who you're going to help or how you're going to help them. Today I learned that several people have been touched by either actions I have done or words that I have spoken in the past few weeks. Instead of sharing the details of how God used me in these people's lives, I want to share a story of how God used someone else in my life.
Her name is Mrs. Seagler and she was my Spanish II teacher in high school. Mrs. S. had seen me at my worst, when I was in the throws of my drinking and drug addiction. She witnessed from the front row the devastation that those choices had as they rippled through my life.
During the Christmas season about 11 years ago, I ran into her while buying stockings and decorations at a Christmas store in Memorial City Mall. I had finished making my selections and was in line to pay for my goods. As I was standing there, I began to think that I recognized the back of this woman's head (her hairstyle hadn't changed in the passing years) and I began to attempt to get a view of her face. As my eyes met hers, there was that instant flash of recognition that we both experienced. I said her name and asked if she remembered me. She responded that she did and I began to tell her of how I had sobered up a few years earlier and how I was married and how my life had been completely turned around. As I related what had happened, she began to cry. I asked why she was crying, insisting that this was good news. She told me that from the time she had first met me and knew of the issues I was struggling with that she had included me daily in her rosary prayers.
Now my eyes were welling up with tears because I realized for the first time...during all those years of darkness...I hadn't been alone. She was encouraged to know that her prayers for more than 15 years had been answered.
I share this with you because up until that point, I didn't know that anyone else was for me. I had no idea that others were standing right there beside me fighting for me. It caused me to look back on my life and realize that there had been countless others whose words, prayers, and actions had blessed me in amazing ways.
Neither of us realized the work that God was doing in us and through us in those years. Sometimes you just don't know who you're going to help or how you're going to help them. So pray hard, speak kindly, and act in the ways of love and God can and will do amazing things in those places...even if you are unaware.
Showing posts with label God Thoughts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label God Thoughts. Show all posts
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Serve God Save The Planet - Revisited
I was perusing my email today when I came across a notification that a new comment had been posted on submission to the blog I had made a few weeks ago. I appreciate the graciousness of the author of the comment and the opportunity to continue the dialog regarding Matthew Sleeth's book Serve God Save the Planet. So, I thought that I would post the comment here and respond and invite you to join Nick and I in this conversation.
Here is Nick's comment:
Russel-
Im a student at Mid America Nazerine University. I wanted to hear your thoughts on somthing in the book. I felt that throughout the book, Sleeth tried to state that the reason for so many problems(depression,family and marriage problems, ect.), were due to the fact that those people were not turning directly to saving the envirement. I wrote a book report on this book, and many of my class mates shared the same opinion.
Do you think it is that, or do u think those people are having those problems because they simply lack a true relationship with God??
-Nick
To answer the question first, I would have to say that a lot of the problems are predominately attributed to what you have called a 'true relationship with God'. And if I have heard and read Dr. Sleeth correctly, he would be on the same page. I would point readers to page 61 of the book where Dr. Sleeth states, "Perhaps many of our problems, including those of depression and anxiety, are warning signals that we are living a lifestyle that God does not sanction or want us to lead. The response to mental pain and discomfort should be to seek restoring connection with God. In seeking quiet moments, green pastures, and still waters, we may find just what our soul needs."
Coming from a theological perspective, it involves an understanding of our relationship with God, with each other, and with the rest of the created order. As I read the scriptures I notice that our fall or separation from God distorted all of the relationships we were created for. Sin separates us from God. Sin can distort and destroy our relationships with one another. Sins involving selfishness and self-centeredness distort and destroy our relationship with the rest of the created order. It is only through the act of grace through Christ Jesus that we are brought back into right relationship in all areas of our relatedness. Just as sin has affected (and still does) both humanity and the created order; the reconciliation in Christ Jesus affects both humanity and the created order. Those who have stepped into that life giving relationship with Jesus are being transformed from the inside out. As Colossians 3:9-10 states, "...seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator...", we are reminded that we are being restored to the goodness that God originally intended for us.
Dr. Sleeth utilizes Christ's dialog about the greatest of the commandments (loving God first and then others as ourselves) as part of his scriptural and theological framework throughout the course of the book to say essentially the same thing. He claims that in order to love God, we must love what God has created and called good (ie. creation). He is also quite explicit in saying that loving others includes changing our understanding of stewardship. Are we really loving others if we are using more than we need and others are going without? Are we really loving our family if our drive for more (gadgets, filled schedules, etc) causes us to have no time to invest in those relationships? Are we really loving God, the created order, and others if we are adding exorbitantly to the pollution levels (which in turn harms all areas of our relatedness)? For Dr. Sleeth, it appears that living out the greatest of commandments, thereby living out our faith in Jesus Christ, requires that we change not only our views, but also our practices when it comes to creation care. It is not simply going green for going green's sake. It is an explicit part of our call as followers of Christ.
I invite you to join in the conversation. Have I read Serve God Save the Planet accurately? Do you agree with my assessment of Dr. Sleeth's position? Is creation care an imperative of our faith? Let us know what you think!
Here is Nick's comment:
Russel-
Im a student at Mid America Nazerine University. I wanted to hear your thoughts on somthing in the book. I felt that throughout the book, Sleeth tried to state that the reason for so many problems(depression,family and marriage problems, ect.), were due to the fact that those people were not turning directly to saving the envirement. I wrote a book report on this book, and many of my class mates shared the same opinion.
Do you think it is that, or do u think those people are having those problems because they simply lack a true relationship with God??
-Nick
To answer the question first, I would have to say that a lot of the problems are predominately attributed to what you have called a 'true relationship with God'. And if I have heard and read Dr. Sleeth correctly, he would be on the same page. I would point readers to page 61 of the book where Dr. Sleeth states, "Perhaps many of our problems, including those of depression and anxiety, are warning signals that we are living a lifestyle that God does not sanction or want us to lead. The response to mental pain and discomfort should be to seek restoring connection with God. In seeking quiet moments, green pastures, and still waters, we may find just what our soul needs."
Coming from a theological perspective, it involves an understanding of our relationship with God, with each other, and with the rest of the created order. As I read the scriptures I notice that our fall or separation from God distorted all of the relationships we were created for. Sin separates us from God. Sin can distort and destroy our relationships with one another. Sins involving selfishness and self-centeredness distort and destroy our relationship with the rest of the created order. It is only through the act of grace through Christ Jesus that we are brought back into right relationship in all areas of our relatedness. Just as sin has affected (and still does) both humanity and the created order; the reconciliation in Christ Jesus affects both humanity and the created order. Those who have stepped into that life giving relationship with Jesus are being transformed from the inside out. As Colossians 3:9-10 states, "...seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator...", we are reminded that we are being restored to the goodness that God originally intended for us.
Dr. Sleeth utilizes Christ's dialog about the greatest of the commandments (loving God first and then others as ourselves) as part of his scriptural and theological framework throughout the course of the book to say essentially the same thing. He claims that in order to love God, we must love what God has created and called good (ie. creation). He is also quite explicit in saying that loving others includes changing our understanding of stewardship. Are we really loving others if we are using more than we need and others are going without? Are we really loving our family if our drive for more (gadgets, filled schedules, etc) causes us to have no time to invest in those relationships? Are we really loving God, the created order, and others if we are adding exorbitantly to the pollution levels (which in turn harms all areas of our relatedness)? For Dr. Sleeth, it appears that living out the greatest of commandments, thereby living out our faith in Jesus Christ, requires that we change not only our views, but also our practices when it comes to creation care. It is not simply going green for going green's sake. It is an explicit part of our call as followers of Christ.
I invite you to join in the conversation. Have I read Serve God Save the Planet accurately? Do you agree with my assessment of Dr. Sleeth's position? Is creation care an imperative of our faith? Let us know what you think!
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Faith and Speech
I have been pondering the relationship between our speech, our actions and our faith. While I have often looked at these passages out of James separately, it is just recently that I have been pondering them together. Here's the passages:
James 2:14-26
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. But someone will say, "You have faith and I have works." Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe-- and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was brought to completion by the works. Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness," and he was called the friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. Likewise, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another road? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.
James 3:2-10
For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no one can tame the tongue-- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so.
At the moment, it seems clear to me. Our faith ought to bear fruit (the works I believe that James is talking about it). Faith is transformative...faith ought to call forth recognition and love of the other in our midst to the point that we might actually feed the hungry rather than just bless them and send them on their way.
It is also clear that our mouths can get us in trouble.
But taking these passages together, it seems as though our tongues can even be the undoing of the works that faith has called forth. Whether it is by proclaiming the differences between us and others (thereby impeding the works of faith) or reversing our works of faith by allowing our tongues to get away from us.
It seems as though speech (God honoring speech) can be a catalyst for our faith and works while speech that is not God honoring can be an impediment. It seems that our actions (the works of our faith) can be an affirmation of our words or (the lack thereof) can be a negation. And it seems to me that this can be as true for an individual as it is for a group (the body of Christ in any sized expression).
What do you think?
James 2:14-26
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. But someone will say, "You have faith and I have works." Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe-- and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was brought to completion by the works. Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness," and he was called the friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. Likewise, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another road? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.
James 3:2-10
For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no one can tame the tongue-- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so.
At the moment, it seems clear to me. Our faith ought to bear fruit (the works I believe that James is talking about it). Faith is transformative...faith ought to call forth recognition and love of the other in our midst to the point that we might actually feed the hungry rather than just bless them and send them on their way.
It is also clear that our mouths can get us in trouble.
But taking these passages together, it seems as though our tongues can even be the undoing of the works that faith has called forth. Whether it is by proclaiming the differences between us and others (thereby impeding the works of faith) or reversing our works of faith by allowing our tongues to get away from us.
It seems as though speech (God honoring speech) can be a catalyst for our faith and works while speech that is not God honoring can be an impediment. It seems that our actions (the works of our faith) can be an affirmation of our words or (the lack thereof) can be a negation. And it seems to me that this can be as true for an individual as it is for a group (the body of Christ in any sized expression).
What do you think?
Monday, February 9, 2009
Time with God - A Growing Concern
There are more than 100 blogs in my RSS feed. They run the gamut from theological to family update oriented. Some are political, some are religious, some are for fun, and some revolve around some pretty serious issues for our world. In each of the blogging genres that I follow (except the family and friend general updates), I have selected some to follow that usually flow with my own beliefs, some that are at the opposite end of the spectrum, and others that fall at varying places along the spectrum. This creates a really interesting tapestry in which to explore, question, debate, and discuss my own understandings and beliefs. This also helps me to recognize patterns within my own perspectives and the perspectives of others.
In the realm of Christian faith within the blogosphere, I am beginning to notice a pattern that is disturbing to me. Many of our theological reflectors, our seminarians, church planters, church leaders, and lay people keep bringing up the same issue on their blogs regarding spending time with God. These folks often say that as ministry, school, and life demands increase, personal time with God (in prayer, studying the Bible, worshiping, etc) dramatically decreases. As a solution to this problem, we are encouraged to get back to spending more time with God (specifically in the aforementioned ways).
At the outer level, there is nothing seemingly wrong with spending more time in prayer, Bible study, worship, etc. These things are definitively a part of our journey as Christians...they can feed and nurture our relationships with God and with others...but they are not the only "parts" of our journey. This is where the disturbing part comes in...it seems to me that many are describing spending time in two distinct ways.
Let me back up just a moment and say that my understanding of the Christian faith revolves around relationships. What Christ has done through his life, death, and resurrection was to reconcile the relationship between humanity and God. You want to know about community, look at God. You want to be in relationship with others and the world around you, turn to God. After all, isn't it Scripture that reminds us that we are to love God and love our neighbors as we love ourselves...it is about relationships.
So (returning to our previous discussion) to delineate spiritual disciplines (under the guise of 'spending more time with God') as partial requirements of the Christian faith seems to do two things(in their most extreme presentations):
First, it seems to create a false compartmentalization between faith and the rest of our lives. For example, time with God can certainly mean time in prayer and time in the study of Scripture, but is time with God's children, in service, or with family any less time with God? With such effort in the world to compartmentalize our lives (our work lives, our home lives, our school lives, our family lives, our spiritual lives, etc) it appears to me that the Gospel speaks of a faith in God/a relationship with God that permeates the entirety of our lives. As such, faith isn't a single part of our lives, but rather is something that permeates the entirety of our lives. By keeping (or attempting to keep) God at bay in any area of our lives is merely to reify the compartments that are familiar to and comfortable for us.
The second extreme often presented is the use of spending time with God (referencing again the aforementioned spiritual disciplines) as rules for being Christian. Sadly, things like studying the Scriptures, worship, and prayer are relegated to requirements of what it truly means to be Christian...if you don't do them, in a particular way and with a particular frequency; then maybe you aren't particularly Christian. Isn't this part of the problem when Jesus is asked about the greatest commandment (almost as if those asking might be saying if we can't keep all of them, which one or ones should we pay particularly close attention to)? Didn't a segment of humanity take 10 simple rules and create more than 600 rules (like not wearing shoes heavier than a certain weight on the Sabbath because that might be considered work)...did not Jesus' response to the aforementioned question simplify things for us? In this perspective, we have to be very careful in discerning how the disciplines fall into Christ's discourse on the greatest commandments.
At these extremes, it seems to me that the gospel is distorted. As disciplines, yes they (the ways of spending time with God) can be means of grace that draw us closer to God and to each other. But if the transformation that is occurring in and through us in our study, worship, prayer times, etc is not reflected in our everyday walking around, breathing, eating, waking lives; then is it really transformation? We can't be truly altered/changed/transformed in our faith without there being fruit in the rest of our lives...our faith cannot be relegated to a compartment that only takes up part of our day or part of our week...and to present it as such, does nothing to speak to the truth of the wholeness and fullness of salvation that the gospel proclaims. At the other end of the spectrum, we have never been good at following rules. If my prayer, worship and study don't look like someone else's, it doesn't mean that it is not authentic or less fruitful. To say that spending time with God must look a particular way (frequency, presentation, etc) seems to squelch what the Spirit may be doing in a group of people or an individual. When we broach this extreme, we essentially set up a new law that becomes impossible to fulfill.
In the end, it seems to me that it is the work of the Holy Spirit, in and through us, that draws us closer to God and to one another. It is the overflow of love from God that drives us to know more about that love and pursue growth in that relationship. It is an ongoing desire to know God more that calls us to prayer, worship, study, etc. And it is in these places in more, that God continues the work he began in us. As we learn to love God more (out of the loving relationship that God has for us) we learn to love others. In our loving others we can still be present with God even in service to those others. In the end, it returns to our relationship with God and with each other. Our very lives, not just the faith parts, are radically altered by the saving and sanctifying grace of God.
I hope that my thoughts on this are clear, but if you want to do more reading on the subject, one of the resources that has had the most significant impact on my life regarding the disciplines and spending time with God is the work of Richard Foster entitled "Celebration of Discipline."
Am I the only one that has noticed this? What do you think about compartmentalizing God or turning the disciplines into rules? What resources have helped you come to an understanding about these things?
In the realm of Christian faith within the blogosphere, I am beginning to notice a pattern that is disturbing to me. Many of our theological reflectors, our seminarians, church planters, church leaders, and lay people keep bringing up the same issue on their blogs regarding spending time with God. These folks often say that as ministry, school, and life demands increase, personal time with God (in prayer, studying the Bible, worshiping, etc) dramatically decreases. As a solution to this problem, we are encouraged to get back to spending more time with God (specifically in the aforementioned ways).
At the outer level, there is nothing seemingly wrong with spending more time in prayer, Bible study, worship, etc. These things are definitively a part of our journey as Christians...they can feed and nurture our relationships with God and with others...but they are not the only "parts" of our journey. This is where the disturbing part comes in...it seems to me that many are describing spending time in two distinct ways.
Let me back up just a moment and say that my understanding of the Christian faith revolves around relationships. What Christ has done through his life, death, and resurrection was to reconcile the relationship between humanity and God. You want to know about community, look at God. You want to be in relationship with others and the world around you, turn to God. After all, isn't it Scripture that reminds us that we are to love God and love our neighbors as we love ourselves...it is about relationships.
So (returning to our previous discussion) to delineate spiritual disciplines (under the guise of 'spending more time with God') as partial requirements of the Christian faith seems to do two things(in their most extreme presentations):
First, it seems to create a false compartmentalization between faith and the rest of our lives. For example, time with God can certainly mean time in prayer and time in the study of Scripture, but is time with God's children, in service, or with family any less time with God? With such effort in the world to compartmentalize our lives (our work lives, our home lives, our school lives, our family lives, our spiritual lives, etc) it appears to me that the Gospel speaks of a faith in God/a relationship with God that permeates the entirety of our lives. As such, faith isn't a single part of our lives, but rather is something that permeates the entirety of our lives. By keeping (or attempting to keep) God at bay in any area of our lives is merely to reify the compartments that are familiar to and comfortable for us.
The second extreme often presented is the use of spending time with God (referencing again the aforementioned spiritual disciplines) as rules for being Christian. Sadly, things like studying the Scriptures, worship, and prayer are relegated to requirements of what it truly means to be Christian...if you don't do them, in a particular way and with a particular frequency; then maybe you aren't particularly Christian. Isn't this part of the problem when Jesus is asked about the greatest commandment (almost as if those asking might be saying if we can't keep all of them, which one or ones should we pay particularly close attention to)? Didn't a segment of humanity take 10 simple rules and create more than 600 rules (like not wearing shoes heavier than a certain weight on the Sabbath because that might be considered work)...did not Jesus' response to the aforementioned question simplify things for us? In this perspective, we have to be very careful in discerning how the disciplines fall into Christ's discourse on the greatest commandments.
At these extremes, it seems to me that the gospel is distorted. As disciplines, yes they (the ways of spending time with God) can be means of grace that draw us closer to God and to each other. But if the transformation that is occurring in and through us in our study, worship, prayer times, etc is not reflected in our everyday walking around, breathing, eating, waking lives; then is it really transformation? We can't be truly altered/changed/transformed in our faith without there being fruit in the rest of our lives...our faith cannot be relegated to a compartment that only takes up part of our day or part of our week...and to present it as such, does nothing to speak to the truth of the wholeness and fullness of salvation that the gospel proclaims. At the other end of the spectrum, we have never been good at following rules. If my prayer, worship and study don't look like someone else's, it doesn't mean that it is not authentic or less fruitful. To say that spending time with God must look a particular way (frequency, presentation, etc) seems to squelch what the Spirit may be doing in a group of people or an individual. When we broach this extreme, we essentially set up a new law that becomes impossible to fulfill.
In the end, it seems to me that it is the work of the Holy Spirit, in and through us, that draws us closer to God and to one another. It is the overflow of love from God that drives us to know more about that love and pursue growth in that relationship. It is an ongoing desire to know God more that calls us to prayer, worship, study, etc. And it is in these places in more, that God continues the work he began in us. As we learn to love God more (out of the loving relationship that God has for us) we learn to love others. In our loving others we can still be present with God even in service to those others. In the end, it returns to our relationship with God and with each other. Our very lives, not just the faith parts, are radically altered by the saving and sanctifying grace of God.
I hope that my thoughts on this are clear, but if you want to do more reading on the subject, one of the resources that has had the most significant impact on my life regarding the disciplines and spending time with God is the work of Richard Foster entitled "Celebration of Discipline."
Am I the only one that has noticed this? What do you think about compartmentalizing God or turning the disciplines into rules? What resources have helped you come to an understanding about these things?
Thursday, September 25, 2008
What does it mean to do Missions?
I have several friends that work for YWAM (Youth With A Mission) around the country. I have many more friends that are committed to and participate in missions in our country and around the world. I too, am involved in missions. So needless to say, I am having to stop and ponder once again what it means to do missions in light of recent news.
This week, ABC aired a story about YWAM fighting against infanticide in the jungles of Brazil. You can read their brief write up and watch their video here. Likewise, YWAM published an article from their vantage point and you can view that article here.
Personally, I don't have any problems with the YWAM missionaries that live in Brazil and adopted the children that had medical or other issues that would have faced certain death had the missionaries not intervened...for me it is a sanctity of life issue and a no-brainer as far as decisions go. (feel free to offer your own thoughts on this)
What made me really stop and ponder, however, is the undertones of culture clash that run through the ABC account of the story. As a Christian, I have no issue with sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with those we encounter...but the question becomes how much of what we do is "Christian" and how much of what we do is "Westernization"?
For example, we want to feed those that are in need of food. Let's say that an indigenous tribe is a hunting and gathering tribe. Does that mean as Christians practicing our faith that we are called to deliver food that is grown elsewhere to them? Are we called to help them with better instruments for hunting and gathering? Are we called to change them into an agricultural tribe that is no longer nomadic? Or are we called to work to maintain natural habitats to where they have enough area to hunt and gather to support themselves? Are we to do this without uttering the name of Jesus? Which of the aforementioned choices is most Christ centered?
In order for someone to understand and receive the good news is it necessary that their culture be changed as well?
Surely providing clean drinking water, food, clothing, shelter, etc are good things. Surely advocating for the lives of children...looking out for the orphan, the widow, and the others that are marginalized is what we are called to do. Surely these are the things that the gospel calls us to do. But at what cost? Must culture be changed in order for the gospel to be received?
These are just some of the thoughts that run through my mind. In the background I can hear Niebuhr's writings running around in circles screaming...is it Christ the transformer of culture (surely this is preached with great frequency), or is it Christ above culture (surely this is preached with equal fervency), or is it Christ of Culture (yes there are proponents here as well)...AHHHHH!!!!!
I am curious, what do you think? How do we do missions in such a way that allows us to fulfill our mission (Great Commission---go forth and make disciples of all nations, baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), while doing all the good that we can and doing no harm (which means we have to decide if changing culture is doing harm or not)?
This week, ABC aired a story about YWAM fighting against infanticide in the jungles of Brazil. You can read their brief write up and watch their video here. Likewise, YWAM published an article from their vantage point and you can view that article here.
Personally, I don't have any problems with the YWAM missionaries that live in Brazil and adopted the children that had medical or other issues that would have faced certain death had the missionaries not intervened...for me it is a sanctity of life issue and a no-brainer as far as decisions go. (feel free to offer your own thoughts on this)
What made me really stop and ponder, however, is the undertones of culture clash that run through the ABC account of the story. As a Christian, I have no issue with sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with those we encounter...but the question becomes how much of what we do is "Christian" and how much of what we do is "Westernization"?
For example, we want to feed those that are in need of food. Let's say that an indigenous tribe is a hunting and gathering tribe. Does that mean as Christians practicing our faith that we are called to deliver food that is grown elsewhere to them? Are we called to help them with better instruments for hunting and gathering? Are we called to change them into an agricultural tribe that is no longer nomadic? Or are we called to work to maintain natural habitats to where they have enough area to hunt and gather to support themselves? Are we to do this without uttering the name of Jesus? Which of the aforementioned choices is most Christ centered?
In order for someone to understand and receive the good news is it necessary that their culture be changed as well?
Surely providing clean drinking water, food, clothing, shelter, etc are good things. Surely advocating for the lives of children...looking out for the orphan, the widow, and the others that are marginalized is what we are called to do. Surely these are the things that the gospel calls us to do. But at what cost? Must culture be changed in order for the gospel to be received?
These are just some of the thoughts that run through my mind. In the background I can hear Niebuhr's writings running around in circles screaming...is it Christ the transformer of culture (surely this is preached with great frequency), or is it Christ above culture (surely this is preached with equal fervency), or is it Christ of Culture (yes there are proponents here as well)...AHHHHH!!!!!
I am curious, what do you think? How do we do missions in such a way that allows us to fulfill our mission (Great Commission---go forth and make disciples of all nations, baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), while doing all the good that we can and doing no harm (which means we have to decide if changing culture is doing harm or not)?
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Sin, Evil, and Satan...what do you think?
It has been a while since I have posted! I have been undergoing an adjustment with my new school schedule and getting everything kicked off for fall here at our churches.
I had an interesting experience last week. I went to my interview with the District Committee on Ordained Ministry (DCOM) to be interviewed for the possibility of being passed on to the Conference level Board of Ordained Ministry (BOM) and commissioning for next sprint at Annual Conference.
The meeting was full of laughter and mostly warm faces (I knew a number of people on this committee already) and after some horseplay and some serious questioning, I exited the room and they voted. When I returned, they congratulated me and let me know that I would be hearing from the Conference about completing materials for the upcoming BOM meeting. This is all great news.
The interesting thing that happened to me was that I was questioned rather harshly on my written presentation of sin, evil and Satan. I was told to lighten the language and offered several other recommendations that I am taking under advisement (but not jumping right into action on just yet!).
My concern is that if we minimize our discussion of the destructive forces of sin, evil, and Satan (yes, I said it again) in the world, are we not somehow minimizing what Scripture assures us that Christ has overcome? I mean, if sin and evil are not pervasive, why do we need a savior?
Before I set out to pontificate more about these issues, I thought I would ask what you all think. Here are my questions:
what is sin?
what is evil?
is Satan real?
how would you relate these to your congregation?
Does the way that you discuss sin, evil and Satan impact your understanding of grace, Christ, or salvation?
These are just a few of the burning questions that I have rolling around with the marbles (yes, there are a few remaining) in my head right now.
Let me know what you think.
I had an interesting experience last week. I went to my interview with the District Committee on Ordained Ministry (DCOM) to be interviewed for the possibility of being passed on to the Conference level Board of Ordained Ministry (BOM) and commissioning for next sprint at Annual Conference.
The meeting was full of laughter and mostly warm faces (I knew a number of people on this committee already) and after some horseplay and some serious questioning, I exited the room and they voted. When I returned, they congratulated me and let me know that I would be hearing from the Conference about completing materials for the upcoming BOM meeting. This is all great news.
The interesting thing that happened to me was that I was questioned rather harshly on my written presentation of sin, evil and Satan. I was told to lighten the language and offered several other recommendations that I am taking under advisement (but not jumping right into action on just yet!).
My concern is that if we minimize our discussion of the destructive forces of sin, evil, and Satan (yes, I said it again) in the world, are we not somehow minimizing what Scripture assures us that Christ has overcome? I mean, if sin and evil are not pervasive, why do we need a savior?
Before I set out to pontificate more about these issues, I thought I would ask what you all think. Here are my questions:
what is sin?
what is evil?
is Satan real?
how would you relate these to your congregation?
Does the way that you discuss sin, evil and Satan impact your understanding of grace, Christ, or salvation?
These are just a few of the burning questions that I have rolling around with the marbles (yes, there are a few remaining) in my head right now.
Let me know what you think.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Haunting Thoughts
I don't know if you are like me, but sometimes there are just things that end up in front of me that haunt me. They take up residence in my brain and ask for constant consideration. This isn't always a bad thing.
Here are some of the more recent additions:
From John Wesley - the thought that evangelical faith must be marked by evangelical actions (think about your definition of evangelical before lowering the hammer!)
From a blog I read over the weekend (I am sorry that I didn't mark it...I think it might have been from 722 or Mark Driscoll) - "how can we expect to reach the folks that no one is reaching if we are doing the exact same thing as everyone else around us? To reach different folks, we have to do things differently."
Which reminds me of one of my favorite definitions from the recovery world: "insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
And from another blog (again, in my haste to catch up, I missed saving/starring it for proper credit) - "why is it that all church planters seem to plant churches in the suburbs? Why isn't anyone planting churches in urban areas?"
I have lots of thoughts about these and other insights...but I won't bore you with belaboring those points currently (I will wait for some future blog opportunity to do that!).
What I am curious about, however, is what thoughts are haunting you right now!?!
Here are some of the more recent additions:
From John Wesley - the thought that evangelical faith must be marked by evangelical actions (think about your definition of evangelical before lowering the hammer!)
From a blog I read over the weekend (I am sorry that I didn't mark it...I think it might have been from 722 or Mark Driscoll) - "how can we expect to reach the folks that no one is reaching if we are doing the exact same thing as everyone else around us? To reach different folks, we have to do things differently."
Which reminds me of one of my favorite definitions from the recovery world: "insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
And from another blog (again, in my haste to catch up, I missed saving/starring it for proper credit) - "why is it that all church planters seem to plant churches in the suburbs? Why isn't anyone planting churches in urban areas?"
I have lots of thoughts about these and other insights...but I won't bore you with belaboring those points currently (I will wait for some future blog opportunity to do that!).
What I am curious about, however, is what thoughts are haunting you right now!?!
Monday, July 7, 2008
Renaming God - Part II
I was surprised that fewer people commented on the post "Renaming God" than the post about worship and the Fourth of July.
None the less, I really loved these two quotes:
"All metaphors regarding God outside the canonical heritage of the church--however useful they may be or seem--must remain secondary to scriptural understanding of God's self-revelation to humanity." ---Stresspenguin
"I believe as pastors we need to be very cognizant and empathetic towards people's images of God that have been shaped by their experiences, but I also believe we can present to these and others a loving, redemptive God as Father." ---Anonymous
I may have been a little harsh (and maybe not), but here is what I wrote in the unedited version of my credo (it got cut in order to get below the 9,000 word count maximum):
"Finally, I am obligated to say a word about language; specifically language referring to God. As has already been seen, there is no reluctance on my part in using the pronoun ‘him’ for God. I want to be clear that this is not a decision that was arrived at flippantly or haphazardly. I desire nothing more than to stand in solidarity with all of my brothers and sisters in Christ. I have witnessed the oppression that those who are different from me have experienced and I have heard the cries of lament that have come from communities of women that have for far too long been marginalized or discounted all together. I am all for a hermeneutic of retrieval that seeks to rediscover these voices that have been drowned out by the monotonous intellectual gluttony and self-serving power mongering that has sadly plagued Western theology throughout its history, but I do not believe that this includes using the gender neuter or feminine forms of pronouns for God to accomplish this. On this point I stand in the trenches with Clark Pinnock; although it must be noted that I have appropriated Pinnock’s argument and applied it not just to the Holy Spirit, but to all persons of the Trinity. I believe that masculine, feminine and neutral forms of address for God are all problematic. The masculine forms suggest perpetuating injustice and oppression towards women, the neutered forms reduce the personhood of the members of the Trinity to nothing more than things, and the feminine forms may take away from the masculine and gender neutral nuances and may endanger a strictly feminine view of a member of the Trinity or the Trinity as a whole. As Pinnock concluded, to change to a neutered or feminine pronoun appears to cause more problems than it would solve.[1] In consideration of all of this, I have opted for the continued use of the masculine pronoun in referring to all persons of the Holy Trinity."
Obviously, I am on the side of orthodoxy and tradition...that is to say, maintaining the language and ways that God has revealed himself to us in history. This is not, however, a license to perpetuate or induce oppression (patriarchy or otherwise). It seems to me that the Scriptures are quite clear about what characterizes terms such as Father and Son; and often these characterizations run contrary to our earthly experience or understanding. So as Penny mentioned, we must present these in their entirety---gracefully and lovingly. Only then can we be truly and radically altered by their message and meaning for our faith and our lives.
None the less, I really loved these two quotes:
"All metaphors regarding God outside the canonical heritage of the church--however useful they may be or seem--must remain secondary to scriptural understanding of God's self-revelation to humanity." ---Stresspenguin
"I believe as pastors we need to be very cognizant and empathetic towards people's images of God that have been shaped by their experiences, but I also believe we can present to these and others a loving, redemptive God as Father." ---Anonymous
I may have been a little harsh (and maybe not), but here is what I wrote in the unedited version of my credo (it got cut in order to get below the 9,000 word count maximum):
"Finally, I am obligated to say a word about language; specifically language referring to God. As has already been seen, there is no reluctance on my part in using the pronoun ‘him’ for God. I want to be clear that this is not a decision that was arrived at flippantly or haphazardly. I desire nothing more than to stand in solidarity with all of my brothers and sisters in Christ. I have witnessed the oppression that those who are different from me have experienced and I have heard the cries of lament that have come from communities of women that have for far too long been marginalized or discounted all together. I am all for a hermeneutic of retrieval that seeks to rediscover these voices that have been drowned out by the monotonous intellectual gluttony and self-serving power mongering that has sadly plagued Western theology throughout its history, but I do not believe that this includes using the gender neuter or feminine forms of pronouns for God to accomplish this. On this point I stand in the trenches with Clark Pinnock; although it must be noted that I have appropriated Pinnock’s argument and applied it not just to the Holy Spirit, but to all persons of the Trinity. I believe that masculine, feminine and neutral forms of address for God are all problematic. The masculine forms suggest perpetuating injustice and oppression towards women, the neutered forms reduce the personhood of the members of the Trinity to nothing more than things, and the feminine forms may take away from the masculine and gender neutral nuances and may endanger a strictly feminine view of a member of the Trinity or the Trinity as a whole. As Pinnock concluded, to change to a neutered or feminine pronoun appears to cause more problems than it would solve.[1] In consideration of all of this, I have opted for the continued use of the masculine pronoun in referring to all persons of the Holy Trinity."
[1] Clark H. Pinnock, Flame of Love: A Theology of the Holy Spirit (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1996), 15-17.
Obviously, I am on the side of orthodoxy and tradition...that is to say, maintaining the language and ways that God has revealed himself to us in history. This is not, however, a license to perpetuate or induce oppression (patriarchy or otherwise). It seems to me that the Scriptures are quite clear about what characterizes terms such as Father and Son; and often these characterizations run contrary to our earthly experience or understanding. So as Penny mentioned, we must present these in their entirety---gracefully and lovingly. Only then can we be truly and radically altered by their message and meaning for our faith and our lives.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Renaming God
Perhaps one of the most challenging issues for me in my seminary career involves the way that we call upon (name) God and represent God with analogies. Many of my colleagues (and some of the staff) thought that we should reconsider how we talk to and about God.
Everything from Father, Son and Holy Spirit; to Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer; to Source, Wellspring, and Living Water (courtesy of D. Cunningham); and so on, have been utilized to both name and describe analogously both who God is and what God does.
Feminists often cite the oppression of patriarchy as the reason to make the move to gender neutral or feminine pronouns for God, while other groups cite inclusiveness (perhaps the image of "Father" is a bad one because someone has had a bad experience with an earthly father) to make similar moves.
Here's the question: Is such a move necessary?
This topic has come up again recently, and somewhat heatedly in the blogosphere and in personal conversations, because of a Christian fiction entitled The Shack (you can click here to read a short and longer version of a review by Tim Challies---or you can click here to get a different take on the book by Greg Boyd).
In this story, the main character (Mack) encounters God in the same shack where his little girl had been murdered after an abduction. In this fictional work, God the Father is presented as an African American woman, God the Son is presented as a 30-something male carpenter, and God the Holy Spirit is presented as a humorous (Greg uses the words 'etherial' and 'hilarious' to describe her) Asian woman.
As I was going through my daily blogs today, I noticed that Tim had posted a quote from Bruce Waltke’s Old Testament Theology. Here is part of what Tim quoted (to read the entire post called Quote - Inexcusable Hubris, click here ---it is a short one!):
"We cannot change God’s names, titles, or metaphors without committing idolatry, for we will have reimagined him in a way other than the metaphors and the incarnation by which he revealed himself. His representations and incarnation are inseparable from his being."
What do you all think?
Please leave your comments about the following questions:
Should we (and can we) change the names, titles, and metaphors that we have for God? Why or why not?
In a few days I will post some more snippets of comments and my own continuing thoughts on the matter.
Everything from Father, Son and Holy Spirit; to Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer; to Source, Wellspring, and Living Water (courtesy of D. Cunningham); and so on, have been utilized to both name and describe analogously both who God is and what God does.
Feminists often cite the oppression of patriarchy as the reason to make the move to gender neutral or feminine pronouns for God, while other groups cite inclusiveness (perhaps the image of "Father" is a bad one because someone has had a bad experience with an earthly father) to make similar moves.
Here's the question: Is such a move necessary?
This topic has come up again recently, and somewhat heatedly in the blogosphere and in personal conversations, because of a Christian fiction entitled The Shack (you can click here to read a short and longer version of a review by Tim Challies---or you can click here to get a different take on the book by Greg Boyd).
In this story, the main character (Mack) encounters God in the same shack where his little girl had been murdered after an abduction. In this fictional work, God the Father is presented as an African American woman, God the Son is presented as a 30-something male carpenter, and God the Holy Spirit is presented as a humorous (Greg uses the words 'etherial' and 'hilarious' to describe her) Asian woman.
As I was going through my daily blogs today, I noticed that Tim had posted a quote from Bruce Waltke’s Old Testament Theology. Here is part of what Tim quoted (to read the entire post called Quote - Inexcusable Hubris, click here ---it is a short one!):
"We cannot change God’s names, titles, or metaphors without committing idolatry, for we will have reimagined him in a way other than the metaphors and the incarnation by which he revealed himself. His representations and incarnation are inseparable from his being."
What do you all think?
Please leave your comments about the following questions:
Should we (and can we) change the names, titles, and metaphors that we have for God? Why or why not?
In a few days I will post some more snippets of comments and my own continuing thoughts on the matter.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Independence vs. In-dependence
Earlier this week I posted a blog asking your thoughts about the Fourth of July as it relates to the church. How much influence should we allow this holiday to have in our worship services on the weekends that surround the 4th?
Here are some of the comments that were left regarding the extent of influence that July 4th should have on our worship services:
"I just bristle at folks that seem to equate 'American Christianity' with 'so much better than everyone else'." --Ben
"Perhaps celebrating July 4th is a way of acknowledging to God our thankfulness for living in a country where we can practice our faith freely." --Tammy
"If a church wants to do a patriotic celebration I'm all for it. But please don't do it in a worship service...don't create synchretism by mixing patriotism with Christianity." --Pete the Brit
"I will have a separate celebration, but I won't even call it a worship service (because the point of that kind of service is not to gather together to honor God, but to gather to celebrate ourselves..." --Cynthia
"Even though we would never say anything like it, I struggle with the inference that the kingdom of God is somehow equated to the kingdom of the USA." --Jessica
The comments just keep rolling in! There simply isn't enough room to list snippets from all of them, but you can view the comments in their entirety (and I encourage this---there is some great stuff here) at the bottom of the previous blog posting!
So now you are asking yourself where do I weigh in, right!?!
Let me first say that I can appreciate the opinion of those that feel it is alright to have a patriotic worship service. I can appreciate it because although there were relatively few comments in support of such an act, I pastor two churches in East Texas where that is the general understanding...it is alright to have worship that is patriotic...many would agree that it could be a way in which we show our gratitude toward God for our freedoms (including our freedom to worship).
While I can appreciate that point of view, I cannot bring myself to completely agree. Perhaps it is because I have seen 'patriotic' worship done so poorly (as many of you all have commented how it is often prone to take the focus off of God and place it towards ourselves) or perhaps it is because of something deeper.
For me, I think it really boils down to the difference between 'Independence' and 'In-Dependence'.
You see, 'Independence' relates to the ideology that I am my own (or corporately, we are our own). I don't know about you, but this line of thinking gets me into trouble. It is the root of my consumerism, consumption, self-serving, self-centeredness, egotism, etc. The thought that I don't need, or am not dependent upon anything or anyone else can lead me down some dark paths. Over the years, it has also gotten many countries and churches into trouble.
'In-dependence', on the other hand, reminds me that I am not my own (we are not our own). I am (we are) dependent upon Christ. If there is anything good or holy in me (us), it is because of the grace of God...not because of something I did (or we did).
Perhaps,then, the question of identity is somehow wrapped up in all of this. Do we view ourselves based upon our country of residence or do we understand ourselves as Christians first?
I can't help but think of the passage in Galatians (3:28-29) which states: "There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male or female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise."
First and foremost we are children of God. Everything else---our identities as mothers, fathers, children, Americans, etc---everything else is secondary. It seems to me that that ought to be clear in our discipleship and in our worship. Anything that takes the focus off of God or seeks to place our other identities ahead of our identity as children of God, I think should be left out of worship.
Ministry, as my friend Wademan reminds us, however, is messy and contextual. To negate the feelings or cultural understandings of my two congregations is problematic to say the least.
So how am I handling this Fourth of July weekend?
First, I am participating as a pastor and community member in a community gathering on Friday, July 4th, where I will be giving the invocation/opening prayer. It is taking place at our local community center and is a patriotic celebration...not a worship service. I will help out with the video and slide show projection and then head out to help light fireworks and continue to celebrate the 4th with our community.
Second, on Sunday morning we will worship without the use of any of the patriotic hymns (America, America the Beautiful, etc). I will utilize the prayer for Independence Day (#442 in the United Methodist Book of Worship) that recognizes God's sovereignty over all the peoples of the earth and asks for God's guidance for the leaders of all nations. I will be preaching a sermon that talks about life in the Spirit (Romans 8:1-11), followed by Communion and that's it. This is perhaps easier this year because the 4th doesn't fall on Sunday or Monday. I am sure that in those years where the 4th does fall on a Sunday or Monday, greater consideration will have to be given to the matter.
At any rate, this is the best way that I can figure to do ministry in the context of my community and my own understandings of being Christian. It allows me to remain connected to the community and the community's patriotism (which probably exceeds my own), while maintaining my theological integrity (at least I hope).
With many more years of ministry ahead of me (God willing!) I am sure that this wrestling match is far from finished. I thank you for your contributions thus far (I really like the hymnody service idea...perhaps I could get permission to use it in the future!?!) and I look forward to our ongoing journey together.
Here are some of the comments that were left regarding the extent of influence that July 4th should have on our worship services:
"I just bristle at folks that seem to equate 'American Christianity' with 'so much better than everyone else'." --Ben
"Perhaps celebrating July 4th is a way of acknowledging to God our thankfulness for living in a country where we can practice our faith freely." --Tammy
"If a church wants to do a patriotic celebration I'm all for it. But please don't do it in a worship service...don't create synchretism by mixing patriotism with Christianity." --Pete the Brit
"I will have a separate celebration, but I won't even call it a worship service (because the point of that kind of service is not to gather together to honor God, but to gather to celebrate ourselves..." --Cynthia
"Even though we would never say anything like it, I struggle with the inference that the kingdom of God is somehow equated to the kingdom of the USA." --Jessica
The comments just keep rolling in! There simply isn't enough room to list snippets from all of them, but you can view the comments in their entirety (and I encourage this---there is some great stuff here) at the bottom of the previous blog posting!
So now you are asking yourself where do I weigh in, right!?!
Let me first say that I can appreciate the opinion of those that feel it is alright to have a patriotic worship service. I can appreciate it because although there were relatively few comments in support of such an act, I pastor two churches in East Texas where that is the general understanding...it is alright to have worship that is patriotic...many would agree that it could be a way in which we show our gratitude toward God for our freedoms (including our freedom to worship).
While I can appreciate that point of view, I cannot bring myself to completely agree. Perhaps it is because I have seen 'patriotic' worship done so poorly (as many of you all have commented how it is often prone to take the focus off of God and place it towards ourselves) or perhaps it is because of something deeper.
For me, I think it really boils down to the difference between 'Independence' and 'In-Dependence'.
You see, 'Independence' relates to the ideology that I am my own (or corporately, we are our own). I don't know about you, but this line of thinking gets me into trouble. It is the root of my consumerism, consumption, self-serving, self-centeredness, egotism, etc. The thought that I don't need, or am not dependent upon anything or anyone else can lead me down some dark paths. Over the years, it has also gotten many countries and churches into trouble.
'In-dependence', on the other hand, reminds me that I am not my own (we are not our own). I am (we are) dependent upon Christ. If there is anything good or holy in me (us), it is because of the grace of God...not because of something I did (or we did).
Perhaps,then, the question of identity is somehow wrapped up in all of this. Do we view ourselves based upon our country of residence or do we understand ourselves as Christians first?
I can't help but think of the passage in Galatians (3:28-29) which states: "There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male or female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise."
First and foremost we are children of God. Everything else---our identities as mothers, fathers, children, Americans, etc---everything else is secondary. It seems to me that that ought to be clear in our discipleship and in our worship. Anything that takes the focus off of God or seeks to place our other identities ahead of our identity as children of God, I think should be left out of worship.
Ministry, as my friend Wademan reminds us, however, is messy and contextual. To negate the feelings or cultural understandings of my two congregations is problematic to say the least.
So how am I handling this Fourth of July weekend?
First, I am participating as a pastor and community member in a community gathering on Friday, July 4th, where I will be giving the invocation/opening prayer. It is taking place at our local community center and is a patriotic celebration...not a worship service. I will help out with the video and slide show projection and then head out to help light fireworks and continue to celebrate the 4th with our community.
Second, on Sunday morning we will worship without the use of any of the patriotic hymns (America, America the Beautiful, etc). I will utilize the prayer for Independence Day (#442 in the United Methodist Book of Worship) that recognizes God's sovereignty over all the peoples of the earth and asks for God's guidance for the leaders of all nations. I will be preaching a sermon that talks about life in the Spirit (Romans 8:1-11), followed by Communion and that's it. This is perhaps easier this year because the 4th doesn't fall on Sunday or Monday. I am sure that in those years where the 4th does fall on a Sunday or Monday, greater consideration will have to be given to the matter.
At any rate, this is the best way that I can figure to do ministry in the context of my community and my own understandings of being Christian. It allows me to remain connected to the community and the community's patriotism (which probably exceeds my own), while maintaining my theological integrity (at least I hope).
With many more years of ministry ahead of me (God willing!) I am sure that this wrestling match is far from finished. I thank you for your contributions thus far (I really like the hymnody service idea...perhaps I could get permission to use it in the future!?!) and I look forward to our ongoing journey together.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Independence Day Question
I wonder if anyone else wrestles with Independence Day as it relates to the church? In my past experience, I have seen churches do everything from a Sunday full of anthems and patriotism all the way down to just a mention of the holiday in prayers or announcements and every once in a while, there is no mention at all.
What I wrestle with is not the secular nature of what this holiday is or stands for, but rather how we as Christians can sometimes allow the patriotism of July 4th (and some other national holidays) to take over our faith and our worship services.
So here's the million dollar question...Should churches incorporate July 4th into this weekends' worship services and if so, to what extent?
Leave me a comment with what you think and I will share those with you, as well as some thoughts of my own, later in the week!
Blessings,
Russell
What I wrestle with is not the secular nature of what this holiday is or stands for, but rather how we as Christians can sometimes allow the patriotism of July 4th (and some other national holidays) to take over our faith and our worship services.
So here's the million dollar question...Should churches incorporate July 4th into this weekends' worship services and if so, to what extent?
Leave me a comment with what you think and I will share those with you, as well as some thoughts of my own, later in the week!
Blessings,
Russell
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Sanctification
Many are familiar with the passage out of the Gospel of John that says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life" (3:16 NRSV). We have learned that it was God's unfailing love, the sacrificial love in Christ Jesus that justifies us---makes it 'just as if nothing has ever happened'---in the sight of God. It is an unmerited gift of grace that we can do nothing to attain, earn, or get on our own. That, however, is not the end of the story.
I have heard time and time again that God loves us so much that he accepts us right where we are at; warts and all. I have also heard that God's love is so abundant, that though he accepts us where we are at, he refuses to leave us that way. The forgiveness, mercy, and grace that we experience in justification is just a foretaste of the grace that God has in store for us.
God really desires for us to be radically altered. This ongoing outpouring of grace into our lives-the grace that continues to transform us from the inside out-can be referred to as sanctification. It is the way that we are being renewed in the image of our creator and becoming more Christ-like. It is the ongoing gift of God that moves us towards perfect love.
I read a story this week (written by Misty Mowry) that goes something like this: A man went during the winter time and bought a house. The house he bought had a tree in the back yard, but because of the time of year it was leafless and had no characteristics that would distinguish it from any of the other nearby trees. The spring came after the man moved in and he began to notice that along with the fleshy green leaves that this tree was putting on, there were tiny pink blossoms that were beginning to appear. The man was excited and began to think that he would enjoy the flowering tree throughout the spring and summer. But with the spring came winds and rains and the blossoms fell off of the tree and littered his yard with pink. He thought that the tree was certainly no good. Later that summer, the man began to notice that the tree was producing green fruit about the size of a walnut. He went out and picked some and ate it. He couldn't believe how nasty, how bitter, how inedible the fruit was. He was now thoroughly convinced that the tree was worthless and that he would have to cut it down in the coming winter. The tree took no notice of the man and continued to soak up water from deep sources and bathe itself in the light of the sun. As fall came into being, the man again turned to his tree (thinking about the task that he had ahead of him) and noticed something odd. Where there once were tiny pink flowers too frail to withstand the wind and green fruit too unbearable to eat, now resided the most beautiful, fully red and ripe apples that he had ever seen.
The author makes the following observations. How often do we see ourselves or other people that have come to Christ flower with joy and excitement and ask ourselves if they can really hang on to it? How often do we witness the bitterness that is present in the Christian's heart (even our own) and wonder if they (or we) will ever bear good fruit? How often do we forget that the best fruit ripens later?
I want to be the tree in the story. I want to be so connected to the stream of life-giving water that I fully grow into the place that God is calling me. I want to bathe in the light of the Son until I am a reflection of Him in all that I do. I want to stay the course, despite opposition, until I bear the fruit that God has for me to bear. I want to be so radically altered by God's sanctifying grace that it is no longer me that people see, but rather it is Christ that they see in me.
I have heard time and time again that God loves us so much that he accepts us right where we are at; warts and all. I have also heard that God's love is so abundant, that though he accepts us where we are at, he refuses to leave us that way. The forgiveness, mercy, and grace that we experience in justification is just a foretaste of the grace that God has in store for us.
God really desires for us to be radically altered. This ongoing outpouring of grace into our lives-the grace that continues to transform us from the inside out-can be referred to as sanctification. It is the way that we are being renewed in the image of our creator and becoming more Christ-like. It is the ongoing gift of God that moves us towards perfect love.
I read a story this week (written by Misty Mowry) that goes something like this: A man went during the winter time and bought a house. The house he bought had a tree in the back yard, but because of the time of year it was leafless and had no characteristics that would distinguish it from any of the other nearby trees. The spring came after the man moved in and he began to notice that along with the fleshy green leaves that this tree was putting on, there were tiny pink blossoms that were beginning to appear. The man was excited and began to think that he would enjoy the flowering tree throughout the spring and summer. But with the spring came winds and rains and the blossoms fell off of the tree and littered his yard with pink. He thought that the tree was certainly no good. Later that summer, the man began to notice that the tree was producing green fruit about the size of a walnut. He went out and picked some and ate it. He couldn't believe how nasty, how bitter, how inedible the fruit was. He was now thoroughly convinced that the tree was worthless and that he would have to cut it down in the coming winter. The tree took no notice of the man and continued to soak up water from deep sources and bathe itself in the light of the sun. As fall came into being, the man again turned to his tree (thinking about the task that he had ahead of him) and noticed something odd. Where there once were tiny pink flowers too frail to withstand the wind and green fruit too unbearable to eat, now resided the most beautiful, fully red and ripe apples that he had ever seen.
The author makes the following observations. How often do we see ourselves or other people that have come to Christ flower with joy and excitement and ask ourselves if they can really hang on to it? How often do we witness the bitterness that is present in the Christian's heart (even our own) and wonder if they (or we) will ever bear good fruit? How often do we forget that the best fruit ripens later?
I want to be the tree in the story. I want to be so connected to the stream of life-giving water that I fully grow into the place that God is calling me. I want to bathe in the light of the Son until I am a reflection of Him in all that I do. I want to stay the course, despite opposition, until I bear the fruit that God has for me to bear. I want to be so radically altered by God's sanctifying grace that it is no longer me that people see, but rather it is Christ that they see in me.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Blooms in the Darkness
I used to house sit for a couple in Houston when we lived there. I was responsible for taking care of their plants and their cats while they traveled around the world on business and pleasure. It was always a blessing and a privilege to stay there.
One of the things that I most enjoyed about staying at their house was their gorgeous back yard. There was a large patio that had many potted plants and many areas of colorful plantings throughout the yard. Being a former nurseryman/horticulturalist and landscaper, I was right at home among all of the blooming plants and trees. There was seldom a day that went by that something was not in bloom in this yard.
During one of my first stints of house sitting there, I noticed a plant that I didn't recognize. I asked my friends about it when they returned and they told me it was a Night Blooming Cyrus plant. They told me all about how beautiful it was and how it only bloomed at night during the month of June.
It just so happened that I was going to be there watching their house the following June, and I made it a special point to watch out for this plant to bloom. Here is a picture of what I witnessed:
Each bloom on this plant only lasts for less than 24 hours. Beginning at dusk the blooms begin to open until they are fully open somewhere around 1 or 2 a.m. in the morning. By the time the sun rises in the morning, the blooms are already beginning to fold up and wither. It is an amazing sight.
This plant may have several evenings of bloom each June, ranging from 1 bloom in an evening to a dozen or more blooms.
One of the gifts we received from this family were some cuttings of this plant. We have kept them in a pot and continued to nurture them. We absolutely love this plant. We love it so much, that we found friends that had another variety of it and we got clippings from it as well.
As a pastor I hear a lot about the peoples' lives that I am involved with. Lately I have heard about financial difficulties, loneliness, health problems, loss of loved ones, etc. I know from my own life, just how 'dark' some periods of our lives can be.
During those times of darkness, I am often led to remember this little plant. How it blooms at one of the hottest times of the year and is most fully brilliant at night's darkest point. It reminds me that there is nothing beyonds God's capability. Never will the heat of my situation or the darkness I find myself in be more than God can get through. The light and life of God can overcome all things. Grace can bloom in any situation.
Romans 8:38-39 reminds us:
"For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Though we may not always be able to avoid the darkness around us, we can cling to the hope that we have in God, a hope that blooms even in the darkness.
One of the things that I most enjoyed about staying at their house was their gorgeous back yard. There was a large patio that had many potted plants and many areas of colorful plantings throughout the yard. Being a former nurseryman/horticulturalist and landscaper, I was right at home among all of the blooming plants and trees. There was seldom a day that went by that something was not in bloom in this yard.
During one of my first stints of house sitting there, I noticed a plant that I didn't recognize. I asked my friends about it when they returned and they told me it was a Night Blooming Cyrus plant. They told me all about how beautiful it was and how it only bloomed at night during the month of June.
It just so happened that I was going to be there watching their house the following June, and I made it a special point to watch out for this plant to bloom. Here is a picture of what I witnessed:
Each bloom on this plant only lasts for less than 24 hours. Beginning at dusk the blooms begin to open until they are fully open somewhere around 1 or 2 a.m. in the morning. By the time the sun rises in the morning, the blooms are already beginning to fold up and wither. It is an amazing sight.
This plant may have several evenings of bloom each June, ranging from 1 bloom in an evening to a dozen or more blooms.
One of the gifts we received from this family were some cuttings of this plant. We have kept them in a pot and continued to nurture them. We absolutely love this plant. We love it so much, that we found friends that had another variety of it and we got clippings from it as well.
As a pastor I hear a lot about the peoples' lives that I am involved with. Lately I have heard about financial difficulties, loneliness, health problems, loss of loved ones, etc. I know from my own life, just how 'dark' some periods of our lives can be.
During those times of darkness, I am often led to remember this little plant. How it blooms at one of the hottest times of the year and is most fully brilliant at night's darkest point. It reminds me that there is nothing beyonds God's capability. Never will the heat of my situation or the darkness I find myself in be more than God can get through. The light and life of God can overcome all things. Grace can bloom in any situation.
Romans 8:38-39 reminds us:
"For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Though we may not always be able to avoid the darkness around us, we can cling to the hope that we have in God, a hope that blooms even in the darkness.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Just as if...
I know that I am a little late in posting something about Father's Day, but it just has to be written.
A little more than a week ago I was standing in the machine shop that my dad now manages watching him program a Masak CNC lathe. The man is absolutely brilliant when it comes to mechanical stuff! I don't think that it hit me then, but it has certainly hit me now. A little more than 25 years ago I had stood in the machine shop that my dad owned at the time and watched him work on a Masak lathe that was not computerized. It is funny how life seems to come full circle...
In the two and a half decades that had passed, a lot had transpired. Needless to say, I was not a well adjusted teen or twenty something! There were a lot of words, behaviors and choices that got lived out in my teen and twenty-something years that got in the way of my relationship with my dad (not to mention my relationship with God). Suffice it to say, we spent a good number of years not talking to one another.
One of the issues I wrestled with back then was my alcoholism and drug addiction. When I finally hit rock bottom (I will save the gruesome details for another day), I ended up in an in-patient facility for a little more than a month. This sentence, so to speak, was followed by almost 2 months of intensive out-patient treatment. After more than a year of sobriety, I was at a place in my "steps" where I had to make my amends.
I still don't remember the first conversation or two with my dad very well. What I do remember, however, is that dad invited me to go hunting with him...something I never got to do as a child/youth/young man. It was that year in south Texas that things dramatically changed. As we got the camp set up and cooked some dinner, dad and I began to talk. I got around to apologizing again for my behavior and choices and for all the things that I had done when I was younger. He followed up by apologizing for some things as well. What struck me was when he said, "what's done is done. Our history begins right here, right now."
The conversation that I had with my dad that year was accompanied by a similar conversation that I had with God. In hindsight, I can almost hear God saying, "You are forgiven. What's done is done. Our history together begins right here, right now."
The outcomes of both conversations are nothing short of miraculous...
I have been rereading the Acts of the Apostles recently, and began a sermon series this past Sunday on Father's Day from this book of the Bible. All of the above recollections began to wash over me as I was preparing for this sermon on Acts 5:1-8. The verses that kept standing out to me were verses 1 and 8: "Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ," and, "But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us."
I couldn't help but remember that justification was once described to me as "God treating us just as if nothing ever happened; not because of what we have done, but because of what God has done in God's self---in the person of Jesus Christ---purchasing us and redeeming us from ourselves." Just as if nothing had ever happened; what a great thought!
While there are many kernels of truth within these 8 verses of scripture, perhaps none is so profound to me today as the thoughts around justification. I came to realize that my earthly father--my dad--was exemplifying Godly justification (whether he knew it or not). You see, in the years that have passed since that first hunting trip, he has treated me just as if there were no other history. He has mirrored grace and mercy in ways that are still reaching me today.
As I think about my dad, and how grateful I am to have him in my life today, I am reminded that our relationship is a gift from God. We are justified in each other's eyes, not because of some excuse or substantiation we have made about our past behaviors, but because of the grace-filled gift of a second chance that is wholly God given.
I am also reminded, this Father's Day, that I have been justified in my heavenly Father's eyes because of his mighty acts in Jesus Christ. Where once there was baggage riddled with trouble, there is now a peace and a rekindled relationship that dwells at the heart of my every breath. Thanks be to God.
So I say to my heavenly Father and to my earthly father, happy Father's Day.
A little more than a week ago I was standing in the machine shop that my dad now manages watching him program a Masak CNC lathe. The man is absolutely brilliant when it comes to mechanical stuff! I don't think that it hit me then, but it has certainly hit me now. A little more than 25 years ago I had stood in the machine shop that my dad owned at the time and watched him work on a Masak lathe that was not computerized. It is funny how life seems to come full circle...
In the two and a half decades that had passed, a lot had transpired. Needless to say, I was not a well adjusted teen or twenty something! There were a lot of words, behaviors and choices that got lived out in my teen and twenty-something years that got in the way of my relationship with my dad (not to mention my relationship with God). Suffice it to say, we spent a good number of years not talking to one another.
One of the issues I wrestled with back then was my alcoholism and drug addiction. When I finally hit rock bottom (I will save the gruesome details for another day), I ended up in an in-patient facility for a little more than a month. This sentence, so to speak, was followed by almost 2 months of intensive out-patient treatment. After more than a year of sobriety, I was at a place in my "steps" where I had to make my amends.
I still don't remember the first conversation or two with my dad very well. What I do remember, however, is that dad invited me to go hunting with him...something I never got to do as a child/youth/young man. It was that year in south Texas that things dramatically changed. As we got the camp set up and cooked some dinner, dad and I began to talk. I got around to apologizing again for my behavior and choices and for all the things that I had done when I was younger. He followed up by apologizing for some things as well. What struck me was when he said, "what's done is done. Our history begins right here, right now."
The conversation that I had with my dad that year was accompanied by a similar conversation that I had with God. In hindsight, I can almost hear God saying, "You are forgiven. What's done is done. Our history together begins right here, right now."
The outcomes of both conversations are nothing short of miraculous...
I have been rereading the Acts of the Apostles recently, and began a sermon series this past Sunday on Father's Day from this book of the Bible. All of the above recollections began to wash over me as I was preparing for this sermon on Acts 5:1-8. The verses that kept standing out to me were verses 1 and 8: "Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ," and, "But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us."
I couldn't help but remember that justification was once described to me as "God treating us just as if nothing ever happened; not because of what we have done, but because of what God has done in God's self---in the person of Jesus Christ---purchasing us and redeeming us from ourselves." Just as if nothing had ever happened; what a great thought!
While there are many kernels of truth within these 8 verses of scripture, perhaps none is so profound to me today as the thoughts around justification. I came to realize that my earthly father--my dad--was exemplifying Godly justification (whether he knew it or not). You see, in the years that have passed since that first hunting trip, he has treated me just as if there were no other history. He has mirrored grace and mercy in ways that are still reaching me today.
As I think about my dad, and how grateful I am to have him in my life today, I am reminded that our relationship is a gift from God. We are justified in each other's eyes, not because of some excuse or substantiation we have made about our past behaviors, but because of the grace-filled gift of a second chance that is wholly God given.
I am also reminded, this Father's Day, that I have been justified in my heavenly Father's eyes because of his mighty acts in Jesus Christ. Where once there was baggage riddled with trouble, there is now a peace and a rekindled relationship that dwells at the heart of my every breath. Thanks be to God.
So I say to my heavenly Father and to my earthly father, happy Father's Day.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Healing and Wholeness
Sozo is a Greek word that appears numerous times in the New Testament, especially the gospels. It is a word that is invariably translated referring to healing and wholeness. As I peruse the gospel accounts of Christ's ministry, I am reminded of the countless times that Jesus heals and makes whole.
When four faithful friends bring a paralytic to Jesus through a hole they create in the roof of the establishment where he is teaching, the first thing Jesus does is forgives the paralytic's sins. It is toward spiritual health and wholeness that Jesus first moves in relation to the paralytic. When members of the crowd begin to balk, it is then that Jesus addresses the man's physical ailments. When the encounter is over, the man has been made physically and spiritually whole.
When Jesus encounters a leper, he touches him and makes him clean. He then instructs the leper to go to the high priest and make the sacrifices that Moses demanded in the law. This was done in order to make the leper completely whole...physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Can you imagine what it would have been like to be ostracized and placed in a colony away from your family and friends; or what it must have been like to wear a bell that warned everyone you were coming; or what it felt like to holler out unclean as you walked in places where people unaffected by leprosy may have been? Can you fathom not being able to join your community in worship? After not being touched by anyone, for who knows how long, Jesus touches the leper, then heals him physically. Jesus then sets in motion all that is needed to reconnect the leper to his community and his faith.
I have spent the last week pondering, writing, and preaching on a text out of Acts (5:12-16) which says (in the NRSV translation):
"Now many signs and wonders were done among the people through the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon's Portico. None of the rest dared to join them, but the people held them in high esteem. Yet more than ever believers were added to the Lord, great numbers of both men and women, so that they even carried out the sick into the streets, and laid them on cots and mats, in order that Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he came by. A great number of people would also gather from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all cured."
If the church is called to follow in all that the apostles taught and to be co-laborers with Christ in mission and ministry to the world (making disciples, baptizing, etc), then it seems only natural that sozo (wholeness and healing) would be present in our ministry. It was that way for Christ. It was that way for the early church. Is there any reason why it shouldn't be that way for us today?
What would happen if when someone crossed into the shadow of the church or crossed into the shadow of a Christian, they encountered healing and wholeness? I would bet that the world would be radically altered!
I pray that God would use us to be vessels of his mercy and grace. I pray that all that we do points towards Christ; the one who is capable of transforming our brokenness, healing our hurts, and making us anew in the image of God---whole and lacking nothing. Amen.
When four faithful friends bring a paralytic to Jesus through a hole they create in the roof of the establishment where he is teaching, the first thing Jesus does is forgives the paralytic's sins. It is toward spiritual health and wholeness that Jesus first moves in relation to the paralytic. When members of the crowd begin to balk, it is then that Jesus addresses the man's physical ailments. When the encounter is over, the man has been made physically and spiritually whole.
When Jesus encounters a leper, he touches him and makes him clean. He then instructs the leper to go to the high priest and make the sacrifices that Moses demanded in the law. This was done in order to make the leper completely whole...physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Can you imagine what it would have been like to be ostracized and placed in a colony away from your family and friends; or what it must have been like to wear a bell that warned everyone you were coming; or what it felt like to holler out unclean as you walked in places where people unaffected by leprosy may have been? Can you fathom not being able to join your community in worship? After not being touched by anyone, for who knows how long, Jesus touches the leper, then heals him physically. Jesus then sets in motion all that is needed to reconnect the leper to his community and his faith.
I have spent the last week pondering, writing, and preaching on a text out of Acts (5:12-16) which says (in the NRSV translation):
"Now many signs and wonders were done among the people through the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon's Portico. None of the rest dared to join them, but the people held them in high esteem. Yet more than ever believers were added to the Lord, great numbers of both men and women, so that they even carried out the sick into the streets, and laid them on cots and mats, in order that Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he came by. A great number of people would also gather from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all cured."
If the church is called to follow in all that the apostles taught and to be co-laborers with Christ in mission and ministry to the world (making disciples, baptizing, etc), then it seems only natural that sozo (wholeness and healing) would be present in our ministry. It was that way for Christ. It was that way for the early church. Is there any reason why it shouldn't be that way for us today?
What would happen if when someone crossed into the shadow of the church or crossed into the shadow of a Christian, they encountered healing and wholeness? I would bet that the world would be radically altered!
I pray that God would use us to be vessels of his mercy and grace. I pray that all that we do points towards Christ; the one who is capable of transforming our brokenness, healing our hurts, and making us anew in the image of God---whole and lacking nothing. Amen.
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Monday, May 26, 2008
Prayer
I preached a sermon last Sunday on prayer based on the text out of the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 4, verses 23 through 31.
I have been thinking about that sermon a lot this week. As I have revisited that scripture passage and the passage out of Genesis (Gen 16:1-16) where Abram and Sarai take matters into their own hands and have a baby with the assistance (if it can really be reduced that much) of Hagar, I have been hit time and time again with the same reality.
Often we ask God to bless our Ishmael's...we ask God to bless those things that we have planned, concocted, and set into motion, after they are well on the way to fruition.
One of the beauties of Peter and others of the early church is that they actually got it...they learned to pray expectantly before something happened. They learned to wait on God...on God's presence, on God's direction, on God's gifts...before they acted. They acted in God and of God through their preaching and healing and ministry to those that were entrusted to their care.
What would happen if we, the church, learned to apply this lesson to our lives again? I wonder what new outpourings of the Spirit might be present in our churches! I wonder what new signs and wonders God might do in our midst! I wonder how our souls would quake in the presence of God and what wonderful things might happen for the kingdom as we embraced a new found boldness and power for our mission and ministry in the world!?!
What if we acted where God was acting and where God called us to act, rather than acting and asking God to bless what we were doing? I would imagine that life, and the church that we serve, would be radically altered to the extent that the church would begin being the church rather than acting just as a group of people getting together to "do church" (thanks to Peter Storey for the analogy).
I say may it be so...Come Holy Spirit come...come and renew the face of the earth...let it begin in me, let it begin in us, let it begin in your church...and may the body be so radically altered that we truly partner with you in transforming the world! Amen.
I have been thinking about that sermon a lot this week. As I have revisited that scripture passage and the passage out of Genesis (Gen 16:1-16) where Abram and Sarai take matters into their own hands and have a baby with the assistance (if it can really be reduced that much) of Hagar, I have been hit time and time again with the same reality.
Often we ask God to bless our Ishmael's...we ask God to bless those things that we have planned, concocted, and set into motion, after they are well on the way to fruition.
One of the beauties of Peter and others of the early church is that they actually got it...they learned to pray expectantly before something happened. They learned to wait on God...on God's presence, on God's direction, on God's gifts...before they acted. They acted in God and of God through their preaching and healing and ministry to those that were entrusted to their care.
What would happen if we, the church, learned to apply this lesson to our lives again? I wonder what new outpourings of the Spirit might be present in our churches! I wonder what new signs and wonders God might do in our midst! I wonder how our souls would quake in the presence of God and what wonderful things might happen for the kingdom as we embraced a new found boldness and power for our mission and ministry in the world!?!
What if we acted where God was acting and where God called us to act, rather than acting and asking God to bless what we were doing? I would imagine that life, and the church that we serve, would be radically altered to the extent that the church would begin being the church rather than acting just as a group of people getting together to "do church" (thanks to Peter Storey for the analogy).
I say may it be so...Come Holy Spirit come...come and renew the face of the earth...let it begin in me, let it begin in us, let it begin in your church...and may the body be so radically altered that we truly partner with you in transforming the world! Amen.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
A Truly Liberating Theology
Perhaps one of the most frustrating ideals posited at the seminary that I attend is that of liberation theology. The way that it is posited is that oppressed groups, who have long been without voice in the theological realm, are given primacy in interpreting the Bible and discerning its meaning for everyone. As such, you have a variety of liberation theologies. There are Mujerista, Womanist, Feminist, Black, Hispanic, and other liberation theologies. Each setting up their own oppressed group as the diviners of Holy Writ.
The problem with all of this is that new groups of oppressors and oppressed are created. For example, Justo Gonzalez (in his book Mañana) says both explicitly and implicitly that you can only 'truly' read the Bible if you are Hispanic...if you have experienced their oppression. What happens if you are Asian, Pacific Islander, African, or even Anglo? A theology of liberation that only liberates a few seems inconsistent with the Scriptures themselves.
After all, isn't it in John 3:16 that we read "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life"? It is the world that God desires to reconcile...not just one group of oppressed or the other.
Additionally, if we cast our gaze in the direction of Romans (specifically 6:19-23) we read, "I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord."
A truly liberating theology, based on Paul's aforementioned words, must be ground in our liberation from the oppression of sin and death, which comes as an act of grace that is a gift of God. Simply put, liberation theology must offer liberation for all otherwise it is not truly liberating for anyone. It is not just the individual oppressions that God seeks to redeem us from (how we used the Scriptures to endorse slavery or to justify the crusades, or to justify a pure race as the German church did during the reign of Nazism...the list goes on ad infinitum). Rather it is the oppression of sin and death (of which all of the aforementioned examples and any others you could think of would fall under) that God redeems through his Son Jesus Christ on the cross. It is a redemption that was offered to all (Samaritan, Syrophoenicians, Ethiopians, Greeks, Romans, Jews, males, females, pharisees, etc) and is still offered to ALL today.
This, I believe, is where true liberation theology begins. We must stop being divisive. We must listen to and hear the voices that we have so long overlooked (especially here in the West). We must confess that no matter what our background or experience, we have been both the recipients and the perpetrators of oppression as defined by sin and death. Finally, we must turn to and embrace the grace that has been offered to us. It is only then that we, both corporately and individually, can be radically altered.
The problem with all of this is that new groups of oppressors and oppressed are created. For example, Justo Gonzalez (in his book Mañana) says both explicitly and implicitly that you can only 'truly' read the Bible if you are Hispanic...if you have experienced their oppression. What happens if you are Asian, Pacific Islander, African, or even Anglo? A theology of liberation that only liberates a few seems inconsistent with the Scriptures themselves.
After all, isn't it in John 3:16 that we read "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life"? It is the world that God desires to reconcile...not just one group of oppressed or the other.
Additionally, if we cast our gaze in the direction of Romans (specifically 6:19-23) we read, "I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord."
A truly liberating theology, based on Paul's aforementioned words, must be ground in our liberation from the oppression of sin and death, which comes as an act of grace that is a gift of God. Simply put, liberation theology must offer liberation for all otherwise it is not truly liberating for anyone. It is not just the individual oppressions that God seeks to redeem us from (how we used the Scriptures to endorse slavery or to justify the crusades, or to justify a pure race as the German church did during the reign of Nazism...the list goes on ad infinitum). Rather it is the oppression of sin and death (of which all of the aforementioned examples and any others you could think of would fall under) that God redeems through his Son Jesus Christ on the cross. It is a redemption that was offered to all (Samaritan, Syrophoenicians, Ethiopians, Greeks, Romans, Jews, males, females, pharisees, etc) and is still offered to ALL today.
This, I believe, is where true liberation theology begins. We must stop being divisive. We must listen to and hear the voices that we have so long overlooked (especially here in the West). We must confess that no matter what our background or experience, we have been both the recipients and the perpetrators of oppression as defined by sin and death. Finally, we must turn to and embrace the grace that has been offered to us. It is only then that we, both corporately and individually, can be radically altered.
Friday, May 16, 2008
"Confession"
I had posted this poem (on MySpace and Facebook) that I wrote for a class on Evangelism: Issues in Church Renewal, and just felt drawn to it again today...after two days where my experience of the church was less than what I think God calls the church to be (and perhaps the same could apply to seminaries), I thought I would revisit it and share it with others:
"Confession"
O God our great Creator,
We can’t believe the fuss;
That you forgave our many sins,
By sending your Son to us.
When all the work was finished,
And Christ arose not dead or still;
We pledged to you our allegiance,
Our hearts, our minds, and our will.
You simply wouldn’t leave us,
Alone and set adrift;
Instead you gave your Spirit,
To dwell here in our midst.
On that great day of Pentecost,
You gave birth to your church;
I have to ask if you’re surprised,
To find it in such a lurch.
We look around the world today,
And we can’t believe the mess;
What happened to the Church you birthed,
O how we’ve failed to bless.
Forgive us God, we earnestly pray;
For all the ways we’ve gone astray.
Come Father, Son and Spirit too,
Breathe life into the Church anew.
We have failed to serve the needy,
The hungry and the poor;
We have acted mighty greedily,
Always grabbing more.
We have chased the growth of numbers,
Converting in your name;
All the while forgetting,
This isn’t just some game.
We’ve been called to love you wholly,
And our neighbor as our self;
But our love is rather dusty,
Just sitting on the shelf.
We have acted as professionals,
Pastors where we stand;
But we’ve failed to follow servingly,
The Master in the sand.
We have run the church as business,
Forgetting who’s in charge;
Proclaiming gospel messages,
That make us rather large.
We have said one thing,
While doing another;
We have hurt our sisters,
And judged our brothers.
We have proclaimed on billboards
The internet and cable;
That we have open hearts and doors
Yet some still close their table.
Forgive us God, we earnestly pray;
For all the ways we’ve gone astray.
Come Father, Son and Spirit too,
Breathe life into the Church anew.
I pray that both our understanding and expression of the church becomes radically altered.
Russell
"Confession"
O God our great Creator,
We can’t believe the fuss;
That you forgave our many sins,
By sending your Son to us.
When all the work was finished,
And Christ arose not dead or still;
We pledged to you our allegiance,
Our hearts, our minds, and our will.
You simply wouldn’t leave us,
Alone and set adrift;
Instead you gave your Spirit,
To dwell here in our midst.
On that great day of Pentecost,
You gave birth to your church;
I have to ask if you’re surprised,
To find it in such a lurch.
We look around the world today,
And we can’t believe the mess;
What happened to the Church you birthed,
O how we’ve failed to bless.
Forgive us God, we earnestly pray;
For all the ways we’ve gone astray.
Come Father, Son and Spirit too,
Breathe life into the Church anew.
We have failed to serve the needy,
The hungry and the poor;
We have acted mighty greedily,
Always grabbing more.
We have chased the growth of numbers,
Converting in your name;
All the while forgetting,
This isn’t just some game.
We’ve been called to love you wholly,
And our neighbor as our self;
But our love is rather dusty,
Just sitting on the shelf.
We have acted as professionals,
Pastors where we stand;
But we’ve failed to follow servingly,
The Master in the sand.
We have run the church as business,
Forgetting who’s in charge;
Proclaiming gospel messages,
That make us rather large.
We have said one thing,
While doing another;
We have hurt our sisters,
And judged our brothers.
We have proclaimed on billboards
The internet and cable;
That we have open hearts and doors
Yet some still close their table.
Forgive us God, we earnestly pray;
For all the ways we’ve gone astray.
Come Father, Son and Spirit too,
Breathe life into the Church anew.
I pray that both our understanding and expression of the church becomes radically altered.
Russell
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