00.002-07:00

God loves you, he knows you are human, and he knows you areimperfect. He can live with that because he wants you to be transformed intohis likeness. God knows that being transformed is a process that occurs overtime.

If God wants a people who live in his image; in the way theyare made (and he does), then he is able in his patience to wait for you and tocover you with grace while you make mistakes. Scripture in fact tells us justthat. God is patient not just with his people, but with the world. Just as Godwants you to be transformed, he also wants all people to come to him. Hispatience and covering grace is part and parcel of the process he is willing toallow for you to grow more perfectly into his likeness.

The implications of this are huge. Primarily this means thatyou aren’t damned just because you aren’t perfect. You aren’t automaticallylost if you sin. Just the opposite in fact – your imperfection is the result oftraining and shaping. Your failure in any given instance is part of the plan.

Now, does this mean that you can run out and do whatever youwant because “it’s part of the plan?” Well of course not. This is not a newquestion though. The epistles of John address this question specifically andthat answer is absolutely not. Why? Because the Christian faith says the wholehuman is made in the image of God, and that having Christian faith means we areintentionally moving toward transformation and a fuller image of God. If ourlives are aimed toward that transformation, we will not routinely live oppositeto it.

Training failures are expected and accepted. Wholesale abandonment ofbeing transformed is another question all together.

Living in the presence of God – as though God is here, now –with an intent toward his image is what God expects. Not perfection. Notsinlessness. Not complete knowledge. Intent, movement, and when required,correction back toward the right path is what he expects.

God has not left us alone with this transformation. TheSpirit serves as our promise that we have God, the Spirit helps us expressourselves to God, and the Spirit assists us to shed our covering of pride anddefensiveness, and prompt us toward that intentional transformation.

Brother Lawrence sets us an example of acknowledging ourshort comings, giving them to God, and moving on with living the Life. In thebook which records his letters and teachings, we find him giving hisimperfection to God to handle without further worry or doubt on his part.

Don’t sweat the small stuff. Give it to God and rejoice.

Who Are You?

2012-01-16T10:58:00.003-07:00

So, who are you? Who does God think you are and who does hewant you to be? In the last post I suggested that people are made in the imageof God – that they are the image of God. Having been made in that image, we arenot crafted in perfect likeness of God but with an imprint of his character.That imprint drives our desires and values if we live in it.

God sees you as his creation, as his child. He loves you andwants you to grow in his image so that you can live a life most satisfying andsublime. We know he loves you because John tells us that the sending of Jesuswas due to God’s love for you. Even while we were sinners, we are told, Christdied for us. In both the Old Testament and the New we are told that God’s intentis to gather all nations to himself. This statement tells us that God indeedloves the world and wants all people to live with him.

God sees in you himself; his own image being perfected andshaped through your life on this planet. God is not in a hurry nor will hispatience run out. Rather than making you have compassion, God allows it todevelop within you. Compassion develops as you experience situations that callfor it. At first you will not be compassionate due to your own pride anddefensiveness against those who seem to invade your comfort and space. God isaware that you are imperfect and that you will miss some situations. Learnthis: that is OK; it’s expected; it is not damning. Over time you willencounter other situations calling for compassion and you will begin to learnthat extending it does cost time, resources, and space. But you also come tolearn that by giving yourself to them, you become more free and lessconstrained. You learn not only that compassion is right, but that it connectswith that image buried inside you which confirms this, and living a life ofcompassion opens the world to you. You slowly come to see the world as God seesit.

In short, you eventually come to identify so much with Godthat it is no longer you who lives but God lives in and through you. Slowly theover-stated selfishness, defensiveness, and pride we have come to practice giveway to patience, goodness, acceptance, and compassion for others.

While we are walking this path of being transformed. As wesurrender to the promptings of the Spirit and in accordance with who we come toknow as God, we live as God’s people have always been meant to live. We liveindividually and communally as God’s people who embody his image in each of usand in our communities. While neither is perfect and both remain on the path oftransformation, God wants us to be his economy and his example in the world.When people see us – individually and communally – they are given theopportunity to see God. As they see God in us, they are either attracted to Godor repulsed. Those who are attracted move toward and are accepted by the peopleof God in their imperfections just as we were. Those who reject God are blessedby God’s people because they too are made by God and bear his image. Weexercise God’s grace and patience with them just as God did with us and hasthroughout history.

Who are you? You are both the treasure of God, blessed byhim with knowledge of him and his presence. At the same time you are his imagein this world. You are in fact, God in this world. The blessing is notinsignificant and the call to presence in the world as God is the greatest callyou can have.

God loves you. Let him show you how you were made to live.

God's Purposes

2012-01-15T18:03:00.000-07:00

God created Man to live on the Earth, in the image of God. Since we know God is spirit rather than physical, that image cannot be our form and it must be something else. Since Adam and Eve were barred from eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, I suspect our intellect isn’t what constitutes that image.

I prefer the conclusion that the image in which we were and are made is the character of God. Man is made with his most innate desires and values matching those of God. Throughout Scripture we are called to become like Christ, we are pointed toward the fruit of the Spirit, we are told to imitate God. I believe we are urged in this direction not because it is so foreign to us, but because they actually describe how we are made to live. If we raise our children in our image or likeness, it isn’t that we have two feet or that we can work logic questions. Most importantly, raising our kids in our image has more to do with the way we see the world, other people, and life values. This makes most sense to me and fits with the larger story in Scripture.

But in our creation we were not formed totally given over to those values. This I believe is because God doesn’t want people who are hardwired to do only what he wants. Rather, God wants people who are compassionate because they want to be compassionate. In fact, compulsory compassion isn’t compassion. We can only learn patience by being in situations that require patience and being given the choice about whether to be patient or not. We are here to learn and to live like God among others also made to do the same.

In the Old Testament we see this process evidenced. God routinely reminds Israel that he has chosen them but not because they are anything special, but in order to demonstrate the graciousness of God. He chooses Israel not to be a great kingdom but to his presence in the world – a nation what would live his image among the nations. Israel’s job was to introduce others to God and to be an example of God’s care and interest in the world. When Israel is condemned, it is for one of two reasons. Either they have decided to follow other gods, or they have failed to live in the character of God. Interestingly, when God condemns other nations he doesn’t do so primarily because they follow other gods, but rather for their behavior arising from arrogance and meanness. When any country is condemned in Scripture there is some aspect of having not lived in the image in which they were made.

It’s important to note that even though God chose Israel, that did not keep him from wiping them out, from sending them away from him, and killing them. Staying with God is not something God makes or hardwires Israel to do even though he wants a nation of his people. This is in keeping with our premise that God wants a nation of people who actually want to be his people rather than people who have to because he makes them. He is on record promising to recall them back to him eventually. God does bring Israel back to him on a number of occasions. His final promise though is to call all nations to himself, not just Israel.

This promise to bring all people to himself brings us full circle from the Creation. Man – all people – are made in God’s image and were made to live in that image. This final promise of God to bring all people to himself, rather than just one nation, ushers in a worldwide people living in the image in which they are made to live.

When God says he has chosen Israel, it isn’t because God is only interested in Israel. Rather, Israel’s purpose is to bless the world by ushering them into the presence of God. This purpose because God really does and always has wanted all people to live as he has made them to live. The choosing is not an exclusive choosing but a choice for a specific purpose. That purpose is the rest of the world.

In the New Testament we have the same theme. Jesus’ condemnation of people isn’t so much that they have chosen the wrong god, but that their lives do not reflect the image of God. Additionally, the Jewish leaders are castigated not because they had the wrong God (they clearly had the correct one), but because they failed to internalize the life of God. A simple reading of the Sermon on the Mount and the latter epistles of Paul and John are instructive here. An early heresy seems to have been the Gnostic dualism that threatened to separate body from soul, justifying debauchery for believers. This simply cannot be according to John and Paul if we are to live as though we are the image of God (and we are).

God has sent Jesus for a number of reasons. One of which is to demonstrate God’s love for the entire world – not part of it. We are told that God so loved the world; that Jesus’ coming was so that the world might be saved through him. We are told that whoever believes in Jesus will be accepted by God. This belief isn’t so much an intellectual decision but a recognizing of God and a desire to live in that same way. To believe in Jesus is to identify with Jesus for your own life.

Another reason Jesus came to live among us was to provide for us an object lesson about the life we are called to live. This life is characterized by the fruit of the Spirit; of living as God would if he were in your body. This living though isn’t about being made to; about having to so live because God makes you or will kill you if you don’t. Rather it is living this life because we actually buy into it. We come to own the same values and desires of God for those around us. Life becomes in fact, less about ourselves and more about others.

When we read Scripture, we must understand particular passages in light of the overall story. If our interpretation of a particular passage doesn’t fit with the larger purposes of God, we must have sufficient discipline to review our understanding of those passages.

Women Elders

2011-06-15T22:31:00.002-06:00

A major discussion point in my faith community recently has been the concept of female elders. Not the actuality of female elders mind you, just the concept. Given my previous post on the proper roles of men and women, we need to ask what the purpose of elders is. Elders, rightly understood, are not institutional functionaries. This is clear because an institution is not what God is after. They are instead, sages of the People of God; mature, disciplined, faithful followers of God who grasp the faith as it was intended and can pass it along to younger generations.

To do this job, elders form a deliberative and guiding body for the People of God – not a church. As such, elders pray, meditate on Scripture, contemplate what they know of God and His purposes, and provide guidance and correction collectively and individually to the People of God. To pass on the faith – or for the purpose of maturing believers – elders counsel, advise, teach, and preach with an eye toward forming the completed economy of God on earth.

There is nothing in either the character of God (in whose image we are made) or Scripture (which describes the purposes of God) that would prevent a woman from fulfilling this role any more than a similar role in the “secular” world. For believers, there is no such thing as a secular world. Everything they do – including work – is within the economy of God.

We find then that in America, in 2011, and in keeping with the economy of God and His purposes, there is no basis to restrict women’s full participation in the life of the community of faith. Further, Paul’s prohibition on women’s activities is based on cultural considerations rather than any asserted universal desire of God to define gender roles.

Women's Roles, redux

2011-06-15T22:13:00.000-06:00

Let’s review what God is up to and how the church fits his purposes. By church, we too often mean an institution even if we consciously make a distinction between organizations and organisms. We are familiar with the Episcopal Church, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Church of Christ. We have a penchant of arguing over the arguing over the rules for these institutions so that we get “it” right. Unfortunately, this isn’t the point of church. We confuse ourselves by using a Biblical term for a modern manifestation.

When God said He would build His church, He meant something more along the lines of “I will call my people out of the nations.” He wasn’t building a “church,” but crafting a people of His own. This people are intended to be a reflection of the originally intended economy – humans who live in the character of their Creator. This is the big disconnect – we want to build churches but God is after a people.

Our doctrinal arguments arise often from two primary areas – 1) rules for the construct and operation of “the church,” and 2) doctrinal statements of belief that often include concepts we have deduced from Scripture and cannot adequately explain. Very seldom do our disagreements arise from the sorts of people we are to be. And therein lies the rub – God is infinitely more concerned with what sorts of people he has called than the form of polity we choose or the fine details of our theology and church practice.

It is clear in Scripture that church practice arises from the definition and character of the people who align themselves with God. We are defined by his character and we join in his purposes for us and the world. Our character is to mirror His character; our economy to mirror His economy with the understanding that our economy is to be the economy for the world – not a “church.”

The implications of this line of thinking are staggering for ecclesiologists who seek to deduce and ferret out rules for church in Scripture as though church is somehow different and separate from the People of God. Scripturally, church cannot be a subset or a representation of the People of God – the two are the same in Scripture and we miss this to our peril.

The rules for church then arise not from some disciplined research for corporate situational requirements but from the very character and lives of the People of God. If it is right and proper for Christians to behave and conduct their affairs in certain ways in “non-church” settings, then those same behaviors and conduct are appropriate in “church” settings. There is not and cannot be any differences based on setting.

We regularly acknowledge this in various parts of our lives – and correctly so. Christians don’t cheat on their taxes because Christians don’t cheat. A self-aware Christian cannot cheat on their taxes. Unfortunately, we quickly lose sight of this principle when discussing rules for our corporate gatherings. For instance, many people will acknowledge congregational leaders’ responsibility to guide their “church life,” but balk if those same leaders try to interfere with their personal or business lives. The same dualistic thinking appears in many places. Church rules and Christian principles are welcome as long as I’m feeling “churchy” or pious. As soon as we enter some other aspect of our lives, or our personal interests come more directly into play, the rules and principles seem to change.

The current brouhaha in my faith community has to do with the “roles of women.” We show a remarkable ability to separate our church lives from almost every other aspect of life. Women, we are told, are not to teach or have authority over a man. In support of this, many argue that the husband is the head of the wife, and this has been true from “the beginning.”

Unfortunately, in our haste to follow Scripture, we miss the inconsistency and implications of these statements, making them concrete rules for the People of God for all time. In so doing, we further divide “church” from the “People of God.” Regarding the first – that women cannot teach or have authority over men, we miss the simple fact that any married man knows that his wife does from time to time teach him and authoritatively correct him. If any man does not recognize this, or does not recognize that it has ever happened, he approaches being the biggest boor on earth. Secondly, many Christian women are senior to men at work and many Christian men work under the authority of women at work.

If the prohibition has been from the “beginning,” it is not bounded by being “in church” because “church” didn’t exist in the beginning. Rather, the beginning described the economy of God. Any self-respecting Christian woman then, would avoid exercising authority over any man anywhere, and any self-respecting Christian man would not work in a place where women exercised authority over him. To do otherwise would violate this universal and eternal truth. This can be our only conclusion because the Christian life is a call to be transformed in all aspects of your life – not just “church.” Clearly, despite the amount of noise and smoke around this topic, we don’t really believe this universal and eternal prohibition is as universal or eternal as we want to have people believe.

The suggested prohibition on women does not arise from either the character of God as revealed in Scripture or as a natural consequence to development of the fruit of the Spirit. A woman who teaches or exercises authority over a man must do so in Christian character; not lording it over the man or acting arrogantly toward him. Of course, this same consideration applies to men to teach and exercise authority. Any restrictions on behavior arise not from gender but from a mature grasp of Godly character.

Priorities

2011-02-05T11:51:00.000-07:00

Recently I stumbled upon a presentation by the organizational leadership training office of a major entertainment corporation. The point of the presentation was essentially how to get all your employees on board with operational priorities and standards. The priorities of the corporation were presented as:

Safety

Courtesy

Show

Efficiency

The presenters went to great lengths to make it clear that these were not a list of values (there’s nothing here about human life, or integrity, or anything similar), but were a decision making tool.

These are not just a list of random items, but are given in order so that the higher something is on the list, the more inviolable it is. For instance, courtesy is the second on the list and the corporation always wants to be courteous to its customers – unless safety is involved. If someone is in danger of being hurt, it is acceptable to be reasonably discourteous to a customer. Otherwise, courtesy is more important than efficiency in doing one’s job. It is OK, and expected, to take a bit more time with a customer than is otherwise required because that’s the courteous thing to do – even if efficiency suffers a bit in the process.

It isn’t that efficiency isn’t important – it is. But when employees have to make decisions about what to do during a workday, this relative ordering of priorities helps them decide what to do in any given situation.

This made a lot of sense to me and could explain a lot of problems within religious circles and even in Christian living. If we had and if we could pass on a relative ordering of priorities, our people could easily make decisions – and come to simply live – in accordance with Christian relative priorities.

Here are two lists that illustrate the difficulty and confusion that might arise in a body of believers – and in individual lives if they co-existed. List one:

Obedience

Discipline

Self control

List two:

Kindness

Compassion

Patience

In many of our congregations we seem to have a mix of priorities and standards and is it any wonder that we have congregational tension and strife? Some number of people are trying to live by one of these lists and cannot fathom what the other group is trying to do. As a result, we experience congregational turmoil and confusion in our own lives as we listen to the messages from both groups.

This tool of relative priorities could be a great tool for congregational leaders, teachers, and mentors as we seek to shape the lives of those in our congregations. What would your three to five priorities be for your life and your congregation? Remember, the specific items are all important but are in priority order. Those lower on the list can be violated for a short time in order to meet the demands of an item higher on the list. Those higher on the list cannot be violated to accommodate an item lower on the list.

Remember these are not values per se, but form a decision making tool that is useable by individuals and congregations as we together try to live the life we are made to live. Have fun.

Christmas and the Gospel

2010-12-24T16:45:00.006-07:00

The Gospel, Matthew tells us is at least in part that Jesus came to save his people from their sins. In most Evangelical circles this is the case and it is interpreted as a legal or juridical saving. Essentially, people have sins and the payment for those sins is Jesus coming.

Pretty short sighted if you ask me.

The context of verse 21 is the promise and directives to Joseph about what God is up to, and Joseph's responsibilities in that working. For some reason we miss the connection between this statement and the prophecy on which it is based. That prophecy, according to Matthew, does not use the name Jesus, but Immanuel. The implication is that Jesus will save his people from their sins by being God With Us. God has decided it was time to live with his people, and in so doing restore (save) them to full community with himself.

Being saved from sins has a number of connotations including the strictly juridical one. While it is true that we are "saved from our sins," the restoration of community with God is much farther reaching than that. In fact, the juridical view is essentially a consequence of having God elect to live with you.

There are others. Jesus tells us that his mission is to proclaim liberty to captives, sight for the blind, and setting at liberty the oppressed (Luke 4). We are saved from the sinful behavior of others; and we are set free from any perception that our flaws may make us something less than fully acceptable to God. To be saved from sins is to have a door open that others attempt to close because we are not "like them."

Jesus makes a few references to trees and fruit; that the fruit of a tree will reflect the quality of the tree. In making these sorts of comparisons, he draws our attention to the sorts of lives we live. For his hearers who considered themselves the people of God, these are challenges to live as though they actually understood their God. The attitude addressed here is the opposite of the Evangelical juridical one. Israel lived as though being the people of God was the entire point and that therefore they had it made. In the juridical sense, they were already selected and nothing could change that.

Jesus' comments about trees, fruit, wells, and water lead us to the conclusion that "saving us from our sins" includes as perhaps the most important point, saving us from a desire to live lives not in keeping with the God we claim to know.

"Saving us from our sins" then has a much more expansive import that includes God living with us, inviting us to live in community with him, a community characterized by mercy and grace among members, and members who want and who come to live lives of giving rather than getting. We are offered, literally, Heaven on Earth if we would just accept it.

The coming of God as human ushers in a worldview often missed by Evangelicals and other denominations. We often remember that we are "saved" by this baby, but we too often miss the invitation this child offers.

Freewheeling

2010-10-09T20:07:00.002-06:00

Merton never disappoints. Here's an excerpt from "Love and Living," a collection of individual writings collected after his death in 1968:

"Life consists in learning to live on one's own, spontaneous, freewheeling; to do this one must recognize what is one's own—be familiar and at home with oneself. This means basically learning who one is, and learning what one has to offer to the contemporary world, and then learning how to make that offering valid."

This short passage is pregnant with meaning and spiritual insight (would we expect anything less?). Let's start with the last few words: "…make that offering valid." The offering of ourselves, of our lives is our calling. We offer ourselves to assist the re-creation of Creation; the reconciling of Man to God. The validity of our offering is measured in how closely we mirror the work of God; to what extent our motivations are based on knowing who we are rather than a slavish obedience to perceived external rules and expectations.

To have something to offer, we must know what or who it is we offer to the world. Do we understand who we are in God, or do we focus on our failures? Do we give too much credence to our being sinners and fail to own our very calling as God in the world? The only people who can most authentically give themselves are those who know and accept their own inadequacies and know that those shortcomings do not disqualify but rather enhance our abilities to minister in the world. Only those who are comfortable with knowing this about themselves can let go of them and fully give themselves to others.

As we live the life we are called to live, we do become more spontaneous and freewheeling. We need not spend time checking to make sure others will agree or appreciate who we are, our calling, or our motivations. This does not mean that we willy nilly insult others, but it does mean that we come to understand more fully what life is about; what the real priorities are; what the real work of God is.

Living in this way can be scary, especially if our focus on our calling has been on keeping the right rules or of doing church correctly. In fact, as long as we see "church" as it is normally practiced as the focus of our calling, we have not fully recognized who we are.

Want to live life in a freewheeling sort of way, or does that still seem too dangerous for you?

Anne Rice

2010-08-01T16:38:00.001-06:00

The preacher this morning read a Facebook post from Anne Rice in which she says that she's quitting Christianity. Not God, not Jesus, just the troublesome, overly structured, overly restrictive, and often bigoted institution called Christianity.

Well Anne, welcome to the club.

In another Facebook post, Anne says she doesn't want to be anti-[fill in your favorite political hot potato] and apparently she thinks that at least some form of Christianity requires that she be anti-something. And she's right. Some otherwise fine Baptists apparently have no trouble telling the world that "God hates fags," and some Catholics don't think Protestants have a prayer.

We could go on. In my little denomination we have folks who are against any number of things and expect the rest of us to go along with them. The problem is that from my perspective, they're out to lunch. Whether it's what women can do in church, or what sorts of music can be used in worship, or what sorts of otherwise moral things can go on in church facilities, our little groups can often get wrapped around the "thou shall nots" a bit too tightly.

And so Anne, I welcome you to the post-Christianity group of Jesus followers.

While I don't know how Anne's dropping out is going to look in her life, it is important to note that acknowledging that ""church" is not necessarily the same as following Jesus" does not let one off the hook of being in the group of Jesus followers with all their mess. If we are Jesus followers, we are in the mess with all the other Jesus followers. Our job Anne isn't to write them off as though they're silly little people. Oh no – our job is to love them – even those folks who think God hates fags, or can't fathom drums in the church band.

You see Anne, if you're a Jesus follower, you have to love people – even the bigots. Oh you don't have to hold up signs with them; you can say you don't agree with them. But you have to love them. All of them, not just the ones that make us feel good about being around them.

Anne I would invite you to come visit the group of Jesus followers with whom I meet. Oh, I don't want to show off how smoothly they can perform church or that they have given up all those anti-somethings. I want to show you how broken and confused they can be and yet accept each other in that brokenness. Do they do this perfectly? Not by a long shot. But God has placed me with them and I love them because we have a common aim behind our human egos and mistaken ideas about God and His creation.

These people I believe bear the image of God and it is no small honor to be accepted among them.

So Anne, come on and drop out of Christianity with me.

But we can't drop out of Jesus' community of imperfect, frail, and oftentimes blundering followers.

Where’s the Church Building?

2010-08-01T16:05:00.001-06:00

This past Saturday morning was spent at the Children's Home in Albuquerque. The summer clean up was in preparation for the two week nigh annual open house and barbeque at the home. This day there were about sixty people from a local congregation helping weed, move rock, and generally spruce up the entire campus. Great folks all, and I'm sure they were a bit sore come Sunday morning.

One of the people who came to help was a boy of about seven years who helped clear some of the larger weeds from a fallow section of the campus. As we worked on removing Russian Thistles, he said that tomorrow is church. Having sixty of his fellow church goers on campus, in turn assisting a Christian organization accomplish tasks too large for the staff to do by themselves, I observed that he was in church right now. Understandably, his retort was "where's the church building?"

As I was readying a short instruction on "church" and community, someone yelled that it was time for the group picture across campus and my interlocutor took off to have his picture taken. I guess pictures of such events are important but I missed the chance to broaden this young man's understanding of church as something more than Sunday morning meetings.

It occurs to me that even this well meaning group of Christians, who have elected to put their faith to work still struggle with teaching what church really is. Somehow this seven year old had gotten hold of the idea that church was done at a building on Sundays. I don't suppose he's much different than many adults who also seem to think that a building on Sunday morning is the place where the church does its thing.

This is a tragic occurrence because it results in an artificial and inaccurate understanding of our common faith. We can see this in major church splits when one side or the other will sue the opposing group for anything from the property, to the cash in the bank, to the parsonage. There are myriad reasons used to justify this behavior but one commonly used is that "we aren't suing brothers and sisters, we are suing the legal entity called the Main Street Church." It never dawns on them that this obfuscation doesn't excuse their behavior. This artificiality also allows us to argue over things because they have to do with the "church." At least one Baptist church of which I'm aware had an argument when they decided to add a drum set to the band. This apparently was going too far, changing the music from sacred to well, pedestrian. Not that anybody objected to drums per se – just not in "church" thank you very much. Christians go to church together on Sundays and then argue with and sue each other on Monday because apparently on Monday, we're not in "church."

In my own world this plays out in a number of ways – what women can and can't do in worship, what sorts of religious items can be on the stage, or even whether the praise team should have microphones and where they should sit or stand. All these discussions take on an air of more gravity because they have to do with "church." If we would learn that "church" isn't primarily Sunday morning, we might begin to get our priorities more in line with God and quit beating each other up because we've been wronged or think we might be.

Maybe.

I Love You Because God Loves Everybody

2010-07-10T13:43:00.001-06:00

Barbara Brown Taylor remembers that explanation when she asked early in life why the Christians on campus kept saying they loved her. This is her reaction as recorded in An Altar in the World, "This may sound small, but I decided that was not enough for me. I did not want to be loved in general. I wanted to be loved in particular, as I was convinced God loved."

I think most people feel the same way. We want folks to love me, for me, not because some third party loves everybody. The problem is that all too often we behave as though we're doing something because God does it, or because God wants us to do it. That seems to me to miss the point of being Christian. We are called to be transformed into the likeness of God and that means that our behavior - our loving others - becomes more and more what we do because we love them. Eventually, our faith, our way of living is supposed to be ours in the fullest sense.

Taylor follows up immediately with this, "Plus, I am not sure it is possible to see the face of God in other people if you cannot see the faces they already have." If we cannot see people as they are, in the midst of their lives, struggles, fears, and desires, how do we propose to see God in them? Yes, everyone is made in the image of God and so God is there to be seen, but his appearance changes depending on the particular incarnation with which we are confronted at any moment. Unless we are sensitive enough to incarnation, we cannot say that we really see God in it.

God doesn't love you because He loves people; He loves you because well, He loves you. If we are God followers, then that is why we love others - because our tranformation does not allow any other course.

Hebrew Prophecy

2010-06-25T22:00:00.002-06:00

While reading the Prologue to Walter Kaufmann's translation of Buber's I and Thou, I stumbled across this interesting little gem: "…Hebrew prophecy wasn't meant to be fulfilled." As one of his examples, he uses Jonah's story. While there are clearly prophecy's which are meant to be fulfilled, it is just as true that many prophecies of doom include an "unless clause." God provides an out because He doesn't want to follow through with the promise of doom.

The grace and patience of God, as Paul tells us, are intended to give us time to come to our senses. The care of God for his creation prompts Him to warn us time and again to return to Him. This is key, as Kaufmann points out. God is more interested in people who want to follow Him than in any particular ritual or religious practice. It isn't always critical to get the details "right," but wanting to follow God is critical – even if we do so imperfectly.

So, give yourself and others a break, and rest in the grace of God.

Leadership and God II

2010-05-07T16:12:00.002-06:00

This post is in reply to a comment on a previous post. It's too long to fit a comment box, so I have made it it's own post.

There are a couple observations that I would make concerning Psalm 51 and Dale's writing. The first is that Dale is correct when he emphasizes that God is faithful. If Jesus promised that He and the Father would abide with and in the believer, then we believe they do - but it isn't two people, it is God through His Spirit that lives in you. Dale is also correct that we might take having the Spirit for granted. True, but this simply makes our point that we have the Spirit.

We do have examples of God seemingly abandoning various peoples. Revelation warns of congregations' lamp posts being removed, and Israel was apparently without God on a number of occasions. These eventualities though are the result of peoples' actions first - not God's. Israel lost focus of who she was made to be, and lost her character. So too with the congregations in Revelation.

When God "leaves" a people, He does not leave them....but waits for them. God may have "left" Israel, but He went with them into exile. In fact, it was He returning to them that resulted in Jesus arriving in Bethlehem. Paul says that God still waits - not just for Israel but for the world. The Temple Cleansing story uses a snippet of text from the Old Testament about God's house being a house of prayer. That snippet is actually a return-from-exile passage that applies not just to Israel but to the whole world. Even when oppressed by Rome, Israel was not without God at least she was not outside the (potential) grace of God.

Can we lose God? I think that is possible, but it requires a complete abandonment of Him by us. God does not, as Dale said, "get up on the wrong side of the bed" and decide to play with us. He has promised to be with us, and He will remain with us for a very long time - through thick and then unless we reject Him. And it takes a lot to reject Him apparently.

The possibility that we can reject God though does not mean that in our failings to live to our potential in any given moment, God withdraws from us as though He does not know that we are human; that He made us imperfect. The expectation of growth and our inconsistent movement in that direction are part and parcel of our maturing. I am convinced that if we got everything right the first time, we would not know what it is to suffer, to fail, to hurt. In short, we could not learn love - the giving of ourselves to others in as adequate a way as we can when we are humbled by our own failures. If this is how we grow, God does not abandon us as we do so.

An observation about basing theology on poetry: it's a risky thing to do. Let me illustrate by using another of David's sayings. David says he was born in sin, and many folks take that to mean that he was (and therefore we are) sinful from the moment of conception, but the language only indicates that David was born "in the midst of sin," deposited as it were in an environment of sin. Since he was born human, that is a logical conclusion, but there isn't anything in the text itself on which we can build a universal original sin argument. Similarly, Psalm 51 should be taken as a pleading to God, not necessarily a statement of likely potential. David is repenting and asking for grace here. While there is a potential that God would withdraw from him, this text says more about David's remorse and understanding of his plight before God than it does God's intent or leaning.

This psalm actually reinforces the point that God does not willy nilly leave us. The fact that David prays this prayer and lives to tell the tale is direct evidence that God did not leave him. God remained with David in this instance because of David's humility and desire to be with God. If we want to be with God; if that is the desire of our hearts, God remains with us even in our imperfections and failures to follow Him in every moment.

Does God turn His back on groups of people - nations or churches? The potential of course, is that He can and will if the people have abandoned Him. However, the implication in Scripture is that He may well remove His blessing from a nation or people, but He does not leave them. Clearly in Revelation God says He might take some lamp stands away and Israel suffered mightily under the Roman army around AD 70. But He caused Revelation to be written to those churches, wanting them to return to Him, and Paul indicates that God's delay in consummating the world is due to His grace in part, for Israel.

If God removes the "hedge of protection" from a group of people, the individuals suffer but this does not mean that God does not see them, does not hear their cries, ignores their pleas. Rather He sees and hears all their suffering and moves to refresh them when they return to Him. When God might do this with a congregation might well be when they as a group have forgotten their first love or have turned too inward rather than living as the blessing they are to be.

God then remains faithful even if we aren't, especially in the daily grind of trying to follow Him. The key is our heart's direction; the tenor of our lives. If we are moving in the right direction over all, the minor bumps do not cause God to flee from us but rather improve our chances of growing into Him.

Leadership and God

2010-04-29T13:46:00.002-06:00

Nancy Ortberg is speaking on leadership on Thursday morning at Orange 2010 and has made a statement that I paraphrase here: "If we want people to move from poor to great, we have to be OK with them going through the messy steps between poor and great." Good observation but it isn't limited to leadership. It is just as valid within the Christian life. Too many of us suffer from the idea – even if it isn't directly stated – that we have to "be the best we can be" all the time or God leaves us. Some believe that if we "grieve the Holy Spirit," the Spirit leaves us and so we perceive our salvation and position with God as something that ebbs and flows if not comes and goes as we fail and then perform for the Creator.

Of course this is not the case as a bit of reflection will reveal. Paul urges us to "be transformed; to become like God." The use of "become" implies – no, demands – a process. A process then implies that we, even though with God, are still un-transformed and un-God like as we travel from immature to mature images of God. We are imperfect and God knows that; He does not expect perfection per se at any given moment. We are saved by the blood of Jesus not whether or not we ever mess things up.

Our God personifies Nancy's leadership principle, but as something much more personal and broad than simple leadership. If God died for us "while we were yet sinners," His patience continues to provide the grace space for us to learn, to fail, to be lifted up again on our journey into the Image in which we were made. Neither God nor His Spirit come and go as we stumble along; God has never behaved that way. In fact, when He sent Israel into exile, God went with them to Babylon. He did not abandon them. It is OK that we fail from time to time in our pursuit of the life we have been made to live.

God expects it; He knows you; His love extends His grace and patience in our failures.

Rest in that today and in the future when tempted to kick yourself or perform a bit better to make up for your failings.

Christendom’s Challenge

2010-04-08T23:29:00.003-06:00

I am becoming increasingly convinced that Christendom's main problem is our penchant to separate church from life. We have allowed to develop a church separate from life and this is not the idea given in Scripture. The church, rightly understood is not institutional in Scripture but refers to the community of believers – who live lives characterized by the Spirit. Christians assemble for encouragement and worship, but the community is understood to exist at all times. As a result we have created rules for church life that do not reflect or only vaguely reflect the actual lives of church members.

I recently had a hallway conversation in which those involved all grew up in congregations that didn't observe Easter, but in which everyone in the pews did observe it. We all received new clothes, the women wore new hats, and church on Easter morning looked like a fashion show. While "the church" couldn't observe Easter – everyone in church did.

This duality between the church and those that make it up has resulted in any number of odd behaviors, especially but not exclusively in my denomination. We have sometimes vocal "experts in the law" concerning what is correct behavior in and for the church. Churches can't contribute to orphanages, but everyone in the church can send their money to an orphanage if they choose to do so. We can all individually support a missionary, but the church's money can't be used for that. All of us are going to observe Christmas, but we can't have poinsettias on the church's windows because "the church doesn't observe Christmas."

But it isn't just "low church" groups that suffer from this malady. High churches with their priest class who must be available to administer the sacraments suffer from the same problem. A simple communal meal demonstrating community and the faithfulness of God has grown into a highly scripted rite with special precautions for flakes of cracker and drips of wine.

The Roman Catholic Church has in recent years debated the appropriate style of "church music" even though their members listen to and better connect with various kinds of music. In my fellowship we worry about singing a capella in church and then drive home with the local Christian pop station on the radio.

Another ripe issue for both the Roman Catholic and my group of believers is "women's roles." We quickly acknowledge that women are indispensable with various skills at home, but we limit their practice of those skills "in church."

It is clear that we have missed the point. God wants a community, an economy rather than a group of club members who know the correct handshake, meet in a special place. and practice specifically church rites. Being saved and living the life of God is intended to be the primary result of our being in fellowship with God. The things we do when we are together are to be directly outgrowths of that community life, not completely divorced from it.

Until Christendom figures this out, we will continue to strain gnats and swallow camels, continue to tithe mint and cumin, and miss the weightier parts of being God people. This is our problem and is the single greatest failure of congregational and denominational leaders. We simply cannot allow our members or our church rules to continue to create artificial separations between church and life; between us and God.

Shepherds’ Sending 28 March 2010

2010-03-28T16:22:00.005-06:00

The Shepherds' Sending this week was Matthew 21.12-16, the first half of which reads like this:

And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you make it a den of robbers."

These two statements, "My house will be a house of prayer," and "you have made My house a den of thieves," did not simply stand on their own to those first hearers. Rather, when they heard them, there were two texts that flooded their minds. Taking the second first, it comes from Jeremiah 7:

"Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, 'We are delivered!'--only to go on doing all these abominations? Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself have seen it, declares the LORD. Go now to my place that was in Shiloh, where I made my name dwell at first, and see what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel."

This passage gives a larger context to Jesus' statement. When I was growing up, we learned that the people in the Temple who were selling pigeons and what not were cheating their captive audience of pilgrims who needed to buy the right elements for their sacrifices. That's why, we were told, the phrase "den of thieves" was used. We can see though that while they may well have been cheating pilgrims, this statement is a statement of doom on those who should know God, who should know better how to live God-lives and yet who do not. There are two things which are repeatedly indicated as having special concern from God…worshiping Him only, and caring for other people. These are so closely intertwined that Jesus, when asked what was the greatest commandment, answered with both Love God, and Love your neighbor. We cannot do one without the other. Jesus' hearers know this is a judgment on them and their reaction in the second half of our passage will make that clear.

"My house shall be a house of prayer" comes from Isaiah 56:

Thus says the LORD: "Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon my salvation will come, and my deliverance be revealed. Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil." Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the LORD say, "The LORD will surely separate me from his people"; and let not the eunuch say, "Behold, I am a dry tree." For thus says the LORD: "To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off. "And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant--these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples." The Lord GOD, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, "I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered."

The import in this chapter is not just a "house of prayer," but a house of prayer for all people, especially the social outcasts, the imperfect, the shunned, the sinner. God will bring not just the scattered people of Israel to Him, but other peoples as well – all as one people to His house of prayer.

Let's pick up our text where we left off:

And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant, and they said to him, "Do you hear what these are saying?" And Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read, "'Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise'?"

They became "indignant." Seeing the healings God is doing among the outcasts, at hearing praise for His work from children, these religious, arrogant, and blind leaders have contempt for the goings on. Jesus' answer is essentially "can you not see what children see?" "Are your hearts so calloused that you cannot see God working right in front of you and rejoice?

Today's text contains both a statement of doom for those that think they know God but who do not really see what He is about and therefore become indignant at what He does, and a call from exile for all who have been estranged from God. Holy Week includes two pillars – judgment and salvation. Judgment for those who think they know best and yet do not really know God, and salvation for those who simply respond to God and live as He lived.

This second pillar of salvation has as its background exile and estrangement from God, and then its relief not just for "God's People," but for the whole world – whoever would respond to, and conform themselves to Him. This is the great return from exile - the Creation is returned to God at His invitation, to join Him in His house of prayer for all peoples.

This season of Lenten reflection asks each of us to consider whether we really know God. Do we know His desires; do we know what He is up to; do we participate with Him in everyday life? Or are we like Israel's shepherds who do not know God. God describes them in the last part of Isaiah 56:

His watchmen are blind; they are all without knowledge; they are all silent dogs; they cannot bark, dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber. The dogs have a mighty appetite; they never have enough. But they are shepherds who have no understanding; they have all turned to their own way, each to his own gain, one and all. "Come," they say, "let me get wine; let us fill ourselves with strong drink; and tomorrow will be like this day, great beyond measure."

Shepherds and guides who are supposed to take God's message of hope and care, are concerned only for themselves, not knowing God, and not living as God has made them to live. This is a warning for those who would lead God's people, but also for all would be followers. Leaders must know God and what He is about, and encourage others to move in that direction. The rest of us must be seeking God, returning from our own exile, to the life we were made to live. How do you live? Do you live in God, or essentially for yourself? The answer you give to this question will determine whether the power of God on display at Easter is for you.

All Scripture quotations from ESV.

Promises

2010-03-12T20:40:00.002-07:00

Many of us Christians, as many of us humans, seem to think that our time in history is THE time in history. Whatever may have gone before may be useful for learning, but wasn't quite as important as the time in which we live. It may well be interesting to dream of the future but it does not exist and it will be us that create it. This attitude is understandable since we are living now, not living in the past and can't live in the future. This view is unfortunate because living as though our time is the only time that matters tends to separate ourselves from our own histories and separates ourselves from actively participating with people who will come after us. Such thinking adds to an ego-centric and essentially hedonistic life style.

This is a dangerous view for Christians not because we know a God that will punish us in the future, but because it separates us from the greater plan of God in which we are both beneficiaries and active participants. Participants though in a different light than we normally perceive ourselves. One with deeper and more profound meaning than simply "being God's hands and feet in the world."

We have all made promises and have had promises made to us by others. Despite Scriptural encouragements to simply let our yes be yes, and our no, no, we still phrase our intentions with the words "I promise to…." Even wedding vows include such words as though saying "I promise" makes our intent any more sure or our word any more reliable.

This is not necessarily a bad situation since Scripture itself refers to the promises of God. We often refer to the more formal promises as covenants between God and people. The Bible is full of promises including those to Noah, Abraham, and David to name some well known ones. The Noah covenant is a promise to not destroy the world by flood again and the rainbow is recognized as the seal of that promise throughout Christendom. David's covenant includes the promise that a king will always be on the throne of David and in Christendom the fulfillment of that promise is Jesus as king of the people of God. Most of us know at least two promises to Abraham. The first is that the world will be blessed through his offspring and we understand that to mean the blessing of Jesus coming into the world to save us. Another promise to Abraham is that his offspring will number as the stars in the sky and the sand on the shore. Abraham, who was married to a barren woman was going to be the father of innumerable host of descendents. When we think of this promise we think of the Jewish people and the Arabic peoples in the Middle East.

Paul's discussion of the descendents of Abraham though turns the idea from physical descendents to spiritual descendents "It is not a Jew who is one outwardly, but he who is one inwardly; these are the descendents of Abraham. And so we see the promise to Abraham able to accept as its fulfillments the entire world if they would but come to God. We welcome our inclusion in Abraham because it represents our salvation; the inclusion of the Gentiles in the family of God.

And we should. We do ourselves – and God – a disservice though if we only consider that our participation in Abraham is simply something we receive. We serve a faithful God, a God who keeps His promises not just to us, but to Abraham. In a real sense we are evidence of, we are in reality, the faithfulness of God to Abraham. We participate in the steadfast love of God by our faithful being in God. We are the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham and are offered by God to Abraham as His fidelity. We do not just receive the blessings of Abraham, we are the blessing of Abraham. You are the real spiritual and physical evidence of God's faithful remembering of Abraham.

The other promise to Abraham, that the world would be blessed through him is of course ultimately fulfilled in Jesus, but we participate in this promise as well. Again, not as recipients of that blessing (although we are), but as people who implement that blessing daily to those around us.

In two ways then, through the promise to Abraham we become not just recipients of the promises but we become the enactment of those promises. We are both the faithfulness of God and the blessing of God for the world. During this season of Lent, consider how you have been offered to others as the fulfillment of God's promises for others.

Salvation

2010-03-12T20:38:00.002-07:00

Those of us who are Christians are familiar with the idea of being saved, but I remain unconvinced that we really understand what salvation means. To fully grasp the idea of salvation we need to look at what God is doing from God's point of view rather than ours. While that may seem a daunting, even impossible task, doing so will help us understand what God means when He refers to saving a people, or offering salvation to us.

We often hear of those who have "come to Jesus," and we often encourage others to "accept Jesus as their savior." Neither of those are wrong as much as they are incomplete at least in the way we routinely practice them. These two phrases are often used interchangeably with "being saved" so that our salvation becomes a single point in time event seemingly divorced from anything that may follow it. We find ourselves referring to people who have been saved but who have not learned (or who are not learning) to live as saved people. Some theological ideas confuse the question further by insisting that faith is all that matters regardless of one's life style. We have successfully divorced salvation from transformation to such a degree that Christian lives do not reflect God and the public has plenty of reason to ridicule not just us, but our faith and our God.

This duality – of being saved but not transformed – grows from a misunderstanding of salvation itself. We humans like to break things down into steps, finding discrete differences in closely related concepts and statements when in fact those steps and concepts are not intended to be discretely separated.

A reading of Scripture using God's view rather than ours results in a different understanding of salvation than many of us use or have contemplated. Salvation as we see it is a discrete event that may or may not be followed by transformed lives. Such an eventuality is foreign to salvation as seen from God's view. Salvation from God's view is a gathering of people back to Him, that people being those who conform themselves to Him. The gathering and the conforming are the same thing; they speak to the same reality. It is impossible to be saved and yet not transformed, or in the process of being transformed.

Salvation is not simply a result of being baptized or asking God into our hearts even though we often individually and collectively treat it as such. Being baptized or asking God to enter our hearts represents a larger undertaking, one that surrenders ourselves to living the way He would have us live – for the rest of our lives. Salvation from God's view is a restoration of us to Him in heart, in motivation, in practical behaviors. It is not primarily a legal edict although an edict is involved.

When Jesus is asked which is the greatest commandment, His response is "Love God with all they heart, mind, and strength; and the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself." His interlocutor approves of this answer and says this is the greatest concern. In turn, Jesus tells this man that he is not far from the Kingdom of God. Notice Jesus does not say "far from salvation" or even "far from believing in me." Rather, this person is not far from "the Kingdom of God." This exchange gives us a good idea of what the Kingdom of God means. In practical terms it is acknowledging God, and caring for other people. The questioner asks for the greatest command and Jesus responds with two commands. The questioner accepts the two and treats them as one, approving of Jesus' answer and acknowledging his agreement that these two – together – are the most important concern for God followers.

While stated as commands, these are not performance measures, but descriptions of the kind of people in the Kingdom. These are folks who's ways of life reflect the character of God, and these folks are "saved," to use our phraseology.

Jesus' desire was not that people would "be saved" but that they would conform themselves to God. This is what is meant by "Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven." What happens in Heaven isn't the point as much as bringing that economy to Earth. Living in that economy, living out of the image of God in which we are made, that is salvation from God's view. If we are not living in that economy or at least desiring and moving in that direction, the reality of our salvation is questionable at best

Lent II

2010-03-04T23:20:00.002-07:00

Isaiah 58 is a reading for Lent. Buried in this chapter is a discussion of a favorite Lenten practice – fasting. The discussion describes the fasting God expects, and it makes our timid and small efforts at fasting appear pitiful in comparison. Lent isn't so much about fasting – at least the way we usually practice fasting during this season, but is more about self-denial and reflection. Many of us give up something relatively easy to give up during Lent and think this satisfies the perceived obligation, but this sort of fasting isn't the fasting expected by God.

Verse 5 describes the kind of fasting, or penitence that we normally consider appropriate during both Lent and at other fasting times. This verse reads: "Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?" (ESV) That sounds like what we often consider fasting and penitence – self denial, and the practice of individual rites of fasting that demonstrate that we are fasting.

But verse 6 tells us we're wrong if we think God wants this kind of fasting: "Is this not the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh?" (ESV)

Fasting in this passage is much more broad and demanding than our normal understanding of it. In this passage, fasting isn't focused on God, or our own penitence. Rather, this fasting is other-focused, and directly affects community. Self-denial in this passage is the sacrificial giving, not to church treasuries, but to those who need help.

I say fasting is sacrificial giving because of the wording of verse 10: "If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday." (ESV)

Did you get that? "Pour yourself out…" That is sacrificial giving to others. This echoes Paul's "if I pour myself out…." which means that he has given everything he has – his life's focus, his efforts, his riches – for the sake of the Gospel. This is fasting as God understands it – as God expects it. How are you doing?

Lent

2010-02-16T20:34:00.003-07:00

With the waning of Mardi Gras, the Lenten season begins. Lent leads up to Holy Week and the triumphant resurrection of the Lamb of God. This period of self-denial isn't about not eating meat or giving up chocolate or even fasting. The idea behind Lent is to participate in the suffering of Christ, remembering that it is our sinfulness and tendency toward self-fulfillment that required His death, and continue to vividly demonstrate the need for that death. The purpose of this season is not to trumpet what I have given up for this period of weeks as though meeting this seasonal obligation is somehow meritorious. It isn't. What may gain some benefit for the observers of Lent is the personal identification with our Savior and our guilt. This remembering of guilt is not for self-flagellation, but to help us remember our debt to, and toward the end of Lent, our participation in the Life of God despite our sinful tendencies.

Throughout history, spiritual directors have highlighted the discipline of simplicity, of being satisfied with enough for ourselves and others with whom we live. This simplicity evidences our trust in the sufficiency of God to provide what we need and allows us to more effectively minister to those who do not have sufficient supports. In this same way, self-denial during Lent allows us to practice this trust in God in a small way. If Lent "works" for us, we should enter Holy Week with a greater understanding of our reliance on God and a willingness to live with less while relying on God.

This fuller understanding of Lent makes it clear that there is likely nothing we are going to give up during this season that will actually challenge us physically, but it does place a claim on us to give up something more significant than chocolate or meat. Rather, it might well be a choice to give up some leisure, rising an hour earlier and spending that time reflecting on our place – and our security – in God through the death of His Son.

The Manifestation of God

2010-01-03T20:23:00.002-07:00

Epiphany is observed in the Western Christian tradition on the 6^th of January. It marks, generally, another "coming" or revealing of Jesus in the world. For this reason it is often called "Little Christmas." Epiphany as a revealing includes aspects of three events in the life of Jesus. The first is the arrival of the Magi to honor Him. This is the closest of the three to a Christmas relationship for the observance and is likely the reason its other name is Little Christmas and a small gift exchange is often observed on this day. A critical aspect of this day is that in visiting the Babe, the Christ was manifested to Gentiles. This day then marks the fact that Jesus came to the entire world and not just Israel.

The second theme in Epiphany is the marriage at Cana, specifically but not limited to Jesus' first miracle. As his first miracle, the changing of water to wine revealed Jesus' power in the world. As such, it serves as another manifestation of Jesus to humans. It is appropriate that a wedding provides this setting because both God and Jesus are pictured as husbands or bride grooms. As such, they pursue humanity seeking to join with us in a most intimate way. This caring for people at a wedding party reveals our God as seeking to "marry" us and give us great gifts.

The third aspect of Jesus' life normally associated with Epiphany is His baptism. At His baptism Jesus tells us that He is baptized to "fulfill all righteousness." He is revealed as the one in whom God is well pleased and to whom we are urged to listen. Two imprimaturs are given to Jesus in this event. The voice of God says He is God's Son, and a dove lands on Jesus as evidence of Holy Spirit power within Him.

The baptism of Jesus is one of the stories that we find in all four Gospels, and it gives us an opportunity to remind us of God as we emerge from the bustle and haze of Christmas and begin a new year. Rather than looking back a couple thousand years to the birth of a child, Epiphany allows us to look forward to life with an empowered and legitimate Messiah with whom we are invited to live into the future.

On the 6^th, read the stories referenced above and reflect on what it means to you that your Savior is active in the world and asks you to join Him.

Closing Reflection for December 20th

2009-12-22T00:39:00.003-07:00

This is the fourth Sunday in Advent, a period when the Christian world anticipates the coming of our God in human flesh as a child. It is important to remember that if we claim to embrace this child, we must also prepare to embrace his cross.

The reading for today is John 15.9-14:

Even as the Father hath loved me, I also have loved you: abide ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. This is my commandment, that ye love one another, even as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do the things which I command you.

This passage has been somewhat challenging for me as I am not sure that people can be commanded to love. We can command behaviors, and so I can command you take out the trash, or wash the car, or be nice to your sister. But I wonder if we can command character and worldview.

I know that we can say the words, "I command you to love" and we can make loving your neighbor a requirement. Indeed, Jesus in this passage does just that. It seems though that there must be more to this statement than we see on the page. If you act lovingly toward your neighbor because I have commanded you to do so, are you actually loving your neighbor? I suspect not. Rather, you are responding to command.

This becomes problematic when we read Paul and his explanation of why the Law didn't work for Israel. Among a couple other things, Paul makes it clear that Israel sought salvation – thought they could secure it – by abiding by the law's dictates. Paul says they were wasting their time because they failed to embody the expectations of the principles behind the Law. Israel had been commanded to do things – even to love their neighbor – and had attempted to do so by keeping the Law. According to Paul, Israel failed because their hearts weren't right even though they may have done the "right things." Israel didn't love God even though they accomplished the demands of the Law.

If folks comply with rules because they are commanded to do so, they do not live according to the real expectations of the command. In short, they aren't loving their neighbor, they are assuaging a god. That isn't what God is after.

Jesus in this passage says if we love him, we will keep his commands, and that we will know that we love him if we find ourselves keeping those commands. It is imperative that we understand the relationship here. While we can learn loving behavior by practicing, just as a child can learn not to run into the road because mom says not to, the goal is that our behaviors arise from the love we already have – that we have nurtured and have allowed God to nurture within us. This is mature behavior just as adults don't run into the street because they know the danger of so doing – not because they have been commanded not to.

Jesus' command here is less a command and more an urging or an invitation to live freely. Verse 11 tells us that Jesus wants us to have complete joy. Loving, and living as God would live, is the most freeing way to live, and will result in joy for the mature Christian. Mature Christians though don't love because they have been commanded to love. Rather, they love because they can do nothing else. They have experienced life in and with God, and they allow themselves to be transformed into the likeness in which they were made.

One last illustration. It is easy for me to tell a husband that he must love his wife, and even suggest ways of showing that love to his wife. But the suggested ways are not the goal – love is the goal. No matter how many times the husband performs a suggested behavior, if he doesn't love his wife first, she will know and the behavior becomes wasted. I can tell a husband he must love his wife, I can tell him that if he doesn't, she will leave, and I can assign tasks to demonstrate his love for her. But I cannot create or force that love by commanding it. That love must come from within the husband and the same is true for Christian love. We can be commanded to love, but we cannot be made to love, and that is an important distinction and is at the core of this passage.

We know that we love God because we do the things he has told us to do. It isn't that doing the specific things give rise to love, but rather that we do the specific things because we love. Our lives are evidence of the love that already exists. That love cannot be commanded in any effective sense because commanded love isn't love.

The challenge is to determine by ourselves for ourselves why we do things. If we do them because we have been commanded to do them, we either remain children or we misapprehend the will of God. Honest examination of our motivations is important to understanding where we are, and our real relationship with God.

Why do you do what you do? Because someone has commanded you to do them, or because you have been transformed?

Advent

2009-11-30T15:43:00.002-07:00

Advent is that season marked by the four Sundays prior to Christmas (in the Western tradition). Normally associated with the coming of Christmas, the season can quickly lose its significance amidst the hubbub of the holiday season. Just as our larger society – and we too – allow the glitter, social, and commercial aspects of Christmas to overshadow the central spiritual aspects of the holy day, Advent has itself become more of a festive season, looking to a naturally exuberant birth of a new child. Advent though isn't all anticipatory of a celebratory birth but has mixed with it both the anticipation of the Second Coming, and somber reflection and self examination.

Only the first reading (Jeremiah 33:14-16) for the First Sunday of Advent (Revised Common Lectionary, Year C) speaks to the birth of Jesus, doing so as the familiar Branch of David. Even this reading expands the purpose of this birth to include justice and righteousness and the enduring provision of someone to sit on the throne of Israel. In this prophecy of the coming of Jesus we begin to grasp something larger than simply a baby being born. No, there is reason behind this coming and while we aren't told specifically, there are inherent warnings and expectations for those who would look forward to this birth. This coming will establish a King who will rule with justice and righteousness both good things for the people of Israel and the people of God. The implication is one of salvation, but the flip side of salvation is judgment and punishment for those who do not support justice and righteousness.

The second and third readings (Psalm 25:1-10, 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13) begin a more plainly self-reflective theme for the season. The Psalm passage is very clear that the writer wants to be found as one of those "…who wait for you…" comparing himself with those who are "…wantonly treacherous." The psalmist asks to be forgiven and then led in the ways of the Lord. During this period of Advent, we are called to remember the steadfast love of God and at the same time, commit ourselves to learning His ways.

The Thessalonian passage continues the theme of learning the ways of God with Paul wanting to supply "what is lacking" in the faith of his readers and his prayer that God will increase their capacity for love for all people. This passage ends with looking toward the next coming of Jesus at which time their hearts will be blameless and they will be holy before God. It is important to Paul that his readers conform their hearts and minds to the love of God so that they will be ready when Jesus comes back.

The fourth reading (Luke 21:25-36) is one of warning and encouragement; one that calls the readers to examine themselves, to make sure they are ready, to make sure they are awake. This reading is the most strident of the readings for the first Sunday and is the one which most clearly demonstrates that Advent is not just a season of birth announcements and celebration. There is a reason this birth is coming and we are in danger of deluding ourselves and those around us if we fail to consider the reason behind this coming and all the comings (past and present) of our God.

Epiphany (January 6^th) is often called "Little Christmas" because it too celebrates and recalls the revealing of Jesus in the world. Advent is likewise called "Little Lent" because it calls us to reflect on the purpose of this coming, on our preparation to receive this coming, and our call to live in this coming. To live in this coming is to receive the gift of a Savior-child with all of His demands for self-denial and love for others. If Jesus has come to save and relieve, we accept this coming as our charge to bless and soothe those around us as we live in His life.

Encouragement

2009-11-08T14:40:00.002-07:00

This Youtube video in entitled "encouragement" for obvious reasons. Published by the Foundation for Better Life, the idea is that we should encourage others so that we can all have better lives. So far so good, but there are other nuances in this commercial that may be more instructive for believers. The video shows a small boy plunking out "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" on a concert grand piano. Clearly he isn't supposed to be on stage in front of this black tie crowd. The crowd is nonplussed and somewhat incredulous that this kid would have dared to do this. After all, this isn't what they've paid to see and hear. Perhaps they have been hoodwinked and they don't like it.

The maestro strides on stage, coming up behind the kid who is still plunking. Reaching around the boy, the maestro says "keeping playing" takes up the tune. The maestro's hands embellish and create a masterpiece of music dependent on and using the simple tones as the structure around which the now grander music is received with wonder and applause by the audience. The audience at first only sees the boy, but their eyes are opened and they come to see the magnificence of the greater artist.

Encouragement, yes, and a picture of grace as well. Can you see God in this commercial? As we incompletely attempt to live His life in our life we are often seen as amateurs, as children trying to do something that only those more capable can do. We try but we speak and behave amiss as we plunk out our tune. Others may think we imperfect, that we don't know what we're doing. And then, in the midst of our stumbling, bumbling attempts to play the tune we have heard before and which is in our minds, God comes and through us – building on our imperfect attempts – creates a masterpiece of intricate and beautiful music for the world to enjoy.

Which are we? Do we see others who are not as pretty, not as polished, not as capable trying to plunk out the Christian life as we come to expect more sure performance, more finesse in living this life? Can we see God working through and with them? How do we see ourselves when we don't think we're doing well, when we think others don't appreciate us? Can we trust that as we plunk out our tune as best we can, God is around us creating a wonderful concert for those that have eyes to see and who receive our lives as ministries to them?

Purpose of the Church?

2009-10-28T20:19:00.003-06:00

In most Evangelical circles, I suspect the initial answer to the question in the title would be “preach the Gospel.” After that though, we might hear someone offer the alternative of “relieve suffering.” While I suspect that the real answer is somewhere in the middle where both the spreading (not necessarily preaching as we understand it) of the Gospel, and relief of suffering together make up the mission – or the purpose of the church.

It is true that the disciples were told to preach the Gospel, and Paul was specifically selected as the Apostle to the Gentiles. Paul, and either congregations or other Apostles sent other men to preach and establish the church throughout the known world. Preaching then is clearly a part of the church’s purpose.

Preaching though is only a part, and cannot be said to be the primary purpose of the church. When Jesus told us what his mission was, he said it was to “proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God, preaching relief to people.” After convincing a new group of people of Jesus’ Messiahship, he then moved to teaching and urging transformation. Was this transformation the production of more preachers or was it something else? It was clearly something different than equipping preachers. Paul’s teaching of transformation contained two aspects. The first is a complete submission to God, and the second grew out of that submission. This second was the development of God character and the practice of blessing those who were on the fringes of society.

We are challenged in fact in at least one place where we are told that it isn’t sufficient to say “go and be filled.” No, that simply won’t do. We must feed those with whom we come in contact. James tells us that pure religion isn’t preaching, but caring for widows and orphans. Good thoughts toward those less fortunate than ourselves isn’t proof of faith, but meeting with them, touching them, feeding them. These are proof of faith. The fruit of the Spirit do not include oratory skills, debate techniques, or even book knowledge, but love, kindness, and compassion. This has always been so. Micah tells us what God wants from his people: mercy, justice, and humility. Israel wasn’t castigated because she lacked preachers, but because she lacked leaders who trained her people in the finer arts of giving of self to others.

How then is it that we pay more attention to developing and sending preachers rather than helping others in need? Why do we build edifices to showcase oratory and allow us to practice worship, and yet short change the care of the less fortunate? Worship, according to God, is not what we call corporate worship but rather lives given in service to others. Somebody has said that this is our spiritual act of worship. This serving of others is, after all the core meaning of ministry.

We are told that we need worship edifices to draw people to God, but God seems to think that his people, shining light in a dark and broken world by giving to others will draw people to him. In fact, our own studies validate this truth. Why do people come to God, and why do they stay with a group of people? Because they see Jesus, and they connect with others who reflect him.

Can people be brought to God through debate? Absolutely. Paul used that art to good advantage to make an opening. Then he instructed his churches to love people in the midst of this dirty world. Oddly enough, Jesus did the same. He would skirmish with the Pharisees, but revert to actions that cared for people. Jesus tells us that we can tell he is Messiah because of the works he does. This has less to do with the flash-bang aspects of his works than it does the healing and compassion demonstrated in them.

What will it take to get God’s people out of our comfortable buildings with multiple staff that command the vast majority of our wealth, and instead put that same wealth directly into helping others who are less fortunate than ourselves? When will we learn that participation in ministry isn’t about Christmas programs but about the actual serving of others? Church work is fun – and clean and safe. It is also done for those who are themselves clean and safe. Are we growing Christians who expect professionally done “worship” services, or are we growing Christians who worship God through their lives, through getting dirty with people in the messy parts of this world?

This ministry to others is important in good times, but becomes even more critical in economic down times. Should we be investing in worship facilities and staff for our comfort, should we be creating more preachers, or should we be directing more and more of our wealth to those who have none? When it comes to being God’s people in our community and the world, which of these activities should take priority? Which of these would Jesus urge us to do more and more?

I support more ministry to people who are in need rather than more ministry to us. Organizations such as World Concern which is primarily a relief organization, but whose work results directly and intentionally in more followers of the Christian God. These people, and others like them in other relief organizations put their transformed lives to work with the poorest of the world’s poor and oppressed. In our own backyard, we might select the Albuquerque Christian Children’s Home or the Rescue Mission. Both of these intentionally and directly provide relief to people on the fringe of our society, daily directly affecting the welfare of children and homeless people, pointing them to that same Christian God through compassionate and faithful modeling of Spirit-filled lives.

Let’s help them continue to impact the world and our community for God.

Luke 22.39-46, concluded

2009-10-24T15:39:00.000-06:00

...continued....

This leads us to a second instructive aspect of this text. Jesus urges the disciples to stay awake and pray that they not fall into temptation. Then he moves away from them, leaving them to pray. What happens when the physical Jesus leaves their presence? When they lose sight of him, and they can no longer hear his voice, the disciples fall asleep. Rather than praying that God keep them from temptation, they succumb to it. Apparently they have full stomachs and they are tired and so taking a short nap while Jesus is off doing whatever it is he’s doing makes sense. The problem is that napping is not what Jesus had asked them to do, and it isn’t what he asks us to do. The disciples are to remain in prayer even when it is not apparent that Jesus is around. So are we. Scripture asks us in another place, “will God find faith on the earth when he returns,” asked in the context of prayer. Separate from whether prayer “works,” prayer is an indicator of our faith. If we believe there is a God out there; if we believe he hears and responds to us, the expectation is that we will speak with him.

Jesus asked his disciples to pray that they not fall into temptation. This is another way of wording Jesus’ own prayer that the will of the Father be done rather than his own. Praying not to fall into temptation is essentially the same as praying to be in the center of God’s will even if it doesn’t look like that is the place we want or should be. Later in the evening and after a short show of bravado and violence, the disciples are going to abandon Jesus to the arresting mob. They will all run, one even losing his clothes. True enough, some will follow from a distance and witness the evening’s and early morning’s trials. But one of those will end up denying any association with Jesus three times with increasing frustration and anger.

It is important here to note that he does not tell them to pray for what they want or even for the salvation of the world, but that they not fall into temptation. Our prayer is primarily to be the same. While we are encouraged in other passages to ask for what we want, that wanting must yield to the will of God. It is critical that we understand the difference between being in the will of God and God actively willing whatever is befalling us at the moment. Primarily the will of God is summed up in Micah 6.8 – we are to be people who love (extending) mercy, who act justly (toward others), and who walk humbly with God (even when we don’t quite get it). When we have allowed ourselves to be transformed, we can see more clearly the will of God but even if we can’t, we rest in the belief – the knowledge – that God knows what he’s doing. We avoid the temptation of judging God and we live in his will and presence.

The example of Jesus in this passage provides us a window into the way of life for a God follower. We are called to works of goodness, we are called to tell others of God, but our primary calling is to remain in the will of God even when it may seem that he isn’t listening or even there. Our ability to and habit of prayer are intended to keep us in step with God and they are direct indicators of our faith in his existence and his faithfulness to us.

Luke 22.39-46

2009-10-24T15:36:00.001-06:00

This passage recounts our Lord’s agony in the garden. Having left his disciples in the garden with instructions to pray, he has moved away from them to speak with his Father. He returns at one point to find the disciples sleeping rather than praying, and he urges them to pray that they not fall into temptation. His own prayer takes the form of pleading, of searching, that there could be found some way that he would not need to endure the crucifixion. His last comment on the topic though, is that it should be the Father’s will that takes precedence rather than his own.

There are two aspects of this passage which are instructive for us. The first is Jesus’ agony over the Father’s will. It is clear that Jesus does not want to go through being scourged and killed, and he is in agony or distress over his immediate future. Despite having come to this world knowing this was intended, despite sharing in the divine essence and will, despite knowing he would return to the Father, Jesus asks that the plan as it now appeared could be changed. Even in the midst of his inner turmoil, Jesus places his will – his desires – his fears, to the will of his Father.

In some aspects, this reminds us of David’s all night vigils for Bathsheba’s son. In sackcloth and ashes, emptying his emotional and physical reserves, David begs that God’s mercy would prevail and the child would live. After the child dies, David brushes off the dirt from the floor, gets up, takes a bath, and gets on with his life. David had an intense desire to have that cup removed from him, but accepted the judgment of God when it came.

In this passage, Jesus behaves similarly. As long as there was some chance of changing the plan, he would pray and seek the face of God, but when the answer came, he submitted himself to what the Father wanted. This is instructive for us as followers of God. We are called primarily to submit ourselves to the will of God, even if that takes us through agony and seeming abandonment. Scripture intimates unbounded blessing for God’s followers and many people attract masses of followers offering the riches of God in exchange for faithful performance. It is almost as if Scripture has somehow lost touch with reality in a fallen world. We seem to have erased those parts of Scripture that just as forcefully intimate hardship not just because we are human, but because of the faith we proclaim.

If we are to minister to people who subsist in garbage dumps, we (well, someone) are going to have to wade into the dump. If we are going to care for people who have been abused and abandoned, we are going to have to take the risk of being insulted and challenged. If we are going to run an AIDS shelter – or an H1N1 clinic, we will need to accept the risk inherent in those actions. If we are going to live and love in this world, there are risks of doing so. People around us need caring human interaction. Jesus touched those who were hurting and those who had physical illnesses. If we are going to touch them, we have to be with them.

In some cases (although not nearly as often as we might expect), aid workers contract various illnesses, suffer their ravages, and die. Sometimes people who reach out to others are killed by those they seek to help.

In other cases, God-followers seem to fall victim to the vagaries of life. Some contract rapid moving cancers, some are shot by home invaders, some are killed by drunk drivers, some mothers lose children before they are born and some parents lose children after enjoying them for what seems an all too short life. These instances engender questions of why, of the goodness of God, of all the trite promises we express and receive about the blessings of God. How can these things be if God loves us?

It is at precisely this point that our commitment to the will of God is tested most fully. The problem we often have is that we confuse the expectation. Just as Jesus did not want to endure the cross, we are not expected to simply brush off the tragedies of life as though we are unbothered by them, as though we do not have an investment in others, as though we do not care about this life. The key to learning from the passion of our savior is not the specific will of God in any case, but Jesus’ and our willingness to trust God through the hurt, shock, denial, and wondering of whatever we endure. We need not wear fake smiles, throw parties in the midst of loss, or pretend as though everything that happens is alright with us. Jesus did not so act and we are not expected to either.

...to be continued......

Balloon Fiesta Glow

2009-10-11T20:07:00.003-06:00

Albuquerque's 2009 Balloon Fiesta came to an end this morning with winds too high for the mass ascension. Last evening's winds were also too high to conduct the Glow, but there were about twenty balloons that inflated before the winds proved too much. Here are some of the brave balloons being inflated. Had a good time with Ann, Cindy and Malia, Zach, Misty, and Sharon.

Great Communion

2009-10-06T21:18:00.004-06:00

This past Sunday there occurred in Albuquerque a historic event. Oh, not quite as historic as putting people on the moon, or even overhauling the medical system in the most prosperous country on the planet, but historic in a minor sort of way. At three o'clock in the afternoon, and in loose cooperation with multiple other venues around the world, there was assembled members of three of the denominations originating in the American Restoration Movement. This is not the first time various members have "crossed the aisle" to worship with others, but it was the first worldwide intentional such undertaking.

At the Montgomery Church of Christ, members and clergy of the Disciples of Christ, Independent Christian Churches, and Churches of Christ assembled for the express purpose of sharing communion with one another. The auditorium was comfortably full (estimates range from low-500s to about 600 attendees) when the service began with a review of Restoration Movement history by the event coordinator and an invocation by one of Montgomery's members. From there, the communion service unfolded with a mixed vocal choir, a Christian Church bell choir, and various clergy (male and female) from area churches. Congregational a capella singing was appreciated by all in attendance with one Disciples pastor opining that "you sing much better than Disciples!"

The communion itself came amidst a series of textual readings, and included multiple communion stations around the auditorium. At those stations, each with two servers, the congregation received communion from members of other traditions. There were more than a few tearful eyes during the service.

Comments during, following, and since have all been positive. More than one person was heard to say "I never thought I'd see this in my lifetime," and "we need to do this again - every year." Others expressed hopes of further joint efforts such as Christmas and Easter services. Perhaps the best indicator of the spirit of the day was that many people remained after the service for an hour or more to talk while enjoying cookies and other refreshments.

The afternoon was a wonderful chance to meet with other Christians with whom we seldom have "official" exchanges, but with whom we share a common religious heritage. While I'm not one to wait until someone official tells me I can fellowship others (I don't have a problem meeting with just about any Christian denomination), I do hope that this event results in broader acceptance of others with whom we doctrinally disagree over secondary questions.

Belief in....2

2009-09-28T22:13:00.002-06:00

On the same page (180) of The Spirit of Early Christian Thought, the author illustrates his earlier point by stating "In Christian speech a witness is not a reporter. The mother who talks to her child of Christ does not simply pass on what she has heard, she speaks about what she knows, the Word of Life."

This statement has a myriad of implications for faith and for faith communities. We can only get one another to this point if we move beyond the expectation of learning objective facts of Scripture, and into the pursuit of knowing God; of experiencing and seeing His working in the world. If the church is losing members, it isn't because we can't teach facts, it isn't because we can't create ministry opportunities, it isn't because people can't connect with others. It is because we do not encourage and expect one another to know God past the objective events of history.

I am not talking about emotional stories in sermons, or even well-crafted worship services that move us to worship God or bring us into His presence. Those are fine as far as they go, but they are not sufficient. The church has done these things for two thousand years and yet we continue to lose converts and our own children. We must be a people that knows God and knows how to witness to what we have seen and heard to those we seek to teach.

How do parents teach their children about God, about faith, about what they know? How do preachers and teachers reveal the essence of our faith to their hearers? Beyond this last question, how do we select those we allow to teach those in our faith communities, including our children? What do we want them taught? What expectations do we set for our teachers and preachers collectively, and for our mentors personally? It is more important we select those who know God rather than those who simply volunteer to teach facts.

Passion is important, but it must be shaped by maturity and molded by having experienced God. Our teachers must be those who have a personal rather than institutional need to tell the Story. Their need arising as a "well of living water" from within them rather than a wanting to teach, wanting to lead, wanting to be selected. As communities of faith, we owe it to one another to insist on teaching and preaching that reveals God from a life of experience - teaching that instructs in the Life of God rather than simple textual parsing or memorizing of historical facts.

Belief in....

2009-09-28T21:53:00.002-06:00

Am reading "The Spirit of Early Christian Thought" by Wilken. This is a very enjoyable read that seeks to describe the development of Christian dogmatic belief. There are two valuable passages on page 180. This post refers to the first, which reads ""It is...the things believed, not the act of believing them, which is peculiar to religion...." (quoting John Henry Newman).

Faith isn't simply believing that something happened; that someone lived. Rather faith is believing the precepts, the implications, the values of the thing believed in. That last word is critical in understanding faith. We don't simply believe Jesus lived; we believe in the life He lived, the message he brought. We don't simply believe that we have memorized the message He brought - we actually believe it, we own it, it transforms us, it becomes us.

In this way, the Christian faith is not a thing to be learned from a distance, but a way of life to be entered. Faith isn't the recitation of a creed (although creeds can be helpful), but is the embodiment of that creed and the message of the things accepted in the creed. This is why we can say "faith without works is dead," or again, need reminding that the fruit of the Spirit is love. If we say we believe and yet don't live as Jesus lived, there is real question concerning the reality - the validity - of our faith. If we do not enter the faith life with our eyes, our hearts, our minds looking toward identity with God, we enter something less than that to which we are called.

Convicted Civility

2009-05-29T19:13:00.000-06:00

Listening to Heard on Campus (available through iTunes) this week, the concept of convicted civility was mentioned to characterize the way in which committed Christians are supposed to view people of other faiths or no faith. As part of a discussion about Christian cross-denominational engagement of culture, the idea in such dialogue is not to abandon – or to ask others to abandon – the central tenets of yours or their faith. Rather, Christians are encouraged to own their faith and yet engage in dialogue with others without condemning or castigating others.

It seems convicted civility is an excellent way to characterize the way Christians are called to engage non-Christians in discussions of faith, culture, and policy. This stands in stark contrast to some “calls to arms” we often hear from folks that often demonstrate textual knowledge but precious little understanding of the Faith as we are called to live it. While it is true that we can find such street corner haranguing in Scripture – Jonah comes to mind. But before we too quickly seize on Jonah as an example of this type of preaching, let us remember that Jonah had an attitude problem that needed correcting. Rather than Jonah being an example of God’s preferred approach to spreading His word, the story ends with a reminder of God’s care and concern for all people.

As an alternative model, we can consider Paul’s interaction with the Athenians. As we have the story, Paul does not stand in the middle of the Areopagus and condemn the Athenians. No, rather he engages them where they are – using aspects of their religious traditions as entrées to spiritual discussions. Paul does not abandon his understanding of the faith, but he engages non-believers on their terms and where they are.

Convicted civility also seems to be line with the character suggested by the lists of gifts of the Spirit we find in Scripture. Especially germane are goodness, patience, humility, and kindness. People we are told are generally attracted to good people, and relationships formed with good people are stronger than those based on intellectual arguments and fear-based theological premises.

Passing Her Up

2009-05-09T20:37:00.002-06:00

We have just returned from Pepperdine where one of the treats is the few thousand folks singing a capella in the fieldhouse at the evening keynote. The fieldhouse at Pepperdine is a standard college gym with wooden bleachers on two sides and a wide main floor. During the evening events, it is common for folks to come in at various times between the hour-long pre-keynote singing session, or during the keynote hour, while the crowd continues to sing much like a church service. It was during this period of singing that a few middle-aged and older women came in, and having decided where they were going to sit, turned into the bleachers below me and headed up.

One of these ladies had some not inconsiderable trouble with one of her legs - it just didn't seem to want to lift her foot over the next higher bleacher level. Her foot would hit the seat and she would resort to climbing the bleachers on all fours. It didn't take her long to reach my fourth or fifth-level and I reached out my hand to help steady her. She grabbed hold, seemingly appreciatively, and continued to wrestle that foot further up. I was able to help her to the next level, and when my arm had reached its limit, another hand came from above me, took her arm, and helped her further. And then another, and another until she reached her friends. All of this seemed spontaneous, as though helping this lady was the most natural thing for this now cooperating organism of multiple people. It seemed and still does seem that we could not have not helped her with her climb.

It seems that this is exactly the sort of organism into which the church is called to transform. What might happen if we simply instinctively reached out to help each other with our climbs, passing one another and being passed up closer to our God? All too often we are too busy or too disinterested or too distracted to help one another. Sometimes we want to question whether someone needs our help and ever so slightly our defenses come up to keep us from being taken advantage of; of being made the patsy. This kind of living that remains unaware or uninterested in the troubles of others keeps us from simply and beautifully reacting as one for the sake of one.

Do you instinctively reach out to help others or do you question their legitimate need? What might your world look like if we could lose the tendency to protect self and simply aid others?

Rejoicing Over the Defeat of the Egyptians

2009-05-03T23:57:00.004-06:00

I have come to enjoy APM's Speaking of Faith series. Here's another little gem from another of their podcasts...

We all know the story of the Exodus, the crossing of the split-apart Red Sea on dry ground. The climax of that story comes when the Egyptian Army is engulfed and destroyed by the sea being released to collapse back upon itself.

There is apparently a Midrashic story that says at the moment the Egyptian army was engulfed and it was clearly to be destroyed, that the angels in Heaven began singing and praising God for His deliverance of Israel. But God, instead of letting the praise continue, held up His hand and stopped the angels' singing.

Why would He do that? The reason, given in the Midrash, is that God does not want rejoicing when creatures, made by His hands and at His command, suffer as did the Egyptians. I don't know if the Midrash says God sorrowed over their deaths, but He did not rejoice over it. God's value, God's care for the Creation is not diminished by the Creation's faults.

I find it interesting and somewhat arresting that we find this story in a Jewish relgious corpus. But it isn't a unique concept for the Jewish people. I have previously brought a very moving prayer to your attention, written by Holocaust survivor, that seeks blessings on enemies because of the good that came of the horror he suffered. You can find that prayer here: http://robersonblog.blogspot.com/2006/05/renovation.html

This reminds me of a story in Winner's book about one of her friend's fathers. When asked what was the most important thing in life, his response was "to learn forgiveness" (or something like that - I don't have the book in front of me). Winner says that she had asked many people this same question and all had had to think, and then when answering would say two or more different things as though they wern't sure. Contrastingly, this man answered immediately and definitively - learning to forgive was the most important thing in the world.

From where did this notion of his come? How did he come to pick this virtue, and how had he come to own it so surely? The same way that prayer writer did; this man too, was a Holocaust survivor. Perhaps for his own sanity, perhaps because he had to, perhaps because he had come to know God through the suffering of the Holocaust, he had come to realize the same truth.

In forgiving - in real forgiving - it seems there is no room for rejoicing over your foe's defeat. There is only room for forgiveness.

How are you doing with that?

If you haven't yet found Speaking of Faith, their podcasts are available through iTunes. Highly recommended.

Rumi's Reminder

2009-05-03T22:38:00.000-06:00

Listiening to a Speaking of Faith podcast on Rumi, the following story was told:

There is a statement in the Quran that goes something like this: "I have given you the reminder, and I will protect it." Spoken by God, this statement is routinely applied to the Quran itself. God has given us the Quran, and He will protect the Quran. One day, Rumi was sitting with his students/friends, and he recited this standard interpretation of the Quran statement. Then he said, while that is all well and good, there is another way to understand the phrase. The Reminder in Rumi's version, is the desire to know God.

In Islam apparently, there is no Original Sin, but rather a humanity that forgets who they and God are. The Rumi version of our passage addresses that theological point by tying together our forgetfulness, and God's implanting in us a drive, an urge that He will ensure remains, to remember.

Hebrew Scripture tells us that we are made in the image of God, and Orthodox theology tells us that we are indeed made in that image, that character, and that our journey is to develop that image into the likeness of God. That image results in there being something, however small and unintelligble, inside us that drives us to find God. Thomas Merton has said that we will "return to a place we've never been."

That is because God has placed in us the reminder, and we long to remember.

Perception

2009-05-02T22:08:00.001-06:00

My wife and I were lying in bed the other night when she commented that the brightness of the moon coming through the window was a wonderful Spring event and provided a pleasant calming affect at bed time. As the window through which the light was coming was on my side of the bed, I observed that it wasn’t the moon, but a neighbor’s security light that was casting the radiance across our floor. At that, my wife said “then close the blind; it’s too bright and will keep me awake.”

There’s a saying in my profession and shared by many others that asserts that “perception is reality.” There are even people who specialize in perception management. This is the idea that what others think about you becomes true in their minds, and we are able to modify their behaviors toward us by adjusting the perceptions they have of us.

My wife’s mood and attitude changed solely on the basis of her perception of the source of the light flooding our bedroom. For the few minutes she thought the light was caused by a Spring moon, she enjoyed it and would have been content to sleep contentedly with the warm moon shining on us. When she realized the light was caused by a cold, stark, security light, the light immediately became an intrusion and a hindrance to peaceful slumber. One moment it was peaceful; the next is was almost jarring.

The light though hadn’t changed; it had always been caused by the neighbor’s security light. The only thing that did change was my wife’s perception of the light, illustrating that there is some truth in the saying that perception is reality as far as it defines our acceptance of and interaction with our surroundings.

This same phenomena is true regarding Christian understandings of God. If we read Scripture so that, or if we are trained to see God as an aloof task master who has created arbitrary hoops through which we are expected to jump in order to gain His acceptance, we align our religious thinking along those lines. Christian life becomes essentially a test to see if we can determine the correct rules, adhere to them, and convert others to the same rules. Worship activities become central because the rules for them can be measured and objectively assessed. We can convert others to our understanding of the rules and correct behaviors we tease from Scripture.

If we see God rather as a loving, giving God; if we read Scripture in such a way that we perceive God as a compassionate God who wants us with Him, we develop an understanding of reality that is quite different from the one we have just discussed. We see a God that isn’t wrapped up in finite rules, issuing test scenarios that we must negotiate correctly. We see a God whose compassion and intimate knowledge of us causes Him to accept us with our faults and with our wrong or immature understandings of Him and ourselves. Worship activities become almost a secondary response to such a God, following upon the reality of changed lives and transformed hearts. Our relationships with others become characterized by understanding and acceptance more than attempts to define and enforce divine rules.

As a result of this last perception of God, we are freed to join in God’s compassionate love for, and nurturing acceptance of ourselves and others. Only when we understand God as One who accepts us with our faults can we accept ourselves with those same faults. When we can, we no longer need to hide them or pretend we don’t have any failings. It is only after we have learned this about ourselves that we can most fully enter the lives of others and accept them where they are. Only then can we introduce them to a God that is loving rather than demanding. Only then can we pass to others a perception of God that is similarly freeing and life-giving.

However we perceive God, He does not change. Just as the light outside the window didn’t change, even so, the perception of it created its own reality. We can to a large degree shape our own reality based on our perception of God and what He is up to. That perceived reality will color our views of ourselves, others, and our calling.

How’s your perception?

Comment on Perception

2009-05-02T12:18:00.001-06:00

The following is (most of) a comment I received in response to the last post on Perception. I expected that the expression of the concept in such an open manner would cause some folks to think that reality is whatever I happen to think it is at the moment, I elected to post my comments without explanatory notes. Well, one of my friends from another site makes that very observation. That's a good thing because it prompts me to address some of the limits of perception in response to his comment. Below in standard font are his comments, and in italics are my responses. This gentleman is kind and knowledgeable in Scripture; I have no reason to question his faith, salvation, or commitment to God or Scripture. It is apparent though, that we do see things a bit differently perhaps. Of course, regular readers of this blog won't find that surprising.

“It appears that your "perception" of God and scripture is no different than many others. It may be different in wording or actual commitment levels but that is your interpretation of the Word.

It almost appears as if you are saying that God accepts you, no matter how you live your life. Kind of the old, God loves me as I am, thing. However, that is a dangerous approach to spiritual truth when it come to Gods will for our lives. Not to mention that it is very difficult to support this view of Christianity with scripture.”

I’m glad that you included that “almost,” because that is an accurate reflection of what I believe. It is that you can almost live your life however you want and God will accept you. We might posit that there are two kinds of sinners – those that did bad stuff before they were saved and now no longer do, and those that did bad stuff before they were saved and yet still do bad stuff. For the purposes of this discussion, it does not matter the relative severity of these behaviors; the answer remains the same – God will accept you if you attempt to follow Him. We all get things wrong and we all do things on purpose that are not in line with God-character. If I expect God to accept me, I must allow Him to accept you.

I do not believe it is difficult at all to support in Scripture. I would point first of all to 1 John, where we are told that we aren’t supposed to sin, but if we do, the blood of Christ covers us. Without getting into the background of 1 John, or a discussion of Gnosticism, that truth does support that there is really very little you can do to remove yourself from the acceptance of God.

That does not mean there is nothing you can do to separate yourself from God, but there are precious few things indeed.

“I appreciate people who are intelligent. I really do. I can't imagine having to live this life with people who can't participate in an intellectual conversation. I have tried. It doesn't work. I said all of that to set the stage for what I am about to say... You and I have mixed it up a couple of times on the [Deleted by HR to protect the guilty]. I have seen instances when "retranslation" of the bible is the only correct way to do things. I think some people are too smart for their own good.”

I try not to “retranslate” for grins and giggles, but rather extrapolate and interpret specific passages in light of the whole of Scripture and its description of God. I believe it is vitally important that we understand God (that is what we are called to) and then interpret Scripture in light of that understanding. I admit this must be a reflexive undertaking – read Scripture first, see the picture, and then re-read Scripture in light of that picture. It is true that I shy away from dogmatic applications of seemingly absolute passages. I shy away from them because they generally do not fit the rest of Scripture – or in many cases the context of the passages themselves.

“I do not know if I will ever understand how you, and others like you, reconcile your beliefs with scripture. God does love us and accept us as we are, but we are meant to change our life as we grow as a Christian. Knowledge is a wonderful thing. But it can be a two edged sword as well. Saying we believe in God isn't good enough. There actually has to be evidence of it in our lives.”

Oddly enough, it seems that we agree on this one. I whole-heartedly agree that simple knowledge isn’t enough. The expectation is that we evidence changed – no, transformed – lives. We are called to become like Christ, the fullness of God. That is precisely the reason I try to find God rather than distinct rules in Scripture. God is up to something broader than giving us a written code.

“There is actual sacrifice involved when we accept Christ as our savior. We should die to ourselves. We are not the same. It is not our life to live. We were redeemed with a price. That price was our Lord and Savior being beaten, humiliated, nailed to a cross, and His side pierced. He was killed for me and you. He earned and paid for our life.

Your approach to life as a Christian, although it is very comforting, is completely wrong. Of course, that is just my opinion.”

Since we agree to a large extent, I’m not sure how I can be completely wrong – assuming there is some correctness in your view. Perhaps we are both completely wrong, or maybe we simply have different emphases in our view of God. Maybe we’re both a bit right and a bit wrong.

“I have concern when reading your open dislike of accountability in the scriptures when it comes to marriage and homosexuality among others. Your opinion of abortion leaves some questions as well.”

I suspect that is because these are emotional trigger topics, and that I express myself differently than you. Perhaps I understand the question being asked differently. Maybe I see the solution to be based more on understanding God and the realities of existence, more so than on finding the applicable rule. I admit that sometimes I perceive the implications of Scripture differently than the more common view would allow, but I believe my understanding to be in line with Scripture.

That however, is not to say that I devalue Scripture, or that I don’t believe we are called to higher levels of existence and behavior. I try though, to live in that higher plain with the view that I see God has demonstrated time and again. That view is one that acknowledges that you and I are imperfect and will continue to be; that we do not understand God entirely; that despite our beliefs that we have it “right,” we probably don’t. The view of God in Scripture is one that does accept those who seek to follow Him, as they are. He then calls them to an imperfect, but transforming/transformed life that will itself be punctuated by failures.

Those that are separated from God are those who push Him away; those that have no love for the Light, who seek to further Darkness. Others, who seek after God even imperfectly (to greater or lesser degrees) are nurtured and accepted by God. I hope and believe that about me and I must hope and believe that about you. As a result, I must also hope and believe that about others even if they do stuff that I think is incompatible with Christian living.

Finally, I don’t have an open dislike of accountability. I do however find that God usually turns out to have a bit more grace and mercy than He does wrath. I simply try to extend that same grace and mercy to others and at the same time try to comport myself to what I understand to be the higher standard.

I believe my friend, that you and I are much closer than you perceive.

Blessings

Man of Sorrows – Are You One?

2009-02-17T12:53:00.002-07:00

Isaiah speaks of one who is a man of sorrows, and who is acquainted with grief. This phrase is often tied to Jesus' scourging and crucifixion. In fact, the notes in one of my study Bibles limit their commentary to these two closely-linked periods in the last days of Jesus' physical life. It seems though, that this phrase likely has a broader meaning including at least the disappointment and frustration experienced by Him as he moved to Jerusalem and lamented her reluctance to accept His welcome, shelter, and life. I suspect we could also extend the thought to Jesus' reaction to Martha and Mary after the death of Lazarus. Or perhaps when we're told that the people wander like sheep without a shepherd, we get a glimpse of the sorrow of God.

It also occurs to me that if we follow our God as we say we do, we also should be people of sorrow, and acquainted with grief. If not our own, surely that of others. I speak here not of the mourning with others or of sharing sorrows with a grieving widow, or a now childless parent, but of more mundane or perhaps all too often routine experiences of life.

I see people almost on a daily basis who are not happy, who are angry, who are afraid of various people and things. Couples who are arguing with one another and who can't seem to quit, or individuals who are so angry they push everyone else away. If these were normal ways of living I suppose it wouldn't be so bad. The problem though, is that people need people. Oh there are some that claim they don't, but that claim simply doesn't stand up to the evidence – or their desire to be alone is itself an accommodation to some underlying fear or hurt.

It can be frustrating to see people who so much want to be accepted, seemingly go out of their way to defend themselves and in so doing push those closest to them away. Causing further anger and frustration in those around them, they keep themselves imprisoned in their own frustration and isolation.

Scripture provides clear (OK, not so clear for those of us who like to major in minors, and argue over details) teaching on how to solve most of life's interpersonal (and intra-personal) strivings and hurts. It is simply to trust God – even if it looks like He doesn't know what He's doing, and live concerned primarily for others' well being. We are told in Scripture that God will set us free. This freedom is not just from the penalty of sin, or the demands of an ancient law. No, it is freedom from ourselves, from the need to look out for Number One; the freedom to give to others no matter the circumstances.

I used to phrase this freedom as "God has your back, now go do God stuff," but that isn't quite right. The most appropriate way to visualize this idea is to understand that as we mature, we actually come to see the world as God sees it. We cannot really, be overly concerned with ourselves because we know that the best approach to life is to focus on others – just as our God does.

Not surprisingly, modern psychology understands the same principles. Since our minds are created by God, it seems reasonable to expect that the findings of psychology (if not every interpretation of those findings) support the teaching of Scripture. Psychological dysfunction is largely due to some sort of defensive behavior and the world view underlying the behavior. That world view is often one that is based in fear of some sort. Fear of our safety, fear of being abandoned, fear of being made fun of, fear of being embarrassed.

Nor is it surprising that the psychological cures (other than medications, directly) for many if not most maladies include engaging with others, asserting your own needs, and changing thoughts and stories from those that keep us isolated to those that draw us into competent associations with others. These treatment aspects eventually lead to a world view that says "I'm safe, competent, and valuable," and that facilitates an understanding that I can acknowledge a hurt and yet let go of it at the same time. Psychology seeks to nurture the same sorts of people that Scripture describes – those who are free to both be themselves and allow others the right to be flawed people. Admitting and accepting my own failures and yours, and not letting them come between us is key in both psychological health and Christian faith.

God wishes for us this type of freedom, this type of world view, and it is frustrating and sorrow provoking to see folks who simply don't know or who remain so unsure of themselves and their world that they cannot grasp and follow through with simply letting go of their defensiveness. It becomes more sorrowful when we realize that we are not big enough to simply move them into brighter light, into a world that isn't so demeaning and mean.

A Man of Sorrows? Yes, that appellation fits both our God and His followers who see the world through His eyes.

Mudhouse Sabbath

2009-01-27T16:36:00.002-07:00

Lauren Winner has written an appealing little book about how Judaism can influence Christian practice. Brought up Jewish, Winner has converted to Christianity. Her conversion though, hasn't wiped her memory of her Jewish background, or prevented her from determining where Jewish practice might well inform and deepen Christian practice. Written as a first-person account, the book isn't really biography as much as personal observation. One of her observations involves the Jewish use of a Mezuzah to mark a house or room as that of an observant Jew. She parlays that into re-using a junk sign affixed to her door to indicate to all passers-by that in her house lives a Christian.

What might happen if believers took their faith from inside their homes to the trim of their homes? Might it embolden us to live lives outside that are more Christ like? Might it help us to become less afraid or self-conscious about our faith when speaking in public - assuming we could do so without being belligerent about it?

Winner has some other twists worth reading in her little tome, and it would be worth your time to check it out.

Lunch at Barnes and Noble

2008-12-30T20:30:00.004-07:00

While waiting for his glasses to be crafted, my son and I decided to visit the local bookseller and redeem gift cards we had received for Christmas. After finding a few books, there was enough time left to visit the in-store café.

As we sat in the café, we noticed the mural above the café counter. Stretching for about forty or so feet, and being about four to six feet tall, the mural displays likenesses of fifteen famous authors – Faulkner, Hemingway, Parker, and the like. They are sitting in a café themselves, most at tables, but with one or two standing. As we studied the mural, a few things became obvious that we had previously not noticed. The first is the most obvious – of the fifteen authors, only two are women. Not overly exciting this, but curious nonetheless given the recent and somewhat extended push for gender equality and recognition of women's contributions in previously male-dominated fields.

The next detail that became apparent is that the few "extra" people in the mural – those who are not authors - either have their eyes painted with little or no detail, or that their eyes are not visible at all. Essentially, the only people with eyes are the authors. We could chalk this stylizing of the non-authors simply to the idea that this mural is in a bookstore. It would be reasonable that the authors would be the main and possibly only object of the painting, with the others simply filling in some open space.

The foregoing would make the mural interesting enough, but there is another detail that highlights this only-authors observation. It seems that the authors are looking at something, or perhaps are intently pondering some grand idea. The authors aren't all looking at the same thing, but they are all intently looking at something. Nabakov for instance is holding his glasses and peering at them in his hands. Neruda though, seems to be staring into space, pondering some idea or site perhaps only he can see.

There is clearly more going on in, and behind this mural than what initially is apparent. The message seems to be that authors – those with classic staying power – are observers of people and life. It isn't suggested that they are simply observers though. No, these authors are observers that intently study the goings on around them – people, ideas, and events. The only author who is actually writing is Hughes who seems to be writing in a bound journal. Maybe he's recording his observations – or writing poetry about his surroundings for later delivery to us as classic.

It occurs to me that perhaps God followers could be in this mural. After all, what better group of people to closely observe the human condition and pass on their observations to the rest of the world? Maybe if we spent a bit more time observing the world from the perspective of God – from the perspective of the image in which we were made – we could more effectively communicate the Good News to the world full of people who remain confused and wondering, with no one to lead them. To do so though, requires that we set our Bibles down, let go of our perceptions of what doing life "right" looks like, and allow ourselves to become and experience real humanity. Can we do all this without lecturing, without castigating our fellow humans that don't seem to get it?

It seems that we must do this if we expect to have a continuing positive impact on our world. Have we become so ensconced in our churches, so shallow in our faith lives, that the realities of life shock us overly much, or even scare us? How can we minister to people whose lives scare us? I suggest that we cannot.

Prayer for a Newborn

2008-12-14T18:13:00.001-07:00

Our great God, our Creator, the giver and sustainer of Life. We praise you for this miracle we have received today.

As Violet Grace takes her first breaths, we ask you to breathe on her; give her your Spirit. Infuse her with a desire for you, give her wisdom to discern you in herself, in others, and in the Creation. Give her the strength to follow You, and patience and compassion with those who do not know you, or who have not discerned you as she has.

Give her patience with herself and teach her to wait on You. Give her a desire for a simple life, lived quietly in trust with You.

Father, as we remember the coming of Your Son, we ask that You incarnate Yourself in Violet; that You nurture and grow her to be a living witness of Your grace in this life.

Keep her safe, bless her and her parents beyond their imaginations, and give them long lives and great wisdom.

We trust You, and rely on Your steadfast love.

Thank you for Your Son, and in His name we offer Violet to You.

Amen

Communion Reflection – 7 December 2008

2008-12-13T23:15:00.006-07:00

Psalm 138

I give you thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;
I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name
for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.
On the day I called, you answered me;
my strength of soul you increased.
All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O LORD,
for they have heard the words of your mouth,
and they shall sing of the ways of the LORD,
for great is the glory of the LORD.
For though the LORD is high, he regards the lowly,
but the haughty he knows from afar.
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and your right hand delivers me.
The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands.

This psalm describes a God that is not far off, but a God that sees and loves those who would follow Him. This God sees the trouble of His people and protects them, lifts them up, and sustains them. Communion reminds us of this same God who saw the world in distress, as those without shepherds, and who intervened to save, protect, and lift us up from our despair.

As we remember our God who died for us, let us also remember that we do this in community – with one another. As we take the bread, we promise one another, we promise the world, we pledge to our God to take not just His life, but His death into our own bodies. We die to ourselves so that we may join with our God in blessing the world.

We are told that blood is life, and so today we take into ourselves not just our Lord's death, but His life as well. As you drink this cup, and as it courses through your being, let it enliven you, let it give life to your souls, to your minds, and to your bodies. Let us use this life to leave here and give life and blessing to those outside. Let us live life as God would have us live it.

Why Do People Seek Spirituality?

2008-11-23T15:51:00.005-07:00

The question was posed on another site, "why do people seem to be seeking spirituality; why are they searching for fulfillment and satisfaction?"

Asked by someone who had a non-believing friend, who had asked the original question. The answer to this question is rather simple it seems to me. Here's what I posted in response:

"We are made in the image, the character of God.

Somewhere inside us is some God-stuff that tells us the world, the way it is, isn't the way it's supposed to be; that we, chasing after stuff that ultimately doesn't satisfy, aren't the way we're supposed to be.

As a result, we look to match that God-stuff with meaning and life. And so we seek, without knowing sometimes that it is the God-stuff that needs to be met.

Humans are all made in the image of God; and we all seek to live in that image (even if we don't know what that image is)."

If this is a correct answer to the question, it could help form the focus of our telling others the Good News. Rather than telling people they need to be saved from their sins, we could point people to the God that fulfills their longings and makes sense out of the world.

Made to be Imperfect?

2008-11-21T21:25:00.001-07:00

Most Christians know of Paul’s admonition to be perfect, even as God is perfect, and most Christians have at one time or another, vacillated between security in faith and wondering if they’ve been perfect enough. It dawned on me this past Wednesday that all our attention on being perfect may by miss-placed.

What if we were meant to be imperfect? Really.

It has been demonstrated that most of us find it hard to be really compassionate, really caring, really empathetic unless and until we have undergone some sort of disappointment, loss, or failure. In the psychology world, and in a few Christian books, the idea of the wounded healer posits that only those who have suffered and worked through it can most adequately “be with” those who are now receiving the blows of life’s realities.

If we are called by God to live in His image, to live in His and with His worldview, His other-centered drives, His compassionate care for the world, how can we really mature into that image if we have never lived outside it? It has been observed that the lessons of life either kill us, or make us stronger. In this case, stronger in faith and character.

Could it be that humans, rather than being created to be perfect, were actually created to be imperfect? Imperfect so that we can learn the vagaries of life, the hurts, the defeats, the griefs of living. Imperfect so that we can learn to be a bit more gentle, a bit more forgiving, a bit more understanding of others’ failures, others’ periods of disorientation, others’ outbursts of anger, and others’ sins.

The implications of this possibility are that we no longer need beat ourselves up for failures. We can learn more readily from Brother Lawrence and his readily giving up his sins to the care of God. We can see our lapses in judgment as opportunities for growth in the Spirit rather than causes for fear.

What would it mean for you if you were made to be imperfect? How would that change your life?

What Draws.....II

2008-09-16T23:04:00.003-06:00

A comment has been received concerning our last post. Essentially, the question is "do you have Scripture for that post, or are you just making it up?" This is a common question since I don't pay a lot of attention to peppering my writing with citations. I much prefer to assume that my audience has a grasp of Scripture and can recognize it when they read it. However, that is not always the case and there is nothing wrong with asking questions. And so the answer is, "yes there is plenty of Scripture to support the ideas in our last post."

To make the point concisely, I would offer Paul's admonition to be transformed into the likeness of Jesus as well as Jesus' urging that we live in Him as He lives in the Father. He further tells us that He and the Father are one.

It would seem then that yes, God does call us to live as He would live on this planet. When asked to show the disciples the Father, Jesus' response was something like "what, haven't you been paying attention? If you've seen me, you've seen the Father." Jesus also says "I call you friends because to you has been granted the right to know the things the Father has revealed to me."

Essentially, John 14-17 paints a picture of the Father, Jesus, and the Spirit living in a close and intimate relationship wherein is shared the knowledge of the Father, of what He is up to, and the love He calls us to live.

Is there any Scripture in the previous post? Quite a bit, actually.

What Draws You To God?

2008-09-15T20:28:00.001-06:00

When I was young, I came to know God as creator and eventually as savior, and those things drew me to Him. Those are good things for children to know about God. In fact they are good things for seekers, for new Christians to know, but they exist in the elementary things of which Paul speaks. Elementary I suspect for two reasons. The first, that they can sometimes be based in fear – if you don’t believe, God is going to send you to Hell. The second, that they are things about God; they are objective statements. Objective I suspect as faith concepts can be.

But I do not want to stay there. I no longer want to know God as creator and savior only. I want to know God; I want to know Him in His essence, His character, His love. But here again I do not want to stop at objective statements. “God is love” is nice, but it cannot satisfy. These again are a set of objective statements about God.

Much more do I want to know God as my God, on a personal and communing basis. I want to know Him as He knows me, moving and sensing, and abiding with me. I want to abide in Him, to know His desires, to know His loves, to know His attractions and revulsions. I want to know these things as though they are my very own. I want to, as much as a creature can, become God in this world. When I speak and when I do, I want to be able to say as Jesus did, that I only say and do what my Father tells me.

My assurance in this pursuit is that He wants me to know Him that well, and that He will provide a path for me to find Him and become like Him. He invites me into His world, into His mind, into His very life. He has shown me His likeness in His Son, and invites me to summon the courage to live the picture that Jesus paints for me.

This is no mere learning about, and it is more than conforming behaviors. No, this is much more. This is to know in such an intimate way that I can comfort as He would comfort; I extend mercy as He would extend it; I live in His life and as He would live. I want to know the will and the passion of God so that I join with Him on this earth.

God is my savior; He is my creator – my sustainer in fact. But He is so much more and He draws me to know Him far beyond my initial saving and forming. He draws me to know Him as He would be in this world.

Basic Training

2008-09-06T21:48:00.002-06:00

In the last couple weeks our youngest son graduated from Basic Training at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Pretty routine really...music, soldiers, families, heat, humidity, irritability from time to time. The first day was Family Day. We were to get there at 10:00 and so my wife wanted to get there early. As it turned out, we were to be let into the post theater at 11:00.

Picture this....200 family members standing in the sun and humidity, pushed up against the front of the theater, waiting. Wonderful really. The Family Day family theater period lasted about twenty minutes and included primarily a hard-to-hear bubba try to tell us the rules for Family Day. Essentially, we could have our soldier until 8:00 that evening with some limits on distance and admonitions that he could not have alcohol, drive the car, or change out of his uniform. Well that went OK and we had him back on time, dressed and with no alcohol on board.

The next day was Graduation Day. Oddly enough, it started the same way....one advertised arrival time and then a later actual start time. Same scenario...200 people in the sun and humidity pressed up against the same theater entrance. Once we finally got inside, the graduation itself was pretty much standard. The most interesting aspect of the graduation is that the soldiers entered in platoons - about forty to fifty soldiers each. Each platoon would march onto the stage, execute a Left Face and then singly take a step forward, state their name and home state, and then execute a Right Face and march off the stage.

That may sound somewhat boring, and I think I would agree with you - to some extent. In fact, it was boring until, after several names and states, a particularly singular idea floated into my mind. I don't know if it was during the first or second platoon, or where exactly in that platoon it came to me. As I sat there and listened to a soldier blast out his name and state, it occurred to me that this - these soldiers - were America. The states they named accounted for a great majority of the country - New York to California, and Florida to Washington.When these soldiers, so young and relatively naive may be sent off to war, it would be America sending America's soldiers to war. We were all represented and we would all send our sons and daughters off to fight. If there is any unity, if there should be any unity, it must be when we send our children - they may not like that label, but they are - off to war. There can be no room for argument; no room for hedging our political likes and dislikes. No, when American sends her kids off to war, we must do so together, because that is exactly what we are doing.

Elders redux

2008-09-04T21:38:00.005-06:00

A reader (I am always amazed that people actually read this blog) submitted a rather long comment on the original post on Elders. It is apparent that the reader did some good homework as the comment has several, well, more than several, reference citations. It is clear that they both read the original post and did some Bible study before posting their comment. Because the comment was so long, I thought it appropriate to post another entry rather than bury the response in the comment log.

In the following discussion, I have included the text of the comment without the Scripture references. If you want to read the comment in its entirety, scroll to the Elders post and click on the comment.

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[Comment~~~~The church is expected to be a people in exactly this sense. We are the people of God who are charged with continuing and preserving the values, culture, hopes, and the identity of God’s people in our time.~~~~

Does this include the doctrines (teachings) of this people?]

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All of Scripture must be seen in light of God’s purpose. Scripture, while it describes God’s purpose for us, does not define that purpose. In other words, the purpose came first, and Scripture is given to describe it. As we read Scripture then, we must keep in mind that there is a larger purpose than the text we are currently reading, and all texts must fit that larger purpose. For instance, murder is not wrong because the Bible says it is. Rather, the Bible proscribes murder because murder is wrong. If we understand that God invites us into His world and asks us to understand life as He would have us live it, the Bible becomes an invitation rather than a set of hurdles to negotiate and a set of rules to learn. When we try to use Scripture to define rather than describe God’s view we risk confusion and overly limiting both ourselves and God.

Being the People of God includes primarily the purpose for which we have been chosen. That purpose is essentially the same as that of Israel – to bless the world through the blessings we have received. We bear God’s invitation to be reconciled to, and comforted by, Him. This would include the teachings of the people as they are rightly understood by the people. Using the murder analogy above, we would not teach only or even primarily that murder is wrong, but that grace, forgiveness, humility, and compassion are key aspects of living as God would have us live. Therefore, a simple teaching that murder is wrong would be insufficient because that in itself does not result in transformed people who abide in Christ. It results rather, in people who simply refrain from murder.

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[Comment~~~~Rather than arguing over how to select, qualify, and remove organizational functionaries, we are to be looking to acknowledge some of our members as elders of the people of God.~~~~

Is that not what Paul was concerned about in 1 Tim. 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-11?]

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Paul’s concerns were more about providing Godly leadership and direction to the congregations he had established. His concern is a proper (not legally, but Christianly) functioning community rather than specific rules for functionaries. The question becomes “what kinds of people” are appropriate to lead the People of God. It is instructive to note that the two lists of elder qualifications that we normally use are different, and likely neither was available to the other community when they were first delivered and read. And so we see Paul describing kinds of people rather than seeking to establish absolute rules for every congregation in every place. What we want are mature Christians that both understand the faith and have given themselves over to it. While the lists we have can be useful, they are not dogma in and of themselves. They can’t be because they are not mirrors of each other.

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[Comment~~~~As a result, we search for methods of selecting elders, making sure that we consider the qualifications we find in Scripture as though they are legal requirements,~~~~

Is not the new testament/covenant the law of Christ? If it is not a law, how it even possible to sin?]

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The Law of Christ is love and submission to the will of God, not every detail that we might find between Acts and Revelation. Sin is possible without Law as is clear with Adam and Eve. They did not have a Law and yet were cast from the Garden. Paul’s discussion of Law and sin is not intended to argue that you cannot sin without Law, but rather that the Law is insufficient to save and in fact can only define sin for us. He goes on to say, as many psychologists will tell us, that when we’re told not to do something, that seems to be the very thing we want to do. And so to what Law are we to submit? The Law of love and submission to God, just as we were made to live. A written Law will always be inadequate because perfect Law keeping as an external requirement is not, and never has been the goal. The goal is transformation of the people into those who would live as God would have them live. They so live not because God makes them, but because eventually they come to own the vision of God as their own, and they can do nothing else but live that vision. In that case Law becomes superfluous and can only entrap those to whom it is given.

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[Comment~~~You spoken of the aspect of this office we call elder from the tribal perspective, and I believe you have the right of it for that one aspect, but there are more aspects to that office than that of elder (prebuteros). There is also that of pastor/shepherd (poimen) that you touched on and that of bishop/overseer (episkopos) that you did not.

It is true that these men must protect and feed the flock they are shepherding (Acts 20:17-28). It is true that they provide wisdom from experience and knowledge gained from a life of study of God's Word and therefore must not be a novice(1 Tim. 3:6) and must be apt to teach (1 Tim. 3:2).

But is it not also true that they are rulers of the congregation (1 Tim. 3:4-5; 5:17; Heb. 13:7, 17)? What is the aspect of bishop/overseer about if not authority? Is it not just about guiding by example, but enforcing the law of Christ so that God's people are not corrupted by outside influences, but the flawed teachings of men?]

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Elders do have authority because they have responsibilities. Those responsibilities include maturing Christians and protecting the church from corruption of the Faith. As a result, elders hire and fire staff, they determine spiritual growth needs of the congregation, they determine what kinds of things cannot be taught in their congregations, and they direct the use of the congregation’s resources to accomplish those things. But, elders resort to “pulling rank” only when necessary. Just as both Jesus and Paul could pull rank if they needed to, they both appealed to people to live as they should because they wanted to live that way; because they were made to live that way. Elders need to know people in general and their people in particular. They need to know how to foster growth and development in others without having to push and pull, and without insisting on “doing church” according to their personal preferences. Therefore, this “rule” becomes a less apparent prerogative, something that should be transparent and seen largely in the selection of staff and teachers, and the kinds of material given to the congregation to study (as far as our corporate meetings go). Outside of our corporate meetings, this function is seen in mentoring, visiting, correcting, and perhaps cajoling members to live as God made them to live.

The purpose of the original post was not to describe every aspect of eldering, but rather to argue that elders are much more important in the lives of their congregations and the church at large than simply pastoral counselors. Elders are given the charge of protecting and furthering the faith to the point that they embody that faith. Elders are not advisory boards for congregational staff but they are the directors of the staff; they give the staff the vision, and shape the staff to further the faith needs of the congregation.

Camp

2008-08-25T21:32:00.004-06:00

This September, my wife and I will lead our congregation's fall camp session. The theme as I have received it is "The Church," which does not seem overly exciting upon first hearing. But we will not discuss church as a flat subject; as something about which we already know all there is to know. Oh no; there will be plenty of twists and turns.

We will have four sessions, the last of which will be the camp's Sunday sermon. The topics will be these:

What is the Church? In this session we are going to gently pull back our standard answer and look beneath it to see that the church is simply the latest incarnation of the People of God. While God's plan was a mystery to Man, and the church is a central aspect of that mystery, the church itself remains as a link in the chain that God has used to bless creation from the beginning. We are not unique in the sense that our mission, our calling is the same as has been that of the People of God from the beginning.

Who is the Church? Here we are going to expand our understanding of who is in the church, or more appropriately, who might be said to be a follower of God even if they are not "officially" members of a church. We will spend some time in the first three chapters of John to get a better handle on what constitutes a God-follower. Maybe there are many more people in "the church" than we sometimes think there may be. If so, how does that affect my relationship to them?

Why the Church? What is the point of having a church anyway? In this session we will see that the purpose of the church is not significantly different than what has been the purpose of God's people through history. We are not a church for our own good, but rather we are the People of God for the purpose of extending God's reign in the world today, and for blessing the world as God would have it blessed through us. In this session we will also explore the idea that a blessing, once given, cannot be taken back. This session will explore how we bless others and will be conducted in separate men's and women's breakout groups.

Where Do I Fit In? Congregations hire Involvement Ministers so that their members can be assimilated and set to work in the church's ministries. We often hear of Christians figuring out what their gifts are and being placed in those spots within a congregation. We do this so often that many times new Christians, or even those who are simply new to a congregation ask "What can I do; where do I fit?" as though they are disoriented unless someone gives them a job to do. This seems to ask the wrong question. The point is not that need to fit into the kingdom; we are the kingdom. We need not fit, but rather simply be who we are called to be. See someone that needs a cup of water? Give it to them. Eventually, you will find yourself "fitting" just fine.

So those are the four sessions. The intent for this weekend is to do our part in tearing down the separation between being a God-follower and being a church member or a Christian in some technical sense. We will broaden our view of who we are, of who the church is, and of what our calling actually is in this place called Earth.

It should be fun; I'm looking forward to it.

Jesus and the Big Picture

2008-07-04T15:32:00.003-06:00

OK. This may well get me in big trouble, but let me throw it out there anyway. The question before those of us assembled on the mesa is, what is the point of the Christian faith?

This question comes to us because it seems that if we can grasp the big picture, if we can understand that what God wants is people that live the way He made them to live, how does that inform the purpose of Jesus’ coming?

A simple viewing of the Eternal Word Television Network, or a visit to an Episcopal church, or visiting a low-church protestant service reveals the centrality of Jesus in the assembly. Now this essay is not going to suggest we do away with or ignore Jesus, but it will question whether, in our attempt to worship Him well, we have forgotten what the big picture really is.

It seems to me that Jesus did not change the big picture. Rather, He came to illustrate it and be its example to those who can recognize God when they see Him. In other words, while Jesus’ coming was known and planned from the beginning, His coming is essentially a fix for humans; it is not the point of humans. While the coming, the death, the resurrection, the ascension of Jesus are certainly glorious revelations of God’s grace, they have a point outside of themselves.

The big picture it seems to me is that God wants us to be the people He made us to be – people who are made in His image; who are most at home when we live as though we have the character of God Himself. If we read Scripture closely enough, that is what it reveals. Why are people condemned? For not being compassionate. Why are people granted access to the King? Because they give glasses of water.

How is Jesus the way to God, and why are we told that only those who believe in Him can gain entrance? Perhaps the answer is not quite as objective and clear as we sometimes want to believe. In John the context of the first three chapters provides an understanding of “belief” as something other than – something more than – objective acceptance. Those who believe are those who love the Light; those who see God and are drawn to Him when He appears; those who surrender themselves to the transforming Light that offers to shape them into their intended form. It is in this context that we read “…whoever believes on Him should not perish but have eternal life.”

This is an important distinction since our salvation is not dependent on passing a test, but on living God. It is not on being baptized, but in surrendering to God. It is not on Godly sorrow, but on turning our lives over to God. Could it be that it is in this sense that those who reject Christ will be lost? If we run away from Jesus rather than toward Him, we are then subject to the wrath of God. Could it be that this is the meaning of Jesus being the entrance to God? The way to God ceases to be a Jewish carpenter but the carpenter becomes the example of who we are called to be. If we conform ourselves to Jesus not because He’s Jesus but because that’s who we are meant to be, then and only then do we gain access to God. Is that possible?

OK, I know that may sound blasphemous to many, but does it not make sense that the big picture is our conforming to God, not the fix per se? Does not that fit more with what the broader scope of Scripture is telling us? The broad sweep of Scripture presents a God that made Man to be His image, to live with His character and world view. Because Man couldn’t consistently live in the character of God, God planned a fix, and provided that fix in God’s timing.

But it was a fix – not the intent. It was a gracious fix, known apparently from the beginning; a wonderful act of forgiveness and love, but a corrective nonetheless. The intent was that Man would live out of the character in which he was made, and the fix is a remarkably effective one. God comes to the world and lives a life that exhibits the life that Man was made to live. In doing so, God provides not just the example but forgiveness for our failures. Essentially, the message is “live like this, and because Jesus did, you can gain forgiveness if you wake up and seek to live in the same way.”

As I have mentioned before, N.T. Wright suggests an alternative translation for Romans 3.22. He says (as do Dunn and Sanders) that this verse, normally translated to indicate it is our faith in Jesus that saves us, can be translated to mean “…the faith that was in Jesus” is what saves us. In other words, we are saved not by any faith that we may have, but we gain entrance to God by the steadfast faithfulness of Jesus to God’s will.

If this is true, then Mankind gains entrance to God simply because Jesus, as the second Adam, restores Man in relationship to God. It remains that each person recognize the God character in Jesus and move toward it. In so doing, in imitating Jesus, we gain entrance to God.

How does this affect our faith? It is important, first, to recognize that we worship Jesus as God and we do so appropriately. It provides though a broader understanding of who we are, of what our calling is. Our understanding of that calling changes from being Christians as opposed to Muslims or Jews, and moves toward living as God wants us to live. Jesus becomes not an entrance at the end of a maze, but the example that leads us to God. Our faith lives change from doing church correctly or even being The Church in the world, to simply living as God has wanted us to live forever. Are we The Church? Yes, but simply as the logical result of living as God would have us live. Do we follow Jesus? Yes, but not simply because he is Messiah; He is the example who demonstrates for us how we are to live.

It is that living, that becoming the very character of God that saves us. Because we can still do that only imperfectly, the faithfulness that was in Jesus provides for all of Mankind justification that allows us entrance to God.

The Pastor and the Church

2008-05-13T16:17:00.004-06:00

As the self-declared spokesman for all of Christendom (at least for the next few minutes), I find the text of Pastor Hagee’s apology to Roman Catholics one of the most equivocal, off-point, and self-preserving that I have read recently. On the other hand, unfortunately, it is also pretty much standard.

According to the AP, a portion of the two-page apology reads like this:

"Out of a desire to advance a greater unity among Catholics and evangelicals in promoting the common good, I want to express my deep regret for any comments that Catholics have found hurtful."

Now I know that there may be considerably more self-deprecating narrative in the remaining text. Be that as it may, at least in this place it is apparent that Pastor Hagee isn’t sorry that he said anything, only that someone may have taken offense at what he has said.

That my friends, simply doesn’t wash. It is not Christian to make millions of dollars calling a group of people "The Great Whore” or “The Apostate Church” at the top of your lungs, and then only apologize that they may be too sensitive to get over it.

No, an appropriate apology would have read something like:

“I apologize for the ungracious and un-Christian things I have called the Roman Catholic Church, and I ask your forgiveness for decades of advancing myself and my organization at your expense. Today, I repent of my belligerent attitude, my sharp tongue, and my cynical view of a church that does great things for the work of God around the world. I intend from this day forward to ensure that my teaching and my preaching make distinct separations between the state of the Christian church in general in the early centuries – and whatever ills they may have had, and the modern manifestations of that church and the good that it does. I recognize that all Christian faith communities arise from a common history and we must therefore all accept as our own histories that which is our common heritage of the first few centuries. I am truly sorry for not living up to the example set by our Lord.”

But maybe that’s too far for our good pastor to go.

You may now all have your corners of Christendom back.

Words, Sticks, and Stones

2008-05-12T15:07:00.002-06:00

“”Words can hurt…but only if you let them. They called you bad names. Were you changed into the things they called you?”

“No,” I replied.

“You cannot forget what they said any more than you cannot feel the wind when it blows. But if you learn to let the wind blow through you, you will take away its power to blow you down. If you let the words pass through you, without letting them catch on your anger or pride, you will not feel them.””

--Joseph M. Marshall III, 2001, The Lakota Way

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”

--A common schoolyard retort

The truth is though, that words can hurt very deeply – and more than one child has experienced just how painful angry and barbed comments can be. Not only do they hurt in the moment when they pierce our hearts and seemingly sear into our psyches, but their pain can live for hours or weeks in the lives of school kids. If we hear enough of them, or hear them from the right people, they can impact our lives forever by providing a form and shape to which we conform our own identities and our expectations of relationships.

How many people live their lives as though they have received their identities, their place in significant relationships from the expectations or valuations of others? We often refer to these ideas of self and others as baggage, or life stories, or scripts that provide ready-made views into which we place others’ and our own behaviors and words. Many times we think we know the intent of someone else’s behaviors, their thoughts behind their interactions with us. Shaped by the words and behaviors of other people, and seemingly reconfirmed by our experiences that seem to reinforce those judgments, our interpretations and meanings assigned to other’s behaviors cause us considerable anxiety and upset for the rest of our lives.

The quote above from Marshall’s book provides valuable insight into how best to view those words thrown at us. While children may lack the natural responsive ability to distinguish themselves from what others call them, we can be trained by those more wise than ourselves or through our own experiences and readings that we need not let others’ views of us shape and define our beings. Words do hurt – excruciatingly so at times, but we need not let them shape the way we see ourselves or even how we see those who sling them at us.

Notice that we are not to let the things people say and do to us get hooked on our anger and pride. This is perhaps the key element in the above quote. Only when we perceive a threat, perceive that someone is “out to get us,” do we let the circumstances raise our anger or hurt our pride. Anger is a natural, although often undisciplined response to hurt. Anger and pride are powerful aspects of human beings and the more we let them influence our reactions to others, the stronger they become as elements of our behaviors and attitudes. It is often in these moments that our self-stories and stories of others get formed and anchored in our beings. Can we learn to simply let the insults and conniving pass without getting stuck in our beings? Can we let other people make mistakes, call us names, and take advantage of us without having to own in ourselves their behavior? Can we refuse to let them and their immature prejudices define who we are and how we live?

In refusing to let the wind knock us down, we can maintain healthy beliefs about ourselves and even others. Do we want to live lives dictated by others, or would we rather live lives that match our values, our desires; lives that allow us to be valuable, competent, lovable, and loving people? We cannot control others’ responses to us any more than we can control the wind. We can however simply let the wind blow – even if it is at times blustery, bone-chilling, or gale-force. The wind will buffet us; it might even knock us over once in a while. We need not though, let it keep us down.

Knowing…Doing…Being

2008-05-11T19:00:00.003-06:00

In class this morning we were studying Matthew 18. There are at least four pericopes in this chapter which seem to form a coherent whole. These four cast in practical terms the answer to an age-long problem: how to get people to let go of themselves? From arguments over who is the greatest, to parables about searching for lost sheep, to indebted servants beating on their debtors, we are led along a revelation of the sort of measure God uses when dealing with us – what sorts of expectations he might have of us.

Do we want to be first? Why? What's the point? Do we not know that the shepherd himself leaves the flock and searches in desert places for one sheep who is missing.? Rather than simply writing that one off, the shepherd seeks earnestly for it. That sheep – and everyone like it – means a lot to that shepherd. Does he remain around those that are where they are supposed to be; those that have followed his voice recently? No, he leaves them there and searches for the one that is having trouble following his voice, which isn't where she is supposed to be. That one is precious. We are not called to comfortable right-hand seats but to work in spite of ourselves and our pride. Do we expect that God would treat us better if we sat at His right hand? Likely not if we treated others in ways that we would not want to be treated; not if the goodness of His grace did not register in our hearts.

Tucked among these three pericopes is the famous Matthew 18 church discipline text. Let's see, how do I gain satisfaction from my brother who has wronged me? Let's see….I have to first go to him, and then I take two witnesses, then I get to defend myself in front of the whole church against this offense I have suffered. If I don't get satisfaction from the church, I can have the church avoid him like the plague!

And so we please ourselves that we know Scripture…we know that this passage exists, and we can learn the steps in "church discipline." So far so good. We are a People of the Book. We can quote long passages with ease and on top of that, we can guide others to pertinent texts.

But then we must do something about it. Many times we Christians don't really want to use Scripture when it might slow us down; delay our getting our justification. Many times we simply accuse – in the halls, on the phone, in whispered conversation with the elders – those we have a complaint against. That Matthew 18 process simply is too cumbersome when we are feeling hurt.

But what's the point of knowing Scripture if we aren't going to use it? If we aren't going to do what it says? Most of us can't abide the embarrassment of being caught not "doing what the Bible says" at least where church and church relationships are concerned. And so we eventually either forget about the hurt, or if we simply can't, we invoke Matthew 18 to set the record straight. And so we go to our brother to accuse him of what he has done and that we demand satisfaction. Predictably, he ignores us, and we pick two of our friends (after telling about twenty) to confront him with us. Our antagonist, feeling somewhat ganged-up on, rebuffs all of us and so we feel compelled to tell the tale to the whole church (which we likely have already done in small group discussions or one-on-one) or the elders (I'm sure there's a reason for this non-Biblical substitution, but I don't know that it is consistent with Scripture). At this point, our nemesis is pretty much fed up with our stalking and creating a larger and larger spectacle that he simple stops coming to church. Finally, we can show to all that his character and faith have surely been suspect for some time since he can so easily backslide!

And we are proud that we have finally done what Scripture demands.

The problem of course, is that this section of Scripture isn't a legal text. While it seems to progress as one, its purpose is far from legal. In fact, its purpose isn't really to provide satisfaction to harmed parties. Oh, it may well do so if understood properly, but that isn't its primary import. Falling where it does, this text is informed by the texts that surround it and their points deal with humility – not justice. No, the purpose of Matthew 18 is not to guide church trials and recompense hurts. Its purpose for the steps is the reconciliation of relationships, and the realignment of brothers in their walking the faith. It may well be hard to see that purpose when we are feeling hurt and looking for justification in others' eyes. After all our pride takes umbrage at such turns of events and we apparently have every basis to demand those who hurt us come to judgment.

But God isn't overly concerned about our being recognized as being hurt or receiving recompense at others' expense. God would much rather we acknowledge, grasp, own, the great debt that we have been forgiven, learn humility from that, and extend the same mercy to others. We must approach Matthew 18 as the chapter presents itself to us. We are not at liberty to take this short passage, extract it from its supporting rationale, and then apply it to those with whom we have a beef so that we gain some advantage. Divine humility, living in our bodies, does not allow that. It is hard to argue for justification from a God who's Son died for us; a God who seeing our fault, does not drag us in front of tribunals but rather offers more of Himself for our transformation. We must come to own the Divine mercy, the steadfastness of love, the humble failure to demand justice for ourselves, if we hope to live as God would have us live – with Him, even in this life.

Knowing Scripture, and doing what it says can be laudable for Christians. But neither of those will suffice if we do not become the example we read of in Scripture. If we do not use the word to transform us into the likeness of the Word, we chase after a knowledge and accomplishments that are worth nothing. We are called, and we must pursue, to be Scripture not just know it, not just doing it. We must spend our lives being Scripture.

...At Least I Didn't Kill Them

2008-05-11T17:50:00.006-06:00

He has achieved something most private citizens never achieve. In fact, he has elevated himself, almost single-handedly to heights rarely achieved even by heads of state or military officers. While he has prepared for this day for more than twenty years, he has rocketed to recognition in less than a week. This is normally the pattern, most world-take-notice achievements do not actually occur overnight. No, most world news worthy events only happen after intentional and decades-long preparation.

It is not a medal he has won, he has not achieved great political success, he has not almost single-handedly brought medical and emotional healing to millions. No, he is no hero, no beloved leader, he is certainly no Mother Theresa. The notoriety he has achieved ranks not with saints, but with devils. He has made himself equal to Pol Pot, Heinrich Himmler, or Stalin. This is the reason his name does not appear in this entry. If you have read or heard the news over the past week or so, you know his name. You do not need me to tell you.

When his daughter was about 17 years old he locked her in a hidden underground dungeon, and for the next twenty-four years he kept her and some of the children he fathered by her (three of them he and his wife adopted after his captive daughter “abandoned them on their doorstep,” and one died in the dungeon, apparently incinerated by him.

It is reasonable that the horrified and shocked public would call him names like “monster,” “tyrant,” and “evil.” It is this last epithet that has gotten his attention. He has protested that label, insisting that he isn’t evil. His defense against that heinous appellation? He can’t be evil he argues, because he didn’t kill them, after all. He didn’t kill them! For this act of restraint and mercy he argues that he isn’t evil. Never mind imprisoning his children in a dungeon for twenty-plus years. Never mind raping his own daughter to produce those children. Never mind providing such insufficient care that one child died, its body incinerated and a nineteen year old who remains in a hospital-induced coma because of the poorness of her health in the dungeon.

Yes, at least he didn’t kill them.

What else could he muster as evidence to prove his non-evilness? He fed them, didn’t he? Provided electricity, running water, beds on which to sleep, and clothing. It is interesting that someone had attempted to make the dungeon look a bit like a home. Tiles around wet areas, a bit of color here and there, some funny looking stickers or designs in a couple places. Certainly, in addition to not killing them, there are these bits of evidence to his humaneness. I suppose that if his family were poor and allowed to run around in the open air as free persons, these bits would indeed indicate some paternal care for his offspring. His paternity though hadn’t seen sunlight or smelled fresh air in a decade or more. These bits of care – almost insulting in their meagerness – do not assuage his guilt, but make it more stark.

But there’s the rub. If we aren’t careful, we will fail to see that we practice the same sort of self-deceit that he does. Oh, most of us don’t hold people captive for years, fathering our own children from our own children. But most of us use relative comparisons to justify or dismiss the things we do. “Oh, it’s just a couple bucks,” or perhaps even “They deserved it. If they hadn’t pushed me, I wouldn’t have punched them,” or my favorite “That’s just the way I am; you’ll just have to accept it.” We can use any number of justifications for taking advantage of people, for being rude, for ignoring someone in need, for doing things we ought not do. Our father-in-the-dungeon rationalizes almost exactly like we do. He looks for the good in himself just as we look for – and assume – the good in ourselves. We use his same line of argument.

Are we rude to the store clerk? Do we steal from the office? Do we take payment for work we didn’t do? Do we parade at church and then wallow in the gutter at home? Do we dishonor our spouses and mistreat our children? Do we deny others the things that might please them so that we can spend our time on ourselves?

We do all those things and more. And then we rationalize why we aren’t quite so bad as our brother in Austria – or maybe even the neighbor across the street.

After all, at least we didn’t kill them.

The Principle of Priority

2008-04-07T18:44:00.002-06:00

In "The War of Art," Steven Pressfield offers the "Principle of Priority" through the lens of which he encourages us to keep our eyes on what really needs our attention. The principle reads "a) you must know the difference between what is urgent and what is important, and b) you must do what's important first."

At first this sounds either counterintuitive, or too simple. Counterintuitive in the sense that most of us spend much of our lives reacting to the urgent needs of our surroundings. The phone rings and we immediately answer it despite the violence that does to the conversation we may be having with someone else at the moment. Do we not understand that it is important to honor our correspondents than to respond immediately to a ringing interruption? Most parents have experienced the knee jerk reaction to control a child in a public place rather than taking the time to find out what the child's issue really may be. In a slightly more broad application, have we wanted church leaders to tell others what appropriate dress for Sunday morning is despite the expression of spiritual growth and sharing the man in the T-shirt provides us?

Too simple in that the principle seems to ignore, or at least reduce the importance of the urgent things that assail us almost minute by minute.

The important, from a spiritual view are normally those things that are intangible; those things that we oft find to define or explain, but which we know nonetheless.

Living by the Principle of Priority does not justify not responding to urgent matters all together, but often it does mean that we practice the important while doing the urgent. Can we have compassion or empathy for the bully while pulling two children apart? Can we admit the hurt and fear in the pedophile while we remove the child from the situation? Can we discipline our children while keeping in mind that we are training them rather than punishing them?

Jesus' arguments with His accusers illustrate this concept well. While the leaders of the people felt it urgent to stop the disciples' eating of grain as they walked along - in violation of The Law, Jesus demonstrated the Principle of Priority when he reminded all of us that the Sabbath was made for Man, not Man for the Sabbath.

It shouldn't surprise us that we don't see this principle first in the life of Jesus. God has tried to tell us this all along. God has said, "I desire mercy, not sacrifice," and He challenges His detractors to go learn what that saying means.

Whenever we feel pressured to do something, or to get others to do something or not do something; whenever we have a feeling of unease, or our anxiety rises, we do well to reflect and discern whether the demand on our lives is simply urgent, or really important.

The urgent often seems important, and sometimes it is. Its importance though, doesn't come from its demand on our attention and senses, but from a well understood priority of life. This understanding of Being is a large part of what Paul calls transformation, maturity, or Christ-likeness. We would do well to train our children and our adults in the proper use of the Principle of Priority.

Elders

2008-02-25T22:52:00.003-07:00

Currently there seems to be some increase in the interest of elders. The discussion is often limited to "how are we going to make sure we don't get stuck with a reactionary," or "how best to protect the congregation by forcing elders to be reviewed every so often," the discussion reveals a considerable loss of understanding it seems, of the church and her elders.

This discussion simply reinforces my conviction that we really do not know what elders are all about. While shepherding is a nice, soft, and somewhat marginal term that is currently in vogue, it remains only one aspect of an elder’s “job.”

The discussion also reinforces my conviction that we have lost sight of what the church is actually called to be. While operating as an organization with rules for common assemblies may be the most visible aspect of church, it also remains but one aspect – and a very small one – of what church is.

The church is not primarily a Sunday morning operation. Rather, it is actually supposed to be a people, much like the Jewish people, or the Lakota Indians are a people. A people are much more than their ritual dances or healing sweats. Rather, a people have their own identity as a people that stretches across millennia, and see themselves as on a journey of some sort. Any given incarnation of the people are not the totality of the people, but they carry the values, the culture, and hopes, the identity of the people with them.

The church is expected to be a people in exactly this sense. We are the people of God who are charged with continuing and preserving the values, culture, hopes, and the identity of God’s people in our time. As a people we have a mission, and we have our own part of the history of God’s people to live and craft.

It is in this concept of people that the ideas surrounding elders are to be understood. The term elder (or its original language conceptual equivalents) has a long history in human society. It carries with it that history even into the church. Rather than arguing over how to select, qualify, and remove organizational functionaries, we are to be looking to acknowledge some of our members as elders of the people of God. These elders serve the same functions as the elders of other peoples. In essence they carry and preserve the identity and other aspects of the people in their beings. Elders are selected not because they are shepherds only, but because they embody the values, culture, hopes, and identity of the people of God.

In being elders, those so acknowledged are given a life-long obligation of carrying, protecting, and enlarging the people of God. This responsibility is not something that can be delegated, removed, or even given up. It is precisely because elders have been so acknowledged that they can sit at the city gates and judge between people, they can challenge people who argue for dangerous ideas and concepts, they can encourage and shape other members to take their places, and correct still others who do not live in the culture of the people.

Outside the church, we seem to have no problem understanding this concept of elders. It seems natural when discussing life with or among indigenous peoples, but we lose sight of the concept when we import the label to our church world. It is my opinion that we lose a great deal of the texture, the value, and the history of the people of God when we do so. We begin to look at elders as archaic novelties and modify our view of them and their “jobs” to fit our misunderstanding of church. As a result, we search for methods of selecting elders, making sure that we consider the qualifications we find in Scripture as though they are legal requirements, and we look for ways to protect ourselves from elders through mandatory rotations and reaffirmations. In many cases we act as though professional staff are more central to the life of the people than the people’s elders, relegating elders to essentially being pastoral counselors.

We have placed ourselves in a rather ludicrous position as is clearly seen if we reflect on how elders have been and are selected among other peoples. Have we ever heard of an Apache chief having to rotate out of being a chief, have we ever heard of a medicine man standing for reaffirmation, have we ever wondered why religious teachers of various stripes never step down from being recognized as a teacher – short of a moral failure?

And yet we have no problem with figuring out how to do just those things with the elders of the people of God. It seems that our teaching and our community lives have become so out of touch with what they are to be that we see our communities as organizations and our leaders as threats to the community.

Rather than trying to apply short-sighted fixes to a broken system, why not teach and practice a deeper understanding of what a people is, of who our acknowledged leaders are to be, and what our collective mission is in the stream of history. If we were to do that, we might just have elders who take the responsibility more seriously, and a people that don’t spend their time protecting themselves from their elders.

Recapturing the concept of elders could help us move considerably closer to the ideal of both the community of faith, and her elders.

Christmas is Over!

2007-12-29T21:42:00.000-07:00

Well, it’s done for another year – the commercial side of Christmas anyway.

Now we enter the Octave of Christmas on the religious and spiritual side of things. A chance to savor the coming of God during the period leading up to Epiphany, the day that marks both the baptism of Jesus and serves as a remembrance of His being revealed to the world through the testimony of God Himself. And so, for those attuned to the rhythms of the church year, we moved through Advent as we awaited His coming into the world, and through the Christmas season wherein we celebrate His accomplished in-breaking, to Epiphany when we celebrate His revealing to the world through His ministry, and then into Lent, anticipating His death as well as ours, and so into Easter, another and perhaps His most powerful revealing in power as Savior of the world, and as our hope of living with Him forever.

And so we travel seasons with our focus repeatedly on Jesus, His coming to save us, and His acceptance of us to participate in His life forever. Later, we will enter the Pentecost season, the coming of God in the power of the Spirit, empowering disciples to live and to die in the power of God in ministry to the world.

And so the rhythm of the church year goes, making a complete cycle of God blessing the world, inviting us to live and die with Him as we live and move in accordance with His will for the world. Finally, at least in the US, we end up back at Thanksgiving. A time it seems when we can once again thank God for His multitude blessings, the chiefest of which is Jesus Himself, and the opportunity He gives us to be His hands, His mouth, His feet as we allow Him to direct our ways in blessing the world out of the blessings He has given us.

I trust that as each of us moves through these seasons, God will give us the grace of reminding us of who we are called to be, of what we are called to do, and of our calling to empty ourselves for the world just as our God has done. May you each rest peacefully in the knowledge that what He has promised, He will complete; that as we live for Him, we willingly give up ourselves for our friends, our family, and those we do not know; that we do this in the assured hope that we live in and with the God, the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Sustainer of the world.

Merry Christmas!

Inspiration

2007-12-16T21:41:00.000-07:00

Most Christians would agree that the writers of Scripture were inspired by God when they wrote the autographs. While we may argue whether the Holy Spirit dictated the actual words, or the thoughts and ideas, inspiration in some form is usually not debated. Inspiration is a critical aspect of Scripture, imbuing it with a divinely-appointed importance for the church. We know what God has said because we believe that what we have received was inspired by our God. Scripture is the very words of God – in some form.

But few Christians today would claim to be inspired in their daily lives, or in their church lives. To claim to be inspired is a claim that will receive considerable scrutiny if not out right rejection by the vast majority of Protestant Christendom.

While I don’t know that we should claim inspiration for every idea or thought that travels through our minds, I am equally doubtful that we do not receive inspiration as we attempt to live and minister as God would have us. If we believe that God in the Holy Spirit is active in the world, if we believe He is active in our lives, why is it that we shy away from acknowledging that Christians are inspired, and inspired in the same ways that the church fathers were?

How many of us have heard of, or have actually experienced the working of the Spirit in our ministry and every day lives? How many preachers, how many counselors, how many shepherds have found the right words, of either comfort or instruction, come to them at just the right time? How many of us have experienced a passage of Scripture, or a turn of verse, seemingly appear from nowhere just when we need them?

I believe God continues to inspire Christians today. I don’t know that He reveals new truths, but revealing previously unknown ideas is not the full definition of inspiration. Jesus tells His disciples to simply go, and God will not only provide their needs, but will also bring to their minds the words they have heard. Do we not believe that God does essentially the same things for us today?

Those who were promised divine inspiration were those who lived in, and conversed with God on a regular basis, and those who were engaged in God’s work in the world. Inspiration is not promised to those who do not seek God, who wish to use the inspiration for their own gain, for those who are not engaged in the work of God. In contrast though, it is clear that New Testament Christians were promised the presence of God in ways more manifest than simply having the Spirit. The Spirit worked in them, and with them to provide the right words, the necessary food, the physical protection, and the spiritual guidance.

If that is what God did for first century Christians, why do we believe He does less today, especially in light of our own or others’ experiences that He does. Is it not inspiration when we experience the movement of God in our lives? I can think of no reason to believe that the power that works in us is different than that which worked in the disciples.

If we pray for guidance, if we pray for assistance while ministering, and we believe and experience the Spirit’s leading and help, we must believe the Spirit provides such things to us. If the Spirit does those things, we experience inspiration in similar ways that those who wrote Scripture experienced it. In short, we are inspired.

This realization has implications for the way we live our lives. It is no longer sufficient to simply hope we can remember passages, or that somehow we will come up with the right words or the right act for a situation. We must understand that we actually have God with us, inspiring us with His Spirit. This is heady and scary stuff, but the conclusion is inescapable. Our words and our behaviors are inspired – prompted, guided, shaped by God’s manipulation of our memories, our emotions, our hands, and our tongues. The effect is the same as that experienced by the writers of Scripture, and those of whom we read in the New Testament.

When we realize this, when we get our minds around the reality of God with us in this intimate way, it should cause us to be more cognizant of who we are, of who lead us, and for whom we speak and act. We truly become the hands and mouths of God, expressing God’s words, and doing God’s work in our daily worlds. This is not cause for bragging, but for increased humility. It should cause us to live closer to God, to change our minds so that they seek His will more closely, to speak with God more deeply and more frequently.

The next time you’re tempted to say that someone’s behavior or speech is inspired, you might just be right.

Wake Up!

2007-12-02T21:23:00.000-07:00

The following is the communion reflection given on the first Sunday of Advent, 2007.

Romans 13.11-14 reads like this:

“And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” (NIV)

This is an interesting passage for communion but we will get to that a bit later. First let’s read the previous pericope. Verses eight through ten read thusly:

“Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” (NIV)

Here Paul says that we have one debt and that is to love one another. He lists some commandments and finally says all of these and any other commandment that we may be able to find are all summed up in one, to love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus says in another place that the Law and the prophets hand off of the Greatest and the Second Commandment, both calling us to love – God and neighbors.

It is important to note that this love is not simply doing “no harm to its neighbor,” but that this love is proactive rather than passive. It isn’t enough to simply not to hurt others, but our love must propel us to act in their behalf. The memorial we are about to remember is a clear indicator of that principle. God didn’t simply not kill us, but rather He sent His Son who died for us. It is this proactive love that we remember and that we must make our own.

Now we come to the actual reading for today, and the aspect that seems a bit odd for a communion reflection. Paul is going to end up encouraging his readers to clothe themselves with Christ – to own Jesus, His life, His death.

Advent season is a season of expectation, of looking for God, of waiting for His coming into the world. But the expectation also includes a receiving or an accepting of that for which we wait. It is that receiving of God that must speak to us, and which obligates us to some responsibility.

And here we have the part of this passage that seems odd for a communion reflection. Paul tells his readers to wake up because salvation is closer than it was when they first believed. These are Christians Paul is writing and telling to wake up.

Many of us who have been keeping this memorial for forty years or so can simply take this memorial without thinking about it. We’ve always done this on Sunday and so we continue – it’s expected, it’s what we do. When we do that, we fail to recognize our God in the memorial. We cannot allow ourselves to let this feast become routine. We must, as Paul encourages his readers, wake up because our salvation is closer today than when we believed.

We are told in another place that we dare not presume on the patience of God. That to delay responding to God because we have more time is in itself sin. We are called to believe, to own God so much that we live in expectation of Him, and in Him – all the time. When we take of this memorial, we must do so fully cognizant of what we are doing, what God has done, and who we are called to be. If we have begun to slumber, we must wake up and live in the salvation that we enjoy, clothed with Christ.

Delivered at Albuquerque, the first Sunday of Advent, 2007

Communion Reflection

2007-11-27T22:16:00.000-07:00

The following is the communion reflection given on The Feast of Christ the King, 2007.

Colossians 1.15-20 reads like this:

[W]ho is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through him, and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it was the good pleasure of the Father that in him should all the fullness dwell; and through him to reconcile all things unto himself, having made peace through the blood of his cross; through him, I say, whether things upon the earth, or things in the heavens.

In these verses there are various points we can observe as part of our Supper observance. The first is found in the first verse of the selection. “Who is the image of the invisible God…” That word image, if memory serves me correctly, is eikon. Jesus is the visible representation of God. If we say we want to see God, we simply have to look at Jesus. At His life, at His death. If we are to live as God, our lives must be eikons as well. These eikons reveal the very being, the very character of God, and it is as eikons of God that Man was made to live. As we remember His body, we must own our obligation to live and die for others, rather than ourselves.

Another observation is in the middle verses. There are numerous mentions of being the creator, the sustainer, the beginning of life as we know it. In Jesus is life. Our very lives as we know them, and real life as it is meant to be lived. Paul will tell us elsewhere that life is in the blood, and so it is true here as well. The blood of Jesus cleanses us, returns us to life with and in God. When we drink the wine of remembrance, we must also remind ourselves that in receiving the life of God, we are called to give life to others. Our lives, our drives, our hopes are to lean toward giving and sustaining life rather than tearing down, and advantage.

Toward the end of the reading we read of peace, of reconciliation, made and given by Jesus’ life and death. In reconciling us to God, Jesus also reconciled us to one another. But not just to other believers, although that is a particularly true example. But even if at a different, perhaps not lesser, level, God reconciled His people to all people, to the Creation. In community we share with one another, and the same is true within the church. But that is not all. Through Jesus, God has sought to reconcile all people and the Creation to Him. We are called to be God’s hands, His servants, His blessing pots to the rest of the world. When we consider our calling to be reconcilers rather than wall builders, our hearts become open, our hands let go of “our stuff,” and all that we have is available for God’s use in this world.

Delivered at Albuquerque, on The Feast of Christ the King, 2007

God's Secret Service

2007-11-27T21:21:00.000-07:00

During the sermon this past Sunday, our preacher used an illustration that I have heard numerous times. Oh, not word for word, but ones like it. It goes something like this:

“There was this Midwest preacher and his family who went to Washington D.C. and while there, they met a family friend. This friend it turns out was a member of the Secret Service detachment assigned to the President. The friend offered to give the family a tour of the Oval Office and the family readily accepted. The family was somewhat surprised, after expecting searches, and metal detectors galore, to be ushered around all the security because they were with the Secret Service officer.” The point of the illustration is that we gain entry past all the checks and defenses into God’s presence as people who know – or better yet, are known by the Son.

As part of the sermon, it made plenty of sense, following a discussion of Jesus’ promise to the one on the cross who asked to be remembered, and to whom Jesus said “Today you will be with me in Paradise.” The image of Jesus escorting the thief into Paradise is mostly appropriate. So far, so good.

The problem arises when we let the illustration say more than it does. If we aren’t astute, we may let the illustration give us, or support an already current notion, that God is in Heaven surrounded by traps, detectors, walls, gates, alarms, and guards through or around which we must negotiate our way to God at our peril. It is as though getting to God is a deliberate challenge designed to keep us out. Man apparently is so corrupted that God tries to keep us at arm’s length unless we can find the secret to get past the guards.

I guess it preaches, and many of us seem to have this idea of God and our challenge in finding Him. I don’t know though, that it is all that accurate. It seems to me that the path to God has been – and to a great degree always has been – wide open. Hasn’t God repeatedly called to us saying “return to Me, and I will be your God?” Or, if we prefer a New Testament version, “If we walk in the Light as He is in the Light, the blood of Jesus continuously cleanses us.” Man’s problem has not been that God has established obstacles to our return, but rather that we had lost sight of God and had little desire above our own enrichment, to return to Him.

We do not need an escort to protect us from God’s defenses but rather One who would remind us of God, of who He is, of what He is like, and our calling to live in concord with Him. When we recognize our creation and calling to be that of living with and in God, there are no obstacles around which we need a path.

The challenge is ours, not God’s. The obstacles we face are those we erect, not defenses that God has put up to keep us away. If we do not desire to live in concert with God, it is because we are blind and self-seeking. The obstacle is us, and no amount of escorting will change that basic fact.

God has open arms, not blocked hallways.

God is waiting. And calling.

Saved All Over Again?

2007-11-10T19:49:00.001-07:00

The question comes, concerning whether we must be re-saved everytime we sin. Must we live such a tight rope of behavior that we are in danger of separation from God if we misstep from time to time? While I was growing up, there were some who believed, even if they didn't say it out loud as one sentence, that we in fact were doomed if we died having unrepented sins.

It seems to me that God made Man in His image, to be the kinds of people who would live out of that image. God, through history has expected two primary things:

1) That Man honor God, YHWH, Jehovah, as God – as the God to whom Man is devoted, and
2) That Man’s life of dedication, of understanding, of living out of the image in which he was made, would reflect the values and the views of God

It has always been that God sought Man to be “His people and He would be their God.” When Man forgot God, failed to trust Him, and relied on themselves, or used the promises of God to excuse their own prideful behavior, God disciplined Man in order to have Man (either particularly, or generally) return to Man’s first love. Return to live with and in concert with, the God and His image that resides in all of us.

It also has been that Man (particularly and generally) has failed to remain with God, and God’s reaction has always been to cajole, to plead, to argue, and to discipline Man so that he would return to God. Man's repeated failures and final forgetting of God, not always in ritual, but always in effect, result in God rejecting Man – not all men, and not necessarily for all time. God's forsaking of Man comes after our rejection of God, the blinding of our eyes and the hardening of our hearts.

While Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah of God, has revealed God to Man anew, and has paid the sacrifice of a life unto death in obedience to God, and has made a way for forgetful, sinful, and prideful Man to return to God once again, God’s expectation has not changed. There is not any magic in the life or death of Messiah that seals forever any particular person’s standing with God despite that person’s living a life of selfish and neglectful (of God and others) pride.

Christians who taste the goodness of God and return to their pre-Christian-enlightened lives, are no different than Israelites, or even Adamic Man, who had tasted life with God and left His goodness to pursue their own desires. It has been, and remains possible for Man, and individuals, to taste the goodness of God, and return to our own vomit.

God has not called us, or caused us, to slavishly follow His will because we must, as though some force outside us makes us live in certain ways. He has called us to yield ourselves to Him, letting Him transform our lives through that submission and training, so that we grow over time to live from the image in which we were originally created. We come to a place where we “must” live for God from what becomes our very essence, flowering into the life we were made to live. Paul would say that those who have come to the fullness of God, have arrived not because God caused them to be made perfect, but because they have learned the will of God through practice, and have come to know it without thinking about it. They needn’t run to find their Bibles, or weigh the pros and cons of a question, or course of action – they come to know what is correct, what is most right, by living and experiencing the life of God. The motivation to live that life comes from within, from a yielding and a melding of the image of God with ourselves to such an extent that we can do nothing else. The "must" comes from within, not forced from without.

There is little in Scripture to support the idea that once we have yielded to God, we must continue in that path – as though we have lost our will or any susceptibility to temptation or sin. The parable of the soils, and Paul’s frequent exhortations to his children in the Faith to pursue, to not flag, to guard themselves, to ensure their salvation, provide ample evidence that there is some aspect of the Christian life that is open to failure, to misdirection, to burning out. To the abandonment of God.

None of this amounts to the idea however, that one sin, one misstep, means we must be saved all over again. The call, the admonition, is to live a life toward God, in submission to Him as a character of our life. If we live lives characterized by the image in which we were made, we remain in God. Often we act as though the only things written beforehand for our learning are the bad things the Israelites did. "Do this and God will get you!" We miss however, the grace of God evident in the early writings. The evidence is that God does not treat His people in such a arbitrary manner so as to push them aside for one or even several misdeeds as long as they remained committed to Him and lived out of His character. The same is true today. We sin, and yet there is no reason to believe that we must be “saved again.” John is clear that if we continue to live in God (in the direction He would have us go), the blood of Jesus [continuously] cleanses us from our sins.

The statement of John's is really no different than the Old Testament promise that if the Israelites would be God's people, He would be their God and bless them immeasurably - even though they may well sin from day to day. The promise God gave to those who would follow Him - from the very beginning - is still true today.

Oddly enough, God doesn’t look for perfection, He looks for commitment, for dedication, for submission, as characteristics of our lives, not punctiliar pass/fail tests. Imperfection is allowed. Abandonment is not.

So, no being saved all over again for every missing of the mark. Such a life would be anything but characteristic of loving and faithful acceptance by God. But there remains a balance, and an expectation that our missteps are lived within a life dedicated to God.

Salvation Reprise II

2007-06-22T11:25:00.000-06:00

Salvation is not a once in a lifetime event. Having responded to God at some point in our lives does not admit that we can stand on that event forever. It is not accurate, in an absolute sense, to suggest that at some future point we can stand before God and justify ourselves because we had done such and so at some time in the past. We are not able to say that we had let go at some point, or that we had been baptized, or performed some penance and therefore God must accept us. Because salvation is more appropriately described as a relationship, a state of existence, it is not properly or completely defined by a legal state or by some act. We either are saved, in relationship with God, submissive to Him, or we are not. We cannot say "I may not be in submission to God now, but I once was." We either live in concert with God or we do not.

What God wants is people who seek Him, who want to live with Him, in Him, and to have Him move through them. This living is imperfect and God knows it will be. And so the relationship is not perfection (we continually seek to let God transform us), but a consistent though imperfect submission to Him. It is in this life of submission and trust, this character of life, this imperfect-but-made-complete-in-Christ existence that we are continuously cleansed; it is in this life that we are eternally safe. We are safe not because we have performed some act, but because of who we seek to follow, who we are. Because we have let go of self and live in trustful submission to God.

Salvation Reprise I

2007-06-21T12:33:00.000-06:00

It is Man’s destiny, his ultimate goal or purpose, to return to God. We were made in communion with God, in His presence, and in His image. It is to this original relationship with God that we are called – a place where God is with all, in all, through all, where we live in Him and He in us. There are various schools of thought concerning how this looks in practice. For some, this is an “assumption,” a “joining,” a losing of one’s self in God so that there is little or no difference between me and God. We see the world as God sees it, we act as God acts because we have become so like God that we must. Others perceive that Heaven is the Creation restored to its rightful place. We will inhabit a pristine world as we were meant from the beginnings. Regardless of which view we take, there is some sense in which we return to God and live in harmony with or in Him.

What is sin? How do we become separated from God? Sin, regardless of which word we care to use for it, is essentially either 1) out right rebellion against God, or 2) living our lives with some perspective other than God’s. To put it another way, sin is living out of our pride, or out of fear that we must rely on ourselves. As a result, we become self-centered, concerned that I must take care of, or protect, myself first.

And so what is salvation? Salvation is not a decision, it is not an act per se. Rather, salvation is a returning to the existence, the character, the image in which (in whom) we were made. It is a returning home, it is an acceptance back into relationship with God. Salvation is not primarily or essentially a legal pronouncement, but rather the restoration of a correct world view.

How are we saved? If sin is either/or rebelling against God or behaving out of pride or fear, then salvation can be defined as trusting God, and submitting ourselves to Him and others. How do we do this; how does this occur? It is elegant in its simplicity and difficult in application. Simply, we let go of ourselves. We release control of our lives, of the world, of others, to God, the Maker and Sustainer of all. Do we trust God to handle life? If so, we live in accordance with what He has said. Do we live in agreement with the Image in which we were made? If so, we quit worrying about getting ahead, or of getting ours before others get theirs.

For some this letting go is difficult and takes great striving. For others, it appears more natural, more easily done. Whether difficult or easy, let go we must. There is no merit in this letting go, this surrendering to God, because it is simply a willingness to return to the place we were made to be. While some may need to wrestle with themselves daily, there is no merit in the daily ordeal. There is no active work that needs be done in this surrender. It is in fact, a ceasing to work, a ceasing to earn or protect something. This surrender is negative action. We simply let go and slip into the arms and essence of God.

This letting go then is not a work of merit, but we must “do it” in response to God. Not to do so keeps us in rebellion and distrust of God, and living for ourselves. This type of life is sin and separation from God. Repentance, seen in its appropriate light, is simply this letting go; this returning to trust God. It is not an empty ritual, but a realization and an acceptance of the invitation of God.

Nor is baptism an empty ritual. Seen in its appropriate light, it is the public declaration that we have accepted the invitation of God. It is not the act of baptism any more than it is the act of repentance that saves us. All of the power in both is that they embody our letting go of self in response to the grace of God.

Neither baptism or repentance are sacramental in the sense that there is something about them that is effective separate from the individual. One is not returned to God simply because they have been baptized, nor does one let go just because of outward act of repentance (or even an internal one). Neither is effective except that they witness a mystical or spiritual change in relationship – the person’s letting go of self which puts one in God.

Reflections on Mary, Martha, and Laz

2007-05-24T13:49:00.000-06:00

Lazarus is dead. In fact he’s been dead four days or so when Jesus finally arrives. When Lazarus was sick, Jesus was told that he was. It wasn’t some head cold or allergy with which Lazarus was dealing. Folks wouldn’t have sent word to Jesus for that. No, Lazarus was severely ill, and Jesus had been summoned to heal him.

But Jesus hadn’t gone. He had tarried for a day or two before heading back to Lazarus. What he found when he arrived was two distraught sisters who lash out at him, accusing even, that his delay had resulted in Lazarus’s death. They were hurting, and so were a great number of their friends. The sisters even accost Jesus saying “If you’d been here, this wouldn’t have happened!” As if to say, “What took you so long!”

As it turns out, Jesus raises Lazarus and returns him to his family; there is much rejoicing. But through the story, we learn that Jesus knew Lazarus was terminal, that he was going to die, and He took his time getting back to Lazarus on purpose. In fact, God allows these three good friends to travel this road so that God can be glorified through the raising of Lazarus.

We find also that even though Jesus knew the plan and the eventual outcome, that this is to be a demonstration of God’s power, He is moved with compassion for the sisters. Even though it is God Himself who has sent this family through this valley, His heart goes out to them.

And so we see that God may well send us through experiences that are hard to bear, that we must endure. But when He sends us through them, He is with us; He feels for us. It can be that through our pain God will be glorified, and God is with us as we bear it.

He is near.

What's a Little Water Worth?

2007-05-24T13:33:00.001-06:00

The Christian life has never been intended to be expressed primarily in church buildings. Oh, don’t get me wrong, worshiping with one another is something Christians do, and rightly so. But despite our penchant for doing church, structuring staff, and making sure our various rituals are completed, they form a significantly small percentage of what Christian life entails. In fact, I suspect they aren’t nearly as important as we seem to think they are.

The Christian life, it seems to me, is more about who we are, what our desires are, where our life focus is. These others, assemblies, staff, rituals, are all tools to remind us or to move us closer to where we are meant to be. As tools, they are not the substance of life, and we endanger ourselves if we allow them to become the substance.

Throughout Scripture, God makes it clear that he expects his people to do what he says, to pay enough attention to him to form themselves into his likeness. But event in the expectation of doing, there is always an expectation of being. This expectation is deeper and much more substantive than doing. When God gives Moses the Law there are aspects of it that appear harsh and stringent to us moderns. The whole idea of an eye for an eye simply seems out of place in our world; we perceive it as barbaric.

What we fail to realize is that this measure of justice was a limitation on the prevailing standards. Even in the world today, we see Man’s sense of justice seems to be “I will pay you back more than the damage I have suffered from you.” This sentiment isn’t really new. Lamech vows that he will avenge himself seventy seven times. He thinks himself to be one bad dude.

And so an eye for an eye is a step in the right direction. But there are other indications of a different standard to be used. The cities of refuge is one such example. These cities were places where fugitives could flee to and be safe from revenge. The care that is expected to be taken of the alien and downtrodden among God’s people tells us that his compassion extends to those who are not ‘his people.’ A reading of the Minor Prophets tells us that in addition to worshiping the wrong gods, God’s people were not acting toward each other as God intended them to live. It is both their false gods, and their false hearts that are the problem. And it is the heart from which both false worship and wrong behavior arises.

It becomes apparent as we watch Israel and Judah being prepared for exile that we get a fuller picture of what God expects. He expects that our hearts, that our very beings reflect his care, his compassion, his love for Creation. He expects that his followers will live and become like him.

It is with this background that we read Matthew 25 (see also Matthew 10.42) and we find the Judge saying either enter my kingdom, or depart from me. These sentences are not couched in language of false worship and false gods, but speak to peoples’ hearts, eyes, and motivations. It is in this passage that we read that a cup of water, given to insignificant people, is capable of securing for us a life with God. That cup of water, if drunk by us, separates us from God, but if given out of a perceived need, ushers us into the very presence of God.

What’s a little water worth?

It may be worth your soul.

What Is Salvation?

2007-05-24T10:49:00.000-06:00

The question of when someone is saved, or who can we say is a Christian, comes up from time to time in my circles. The ensuing dialogue usually includes points concerning faith, repentance, baptism, Calvinism, free will, grace, and a few other topics. The discussion seems to revolve around a point in time, a place where, on one side, someone is not a Christian, and on the other side, one can safely be said to be a Christian. This is important, it seems since it directly affects fellowship, communion, membership in a local congregation, and participation in assemblies.

This question has been debated for centuries, and I don’t presume to settle it in this short essay. I do however, believe that it has taken a lot more ink, blood, and hurt feelings than it deserves. It seems to me that salvation is not so much about having completed a complete ritual, but is rather a state of being in which we live with, in, and for God. It is, quite frankly, being allowed by God, through our submission to Him, to have a relationship and a character that displays the image of God in our lives.

Jesus calls people to return to God, to recognize in Jesus the presence of God, and to submit ourselves again to God’s leading. It is in submitting to God’s leading that we can be said to be living in the Kingdom. We tend to put labels on the various aspects of submitting to God. Repentance is one such aspect. While it can be described as a point in time, the import of repenting is not when one does it, but the fact that it is done. It isn’t so much that we can anticipate all that God may ask us to be or to do when we decide to follow Him, but that we submit to Him when He does ask us to be or do particular things.

Paul’s version of Jesus’ call is to transformation. This is really the same thing as repentance. While we can logically tease apart the difference between the two concepts, they are in reality the same. If we have submitted to God, we are being and will be transformed. The only way to be transformed is to return to, and submit to God. Salvation is not primarily an event, but a process, and returning to how we were made to be.

In some discussions of salvation history, we talk about “now and not yet” to describe our living in God now, but looking forward to our eventual complete restoration to and with Him in the future. Salvation can be described as a now and not yet concept, but the not yet does not invalidate the now in which we live in a submissive relationship with God. It is important to understand that we are not saved by living in a relationship with God, nor are we placed in a relationship with God by being saved. The two concepts are identical. We cannot be saved and yet not have a relationship with God, and we cannot have that relationship without at the same time being saved. They are the same; they are different ways of describing identical ideas.

It is important to note that the now does not invalidate the not yet. The history of time is moving toward a completion in which God’s plan for the Creation will be finished or in which it will be returned to its original state. It is this ultimate state that is not yet. But the idea of not yet embodies some uncertainty. If we are not saved yet, is it possible that we may at some point be unsaved? I think that possibility is entirely possible given the history of God’s working in the world. We know that God’s promises to Israel included a not yet clause. Normally the formula is similar to “I will be your God, and you will be my people if you keep the commandments that I have given you today. If you don’t keep the commandments, I will remove you from before me.” These conditions are repeated so often through the Old Testament that it is hard to miss. We argue over God’s promises to Abraham and David, saying that God’s promises are always kept. What we fail to realize is that God’ promises include the conditions attached to them. While it is true that a descendent of David’s in on The Throne, it is also true that David did not have that in mind when he received the promise. The promise to have a king in Israel forever was conditional as God’s discussion with Solomon makes clear.

But the Old Testament is not the only place we find God’s conditions. We find passages similar to those found in the Old Testament in the New. For instance, Deuteronomy 28.1-2 says:

“If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God.” (NIV)

There is a similar passage in 1 John 1.7:

“…if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his son, purifies us from all sin.” (NIV)

The two passages carry the same ideas. If we submissively live with God, if we follow him, if we allow him to nurture and guide us, he will remain with us and allow us to remain with him. If we elect to follow our own desires, our own egos, our own rationalizations of what’s good for me, we separate ourselves from him, and he no longer lives with us. We are no longer ‘saved.’

This is not new theology; it has been evidenced by God from the very beginning. Adam and Eve were not thrown out of the Garden because they sinned, because they didn’t do something quite correctly. God removed them from him because they listened to someone other than God; they were no longer submissive to him. Their sin was not a “something” they did, it was an attitude they allowed to develop within themselves. When we no longer wish to live as God has made us to live, we separate ourselves from Him and we are lost, unsaved, cast away. The good news is that our God is merciful and we can come and go, apparently, a number of times. Well, until our hearts and minds become so seared, so calloused, that we can no longer see in Jesus the essence of God; we can no longer be enticed by the goodness of God to submit to him.

Salvation is not then, primarily an event. It is rather, a state of being, a state of living in which we submit ourselves to the leading of God, denying ourselves in order to be shaped by God and minister to his creation. Salvation really is Life, lived as we were created to live it.

Radical Church

2007-05-14T15:42:00.001-06:00

As learning to live out of the image of God transforms the way we live and see one another, it must also transform the way in which we do church. I come to worship fully cognizant of my relationship to and in God and therefore my worship becomes more personal and more relational. I not only worship God by myself, but within the community of believers with whom I share the image and relationship with God. Just as a more fully understand the real spiritual connection I have with God, I come to our assemblies with the same mind of God and I see my brothers and sisters as God sees them. I see them as a shepherd would; as sheep who need nurturing and safety. In a real sense, I join with God and our assemblies become opportunities for me to share Him with the others here, regardless of their station, their challenges, or their failings. I see them as God sees them, and my worship and our assembly becomes ministry to them.

Because I live my life in this same way, in recognition of my relationship with and to God, and I see others as God sees them, my worship and our assemblies are transformed from something particular done on a particular day, to an extension of my life in this world. The assembly becomes an opportunity to worship our God and encourage others in the faith. I become less concerned with what I want to see happen, the style of the activities, the form of our sharing together, and I become more concerned with enlarging and enhancing our mutual and one another’s life in and with God.

Our assemblies become a sharing of both the worship and presence of God, and a particular aspect of our life in community with one another. As community expands into other areas and days of our lives, it enhances and nurtures our joint worship of our God together. These people here are truly part of my community, my communion with God, and I approach them at assembly times as I would at other times. We become open with one another, and we learn to accept one another in worship as we do at other times. As a result, we allow ourselves to live even more in the image of God, lightening both our and others’ loads of life and church.

Life, our being, our selves, become consistent wherever we are, whatever we are doing, and with whoever we are with. Psychology tells us that people who can be themselves wherever they are, are the most contented people there are. Living through the image of God allows us to be who we are, and who we were made to be, and it allows us to live like Paul, content in whatever circumstance we find ourselves.

Natural Christianity

2007-05-14T14:57:00.002-06:00

The previous post, Radical Christianity?, posited the idea that Christianity isn’t as radical as we sometimes want to make it seem. Rather, Christianity is the most natural and normative way to live since we are made in the image of God. If we can grasp the idea that it is this image in which we were made that actually defines both who we are, and the most natural drives and cares we have, we gain a different perspective on Christianity and the Christian life.

Christianity becomes not something strange to which we must convert people, but a natural way of living that frees us from chasing unnatural things, and allows us to share with others a way of life that satisfies, and a God that blesses those who can see the blessings. Rather than a God that seems to have lost control of humankind and who seeks to judge people if they don’t jump through the correct hoops, we see a God that made us, and we can see (and experience) ourselves as most contented and happy when we live in concert with the insight that God tries to give us about Him and us. Jesus’ life and words were a revelation of God, but they were also a revelation of how we were made to live. Living life becomes less an imitation of God, and more of living more fully who we are.

Paul urges Christians to imitate him as he imitates God, and so imitation of God is not a bad thing, but it is only a beginning point. Paul urges us to be transformed into the likeness of God so that we will know his will, and apply it without thinking about it. We see a progression from imitation to living in faith and experience. As we imitate God, we learn that we are most contented when living in the ways we see Jesus having lived, and we sense the satisfaction that the experience of this contentment gives us. We sense that this way of life is most natural for us.

Because we now live in the image in which we were created, it becomes natural to live it, and it becomes easier to tell others about it. We no longer need to depend on personal evangelism efforts, or academic debate, or logical reasoning, but we can express our hope and our experience from human perspectives, to humans who are missing the very thing that we live out of day to day. Evangelism becomes peer-to-peer example and discussion with those who are on this planet with us rather than brow-beating and debate winning. It is also in this context that we can be honest with ourselves and others, and admit that living out of the image of God is not always easy; it was not easy for Jesus. But it is the most rewarding and satisfying life that we have experienced.

As we live without having to perform, but rather being shaped over time, life becomes more positive, our outlook more outward, our behaviors and actions more focused on and considerate of others. We become less worried about ourselves and our stuff, less about getting ahead, and keeping up. We become content with where we are and yet can focus on addressing the injustices and challenges of people who are less well off than we are, and who don’t grasp the meaning of life as we do. We become truly free to live out of who we are, and that provides greater and greater freedom and satisfaction.

Now that’s radical.

Radical Christianity?

2007-05-05T13:21:00.001-06:00

We hear a lot about radical Christianity these days. Whether from the Emergent church world, or from social religionists, people like Brueggemann, and others, we hear that true Christianity is radical – that it goes against the grain, against the status quo. If we really buy into Christianity, our lives would be counter-cultural. Sometimes we get the idea that if we were real Christians, we’d live in communes - maybe in the forest, dress like monks, and cease most interaction with those outside our community.

I know that is an extreme caricature, few people would advocate eliminating outside contact, and most don’t espouse communal living. Most advocates of this style of spiritual living aren’t arguing that you can’t work on Wall Street and be a Christian, but they do want us to think about others (and the environment) first, rather than buying the latest Lexus. The picture created is that true Christians have a different set of priorities, different views of what is important both eternally and in the present. And I think that’s a good thing – they are on to something. And so we paint a picture of Christianity being radical – almost alien – to ourselves, or to the way most people live.

While I can agree that Christianity does look different than what we normally see portrayed on TV, or perhaps even at the office, I’m not sure that real Christianity is that much a radical departure from who we are, nor is it alien to our human being. Rather, Christianity is a return to who we were made to be and as such, is completely “normal” for humans. Christianity isn’t as radical as we sometimes think it is, although I understand the idea of transformation. It’s just that I see that transformation as being the completion of a cycle rather than something entirely new.

Humans were designed, were originally made, to be the image of God. A rather simplistic explanation of this image bearing is that we are spiritual beings, being in that way different from all other creatures and like God. While that may be true, it does not go far enough. Bearing the image of God, as the created design for humans is the bearing of God’s character within us. We are like God – we bear His image – in that we hold within ourselves the drives and values that mirror God.

I will not argue that we have not become distracted, corrupted, lost in our humanness. But being lost – misguided – does not destroy the image that we bear at our core. It is generally understood that the happiest people on the planet are not those who are chasing the latest and greatest. It is not the famous and rich that are happy. Rather, those people who are most often said to be the most contented, the most well-adjusted, are those who are almost the opposite of the popular ones. These people don’t spend their time chasing stuff, or fame, or recognition. They generally are described with at least two characteristics: satisfaction with who they are and what they have, and giving spirits. The happiest humans it seems are not those that reflect the epitome of society we see on television. Rather, they are those who reflect what Christians know to be key attributes of God.

You will notice that these people are not necessarily Christians or particularly religious, but they are the most contented. This should not be surprising to us since they have somehow made contact with the image in which they were made. The transformation of people through the Spirit is a transformation that changes us from prideful, self-centered people into disciples that submit to others, that seek others’ benefit above our own, and who learn to be content with what God has given to us and made us to be. In short, Christian transformation is a return to that existence and view of life with which humans were created from the beginning.

In this sense, Christianity is anything but radical, it is not alien to humans. It is rather, the very expression of who we were created to be. It is not some artificial form of behavior, of doing church, of relationship building. It is rather, the most natural expression of life that we could find.

I'm So Sorry For Him

2007-04-19T15:13:00.001-06:00

Lauren McCain was a Virginia Tech student. She died on Monday, the 16th of April. The title is a snippet of what her father has said about her killer. Yes, it is only three days after his daughter’s death and he may well still be, and likely is, in the initial stages of his response to his daughter’s loss. He may well change his message, or at least his emotions surrounding it, in the coming days and weeks.

Maybe when his daughter doesn’t come home for the summer and his house seems so empty, so quiet, so desolate, he will come to more fully grasp the violence that has been done to him and his world. And he will be entitled to changing his view.

No one would blame him for changing his views, for being angry and demanding some sort of vengeance from someone. Anyone. While we deduce that he and his family have some pretty strong Christian convictions, he remains human. Feeble, imperfect, and subject to emotional and psychological conflicts and swings as are the rest of us. And so no one would blame him.

It is interesting that in more rural areas, those areas that are normally considered backward, or not quite as advanced as the rest of us, we have seen over the last few months, remarkable abilities to forgive, to let go of anger, to accept murderers as fellow humans who are hurting.

Lauren McCain’s father is another example of Christian faith, working its way out among the tragedies and confusion of life, and coming through clearly and humanely. He gives the rest of us tangible examples that the life we have been called to live, can in fact be lived even in the face of unexplainable madness.

I hope he doesn’t change his mind.

The Fig Tree

2007-04-01T19:19:00.001-06:00

When Jesus is in the environs of Jerusalem prior to the Passover of His death, He spends time in the city, but apparently spends evenings outside the walls, in one or more of the small towns in the vicinity. It is coming into Jerusalem from one of these small towns that Jesus sees a fig tree and goes over to it.

When Jesus gets to the fig tree, He searches through its leaves, looking for figs apparently. Finding no figs, He curses the tree saying that no one will ever eat figs from it again. We find out later that the tree withers and dies.

None of this seems overly out of place. That is until we reach the phrase “It wasn’t the time for figs.” What? That simply doesn’t make any sense. It isn’t time for figs and yet Jesus curses the tree for not having any figs on it. Surely the creator of the universe knew that it wasn’t fig season. No, this story now takes on an almost laughable and confounding aspect.

How are we to accept the text as written? How will we correlate Jesus looking for figs on a tree outside of fig season? The answer it seems is that Jesus surprised the fig tree. Yes, that’s right. Jesus surprised the fig tree.

The fig tree is symbolic of Jerusalem. The tree is simply being a tree. It is responding slavishly to the seasons, the warmth, the length of days, and the amount of water it receives. So are the people in Jerusalem. The people are simply living life. They celebrate births, and weddings, mourn deaths, go to work, get drunk, take trips, and whatever else a first century Jew might do.

Just as the fig tree was not “looking” for God to arrive, the people of Jerusalem were not expectant of the arrival of their king, their redeemer, their God. Jesus is going to check for fruit in their lives and the corporate lives of the Jewish people. Whether they are ready or not, God has arrived, and He will curse those who are not prepared for His arrival.

And so Jesus surprises the fig tree just as He will surprise the people of Jerusalem. He will find little if any fruit, and their judgment is the same as that of the fig tree. Jerusalem will be destroyed because when its God came to find fruit, He didn’t find any.

Let him who has ears to hear, understand the symbol of the fig tree.

Green Beer

2007-03-23T19:18:00.002-06:00

The latest hubub at church has to do with reflections prior to the Lord’s Supper. Last Sunday, the speaker used an illustration of St. Patrick and how the attention paid to him has shifted over the centuries from his accomplishments in the Kingdom of God to green beer, rivers, and clothing. The speaker’s thrust was that we humans often forget the point of our faith and the purpose of our God in coming to the earth. Just as St. Patrick’s memory has shifted from hard and self-less evangelistic work to beer parties on the local college campus, we often lose track of the point of our calling and our God’s death for us. We are too often distracted by life, by work, by ourselves, that we forget who we were made and called to be. The Supper is not just a remembrance, but in that remembering, a rededication and a proclamation of faith. A faith that is supposed to lead to our very transformation into different people, with different values and goals. The importance is not in how we do it, but rather what it does to us.

All too often we let the green beer get in the way of living for God. It’s important to remember that, especially, when we gather to communally remember His life for us.

Forgiveness

2007-03-14T21:17:00.001-06:00

The topic on the radio talk show’s nine o’clock hour was forgiveness. The host related a story of a lady who said that she had forgiven the people who had killed one of her daughters and severely wounded another. Her daughters were twin twelve year olds, shot by a drive-by shooter last week. The host of the show didn’t know whether or not he could forgive someone so quickly if they had killed his daughter.

As you can imagine, there were phone calls galore, ranging across the spectrum of possible responses. There were those who said they would forgive someone after they had been punished, and there were those who said that the only one who can forgive is the victim and since one of them is dead, that’s not possible. Still others said they’d forgive the shooters only after “taking care of them.”

Others seemed more willing to forgive. A couple folks called in to say that they would forgive the shooters because that’s what their faith said they were supposed to do, and one caller said if Jesus could forgive people while on the cross, he supposed he could follow that example.

I don’t know where you are on this question, but it seems to me that quite a few of the callers missed the point entirely, and others, while closer to the ideal, still didn’t seem to grasp the concept of Christian forgiveness. It seems to me that forgiveness is not something we do, but rather something we are. Christian forgiveness isn’t something we wonder whether we should extend to various people, but an attitude, a readiness to forgive all comers because forgiveness is one of our characteristics. It is in our makeup. We should have a hard time not forgiving others, rather than a hard time deciding whether we will.

One caller said that forgiveness isn’t about the other person, but about me. If we don’t forgive, we harbor bitterness, hurt, sadness, anger, and in many cases depression. If we forgive, we free ourselves of the limiting and burdening weight that hanging on to hurt produces. I think that caller is close too, but not close enough. I think forgiveness is about the other person; it is about forgiving someone else.

While we may benefit from forgiving someone, we also free them. We lighten our load, but we also extend grace to them. Our God is an other-centered God not because He gets something from forgiving us, but because He cares for us. If we are like Him, we extend grace and forgiveness to others because they need it.

One of the callers essentially said “an eye for an eye, and I won’t rest until I get it.” Has it not dawned on us that this mentality is one of the causative factors in the Bosnian genocide, the conflict in Palestine, and the killing in Darfur? No, an eye for an eye is not the answer and that view is a dangerous one. It epitomizes the very opposite of forgiveness and grace toward others, and scars society for centuries.

Forgiveness is who we are. It is not something we do.

Obedience Rather Than Sacrifice

2007-02-26T14:12:00.001-07:00

Saul it seems, was instructed to have the Israelite completely destroy the Amalekites – people and animals. Rather, Saul allowed the Israelites to capture the Amalekite king, and to bring back the choicest live stock. When Samuel returns to visit Saul, the bleating of the sheep and the lowing of the cattle are clearly audible. Assuming that the Israelites had done what had been directed, Samuel finds this noise to be somewhat unexpected, and so he asks Saul to explain what has happened. Saul’s response is a two-parter. The first is that the people have brought back the best of the plunder to sacrifice it to God. The second is that Saul was afraid of the people and so he let them bring back the plunder [and in this explanation, we don’t know why].

Samuel’s response is his mission for God, and he will complete it. Samuel tells Saul that he has failed in his mission to destroy the Amalekites and as a result God has rejected him as king of Israel. In Samuel’s discussion with Saul, he says:

“Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.” (1 Sam 15.22-23, RSV)

Verse 22 is one of the most familiar verses in all of Scripture: God prefers obedience rather than sacrifice. What exactly does this mean, and what are the implications for us? What does the word obedience entail, what does it mean?

Obedience in the immediate context deals with Saul’s failure to wipe out the Amalekites, as he was told by God to do. And why are we told Saul failed to do this? It is simply this: Saul’s pride. After returning from the Amalekite battle, he goes to Carmel and sets up a monument to himself. This is in stark contrast to what the people of Israel have done in the past when given victories by God. In those instances, altars and sacrifices, accompanying praise to God have been offered. Here, Saul apparently thinks the victory has been secured through his efforts rather than God’s. Perhaps bringing the Amalekite king and the best stock isn’t so much for God’s glory but more as a procession to exalt Saul as the conquering king. Saul has a pride problem.

As verse 23 tells us, God says Saul is rebellious and stubborn, two characteristics of prideful people. This gives us a window into Saul’s problem and why God is so displeased with him. Obedience it seems is not obedience for its own sake. Rather, obedience is an indicator of Saul’s submission to God in all things. Saul didn’t complete his mission because he was dismissive of God’s directive.

And God knew it.

Sacrifice is secondary to obedience because acceptable sacrifice comes only from those who submit to God and who trust Him above their own reasoning, above their own ideas of what is “right.” The words in the Hebrew that are used here for obedience and hearken have as their root, the idea of listening, of pricking up the ears, of intelligently hearing and owning what has been said. Obedience then carries with it much more than simply hearing the words, and arises out of a hearing and owning what has been said. It stands to reason then that sacrifices made by those who are rebellious toward God are worthless.

What does this say to us? There are at least two things we can gather from this event. The first is that God wants us to trust Him and to submit to what He wants, especially in contrast to our own glory and advancement. As Paul will say in Ephesians, God has submitted Himself to us and we in turn submit to one another. It is in this submitting to one another that we are tested in the same way Saul was tested. Do we trust God sufficiently to submit ourselves to each other, or do we reserve the option of asserting our rights if we get too uncomfortable? Do we become self-righteous, counting the number of times we have been hurt, and justifying this instance of taking care of Number One? We do so at the peril of our souls.

The second application is that sacrifice, or worship is unacknowledged by God if it comes from rebellious and prideful people. Even if done correctly, according to the book, sacrifice and worship avail nothing. Worship, rightly done, is a response of a grateful people to their gracious God to whom they are submissive.

Obedience then is not simply lock-step behavior, but arises from the heart and is itself colored by the kind of heart out of which it comes. Worship arises from and is colored by the same heart and is acceptable to God on the basis of the worshipper rather than the worship behaviors themselves.

And The Beat Goes On

2007-02-23T11:25:00.001-07:00

I don’t know much about her, but I do know that the media has said “she captured our attention,” and “she wanted to be like Marilyn Monroe,” or other silly things. While she was breathing, she had a lot of attention, even a pretty poor television show for a while.

But really, did anyone care? What do we know about her? Oh, that she married some rich guy, was in the middle of fighting for millions with the rich guy’s children, apparently slept with a number of weird and rather opportunistic guys, resulting in a laughable-if-not-tragic episode of one after another claiming to be the sire of her little girl, just to find out that she had left all her money to her now dead son. Unfortunately we knew much more about her than we needed to know.

We know that she had little self control, loved attention, and led a life style that was unthinking and dangerous. She apparently taught her son to live the same style of life, using drugs, being unproductive, and dying early by mixing drugs in a reckless manor in an apparent effort to escape life. Well, he did. And so did she. Perhaps her daughter will have a better chance of maturing a bit more, well, maturely.

Someone said that they knew her life would end tragically. Well, is it any wonder? She died lying on a hotel floor, choking on her own vomit, likely the result of misusing drugs of various sorts. Some report has said that her mother said of her that she liked downers. She liked them too much apparently.

Her body now decomposes at a faster pace than expected. Could we see some pictures of that? Could we see to what kind of end her life has led? No longer the Playboy bunny, the little girl playing the role of Ms Monroe, the adult who didn’t know who she was. Rather, the rotting corpse of someone who died of her own doing, the end of a self-shortened, sorry life. Maybe she did imitate Marilyn after all. Of course all our lives lead to decomposing corpses, but most of us will have been buried safely out of sight before we start causing concern at the local morgue.

Maybe her end will teach some folks about the reality of life, about the pointlessness of wanting attention, of wanting money, of wanting fame. The pointlessness of having a pointless life.

Of course the people that need to learn that lesson won’t even hear it, much less learn it. The tragedy is that none of this is new. Even before the writer of Ecclesiastes wrote his second chapter, there were people who lived and died like she did. And there will yet be others. And all of them will be forgotten; few will leave anything of lasting value.

So what remains? Fleeting pictures of a woman who’s identity changed almost weekly and which are as thin as her life was. Nothing but a little baby who for the rest of her life will have to say she was my mother.

Vanity; all is vanity, and there is nothing new under the sun.

She captured our attention? Please.

And the beat goes on.

What Was He Asking?

2007-02-02T09:09:00.001-07:00

What was Jesus asking when He looked at His disciples and asked, "Who do you say that I am?" He had gotten a few answers surrounding what the people at large had been guessing; primarily some famous prophet from Israel's history. But the people hadn't gotten it right. Jesus wasn't the reincarnation of some long-dead prophet.

We may want to offer answers such as 'the messiah,' or the 'Son of God,' or some other such title. But I don't think Jesus was asking "What's my title." He wanted to know if the disciples had had their eyes openned to the working of God. And so His question is more than "Who am I?"

I think He was asking something like "So, after running around the country side with me, watching me care for people, and hearing what I have said, do you think you can see God in me?" He wanted to know if the presence of the Divine among them awakened their hearts to who He and they really were.

The question remains for you and I. Who do we say Jesus is? Is He more than just an intellectual decision about a title, or do our hearts resonate with the Divine when we see Him? Do we know who He is and can we identify with Him in whose image we are made?

Belief

2007-01-29T20:24:00.001-07:00

John 3.16 is the most well known verse in the Christian church, and rightly so. This verse tells us of the Father’s love for us, as Paul will say, even while we were yet sinners. This verse, and the one that follows it, form the core of the Gospel, explain why God was interested enough to send Jesus to earth, and establishes the basic expectation of Man’s return to God.

It is that basic expectation with which I want to deal in this essay. The expectation is “…he who believes....” But what is that belief that is spoken of in this passage? If we go to our Greek dictionaries we will find words that deal with the apprehension of facts, or assent to a proposition. Many people will take that simple definition and expand it to include a following through on that belief. Namely, repentance is often included in a rightly understood belief. After all, if we really believe that Jesus is who He said He was, we must be compelled to make ourselves look like Him.

While I acknowledge the foregoing definitions and parameters of the word in these two verses, I also think belief includes an expanded definition in this passage.

Here is the text that I’d like to consider (John 3.14-21, ASV):

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth may in him have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God sent not the Son into the world to judge the world; but that the world should be saved through him. He that believeth on him is not judged: he that believeth not hath been judged already, because he hath not believed on the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light is come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, and cometh not to the light, lest his works should be reproved. But he that doeth the truth cometh to the light, that his works may be made manifest, that they have been wrought in God.

The word “loved” used in describing the way Man considered darkness is the same word we use for a good love. It is agape. Man so loved [cared for, nurtured, sought to expand, looked to the interests of] darkness that they failed to, no, could not, see the Light. When we read these verses, the idea of belief takes on another shade of meaning or implication. Belief takes on an idea of recognizing God in Jesus, in His life, and in His words.

In other words, those who are saved are those who can see God in Jesus. Those in whose souls God resonates when they see Jesus are saved because they come to the Light. That recognition, that resonating beat, that feeling that says “Yes!” within us causes us to move toward Him, to live like Him, to be formed in Him. It is those who are saved.

When Jesus is with the Samaritan woman (John 4.10), He says to her that if she “knew the gift of God” she would have received something much better than regular water. The word “knew” carries with it an expanded definition as well. It is not simply mental assent, but recognition, awareness, or understanding. Again, here we see that it is those who perceive God in Jesus that are the receivers of His grace.

It seems reasonable then to enlarge the idea of John 3.16 and 17 from simple belief to apprehension and recognition of Jesus as God. This is important to grasp because it not only describes Man’s response to Jesus, but provides insight into the kinds of people who are saved – those who perceive God in Jesus. These are not just people who have learned a catechism or who have learned the intellectual arguments. These are people whose very beings identify with Him.

And that is no wonder. Man we are told is made in the image of God; we were made and remain so in the image of the Divine. We have become disoriented, misled, duped, and misguided by our own pride into thinking that we know best, that life is about getting ahead, that others come after me. If we continue in this path too long, our consciences become seared and we cannot recognize God when He presents Himself to us. We come to love the darkness rather than Light. We lay on our beds at night devising new and novel ways of taking advantage of others to line our pockets or stroke our egos.

But if we can come to our senses before it is too late, or if we encounter God before we are too long gone, our souls are awakened, they are stirred to repentance at the recognition of God, of what is right, of who we were meant to be, and we are saved. Our response to God becomes not a legalistic response but a whole-being, no-holds-barred leap into His arms. This leaping feels right because we identify with God from our very essence. We cannot do anything else. And in the Light we are saved.

Scripture and Spiritual Formation

2006-12-13T13:21:00.001-07:00

If there are things that together compose the sine qua non of the disciple’s life, Scripture is surely one of them. Scripture provides our primary physical revelation of both God and our purpose. It is with Scripture that we can measure our transformed being as we mature. Scripture is the authoritative record of God’s interaction with Man. But Scripture, simply learned, memorized, parsed, and critiqued in an academic sense is powerless and fruitless. Approaching Scripture as an interesting product of Man’s existence is to miss its import.

Scripture’s purpose is to lead us back to where we started; back to who God made us to be. Scripture reveals in its opening verses that Man (male and female) was made in the very image of God. Unlike the other animals, there is something different about Man and his being. It is not that we have physical bodies, or legs, or lungs, or blood. That we have a spirit is closer to the mark, but does not quite grasp the image concept. That image of God that we are is not just that we are spiritual beings in some aspect, but that we share the character of God Himself. We are intended to be people that model God, not because we have learned the fruit of the Spirit, but that we are transformed by the Spirit and evidence His character in our lives. We don’t learn to be patient so much as we become patient, and that from our innermost being.

Scripture then serves as a picture, of who we were made and who we are called to be again. When we read Scripture we should be able to see aspects of God in all the stories, in all the events. This revelation of God grows and becomes more defined as Scripture progresses. The Law is a revelation of God in various aspects, not the least of which is the Law’s demand for right action, justice, and mercy. The prophets pick up that theme, especially in Amos and Micah, and Jesus again brings it to the fore in Luke’s fourth chapter. The same theme is echoed by Paul throughout his writings.

But we see more of God as well. We see His promises being kept even if it seems to us to take an inordinate amount of time. Even when the people in the events cannot see God working, we can see Him as He shapes the events to achieve what He wills. We see His steadfastness and His loving concern for His people. While we see these as aspects of God, we have a suspicion that these are intended for us too. In our relationships we are called to be steadfast and lovingly concerned for one another. Christian charity is not new with the New Testament.

We also see that God has a purpose and that we may only understand a part of it. We come to see that trusting God, being the people we are made to be, even in the midst of turmoil, when what we thought we believed is tested to the breaking point, is what we must do. We come to identify so closely with God that in the final analysis we can do nothing else than trust Him. This is the essence and epitome of faith. Faith that is not faithful in excruciating trial is not the faith we are after because it is not the steadfastness that characterizes the people we were made to be. Faith is only tested when it looks as though faith has failed.

Our calling, and the proper use of Scripture is to transform us into people who so closely identify with God, His character, steadfastness, and concern, that we implicitly trust Him, behave out of our being without having to resort to Scripture proof texts, and that we become aware of our oneness with Him and others in this life.

I Believe

2006-12-07T17:34:00.002-07:00

As we begin a new year, we are reviewing our belief statement. Here's a draft of mine....
___________________________

I believe first and foremost that God is, that He created everything that is, and that He sustains the creation by His power.

I believe that God loves all people, that He seeks to commune with them, and that the separation of people from Him causes Him sorrow and grief.

I believe that God sent Jesus to reveal the character of God, to heal Man, and to make a way for Man to return to his original relationship with God which He did by living a faithful life and dying on the cross in submission to God. I believe that Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to Heaven where He mediates between God and Man.

I believe that God remains active in the world through His Spirit who is given to all believers and who transforms Man by working in them and interceding between God and Man.

I believe that Scripture is the divine physical record of God’s revelation of Himself and as such, is the primary guide for Man’s character and way of life.

I believe that salvation is a result of God’s grace, extended to Man through God’s patience and the sending of Jesus.

I believe that salvation is based on faith in Jesus as the Son of God and Savior of the world; that true faith results in repentance, submission to God, and dying to self; that faith, repentance, and baptism combine to effect the restoration of our relationship with God through our belief in His Son.

I believe that all believers are united to one another through a spiritual bond that is real rather than conceptual, and that we are united with all believers, those who have gone before as well as those yet to come, wherever they may be found.

I believe that God wills the healing of creation, and the salvation of Man; that He wills that we develop a love for others, mutually submit to other believers, and that each Christian is to build up the body.

I believe that God’s reconciliation and transformation of Man and of each believer is an on-going work of the Spirit to which we yield, allowing the development of the character of God within us. That same Spirit, given to each believer, serves as a real seal, and empowers us to live as, and be transformed into, likenesses of God.

I believe that the body of believers, the church locally and universally, exists to bless the world by revealing God to others, by healing the brokenness in the world, and ministering to all peoples; by maturing one another in the Faith, and transmitting the Faith through the generations.

I believe our corporate worship is a natural response of grateful, believing hearts to the graciousness and greatness of God. Our gathering together is itself a proclamation of the Gospel and a foretaste of Heaven in the coming together of various peoples united in and by one God. In our communion we reaffirm to one another, and we proclaim to the world, our faith in the love and saving sacrifice of the Son, and we renew our commitment to die to ourselves and submit ourselves to God.

The Jesus Prayer

2006-12-06T11:12:00.001-07:00

The Jesus Prayer is a very old prayer used by Christians to keep God in mind and keep themselves aware of His presence. It is very short, having a pretty much fixed content for centuries. The prayer is essentially a prayer for mercy but includes acknowledgement of Jesus's relationship with God and the Christian, and acknowledgement of the Christian's dependence on mercy as a sinner.

Worded variously, an Orthodox version reads "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." Worded or thought in this form, the prayer is easy to say and can be used to focus us on our mission and place in God's plan. In the middle of chaos or around distractions, this short prayer can serve a useful purpose.

During periods of more extended quiet, the prayer can be expanded by reflecting on its words. The following is an example of using the prayer in this manner.

"Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner."

"Lord, master, king. I don't know the complexities of those words, but I am prepared and I want to surrender my life to You. What matters is not what I want, but what you want."

"Jesus, the name above all names. Truely Emmanuel, you have graced the world with your presence and your children with your continuing abiding with us. Thank You for living in us, and giving us Your strengthening Spirit."

"Christ, Messiah, the chosen and perfect of God. Thank You for submitting to God's purpose, for faithfully revealing Him to us. As His annointed, thank You for dying for us, for rising to life, and preparing us to receive and to live in our God."

"Son, image, revelation. Divine and precious as a son. Representative and executor of our God's will and grace. As Son, You have declared the Father's will and have openned the way home."

"God, creator, and sustainer of our lives and world. No one else can take your place because You are so great, and powerful, and yet Your love is steadfast, good, and refreshing. Keep us in Your power safe and with You."

"Have mercy as an outpouring of Your grace and love. Overlook our faults and accept us as You do Your Son. We appeal to You for forebearance and patience in our weakness."

"On me, a creature. Frail, often times arrogant and prideful, having eyes and yet failing to see, ears to have heard but not hearing. Accept me in my rebellion and failures, and humble me and draw me back to you."

"A sinner; one who follows his own way; corrupt and hollow. I am nothing without you. Thank you for your grace and mercy. Accept the sacrifice of your Son as my atonement. Restore me to You and keep me safe."

"Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner."

The prayer can be used in a variety of ways and in many situations - while stuck in traffic, waiting in line, in an elevator, or simply as a final appeal and reflection prior to sleep or immediately upon waking. Repeating the prayer is not intended as simply something to take up time or as an unthinking activity. Rather, repetition must be done with our full attention to the words and import of the prayer. It can serve as an entrance to greater prayer, awareness of God's presence, and resting in Him.

Try it, you will come to appreciate this very old and yet still appropriate prayer.

Brother Lawrence

2006-11-29T09:52:00.001-07:00

Brother Lawrence’s Practicing the Presence of God is an interesting and rewarding read. A collection of letters, observations, and reflections by a Parisian lay brother associated with the Carmelites that lived in the second half of the 1600’s, the book represents a departure from many “standard” works on spirituality and contemplation. In fact, having read many other books, this one seems to be a bit too simple. But therein lies its value. It calls us back to where we are to be headed.

You see, its easy, being human, to grasp hold of a new system of spirituality, learn its techniques in and out, and then proceed to structure our lives by it. We tend to major in living that system rather than using the system to get us where we want to be.

Brother Lawrence’s advice is simple and straight forward: Decide to love God and live in His presence, and all the rest falls into place. Not that we will have an easy life physically, or that we will always enjoy what we are assigned to do, but determining to live in the awareness of and in submission to God is greatly satisfying in that we return to the place we were made to be.

While Brother Lawrence kept the daily offices of prayer, his writing makes them appear to be interruptions rather than natural for him. In his life, one that starts the day with an “OK God, this one’s for you” sort of an attitude, praying before doing the slightest work, and then when idle, returning to the presence of God through prayer and contemplation, the formality of the daily office seems to be less than needed – although he does not recommend avoiding them.

There are other practices of Brother Lawrence’s that appear simple, but don’t allow for much argument. The first is at least a daily reflection on how he did that day. Did he work as well as he could have? Did he reflect his God in an honoring manner? This daily examen was not to cause himself more emotional pain, but was an honest attempt at continued growth and submission to God. Whether during this daily review or at some other point in the day, if Brother Lawrence detected that he had not been the person he wanted to be, he would immediately confess his shortcoming to God and ask for forgiveness. After that, he wouldn’t mention it again, trusting that God had heard him, and had forgiven him. That having been done, there was no reason to bring up the subject again.

No doubt you have noticed that there are no great systems of contemplation, no sacred places per se, no series of defined theological terms, no systematic superstructure at all. The entire enterprise consists of a serious and dedicated submission to God with a continual seeking to be in God’s presence through prayer and contemplation.

All other spiritual formation efforts and systems are designed to achieve at least this degree of living in the awareness of God. Perhaps a truly mystical experience of God would be beyond this type of life, but this type of life would surely provide the foundation for an experience of the Creator as direct as some writers have described.

Give Brother Lawrence a try. He might make your spiritual life a bit easier.

Why?

2006-11-28T19:07:00.003-07:00

She was early forties, the wife of an up-and-coming preacher, mother of three sons, a great disciple, and a wonderful mentor and teacher. Her approach to life and commitment to God had garnered her respect and devotion from many women both younger and older than she, of the congregations she had attended. She had spoken at national conferences and University presidents attended her funeral.

So why did she have to die of various abdominal cancers at her age? In six months of being diagnosed? This question has been raised a number of times and my current responsibilities require that I address this question to members of my flock. It isn’t an easy question to answer, and I’m pretty sure that whatever answer I could devise would be sufficient for some and leave others wanting. Nevertheless, I need some sort of response.

It might be easier if she had died suddenly in a car accident. But she didn’t and so we’ve had our congregation and more than a few folks around the world praying for her recovery for six months. Many of those have prayed fervently and often. Their faith, and the wording of their prayers, have beseeched God for mercy and healing. Were those prayers worth the effort? Is our faith, is our God, real enough that prayer actually changes things or are all the miraculous healings we think we see really just coincidences?

Did God leave us alone? Is He out there? Does He care?

Her death has challenged the faith of more than a couple people. What is the answer?

Let’s start by admitting we don’t know why she died rather than being healed. What we do know is that it is in these times when we need to do a gut-check of our faith. Faith is usually easy when things are going well, when life doesn’t require a whole lot of us. But faith that lives only as long as the sun is shining is a somewhat weak faith. And those who are challenged by such events in life have to ask ourselves whether our faith is real or not – do we really believe this God stuff?

I do. And no, I would just as soon not have my faith tested in a manner like this. What I trust is that God is faithful to keep my soul from Hell; that I can trust what I have committed to Him until I see Him face to face. No matter what happens in this world. Detractors will say that my attitude is one that belies the “blind faith” of Christians, that we are somehow ignorant of life or we rely on superstition to get us through our sorry lives. Let them. What they do not know is the love, acceptance, and freedom we have when we live for God, if we live in God.

I rely on what we read in Scripture of people hanging on to God in the midst of hurt and loss. Not Pollyanna’s, but real people with real hurts who come back to God time after time because they have tasted His goodness in other times or because they trust that their faith is not in vain. I rely on the fact that good people die every day. Some young, some old, some well known, but all loved by somebody who has been praying for them not to die. And yet they die.

And when it’s someone else’s loved one, or someone to whom I am not as close, it’s easier for me to accept what has happened. Only when I feel slighted, when God hasn’t listened to my prayers, when I can’t make heads or tails out of what has happened, does my faith waver. While that is a normal response, it is also a highly arrogant one. I am a creature. I do not know nor understand God’s great scheme. I do not comprehend His way of working in the world. And so I am slow to question and ready to say “I don’t get it.” And I trust that what I have seen in this community of loving people is simply a foretaste of the love and sweetness of what being with God will be like. And I am convinced that my faith and my God are true because I see them in other people all the time.

Why did she die? I don’t know but I trust that God knows what He’s doing.

Ruth

2006-11-22T12:43:00.002-07:00

The book of Ruth is set in the time of the Judges which means that the society was characterized by everybody doing whatever they thought appropriate. There was very little national political or cultic control. We also know that God would let the Israelites have some slack, and then when they got too far out of hand, He would either send a famine or have some other tribe or country attack somewhere, so that the Israelites would appeal to God, elect a judge over them, and return to God. When they had returned, God would set right whatever was lacking in His blessing of them.

It is in this atmosphere that we have the story of Ruth and we know that there is a famine in the land so that Naomi's family moves to another land for food. And it is there that Naomi's son finds a Moabitess for a wife. This is interesting since good Israelites weren't supposed to marry outside of Israel, but he does. In this place of shelter, Naomi loses her husband and her two sons, and she decides to return to Israel. Ruth as we know, decides to go with her and Naomi eventually agrees.

So they go home. Ruth dedicates herself to caring for Naomi and comes to the attention of Boaz, a somewhat distant relative of Naomi. Boaz eventually gets the family's permission to redeem Naomi's land and Naomi and Ruth come with the land. Boaz and Ruth get married and we find that Ruth becomes the grandmother of David.

So what do we discover about God in this story where He isn't even mentioned? There are a few items that we can discern based on our knowledge of God.

--While God may discipline His people, He is with them in that punishment, He provides for them in the midst of it, and they usually come out of it in better shape than they entered. Along these lines we can see the blessing of Abraham and Isaac in Egypt and Moab, Noah, Job, and David. Our God is a faithful God who doesn't leave His people. He is always with them.

--God has always accepted people who weren't "part of His people." Ruth is the heroine of this story. She's a Moabitess who's dedication to Naomi displayed personal character and steadfastness that is characteristic of our God. She had a heart like God's and as such, was used by God in a way she probably couldn't see or understand.

--God uses what appear to be calamity to work His purposes. Naomi's son, even though he dies early in the story and does not reappear, is used by God. It is he who marries Ruth, and it is his death that allows Ruth to eventually marry Boaz. I suspect that Naomi and Ruth didn't see that hidden blessing in his death, but God worked through it to bless the world.

--God often uses these non-God's-people to bless His people and the world. This is important. Often God's people seem to think they're special and are due blessing upon blessing because of their standing with God. From time to time, God's people remember that their purpose is not self-aggrandizement, but the blessing of others. If our standing with God nets us riches, gifts, and capabilities, it does so only so that we can in turn bestow blessing on other people. But this point is a bit different still. God blesses and uses those who are not recognized as His people to work His will. These "not of us" people are used by the Creator of the Universe to work His will. If they have Godlike character, He blesses them in so using them. Ruth is going to become a Mother of God. Through her will come not only David and Solomon - and every other royal descendant, but Jesus of Nazareth as well.

--God uses sinners to work His will. Boaz can represent another woman in the story as he is a descendant of Rahab, a woman who could not be described as a woman of God for much of her life. Having worked as a prostitute, she hides the Israelite spies and by her faith is saved from destruction. Here we find that through her, and this Moabitess will come the Savior of the world.

The story of Ruth is really only about a few regular, run of the mill folks, who live in community and try to get along without too much fuss. No one here is described as "great" although Boaz has some money and gets more apparently. But he's not going to show up many more times in Scripture. And yet, God works through these average people to literally save the world.

Toward the end of Hebrews 11, the writer finally says he's run out of time to rehearse all the other great people of faith. He's had time to mention Rahab - he gives her a couple lines, but he doesn't have time to describe David, Samuel, and a few other people that we recognize as "big guns." And he mentions some no-name people as well including women who received back their dead. There are at least two that we can identify: the Shunamite woman and the widow of Zarapheth. And then a few lines later the writer says "...the world was not worthy of them."

Amazing isn't it? That in this list of great people, the writer mentions unnamed women and says the world wasn't worthy to have them grace the planet. Old women who lived in backwater places, without names, who got to witness first hand the precense and power of our God. And in the story of Ruth we have three more women who would normally have gone unnoticed, two of which become ancestors of our God.

Often times we wonder if our lives and what we do really matter a whole lot in the big scheme of things. We want to know that we are special, we want to know that we are making an impact, we want to know that we are God's people because He blesses us. The fact is, God uses normal, everyday people like you and me to work His will in this world. We may not understand how it might work, we may not understand why we have to go through stuff, we may not understand how God could use us when it doesn't seem we amount to much, but use us He will if we seek Him and have His character.

The grace of our God extends to all people in all circumstances not only to save them, but to let them participate in His saving and blessing of the world.

Let Him use you as you live today.

The Art of Prayer

2006-11-16T17:23:00.001-07:00

At the recommendation of an acquaintance I am reading "The Art of Prayer, an Orthodox Anthology," compiled by Igumen Chariton of Valamo. The book is intended as a text on developing a deeper prayer life through recitation of the Jesus Prayer. The Jesus Prayer, for those that aren't familiar with it, goes like this: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me." The book says that some add "...a sinner." The idea is that the repetition of the prayer keeps the name of Jesus at the front of one's life, and accesses the power inherent in the name of Jesus. But this is not the entirety of the book. It also includes reflections and teaching on a developing prayer life that approaches contemplation, or the actual experience of the presence of God. In this aspect the book reads somewhat like Western works, most notably to me, Thomas Merton. Merton has written many books on the topic of contemplation as well as a few others. His most well-known work on prayer is likely "New Seeds of Contemplation." In that book, Merton provides 39 short chapters on various aspects of being, living, and communing with God. The present book is following the same concepts, but rather than distinct chapters by individual people, "The Art of Prayer" is constituted primarily of quotations from Orthodox spiritual writers of the 19th and 20th centuries. I'll let you know how it goes.

Numb

2006-10-25T17:45:00.000-06:00

I am numb.
I am in shock.
Everything in this place has stopped.
There is no movement.
No life.

There is no color.
No black, no white. All gray.
Not like Arrangement.
Poorer. Much less distinction.
Gray. Shades of gray.

Around this gray the world spins.
Scenes fly by.
Memories tease my mind.
Much too quickly for me to see.
But I do see.

From time to time.
Some familiar detail.
As though those scenes have color.
Some face. Some smile.
But I cannot quite make it out.

I sit here on these ashes.
They are all that is left.
I get as close to them as I can.
She is here.
Isn't she?

I reach to touch her.
And come back with silt.
That leaks through my fingers.
And blows away.
She is not here.

It is no use.
She has gone.
This is all I have left.
These ashes.
This gray place.

My chest aches.
My eyes sting.
I cannot sit upright.
I cannot breathe.
God! Come to me!

It is cold.
Not an outside cold.
Arising from within my bones.
A cold that cannot be shaken.
A chill I cannot escape.

My bones are bare.
They fall apart.
Like a marionette without strings.
I am nothing. I am alone.
And no one knows.

I am numb.

Imagined grief upon the loss of a spouse, Albuquerque, NM