Cardboard Testimonies

This video demonstrates some of the beauty of being part of the family of God.

OOORAHHH! As My Salute to Peace

I am learning that being a peacemaker is more than just opposing violence. It is creating situations that promote peace. I am a pacifist, as you may know if you have been here before, but I know that sometimes making peace involves befriending those who fight in wars.  Here is an instance that happened recently.

I was at my favorite place on earth, Carolina Bible Camp. As is my custom every year at camp I was looking to meet people whom I had never met before. One of those people was Dean the Marine. Dean is a youth minister at a church in VA. He is my age. Dean also recently returned from combat duty in Iraq. While he was there Dean saw his fair share of fighting including an explosion that took out a vehicle carrying some of his fellow soldiers, including one of his good friends.

Of course when it came up that I was an adamant pacifist and opposed this and all wars, and Dean was a war veteran and still a reserve in the Marine Corps things could have gotten really tense. There could have been arguments, ill-will, or avoidance, but there wasn’t. Instead, what ensued was a number of loving, grace-filled, and thoughtful conversations. I don’t know if either of us ever changed our positions. I don’t know if Dean will ever be a pacifist, nor me a soldier. I don’t know how these conversations themselves will affect either of us. I do know however that I have made a new friend. I know that once again I have been showed that God can be glorified even when two brothers strongly, that word is an understatement, disagree.  I know that I enjoyed the talks and that I was encouraged by a fellow worker for the Lord.

One of my good friends from way back, Jessee, was teaching a class on peacemaking. Jessee, a fellow pacifist, was sharing his beliefs with the campers during his class all week and then giving them a chance to discuss the topic. One day Dean joined the class with the campers he was counseling. As it was reported to me, the entire second half of the class was a discussion/debate between Jessee and Dean. They both told me later that the best part about the whole thing was that these young men could see two older Christian brothers have a conversation like this while all the while being respectful and more than that, loving each other in way that was uplifting and affirming. Even if the kids could care less about the topic at hand they got to see a powerful example of Christ-like brotherly love.

Dean was given the chance to speak at one of our late night devotionals. When they introduced him I let out a loud ooohrahhh! For those of you who don’t know, this is a Marine way of pumping each other up. I did it to let my new friend know that he was welcome and that I supported him as he shared part of his story of entanglement with the Divine. After that I didnt think much of it.

When the week ended and the see-you-next-year hugs were being doled out and the last minute packing was being finished, Dean came up and gave me a hug. He said, with a tear in his eye, at least I think it was a tear (I dont know if Marines cry), “Thanks so much for the oooorahhh, it meant so much coming from you.”

In that moment I knew that even a salute used by warriors could be a tool in the hand of God for the work of peace. So here is another OOOORAAAHHH for peace!

Would Jesus Vote? Part 4

To finish this series I thought I would put up a list of resources. These books range from those supporting conservative politics to liberal politics, and from supporting Christians involvement in government to supporting the idea that we should stay away from worldly politics. Some deal specifically with the issues we have been discussing while others only touch on related subjects. 

“God and Government,” Charles Colson

“God’s Politics,” Jim Wallis

“The Myth of a Christian Nation,” Greg Boyd

“Myths America Lives By,” Richard Hughes

“Mere Discipleship,” Lee C. Camp

“The Politics of Jesus,” John Howard Yoder

“Jesus for President,” Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw

“Christian Anarchy,” Vernard Eller, This one can also be found free online here.

Here are a few more links on the topic.

Jesus Manifesto

Shane Claiborne on God’s Politics blog

 

This is a very short list. This is a subject that has been extensively covered from a variety of perspectives. If it interests you I would like to hear what you think.

Would Jesus Vote? Part 3

I am about to list 20 statements about Christians voting. On their own they are very broad, sweeping generalizations. Therefore, I hope you read them in tandem with the previous two posts on this topic here and here where I have made an effort to explain my position. So here, in short, are 20 reasons I believe Christians should not participate in government, including but not limited to voting.

1. If we vote, we play in to the corrupt system.
2. If we vote, we, at least in part, put our hope in a person or a party.
3. If we vote, we use power over people as a way of changing things.
4. If we vote, we give credit to the powers and principalities.
5. If we vote, we go well beyond giving to Caesar what is Caesar’s.
6. If we vote, we don’t follow the pattern of Jesus.
7. If we vote, we affirm our citizenship in the world and become in and of the world.
8. If we vote, we buy into the lies of the enemy.
9. If we vote, we put ourselves at odds with our brothers and sisters.
10. If we vote, we are guilty of the sins of the nation-state.
11. If we vote, we get caught in the web of complexity that is worldly politics.
12. If we vote, we give credence to the idea that our government is right and good and stands for truth.
13. If we vote, we assert our “superior” knowledge and attest to our arrogance.
14. If we vote, we potentially make the claim that the choices provided are the only ones that exist.
15. If we vote, we confuse the Lordship of Jesus with the lordship of the Nation-state.
16. If we vote, we only have the option to choose between the lesser of two evils, and either way we must choose evil.
17. If we vote, we ignore the lessons of history.
18. If we vote, we legitimize the authority of the State.
19. If we vote, we sacrifice the unique Kingdom-Resurrection power that is ours.
20. If we vote, we in essence pick up the sword not the Cross.

What do you think?

 

Would Jesus Vote? Part 2

Please see part one here.

Here are some other reasons that have biblical foundations but are largely based on my experiences and observations.

I have found that party politics as well as international politics greatly compromise our allegiance to Christ. People act as if they are a Republican or Democrat, an American or an Iraqi first, instead of being a citizen of the Kingdom of God first and foremost. The kingdom is much bigger than that. It is greater, more beautiful. It certainly says God bless America, but it also says God bless Iraq, Iran, Canada and the rest of the world. That is what the kingdom is for, that is why Christians are here, we are to share God’s blessing with the whole world, no exceptions.

 

When one says the pledge of allegiance to the flag isn’t that comparable with the story of Shadrack, Meshack, and Abendigo. The king wanted their allegiance even ahead of their allegiance to God, but these three men were not willing to give it even if it cost them their lives. If I pledge allegiance to a flag and thereby the country that flag represents then I am detracting from the allegiance that I have pledged fully to Christ. Now I don’t deny that the pledge and our country often stand for good, and right and noble things but they are not and cannot and will not ever be the Kingdom of God and therefore they attempt to usurp the authority of God whenever a Christian gives these things his or her allegiance. Jesus taught about money that we could only serve one master. This principle must be true in all parts of life. We either can look out for the interest of the State and serve it as our master or we can live out the Kingdom and make Jesus our Master. When we try to have it both ways we try to serve two masters and our total loyalty cannot be dedicated to either one.

Political affairs are often divisive. The church has enough issues that we like to debate and fight over so why do we need to bring a person’s political views in to the mix? If I say that I am a Republican that automatically makes some people feel a sense of pride while others cringe. If I say I am a Democrat the same is true. I remember years ago while sitting in our school’s chapel listening to a speaker and he mentioned off hand that he was a Democrat. At that point in my life I automatically tuned him out because I was raised in a politically conservative family and to me a person who was a democrat must not be a faithful follower of Jesus. I have heard a lot recently, probably due to the upcoming presidential election, Christian people from “both sides of the aisle” demean and belittle those who hold opposing political views. This is especially sad to me when it is a Christian attacking another Christian. I remember Paul saying something about the way we are a body, now how much sense would it make for the left hand to cut off the right hand because they were from different sides? Not much. But this is what is happening throughout the body of Christ. In recent years I have since come to know that people from all walks of life and all political understandings can be followers of the King, but it is my hope that we all are willing to let go of our labels and even be willing to put our political views aside in order to hold on to the politics of Jesus; the politics of service, of love, of forgiveness, of prayer, and of worship to God and Him alone.

 

The politics of the empire or the republic are too complicated. The politics of Jesus are very simple, albeit rarely easy. If we let the complexity of partisan and national politics muddle up our lives and our time then we often miss out on the beautiful simplicity of the Gospel. We have enough things in our lives vying for our time without having to concern ourselves with who we are going to support in the next election or which amendments we need to vote on, or campaigning for a person who we probably truly know very little about or at the very least is certainly not someone in whom our hope should be put.

 

As we discussed earlier it seems that satan has dominion over this age and the earth. He is called the prince of this age and Jesus doesn’t deny the devil’s authority over the land during the tempting of Jesus. This leads me to believe that all governments, even the best ones, are inherently deceptive. Governments have always felt it necessary to keep certain things a secret for the “good” of the people. The truth is often skewed, obfuscated, twisted, shaded, and spun in an attempt to mold our perceptions of the government offices and leaders. Therefore, whomever we were to vote for, not matter how honest and how good would be stuck in an inherently flawed system. A system that can certainly be revised and improved, but one that will always be, at its core, deceptive because it is under the dominion of the father of lies himself.  No matter how many Christians we get into our government or any ruling body for that matter, it will still fall short of the glory of God because it is an inherently flawed system and no amount of human effort will ever change that. On the other hand, the Kingdom of God takes wretched people, like me, and transforms them, by the power of God in to something much greater, because the Kingdom of God system is inherently holy and good.

 

It is my view that political power is always destructive to the kingdom when Christians get involved. When a government involving Christians makes a decision then it is often viewed as the Christian understanding whether it represents the views of most Christians or not. If our government goes to war, no matter what one thinks about a particular war, then it is viewed by much of the world as the Christian thing to do since it is often claimed that the USA is a Christian Nation. This is undoubtedly bad and destructive for the Kingdom of God.  It is also destructive because when rulings are made by Christians trying to convert others to their understanding of morality it inevitably drives those people further from the Cross. For instance, however one feels about homosexuality or gay marriage, when Christians vote to pass laws forbidding homosexuals from getting married it drives an unneeded wedge between Christians and the Gay community. It puts up a wall that prevents dialogues, relationship building, and truly meaningful evangelism. If you are too busy trying to change people’s actions you will never find time to show them to the God that can change their hearts.

 

History shows time and again that religion and politics make a poor couple. When the church and the empire get married it is bound to be an abusive relationship and will likely end in a resentful divorce. It is usually harmful to the empire and is always destructive for the Kingdom. Take for instance Western Europe, the Church thrived there for centuries, but most of that reign was tyrannical at best. Now the Church in these countries has dwindled to nearly nothing and often is only held on to because of tradition. It only took two years for the first “Christian” empire to start killing dissenters, labeling them heretics. Christian empires have shed as much blood, perhaps more than any others in history. It was Christians who headed up the slave trade, slaughtered native Americans, led the crusades, fought against civil rights, supported the rise of the Nazis, led the imperial oppression of countries like India, committed the genocide in Rwanda, contributed to apartheid, and still can be heard as the loudest voices of bigotry today. All of this was “justified” by Scripture and all of it related directly to Christians being involved in governments.

 

Our priorities seem to be out of order. We need to work on reforming and restoring and reviving the church instead of trying to get in our two cents in with the government. If we want to change the culture around us then we do it by loving, by serving, by living sacrificially as examples of Jesus Christ. That is what truly changes a culture, that is what changes hearts and minds, and that brothers and sisters is the only way that we bear witness to the Crucified and Risen Messiah.

 

In Paul’s writings he reminds us that we are like soldiers on assignment who have been deployed in to hostile territory and that we should not get entangled in civilian affairs. This seems like a pretty clear directive to me that we should keep our battle against the powers and principalities of the air and not concern ourselves with the politics of civilian life; we leave that to those who have not joined the Lord’s army. Again, the only way we can battle the powers and principalities is by doing what Jesus did, taking up our crosses in selfless, sacrificial service to all people even those who would call themselves our enemies. This doesn’t sound like the way this world’s political system works. It seeks self-preservation by out maneuvering, out campaigning, out witting, or out fighting the opponent, not by loving them and blessing them at the cost of our own lives and well-being.

 

Both 1 Peter and Hebrews also tell us we are aliens and strangers here. With the recent debates over immigration in the States this should be a picture that we can understand with ease. Do aliens have the rights of a citizen? Do aliens have the same vested interests in the foreign land as the citizens do? Of course not. We, as aliens and strangers here are not supposed to fully comprehend the culture, we are not supposed to shape the culture at large through the present political system. When Paul wrote this I believe he also knew that aliens and strangers in a foreign land are a persecuted minority without the power to win in the political arena, but they can win people over to their worldview and lifestyle, or at least to accepting them through their kindness, which by the way is exactly the way God wins us to repentance, through His kindness.

 

In conclusion, Jesus Christ fasted for 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness. At the end of the 40 days, Satan took him to the mountaintop and offered Jesus Christ dominion over the world… if Jesus would kneel down and worship him. Satan offered Jesus political power. Jesus would not give in to the temptation of political power because He said, “My kingdom is not of this world.” Jesus turned down political power. “Was Jesus wrong?”  Of course he wasn’t. That along with the legacy of people like David Lipscomb and the obvious abuse of the church by any government lead me to believe that Christians should stick to our commitment to the kingdom of God and that should be enough for us.

 

Please don’t take my feeble reasoning and understandings as an important source on the subject. Others who have written much more extensively and articulately on the subject include, Soren Kierkegaard, Karl Barth, Dr. John Howard Yoder, Dr. Vernard Eller, Dr. Lee Camp, Dr. Stanley Hauerwas, Dr. Richard Hays, Shane Claiborne and David Lipscomb, just to name a few. 

What do you think?

Would Jesus Vote? Part 1

First, let me say that I do not presume to know the mind of God. The best I can do when trying to answer this question is consider the Scriptures, in particular the life and ministry of Jesus. After considering the issue for some time I have to answer the question would Jesus vote, with some confidence, probably not.

This post was spurred on, in part, by a blog-a-logue about who God would vote for. I have been putting these ideas together for a little while and have written about them elsewhere, but decided now would be a good time to put them on the blog.

It is my belief that Christians should abstain from all forms of government including voting, joining the military and serving on juries. This belief is certainly not new. In fact this has been the position of many Christians all the way back the early Church fathers. Since that time the Anabaptist/Mennonite and similar traditions have held to this understanding. The idea also had a place in the beginning of the Restoration Movement tradition, of which I have been a part for most of my life, although it isn’t held as commonly today it is making a reemergence among many members of our fellowship and elsewhere.

Let us take a brief look at Scripture. 

In Matthew 4 we learn that satan has dominion over the kingdoms of earth and the authority to give them away. Jesus rejects satan’s offer but does not deny satan’s claim to have authority over earth’s kingdoms.

Matthew 5 tells us that it is those who are persecuted, not the ones with the power to persecute, who will inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.

Matthew 6 Jesus says seek first the Kingdom and God will take care of the rest.

In Matthew 18 Jesus says the greatest in the Kingdom is the one who serves, not the one who has power.

In Mark 15 Jesus claims to be the King of the Jews, even though earlier he rejected the chance to be a king in the way of the kingdoms of the world. 

In John 16 we are reminded of satan’s powerful grip on this world as he is called the prince of this world. 

In Hebrews and 1 Peter we are called aliens and strangers to this earth. 

Paul tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 4 that soldiers, in this case meaning followers of Christ, do not get involved in civilian affairs. In other words we leave politics of the empire to the politicians and we focus on pleasing Christ. 

It seems to me that Jesus never tried to have some kind of political power struggle, nor did any of his followers for the first three hundred years of the church. Why is it that modern day conservative evangelicals, among others, think that we need to have righteous judges when Jesus was crucified by a corrupt government, and Christians were relentlessly persecuted for hundreds of years under some of the history’s most despicable and cruel ruling bodies? When do you ever read about Jesus talking about Christians taking over the government? When did Paul write anything about Christians being in command and forcing other people believe what we believe? In fact I remember something like, blessed are the persecuted for Jesus’ sake. Didn’t Paul say Rejoice in the Lord always, as he sat in prison? Notice he didn’t say rejoice when you are getting your way, and he didn’t write that statement because he and the other followers of the Way were the ones in control.

Jesus never, to my knowledge, preaches that we ought to solicit the government in any way to legislate morality. In fact it seems that church has been most successful at reaching people for Christ when it was a faithful minority, not an outspoken majority. The church grew in the first few centuries after Christ like wildfire without any political power to speak of. Instead they were seeking kingdom power, resurrection power, which starts with dying to ourselves in order to be raised to new life in Christ.

The way Christ lived and taught certainly aimed, successfully of course, to have an eternal impact. If it was good enough for Christ to love people where they were and confront them in a gentle and caring yet firm manner then why does the modern church insist on asserting the power of majority and government to solve social problems while missing out on changing people for eternity?

The teachings of Jesus are about our dedication to the Kingdom of God not to any particular nation or government. Jesus not only taught this, but his lifestyle seems to demonstrate this as well. Instead of soliciting the government to bring about social change, Jesus just met people’s needs and shared with them the love of God. As a matter of fact in John 16:15 we see that Jesus retreated from a crowd because they wanted to make him their earthly king. Jesus had no interest in that because he sought only to be a part of the Kingdom of God. Jesus is so convicted about the importance of God’s kingdom that he tells one man in Luke 9:60, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” The kingdom of God takes precedence over everything in our lives and cannot be compromised by our active allegiance to a government or political party. Jesus also taught by his example that we change the world not by political power but by being suffering servants who are willing to put our lives on the line in order to share God’s incredible love and amazing grace with a world in need.

If Jesus had ever mentioned a particular political belief I am sure it would have been a tense among the disciples since they certainly had a wide variety of political views.  It is especially interesting that we find no comments on the hot button political issues of the day in the Gospels. Matthew in particular would have had reason to list these as he was a tax collector who likely espoused a very conservative political mindset because it would have benefited him greatly. He never mentions any of the discussions between he and liberal Simon the Zealot, never hints that Jesus may have ever commented on their discussions or corrected one  or both of them. Instead we have Matthew writing more than the other Gospel writers about the Kingdom of God. Matthew could have easily worked his political views into his gospel or shared how his views were changed if Jesus had ever mentioned how the disciples should handle their political affairs. Instead we have a Savior in Matthew’s gospel who is remarkably silent about the politics of the empire and just as vocal and active in bringing to earth the politics of the Kingdom of God. If Jesus stayed away from the politics of his day, while always implementing the eternal politics of the Kingdom, which by they way naturally subvert the worldly political system, then what business do His followers have in participating in the politics of our day?

 

Which Jesus do you follow?

This post was inspired by two sources, a song by Todd Agnew and a sermon I heard recently. The lyrics to the song are at the bottom of the post. The sermon was calling us to put aside our preconceived ideas about Jesus so that we could see the Truth and Hope that only He can reveal to us. Just like Peter and the other apostles we need put down our swords, that is our wrongheaded notions of who we expect Jesus to be, and take up our crosses, the symbol of our willingness to die to our expectations of the Christ in order to get to know the Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, and the LIfe.

As the news just came out that California’s supreme court has issued a ruling allowing same-sex marriages, one can only imagine the backlash that will come from groups like Focus on the Family and other conservative Christian groups who fight more for their rights than they seem to do to champion the ultimate cause of love, to be like Jesus.

We often peg Jesus to be some kind of radical social conservative who went around shoving people’s noses in the stink of their own sin while fighting relentlessly for his own rights and the rights of those who thought like him, in order, of course, to keep society as godly as possible prevent civilization as the world knew it from crumbling all around him. At least that is the picture of Jesus I see when I look at individuals and groups who appear to put more energy into reforming society, protecting their rights, and all to forcefully asserting their beliefs, than they put into restoring the church, fighting for the rights of the oppressed, and humbly admitting that they don’t have it all together either.

Others paste together an image of Jesus that had little concern for personal holiness, personal accountability, or truth because he was too focused on fixing social ills like poverty, class systems, racism, and human rights. Folks from the religious left are often just as guilty, albeit not usually in such a noticeable fashion, of portraying a  misconstrued Christ; One concerned primarily, or only, with the problems of this present age and having little or no regard for the spiritual life and the age to come.

Now I know that when people look at me they probably form an image in their minds of what Jesus must look like based on my behavior as one who claims to be a follower of this GodMan. They might see a Jesus who is rude, self-serving, arrogant, etc. etc. etc.

I however would like to make the appeal to all of those who follow Christ, to look a little deeper into this Messiah from Nazareth, be more open to the changing power of His Holy Spirit, and be more honest with ourselves and with the world that more often than not, we look very little like the Leader we claim to follow.

Let us take another look at Jesus, then a deeper look at ourselves and find out which Jesus it is that we really want to follow.

 

I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians, they are so unlike your Christ. - Gandhi

 

My Jesus by Todd Agnew

Which Jesus do you follow? 
Which Jesus do you serve? 
If Ephesians says to imitate Christ 
Then why do you look so much like the world 

Cause my Jesus bled and died 
He spent His time with thieves and liars 
He loved the poor and accosted the arrogant 
So which one do you want to be? 

Blessed are the poor in spirit 
Or do we pray to be blessed with the wealth of this land 
Blessed are they that hunger and thirst for righteousness 
Or do we ache for another taste of this world of shifting sand 

Cause my Jesus bled and died for my sins 
He spent His time with thieves and sluts and liars 
He loved the poor and accosted the rich 
So which one do you want to be? 

Who is this that you follow 
This picture of the American dream 
If Jesus were here would you walk right by on the other side 
Or fall down and worship at His holy feet 

Holy 

Pretty blue eyes and curly brown hair and a clear complexion 
Is how you see Him as He dies for Your sins 
But the Word says He was battered scarred 
Or did you miss that part 
Sometimes I doubt we’d recognize Him 

Cause my Jesus bled and died 
He spent His time with thieves and the least of these 
He loved the poor and accosted the comfortable 
So which one do you want to be? 

Cause my Jesus would never be accepted in my church 
The blood and dirt on his feet might stain the carpet 
But He reaches for the hurting and despises the proud 
I think He’d prefer Beale ST. to the stained glass crowd 
And I know that He can hear if I cry out loud 

I want to be like my Jesus! 
I want to be like my Jesus! 
I want to be like my Jesus! 
I want to be like my Jesus! 
ooooohhhhh 

Not a poster child for American prosperity, but like my Jesus 
You see I’m tired of living for success and popularity 
I want to be like my Jesus but I’m not sure what that means to be like 
You Jesus 
Cause You said to live like You, love like You but then You died for me 
Can I be like You Jesus? 
I want to be like You Jesus. 
I want to be like my Jesus. 

 

God and Natural Disasters, The Problem of Good

A few days ago I was sitting in my apartment in Central China, with some family visiting from the States, when we noticed the building started to shake. We went outside to see what was going on and noticed a group had already gathered and there was quite a bit of commotion. Soon after that I was informed that there was a massive earthquake about 800 miles away that had certainly claimed the lives of thousands and the livelihoods of perhaps millions more. All this, just days after a one of China’s neighboring countries was pummeled by a horrific hurricane with a devastating effect that was exacerbated by a few men’s egos preventing much needed aid from being brought to the survivors. To add to that I have been watching the news about the tornadoes in the Midwest United States, the fires burning across florida, and the bombings in India. Not to mention the ongoing slaughters in parts of Africa, the poverty and oppression in North Korea, the continuous fighting in the Middle East and the blatant trafficking and abuse of young girls in South East Asia.

As I see the pictures on the internet of children’s bodies being pulled from the rubble of collapsed school buildings, read about the corpses of men, women and children floating in rivers next to the remains of what used to be their homes, and hear stories of poverty, despair, hurt, anguish, and unimaginable pain, I am sure I echo the thoughts of many when I ask, “God what the hell are you doing, how could you let this happen?” And I know many wonder if there could even be a God in the midst and the wake of these tragedies.

Now, I am not about to try and tackle the issue of Theodicy, God and the problem of evil and suffering, in this post. This discussion has been around for centuries, and certainly presents some difficult things to ponder for those of us who believe in a sovereign, loving and personal God, but we can leave that for another time on this blog. Rather I want to pose a different question, one that seems to rarely come up in conversation.

What is there to be said about the “problem of good”?

If there is no God who is sovereign and powerful and loving, or if there is no God at all I wonder about the existence of pure good in this world. Now I know the stories of the good in the world don’t tend to make headlines or run for days on end on the network news, but I know they are out there.

Why does a father run marathons, toting the “dead” weight of his crippled son just to make the boy smile? How does one explain a profoundly heroic act like a rescue worker risking their own life to save the lives of people they have never met? What motivation does someone have in dedicating their life, at great personal sacrfice I might add, to the cause of the poor, disenfranchised, and outcast? Where is the reasoning behind unarmed peacekeepers putting themselves in harms way to seek non-violent resolutions to difficult social and political problems?

Those are just some questions about human examples of good in this world. What about the natural beauty, provision, and spectacular abundance of diverse life that we are fortunate to experience on a regular basis?

What is the need for green grass and a mosaic of colorful plants? Why have a pristine pale blue sky above us that provides stunning sunsets and sunrises of warm red hues around the globe every single day? Where else in the universe can we find the unique stripes of a zebra, the fluid grace of a soaring bald eagle, the majesty of a pride of lions, or the mystical glow of neon creatures from the ocean’s depths? Who can deny the wonderful flavors of one’s favorite meal, or the the calming pleasure of a cool breeze on a hot summer day?

It would make more sense to me that if there were no God who had breathed His own life and instilled his own image into humanity, there would be no place in the world of survival of the fittest for even the smallest act of kindness, mercy, heroism, or generosity.

If there were no God, then what need would we have of beauty? You see it seems to me that this God I believe in is shouting through the stars in the sky, the fields of wild flowers, the mountains, the rivers, the meadows, and the plains, “I am here and I have created all of this for you, for your sustenance, and for your pleasure, because I love you desperately.”

I cant deny that we live in a broken and tortured world where pain and suffering are often overwhelming, but I can no more deny that we live in a world where there is beauty and pleasure, friendship and love, sacrifice and redemption. In particular the beauty of the story of Jesus who joined us in our suffering, befriended us, sacrificed himself and, redeemed us to live with him in the eternal pleasure of resurrection life, that begins even in the here and now as our eyes are opened to gifts God has given us amidst the pains and horrors of much of this earthly life.

So yes, there is a problem of evil and suffering in the world, but I have to ask, is there not also an unmistakable, undeniable, and an otherwise unexplainable “problem” of good and redemption in this world as well?

The Issues Facing the Church Today

I hear Christians championing a variety of different causes, local and global issues, leading campaigns, starting new movements and challenging the rest of Christendom to join in the politics of a particular party. So I keep rolling these thoughts over and over in my head. I want to give Christ my life, but what does that look like today from the local church to the global Christian family? I need some help discerning where I should give my efforts. What do you think? Please weigh in with your thoughts, comments, opinions, and reasons and I will contemplate some more and post my thoughts soon. So what do you believe are the most pressing issues facing the church today?

Is it individual piety and holiness? Is it our response to abortion and homosexuality? Is it global poverty? Is it the enviroment? 

Is our focus prayer or study? Or praise or fellowship? 

Could it be Christian unity? Or is it making sure we have the correct doctrines? Or is just gettting the Word out in global evangelism our first priority? Do we seek first to minister to physical needs or spiritual needs? Where does discipleship fit in?

Should we be concerned about the war on terror? Are we supposed to be leading non-violent protests?

Perhaps it is religous freedom? Maybe it is establishing more Christian-filled governments? Or is it encouraging others to abstain from government for the sake of the Kingdom? 

Do we need to be relevant to the culture? Or should we separate ourselves from the dominant culture to maintain our purity? Should we be building massive structures that will help us better reach the community? Or is it our call to give up all our possessions to move into the inner-city? Should our focus be local or national or global?

Do we need to give attention to the evolution debate? Should we try to prove there is a God?

Are racism and sexism calling for our attention? Should we move to integrate churches? Or is it better for us to keep within our own groups in order maintain tradition?

Do we need to find ways to bridge the generation gap? Is it traditional worship styles vs. progressive trends?

Are complacency and apathy our problem or are we too zealous for the wrong causes?

These questions certainly don’t begin to encompass all of the posiblities, but I hope they are a good start. Please feel free to add anything you see as being pertinent or relevant to this discussion. I really do want to know what you think.

So what is the Church facing and how do we respond? How do we love the world like Christ loved us?

 

 

Just Like Peter… My First Book Is Underway

I have been researching, pondering, jotting down notes, and mostly procrastinating, but I have finally started putting words on paper in hopes that they will one day form a full book.

The book is a look at the life of Peter as it compares to my life and the lives of other disciples who constantly ask dumb questions, have misunderstandings of Jesus’ message and purpose, and deny the Christ with our words and our actions, yet are still furiously and totally loved by God and used for his good work in this fallen world.

Here is the basic outline. I have started writing on a few of the chapters. As each rough draft gets finished I plan to post them.

Table of Contents

1. Put Down Your Nets
a. Leaving it all behind
b. Sinful/not sinful things to follow Christ
c. Fishers of men, group effort

2. Take Your Foot Out of Your Mouth
a. Asking stupid questions and receiving profound answers

3. Tread on the Seas
a. Walking on Water
b. Fulfilling Your call, you must be called
c. Only two people in history have stepped walked on waves

4. I Need a Bath
a. Foot Washing
b. Serving like Jesus

5. Lend Me Your Ear
a. Peter and Malachus
b. Christians and violence

6. Deny, Deny, Deny
a. When we hear the rooster crow
b. Scared of a slave girl
c. Peter vs. Judas

7. Run Peter Run
a. The empty tomb changes everything

8. Swan Dive
a. Leaving your nets again
b. Go to Jesus, in or on the water

9. Love 3X
a. Feed my lambs, build my church

10. Cant Shut Me Up
a. No more denial, before the Sanhedrin

11. We’re Broke, Get Up
a. Social Justice, Frugal living
b. Healing beggars too convienient?

12. A Sermon for the Ages
a. God uses denying mouth to preach
b. God uses us

13. Arise, Kill and Eat
a. Invite everyone to the party

14. Peter Writes/ A Martyrs Death

15. Just Like Peter
a. Following Jesus over the waves to the Cross.

Healing Beggars is too Convenient

As I have been traveling through Asia I have certainly seen my share of beggars on the street. This always pains me as I feel a bit helpless when it comes to helping these folks in any meaningful way, especially those with some kind of physical or mental handicap. This struggle led me into a coversation with one of our traveling buddies about faith and healing.

I said something to the gist of, “I really believe these folks could be healed if we reached out our hand and by faith healed the person in the name of Jesus.” My friend responded with something quite profound. She said, “perhaps that would be too convenient.”

You see, part of my struggle, and perhaps the struggle of many, when it comes to seeing those in need is that we want to give them a quick fix. We certainly want to heal their pain and end their loneliness and poverty, but do we want to do that if it actually cost us something?

That is just one more beautiful thing about the story of Jesus, He was willing to sacrifice for the good of others. He went to the Cross atop Skull Hill, for beggars I often hesitate to toss a few coins at. He lived his whole life and even gave up his body and blood for the impoverished street dwellers that I turn my head from so I dont have to live a hint of their pain for even the briefest of moments if our eyes were to meet. Jesus, the Friend of Sinners and the Lover of the Poor, faced the ridicule and brutality of the ruling class on the behalf of those who I have walked by, Starbucks cup in hand, with out so much as a nod or a thought of their condition.

Lord help me, help all of us, to spend ourselves on behalf of those in need. We want to be like Jesus. We want have the poor and the broken propped up on our shoulders as you propped up a Cross on yours to repair our shattered lives. We want to love as you love, the kind of love that costs us something.

Love until it hurts, then there is no hurt, only more love- Mother Teresa

A Christian who does not wish to live this commitment of solidarity with the poor is not worthy of the name Christian. - Oscar Romero

Christian Anarchy?!?!

As some of you may know I have deep convictions about Christians and their role in society, in particular their role in regards to government institutions. Here are a few blogs and articles that for the most part reflect my views. Although, a few of them only advocate a limited participation of Christians in government I would have to agree with David Lipscomb that Christians should avoid that type of political realm all together.

This link is about Mike Huckabee’s unfortunate lack of understanding about the difference between the Kingdom of God and the kingdoms of man.

http://kimriddlebarger.squarespace.com/the-latest-post/2008/1/7/mike-huckabee-and-the-two-kingdoms.html

This is a piece from one of my favorite theologians, Dr. Greg Boyd, about Christian Anarchy.

http://gregboyd.blogspot.com/2008/01/call-to-christian-anarchy.html

Here are two links about David Lipscomb. The first is just a short wikipedia article about his life, in particular his pacifist and anarchists beliefs, and the second is a longer piece about his economic views in particular.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Lipscomb#Pacifist_and_anarchist_beliefs

http://www.independent.org/pdf/working_papers/66_radical.pdf

Here is another good article from a blog I recently came across.

http://quicktolisten.org/archives/51

If you want some much more in depth reading here is an online copy of the book, Christian Anarchy: Jesus’ Primacy Over the Powers, by Dr. Vernard Eller.

http://www.hccentral.com/eller12/

Remember we must seek first the Kingdom of God, and I believe we can never do that effectively if we are too busy worrying about the kingdoms of this world.

If you have any comments, complaints, questions, queries, quandaries, or the like then please feel free to say your piece.