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Text for this Sunday's sermon at The River:  Matthew 9:9-13 (NLT)

Okay... wait. I'm confused. I thought once we decided to follow Jesus, we were supposed to separate ourselves from the "sinners" who helped bring us down in the first place. I mean, it's a biblical pattern, right? When God called Moses to lead the Hebrew people out of slavery in Egypt, He led them into the wilderness and taught them to become separated from that which is unholy, unclean. Yes, eventually, they would enter into the promised land of milk and honey - that is, the Hebrew people would re-integrate with the world around them to reveal the power of Almighty God. But nevertheless, when God calls his people out of Egypt... out of bondage... He commands them to devote themselves entirely to Him and Him alone. He is a jealous God and simply won't take second place!

But Matthew just doesn't get it yet... perhaps he'll become a better disciple someday, but in this passage he's still dining with those "scummy" tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. Tsk, tsk... doesn't he understand that Christians don't hang out with the riff-raff of the world? My denomination has an old saying that I used to hear quite often while living in the Midwest: "I don't smoke or chew, or hang out with people who do." Ya, amen brother... don't have anything to do with those smelly "tobacco" sinners... we all know that Jesus hates those kinds of people, right?

Uh... wrong.

In what (at least on the surface) appears to be a reversal of the Old Testament pattern of becoming separate from that which threatens our faith in the Father, Jesus does something that gives the Pharisees something to really wag their tongues about: He actually sat down and ate dinner with those scumbags! Can you imagine that? What if they told dirty jokes, or said some bad Greek words? Good golly, what if they actually lit up a cigar?! What on earth was he thinking anyway? Better question in this context: What the Hell was Jesus thinking? After all, God absolutely can NOT be in the presence of sin, right? There's no way the Son of God would lower himself to the practice of breaking bread with irreligious trash like that. To do so is a slap in the face of piousness and all that is good in Israel. Lets' face it... Jesus simply did not meet the high standards of the Pharisees!

Ya... but I'm sorta thinking that he DID meet the even higher standard of Yahweh. That of love.

I mean, let's look at it this way: Why would the Son of God come to this world  - this world of sin - and not hang out with sinners? Aren't we the very focus of God's willingness to move in to the neighborhood? Warts and all, aren't humans the apple of God's eye? The creature made in His image? And if God himself made the effort to come and save the world... exactly who did he come to save anyway? The self-assured religious leaders who knew the Law inside and out (or so they thought)? Or did he come to save the lost?  The ignorant? The broken? The hungry and thirsty? The destitute? The scum of the earth?

If you were an expert swimmer, it would be kind of weird if someone jumped in the water, swam out to where you were, grabbed you from behind, and "saved" you from drowning, right? Uh... thanks, dude... but I was just doing fine on my own. No... a lifesaver only looks for those who are splashing about, taking water into their lungs, or possibly even disappearing under water for several moments at a time. Oh, we "experts" can always learn new things about swimming from the master lifesaver. You know, new techniques, cutting-edge information, etc. He loves to teach the good swimmers how to swim better... but hey, he's even more concerned about saving those who are drowning. In fact, the master lifesaver seems to know that most often the best way to save everyone in danger is to instruct the experienced swimmers how to look for, and empower them as jr. lifesavers to go and save the desperate ones about to go under.

Funny how he doesn't just place us in a new pool of our own and tell us to have fun with the other good swimmers. The "clean" people. Nope. He may take us out for a season... but eventually He sends us back into that nasty, dirty public pool. He tells us to swim with the "non-swimmers". He doesn't suggest - he commands us to spend time with the "dirty" people who do bad things (like pee in the pool)... He sends us to be with the idiots who splash everyone around them just for fun, and make friends with the guy with goggles on who keeps bumping into everyone 'cause he's not paying attention!

God Connects us to Himself, then to His Community, then to His world...

That is, he leads us where we are willing to go. What part of the pool is he leading you these days?

Aw * Then * Tick

Text relating to the sermon/discussion at The River this Sunday: Matthew 6:1-18 (NLT)

So... why do we humans have such a hard time being honest with ourselves and with other people?

You know what I mean, don't you? We're experts at living in denial of the truth.

Case in point: If you're part of a family, have you ever gotten into a real ugly fight before leaving, or even on the way to church... only to stop the screaming and cussing at one another once the car rolls into the parking lot? Everyone (or nearly everyone) gets out wearing smiles and giving Christian compliments... when in reality, they would much rather duke it out with boxing gloves (or perhaps knives?).

If you're not part of a family... then let me ask this: Have you ever given in to a behavioral sin on a Saturday night... or even Sunday morning, only to dust yourself off and go to church pretending everything is hunky-dory during the worship service? Not just all smiles... but I mean really attempting to wear the holy countenance that completely denies the truth of how you're really feeling inside?

Whatever you do, do NOT let anyone in on the reality of your life. They will:

• Judge you
• Laugh at you
• Condemn you
• Scorn you
• Gossip about you
• Reject you

Nope, no way... do NOT, under any circumstances, reveal who you really are deep inside. Frankly, the real you is too ugly, too sinful, too frighteningly dysfunctional for anyone to truly understand. It's better to just cover it up, put on a happy face, use the dress and lingo of Christianity, do the church thing... and hope that whatever it is you're hiding from the world will just go away.

Hmmmm... or maybe it's not that bad for you. Perhaps you're not (currently) keeping any deep dark secrets in your closet. However, there is a problem with your faith. You go to church regularly... you show up on time, you have a role in the Body, you sing the songs, hear the prayers, take notes on the sermon, give generously during the offering, take communion... and yet...

Church just doesn't move you anymore. The truth is, it's become too comfortable, predictable... monotonous... downright boring and lifeless. You want to feel close to God, but no matter how many things you do on the outside, the inside remains numb. You know you're just doing your religious duty... going through the motions... pretending so others won't suspect anything. And sometimes you have to wonder if it's even real... if it's even worth it. Hell, maybe it'd be more satisfying to go up in the hills and worship God through nature rather than through organized religion?

And it's not just happening with you. You can sense it in just about everyone else around you as well. Everybody's trying to live the abundant life (supposedly) found in Christ... and yet, it doesn't seem to be happening. The rate of divorce is almost the same within the church that it is outside of it. Depression is rampant among believers. Church services seem to be lacking in passion and creativity. Pastors seem to preach the same boring kinds of sermons. No one seems to be dedicated to reading the Word, or prayer, or missional service. In fact, the whole church seems more concerned about surviving the upcoming week than changing the world for Christ.

How in the name of all that is good can we escape this endless loop of religiousity, hypocrisy and spiritual deadness? How can we re-capture the New Testament culture of authentic discipleship? How do we get more out of life... out of our faith... than what we're currently experiencing? 'Cause quite honestly, this kinda sucks!

That's probably the biggest reason Jill and I took up the challenge to plant a church in Ellensburg. Life is tough... really tough. And an authentic relationship with Jesus Christ has the amazing power to transform broken lives, strengthen the weak, give hope to the oppressed... and even provide actual purpose and meaning (i.e., direction) to people who spend their lives wandering aimlessly in the darkness of American consumerism.

But, unfortunately, "church" is typically not where their creativity is stirred... or their passion unleashed... or their giftedness fully realized and utilized. Nope... church more often than not becomes something to do out of habit and obedience. Please do NOT hear me criticizing other churches in these words... I don't for one second think The River is somehow better than other churches as we strive toward authenticity. No, the problem is far more systemic than individual churches... we ALL suffer from the same potential disease.

But nevertheless... shouldn't body life be about more than going through the motions? Shouldn't church be the place that stirs our soul to the truth of the Gospel? Shouldn't church be the place where it's safe to take off our masks? Shouldn't church be a place that demands (and accepts) our most audacious attempts at passion and creativity and full living as followers of Jesus? Shouldn't church be a place that makes the kingdom bigger in our minds, rather than smaller? Shouldn't church get us excited about serving and giving and living life to the hilt... rather than pressing us down through the play-doh factory of mediocrity? Shouldn't church challenge us, inspire us... and invite us to break out of our boring, mask-wearing, vision-less, cautious, even fearful lives?

Yes. I deeply believe it should. However, I have found that exactly how that is done is not easily answered. All I know for sure is this: We need to strive toward authenticity. We've got to continually encourage people to stop pretending and stop hiding from the truth. We've got to confess our sins to one another... and not just our behavioral sins... but what sin does to our minds when we try to hide our real thoughts from one another... our fears, our unhealthy desires, our illogical failures, our self-centered motivations. We've go to quit trying to look the part... and just trust that God wants to give us real energy for real living in the real world serving His real kingdom! God wants to do sooooo much more with us, but He won't coerce us into a life of deeper authenticity... He merely provides the means... calls out to us by name, and quietly awaits our response. 

So what is your response, O Christian... do you believe a deeper life is possible? What are your priorities? How can you (we) break out of the monotony of a dull, lifeless, humdrum faith? More specifically as The River, how can we grow as a living, breathing, striving, and going body of Christ? How can we stir one another on toward love and good deeds?

Jesus tells us to give... pray... and fast with sincerity... not as the hypocrites do.

I may not have all the answers... but at least we're continually asking the hard questions meant to keep us from falling into the rut of same old, same old. One of my greatest fears as a pastor is allowing my flock to slowly, sleepily drift into the path of aimless, lifeless, meaningless religion, that is... hypocrisy. And believe me... I fully realize I'm just as prone to that state of being as anyone else. Man, I'm truly grateful that I'm part of a body that keeps me accountable to my calling. No one can truly follow Jesus in a vacuum of isolation.

Thoughts anyone?

The River of Life

Over the next few weeks, I'll be talking about The River... and how I've always seen our church body as Authentic, Involved, Eclectic and Missional.

The biblical text relating to the sermon/discussion at The River this Sunday is Psalm 105:41(NLT)

⁴¹ He split open a rock, and water gushed out
      to form a river through the dry wasteland. 

So... why "The River"? Why not "The Garden" or "The Orchard", or some other organic sounding metaphor in choosing the name of the new church plant in Ellensburg? To tell you the truth, I wrestled with both of those names for a long time... but my good friend and weekly coffee buddy, Roger, helped me settle on The River for a number of reasons, including but not limited to:

1. A river is a living body of water, which constantly moves and flows. When you think about it... what is it that defines a river anyway? Is it just water, or is it the ground over which the water travels? I suppose it's both. Without the water, the river bed and riverbanks are just dry ground. But without the pathway laid by the earth, the water is just... well, water. It takes both to make a true river. And yet... the water is constantly traveling. So there are never two moments in time where the river remains the same... it's always moving, always flowing, always changing, always evolving. Without movement, I suppose you could say the river becomes a lake. We don't want to be a closed body of water just sitting there looking pretty... we want to be a dynamic, energetic body that keeps changing even as it stays the same.

And to all the critters that live in and around the river's environment... the river is a true home. We may not see all the wildlife that is supported by the river, but anyone who fishes, bird watches, or even floats the river knows that a lot of life is happening on and under the surface.  

2. A river quenches thirst. Okay, so most of us probably don't drink the water in our local rivers because we know it may contain a few more organisms than we ought to put into our bodies. But that said, rivers provide drink for those who thirst. If they're high enough in the mountains, and thirsty enough to brave the organic cocktail... river water is cool, refreshing, and even potentially life-saving. If you observe long enough, you'll see any number of animals who come and drink deeply at the river's edge.

3. A river provides food. Birds, bears and fishermen all know that a river is chock full of good vittles for anyone smart and/or talented enough to tap into the trout population.

4. A river cools and cleanses. Okay, this (and fish poop) may be the main reason we don't typically drink the refreshing waters of a river... but the river is where all intelligent (and dirt-bearing) beings go to cool off in the summertime... which serves as an awesome bath. If you've ever gone camping along a river, you know what I mean... it's cold, but nevertheless, it's extremely refreshing... and with a bar of soap you can manage to get your hair and skin rid of the all the dirt and campfire soot that builds up. It also provides a good place to... ahem... relieve our pent-up storage of beverages. Hey, where else are we gonna go on a four-hour river float? All the other animals in nature do it, right?

Uh, anyway... as I said, the river is cool and certainly refreshing!

5. Finally, to bring this into a spiritual realm, I think a river is the absolute perfect place to baptize someone who has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior... and wants to fully participate in the death (into the water) and resurrection (out of the water) of Jesus. Over the 4.5 years, I have had the opportunity to baptize a few folks in the Yakima River... putting an exclamation mark upon their faith and spiritual journey! Who needs a churchy baptismal when God gave us the perfect body of water in which to dunk sinners!  Hey, if it worked for John the Baptist in the Jordan River... then the mighty Yakima works for us!

I want to continually live in the flow of God's grace... and I want everyone in our community to immerse themselves in that same wonderful, powerful grace too. My hope and prayer is that people searching for something better out of life will come to The River and experience (1) life, and deep satisfaction for what makes them spiritually (2) thirst, and (3) hunger. Then I hope they find  the (4) refreshment and cleansing of Jesus... and ultimately I hope they join the kingdom and become baptized in His name. How cool would that be?

⁴¹ He split open a rock, and water gushed out
      to form a river through the dry wasteland. 

Amen and amen! One question though...

How are we gonna get to that place of ministry? Hmmmmm...

Be Mine

Text relating to the sermon at The River this Sunday: Ephesians 5:21-33 (NLT)

Ah, Valentines Day. It is fast approaching, and florists everywhere rejoice at the thought! Valentine's Day is THE Day... the Special Day of Love... the Holiday of Intimacy and Romance... the Evening of Flowers, Chocolates, and Fine Dining. And for many hard-working (and forgetful) men like me, it's the time-honored Afternoon of Extreme Panic and Anxiety searching for a place, any place, that has decent roses, low prices and short lines!

(All right now... stop judging me. At least I'm honest!) 

Let's face it, Valentine's Day is an amorous event of huge significance to most couples (and wannabe couples)... so this Sunday I thought I'd take the opportunity to talk about love, that is, according to God's Word. More specifically, according the the Apostle Paul. After all, he is the author of the most popular expression of love the world has ever known. You know, the uber-famous passage found in 1 Corinthians 13 read at every wedding you've ever attended! However, we're actually going to look at another passage from Paul... the one that speaks directly to husbands and wives (and well, ya... to children and slaves too) about what it means to love one another in everyday life. We may live in a vastly different culture than Paul, but nevertheless, the human condition never changes (and fortunately, neither does God's character), so I believe his words in Ephesians are utterly timeless and powerful in revealing what it means to live as holy citizens in the kingdom of God. 

First, the Apostle tells wives to submit to their husband as to the Lord. Hoo-boy... I can hear the under-the-breath mutterings of women everywhere. Something like, "No way... I'm not submitting to him. Are you kidding me?" But don't worry ladies, it gets better, I promise. However, I must admit... first it kind of gets worse though. "For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church." Oh, wow... that is just NOT a very PC way of thinking in today's world, huh? We live in an egaltarian society, right? Women aren't under their husbands... they are alongside them as full partners! Obviously, the Bible is just a sexist book, written by men with the sole intention of devaluing women and reducing their status to that of mere property. 

Wait... wait. Before you arrive at that conclusion, let's take a look at what is revealed about the role of husbands: 

"For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word. He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault."

Wow. Did you catch that? Men are commanded to love their wives, even to the point of dying in their place. And, perhaps more importantly... men are commanded to present their wives as glorious, without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish... holy without fault. Holy without fault... are you kidding me? Now I hear the collective gasps of men everywhere... but hey, you don't know my wife! I mean, she's a fantastic person... but without fault? Without spot or wrinkle? Excuse me... did you say I must be willing to die for her?

Heck... I'm pretty sure most men would rather submit to the authority of their wife than romance her, and continually lift her up as holy!

On the other hand, I'm pretty sure most women would rather romance their husband - even take a sword for them - than submit to their so-called authority.

But what if men did what Paul tells us to do (in God's Word), and accepted the role of spiritual leader in their homes? What if they died to their own ego... and treated their wife as a special gift from God? What if they fiercely protected her reputation among friends, family members, and total strangers? What if they were even willing to die so that she might continue living? Heck... what if he were even willing to be wrong once in a while?!!

I wonder... would that woman be willing to submit to her husband's desires for her life? If she really trusted that he had her best interest at heart? If everything in his words and deeds revealed that he is utterly and completely on her side? If he demonstrated that she is the apple of his eye... the aim and goal of his passion and desire? Would she feel safe enough to trust in his character?

Women need to be loved. Men need to be respected.

Hmmmmm.... almost sounds biblical, huh?

Sorry... gotta get going. I've got to go think about getting Jill something creative for Valentine's Day... something much better than a cheap, half-dead bouquet of supermarket roses and a 99 cent card!

If You Are Willing...

This week, our resident musician/theologian/preacher, Cole, is once again going to bring the Word of God to the folks at The River.

He's been reading a lot through the Old Testament, and will talk to us about the Soteriology (that is, salvation and redemption), both through the Law of Moses and through the Cross of Christ.

The following Sunday (February 11), I (Pastor Jeff), will focus on Ephesians 5:21-33, discussing a biblical understanding of the word love. This, of course, is in celebration of Valentine's Day. (Don't forget the flowers, guys!)

Here's a taste of what Cole will be talking about this week:

We live in a fallen world. When sin wreaked it's havoc on the Earth it brought all kinds of horrible things into existence. Everyday thousands of good people die from natural disasters, war, starvation and disease. It's easy to look at the massive amount of pain and suffering and become cynical. It's easy to think of the world as a cold, dead place. Understandably, some people take a look at all the suffering and say, "how could a loving God allow this?" There was a certain group of people in the bible days I bet asked this question everyday.

45 “Those who suffer from a serious skin disease must tear their clothing and leave their hair uncombed. They must cover their mouth and call out, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ 46 As long as the serious disease lasts, they will be ceremonially unclean. They must live in isolation in their place outside the camp."   Leviticus 13:45-46

Isn't that a rather harsh law from a loving God? Why didn't he just heal them? How could he let his children suffer so painfully? Not only did they deal with terrible physical pain and deformity, but they also had to live a life of isolation.

When you were a child, did you ever do something really stupid? Did you ever do something that you felt genuinely awful about? I remember as a kid, when I would screw up I would feel really guilty. My parents were always quick to forgive, but I still had to deal with the consequences of my actions. Many times it wasn't even my parents punishing me directly, so much as it was natural consequence. In 2009, I got arrested for possession of alcohol. I had really made a mess of my life. My parents were upset, and embarrassed, but obviously still loved me. I said I was sorry over and over, and I know that they had forgiven me. Being sorry however, did not take away the problems I had brought upon myself. I still had to deal with all of the people I had hurt.

Every human being who's ever lived has sinned over and over again. Not ONE person is righteous. we have separated ourselves from our Holy,loving creator. As a result, we live in a place where terrible things happen. God's harshness in this law I believe, is his effort to show us that we need a savior. That there is a serious penalty to sin that will not simply vanish when we say sorry. I think this is one of the primary purposes for Leviticus. When we take a look at God's perfect standard, it made us realize our enormous failure. Every time we try to be righteous we fail over and over again! So no, I don't think that God actively GIVES people horrible disease, I think that it happens as a result of fallen creation.

He's all powerful right? Why not choose to just take it away? God does not choose to simply rescue us from our circumstances. Instead he does something even more mind blowing...he joins us in them. He does not simply stand off in the distance watching us suffer. He chose to suffer with us. God, the Holy and perfect one, who dwells in unapproachable light left his throne. He laid aside his crown to show us his ultimate love in a way we never could have come up with ourselves. God's version of salvation is much different than our version. We think If he would just take away our troubles we would be okay. God knew better, because even in the absence of disease, we are still unclean. He offers us something so much more than physical health, he offers us fellowship with himself. How much more glory does that bring than simply healing our sickness?

In closing I want to offer a story right out of the bible that provides a window to God's heart for us.

40 A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said.
 41 Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said.“Be healed!” 42 Instantly the leprosy disappeared, and the man was healed. 43 Then Jesus sent him on his way with a stern warning: 44 “Don’t tell anyone about this. Instead, go to the priest and let him examine you. Take along the offering required in the law of Moses for those who have been healed of leprosy. This will be a public testimony that you have been cleansed.”

 45 But the man went and spread the word, proclaiming to everyone what had happened. As a result, large crowds soon surrounded Jesus, and he couldn’t publicly enter a town anywhere. He had to stay out in the secluded places, but people from everywhere kept coming to him.  Mark 1:40-45