Double-Sided Coin

Here's what we'll talk about this Sunday, September 4

From the Gospel of Luke, chapter 10 (The Message):

²⁵Just then a religion scholar stood up with a question to test Jesus. "Teacher, what do I need to do to get eternal life?"

 ²⁶He answered, "What's written in God's Law? How do you interpret it?"

 ²⁷He said, "That you love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and muscle and intelligence—and that you love your neighbor as well as you do yourself."

 ²⁸"Good answer!" said Jesus. "Do it and you'll live." 

 Do it and you'll live.

What was the "it" Jesus was referring to again? Oh ya, Love God... and love your neighbor. Let me ask you a question... How well do you think we're living and practicing both sides of that all-important coin?

I mean... I don't know about you, but I find the first part easier than the second part. Worship is easier than mission, right? Do you find it easier to go to church on Sunday... or serve a homeless shelter on Wednesday? Don't get me wrong, it's incredibly difficult to truly love God with any level of consistency. My passion (and obedience) goes up and down like a roller-coaster out of control. Like the Apostle Paul in Romans 7, I don't understand my own motivations sometimes:

I can will it, but I can't do it. I decide to do good, but I don't really do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions, such as they are, don't result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time. 

But Jesus says if I want to live, it's not about focusing on better behavior. It's not about my determination to be a better person. It's not about digging deep down inside myself to find the strength to do good. Nope. It's about (a) looking upward (worship), AND (b) looking outward (mission). Both/and, together... an organic link between the two. We don't get points for doing one really well, and completely neglecting the other. And we certainly don't get points for making it about me, me, me. My piety, my churchiness, my holier-than-thou attitude, my "sacrifice" to read or pray, etc. Hmmm... I think part of what Jesus is saying here is that when we try to earn God points, we don't get the real point of God!

But getting back to the main point (sorry, I can't help using that word)... Somehow, some way... by some supernatural act of the Spirit in and among us... I believe we lazy bums have to wake up and smell the roses. We have to start taking Jesus' words more seriously. We have to get off our collective Christian butts and start participating on the other side of the coin with more consistency. You know... Love your neighbor as yourself. (What would that really look like?)

Let me ask you a question: When is the last time you served God's kingdom? Now, we could justify ourselves and say we are nice to people (gasp, even to sinners!)... or that we already have a role in the church (board member, musician, coffee server, etc.), which counts as "service" to others. But is that really what Jesus meant when He commanded us to love our neighbor? In a world gone completely amuck, is being nice to someone really a profound fulfillment of what Jesus requests (requires?) of us? Or does serving...or giving at a church - important as that may be - really get us off the hook mission-wise? Are we not called to get our hands dirty? Are we not called to "go" into the world? Are we not commanded to be light in the darkness? Are we not called to lift up the oppressed, and feed the hungry, and heal the sick? Are we not called to make a positive difference in our community? In the world in which we live and breathe and work and communicate and interact with broken people?

By all means, we should worship together... as the Church.

By all means, we should serve together... as the Church.

Which is it... heads or tails? Assembly is necessary... but so too is mission, right?

Let's face it: double-sided coins make for good magic tricks. But they aren't real currency.

I don't want to live an empty, meaningless life - too busy or too selfish to serve others. I want to live a full life. A meaningful life.  Eternal life. Don't you?

Are You In Christ?

Text: Romans 8: 1-17, 37-39 (NIV)

So... what does it mean to be in Christ? I mean, the Apostle Paul says there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ... and that sounds pretty attractive doesn't it? I don't want to be condemned, do you? No, of course not! But what does it look like to be "in Christ"? Does it mean that somewhere along the line you heard the preacher say Jesus died for your sins, and you have to accept him into your heart to be saved - so you came to the altar and invited him in? Is that it?

But what about an hour later... or a day later, or a week later... or certainly a month later? What happens after the emotional fervor wears off, and you're back to being the jerk you were when you walked into the sanctuary in the first place? What about when you act rudely to the people you (supposedly) love the most? What about when you fly into a rage in traffic when someone has the audacity to commit automotive injustice? What about when you give into temptation?

Are you still "in Christ" at that point? Or has the glory faded? Has the newness worn off? Has reality set in that - you may be saved - but you're still the same old sinner you've always been? 

If, through Jesus the law of the Spirit has indeed set us free from the law of sin and death (v. 2)... then why in blazes do I still so often feel imprisoned in this dark cell made of flesh and bone? 

⁹ You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. 

Really, Paul? So why do I feel so close to God... so utterly saved at times (so full of God), and yet so completely lost at other times (so devoid of God)? Which is it... does the Spirit of God indeed live in me... or am I on my own in the realm of the flesh?

I guess I'm saying this: I feel as though I have dual citizenship - full access  and privilege in both worlds... that of the flesh and that of the Spirit. But why? How?

I want to live. I want to see. I want to be free. I want to experience ongoing peace. I want to know I'm an adopted child of God who can call out to my Daddy, "Abba!"

Who am I, Lord? Am I a son of Hell, bound for the fire...? Or am I a son of the Almighty, a co-heir with Christ... sharing in his sufferings and in his glory?

You know, when it comes down to it, God knows our hearts. Hes a perfect judge, not bound by systems or principles, or even written codes... the only code he follows is that of divine love, bourne out of His holiness. He knows our secrets, he knows our lies, he knows our regrets, he knows our motivations... he knows every sin we've ever committed. And yet He says over and over again that He loves us... not just like I love movie theater popcorn... no, I mean he loves us more than we could ever, ever begin to imagine! And that he forgives us when we seek it. All it seems to take is a genuine movement toward him as he reaches up for us. And in the midst of that kind of all-encompassing love, I believe God knows how to filter out all the evil deeds of the flesh verses all the righteousness and humility that pours out of a heart that's been captured by Christ.

I may be screwed up a bit... but I'm a disciple of the best rabbi who ever lived... the greatest prophet who ever spoke... the most powerful healer who ever prayed... the most awesome human being who ever got dust on his feet... because he also know what it felt like to have blood run down his face. I'm not just a disciple of Jesus... I'm thoroughly, completely in Christ. In spite of the warts, wrinkles mistakes and stretch marks... God sees me as spotless and blameless sheep thanks to the power of the Cross.

I don't need to worry... and I don't need to feel ashamed. I am part of a family that is called more than conquerors...

³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Amen, Brother Paul. Amen! So, in response to all that, let us live according to the spirit who raises us from death to life.
 

Return of the King

Text relating to this Sunday's sermon at The River: Matthew 24:42-51...

⁴² “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. ⁴³ Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. ⁴⁴ You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.

 ⁴⁵ “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. ⁴⁶ If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. ⁴⁷ I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. ⁴⁸ But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ ⁴⁹ and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? ⁵⁰ The master will return unannounced and unexpected, ⁵¹ and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

 Keep watch. For you don't know. Be ready. He will come when least expected. 

Hmmmm... seems as though Jesus is trying to tell us something about His second coming in this passage. But what could it be? Is He telling us that we should diligently study our Bibles and try to set the date and time of His return? Is He encouraging us to try to read His Word "between the lines" like a murder mystery novel... attempting to construct a detailed map of what will take place in the end times? Has God - through the biblical writers - left us a treasure map of how and when and where, and by what means He will return in glory? If that is the case, then surely Tim LaHaye has it all figured out, and has passed on his biblical wisdom in his classic novel series, "Left Behind" to us, right? I mean, what mystery...? Just read the books and you'll be so freaked-out by the idea of being left behind as God systematically destroys the earth (and sinners) that OF COURSE you'll want to repent now... so that you'll be raptured with the rest of God's elect in Judgment Day: Part 1. (Part 2 is after he destroys the earth and remakes it... then He comes back to reign and rule).

Nope. Sorry. Don't buy it. Now, the Bible does have some things to say about Jesus coming back. It does have some wild - very mysterious - passages about resurrection and judgment and eternal destiny... but none of them are terribly clear about the details from our earthly perspective.

But doesn't the Bible tell us what we need to know about God, and earth, and people, and salvation, and life, and death, and the afterlife? Yes. Exactly. In fact, precisely what we NEED to know... but not much of what we WANT or DEMAND to know about the age to come.

Then what should we do? Okay... now THAT Jesus made abundantly clear over and over again throughout the Gospels... and so did the other New Testament writers: Are you ready for the big secret? Okay, here it is:

Be ready.

That's it. Be ready. Live your life as though Jesus were returning soon. Don't be caught off guard. Don't push Jesus to the margins of your life. If you believe, don't live as though you don't. Don't be lazy. Don't give in to evil. Don't be stupid. (Okay... I ad-libbed that last one... Jesus never said that to my knowledge!) But here's what I'm getting at: God knows you inside and out, right? He knows what you do, what you think... He knows your motives, and knows your deepest fears and hopes and dreams and passions. He is intimately interested in you.. little 'ole you, and everyone else on this planet. So let Him in to the deep recesses of your being. Let Him guide you, and strengthen you... heck, let Christ DEFINE you. And when that beautiful divine/human encounter takes root and fully germinates in your heart... don't spend your time trying to figure out when (and how) He's coming back... just simply LIVE as though it were today! Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness... let God send you... and do with your life what He wills!

Dude (I mean that generically)... He doesn't want to magically remove His people from this world so He can destroy it. For goodness sake, He strategically placed you and me in this world so we can join Him in redeeming it for His kingdom purposes! I've got some news for you (in fact, Good News!) - at the "end" of time... God has plans for those in Christ... and for planet earth. On that day when Christ returns, there will be resurrection... and there will be judgment. And it whatever way He plans to do it... Jesus will bring His Kingdom fully and completely to earth... and those in Christ will dwell with Him in glory. Wow! So let's do ourselves a favor... let's keep it simple:

Keep watch. For you don't know. Be ready. He will come when least expected. 

Not Giving Up Meeting Together

Hebrews 10:24-25

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Making our way through 16 Essential Doctrines of the Christian Faith, this Sunday at The River, we'll talk about number 11, "The Church". Here's what the actual Nazarene Article of Faith says:

We believe in the Church, the community that confesses Jesus Christ as Lord, the covenant people of God made new in Christ, the Body of Christ called together by the Holy Spirit through the Word.

God calls the Church to express its life in the unity and fellowship of the Spirit; in worship through the preaching of the Word, observance of the sacraments, and ministry in His name; by obedience to Christ, holy living, and mutual accountability.

The mission of the Church in the world is to share in the redemptive of Christ in the power of the Spirit. The Church fulfills its mission by making disciples through evangelism, education, showing compassion, working for justice, and bearing witness to the kingdom of God. 
 
The Church is a historical reality, which organizes itself in culturally conditioned forms; exists both as local congregations and as a universal body; sets apart persons called of God for specific ministries. God calls the Church to live under His rule in anticipation of the consummation at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 So here's my question: Do you buy all that? Really?


In years past, Christians went to church... all the time. That's just what God's people did on Sundays, right? But today, it's not an automatic that Christians go to church... and, if they do, it's certainly not all the time, right? I know it's a wide swath I'm cutting, but I mean it in general terms, not specific. Obviously there are still many people who are extremely dedicated (and heavily involved) in their church body. But I wonder... what has happened since the "good old days" when church attendance was as part of the weekly schedule as "The Wonderful World of Disney", or "The Red Skelton Show", or (homemade) Sunday dinners with Grandma? Life has gotten a bit more complicated, huh? Or maybe I just lived in a sheltered world as a kid?


Anyway... all that said... is "church" still necessary in this day and age? Or is it a purely optional activity?  If I had a dollar for every time I've heard the phrase, "I believe in Jesus, but I'm not into 'organized religion'"... I'm pretty sure I'd be retired by now. It seems as though lots of people believe in Jesus (just in case?)... but relatively few of us believe in participating (and serving) in His ordained community of faith.


So I ask you... really - Is church attendance an old-fashioned idea? Is it really necessary to gather together weekly to:
1.  Confess Jesus Christ as Lord?
2.  Be the covenant people of God made new in Christ?
3.  Assemble as the Body of Christ, called together by the Holy Spirit through the Word?
4.   Express our lives in the unity and fellowship of the Spirit?
5.   Worship through the preaching of the Word?
6.   Observe the sacraments?
7.   Minister in His name?
8.   Show obedience to Christ?
9.   Live in holiness?
10. Maintain mutual accountability?
11. Share in the redemptive of Christ in the power of the Spirit?
12. Fulfill our mission by making disciples through evangelism, education, showing compassion, working for justice, and bearing witness to the kingdom of God?

13. Organize ourselves in culturally conditioned forms, existing both as local congregations and as a universal body?
14. Set apart persons called of God for specific ministries?
15. Live under His rule in anticipation of the consummation at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ?

Geez... that's a lot of responsibility. I hope people are willing to give up their lives to participate in God's redemptive work through His church! I hope God's people are willing to exercise their gift as God does His work of salvation through the Body of Christ!

That... or maybe we should modify the 11th Article of Faith to match our updated value system in relation to the Body of Christ?? 

Hmmmm... just wondering!

Forgiven, Re-made, and Thoroughly Embraced

Spiritual DNA: 16 Essential Doctrines of the Christian Faith

This Sunday at The River, we'll be talking about the Church of the Nazarene's Article of Faith #9, "Justification, Regeneration, and Adoption". Wow, sounds exciting, huh? :-)  Actually, it is exciting. In fact, it's pretty darned...

A-W-E-S-O-M-E-!

Here's the texts we'll focus on:Galatians 2:16-21, John 3:1-8, and Galatians 4:4-7 (THE MESSAGE).

So I ask you... how can three multi-syllabic, rather academic sounding words possibly be exciting? Well, 'cause they represent the most awesome... most divine act of grace imaginable in the midst of a dying and broken world. If and when we humans accept the hard, painful truth... and finally admit that we are utterly and completely screwed up, without any resources to fix our screwed-upness (not a biblical word, but I like it nonetheless!)... AND when we cry out to God in our desperate state seeking the help that only the Author of Life could (and does) provide to everyone who comes to Him (and believes in His extraordinary power and love demonstrated in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ)... then in one broad, miraculous, and simultaneous sweep... God forgives our sins, restores our humanity to it's original (Garden-like) state, and breathes this awesome, eternal truth into our hearts: We are His (and His alone). We are not our own any longer... nor are we in Satan's grip... we are no longer lost... no longer wanderers in the darkness. 

Nope... when this awesome salvific, beautiful and eternal transaction occurs in the human heart... all hell breaks loose (well, to be more specific, all HEAVEN breaks loose!), and the Lord ordains that we are fully, completely, and holistically adopted into the family of God. Yahweh becomes Abba... the Lord becomes our Daddy, and calls us His own.

God knows (and so do we) that we don't deserve it... we far too often abuse it... we have such a difficult time believing it (and walking it)... and so many of us utterly deny it's power... but nevertheless: when we simply come to the end of ourselves and genuinely cry out to God for help... by sheer grace he forgives us, re-makes us, and thoroughly embraces us. Man, if that ain't good news, then I don't know what is!!! 

Ya, I know we are extremely complicated beings... and life on this rock hands us humans such an array of options and ideas and opinions and agendas and religions... but still, I gotta wonder... Why on earth would anyone want to reject the kind of offer described above? I dunno... perhaps (at least some of the time) it's because His children wrap the priceless gift in butt-ugly coverings of religiousity and (human) judgment, laziness and arrogance, rather than in the divine love of Christ so eloquently revealed to us in Scripture? Hmmm... just wonderin...

Article 4: The Holy Scriptures

Text relating to the sermon/discussion at The River this Sunday: 1 Timothy 3:16-17

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. 

Okay... I must warn you, the following words are from a pastor first and a theologian second. Yes, I have been to school and trained to think theologically... but frankly, the topic of the inspiration of Scripture is a HIGHLY and HOTLY debated issue that goes far beyond my pea-brain. I readily admit my limitations in the marketplace of theological debate and struggle. Nevertheless, it is an important doctrine for all Christians to consider... and when it comes down to it, it's more than an intellectual pursuit, right? So as a pastor, my concern lies more in practical application for the common disciple of Jesus than philosophical superiority (i.e., bragging rights) within the halls of academia. Anyway, please read the following musings with generosity and a dash of grace... realizing they are borne out of a life of deep intellectual inquiry in the midst of an even deeper pool of ignorance... all of it leading to an ever-deepening faith in, and love for (1) Abba Father, (2) Jesus the Christ, and (3) the Spirit of wisdom and revelation.  :-)

First of all, I realize that a person's understanding of the Bible is deeply rooted in their understanding of God's nature. Therefore, some people believe that because God is all-powerful and all-knowing - and because humans are utterly and completely depraved (due to the curse of sin) - God's holy words of life, as presented to us in the Bible absolutely MUST be free of all error and defect. There is no other option. The Bible is Absolute Truth... it is perfect, just as our Father in heaven is perfect. Any reduction of that high view of God - and therefore - Scripture, is a lie from straight out of hell, pure and simple.

Hmmmmm... call me a heretic if you must, but my understanding of both God and His Word differ from the above description in subtle yet significant ways. The God I read about and encounter in the whole context of the Bible is a remarkably relational Being, defined much more by holy love (which, in my view is wondrously and beautifully messy)  than legal justice (which tends toward rationalism and rigidity). Both are true of God's nature, of course... but the question is which side of God do we "see" (or most clearly identify with) in our interpretive process? I for one believe God is love, and love requires justice... rather than vice-versa. So what does that mean in terms of the Holy Scriptures? Well...

Is God all-powerful and all-knowing? Absolutely! Could He give us a holy document that is technically perfect in every way if He chose to do it? Sure! Does He have a code of justice that will ultimately be upheld at the end of time? Yes! Will He strongly yet fairly deal with those bent on destruction at the Judgment of mankind? For certain! Did he choose to reveal Himself, His ways, His character and His will to humanity through the Bible? Amen... yes and yes!

But how did He decide to go about the process of communicating with His creation? Through an absolutely perfect instrument of Truth that transcends humanity? Or through a mysterious, often troubling collection of stories and proposals infused with (and permeated by) the weakness of humanity? Is the Bible technically perfect, and therefore God-breathed and holy...? Or could the God of the universe somehow reveal Truth by inspiring people who loved and obeyed Him to write down their Spirit-led experiences and revelations... then lovingly breathing the breath of Life into it, mysteriously forming it into a unique and utterly holy instrument of His grace for all future generations?

Let's face it... even though He didn't have to... even though we are a stubborn and rebellious creature... even though He owes us humans absolutely nothing... God made a beautiful and grace-filled way of revealing Himself to humanity that has the power and motivation to (when we embrace the Truth of His promises) lead us to salvation and entire sanctification. And for several thousand years now - in spite of our efforts to the contrary - this remarkable, troubling, sometimes-confusing, occasionally-offensive, incredibly-beautiful, utterly-powerful, and fully-inspired instrument of God we know as the Bible has been relentlessly shaping human beings into the image of Jesus Christ... and leading those who will listen out of the dark and ugly wilderness of sin.

God is love. Anyone and everyone who cares to stop and consider that Absolute Truth... anyone who cares to peruse the pages of Scripture and listen to what God's Word has to say about their own life, their own heart, their own story... will soon learn that He can't be controlled or contained. However, God can be trusted... and followed. All it takes is a measure of willingness on our part... responding to the resurrected life He calls us to live by His Holy Spirit!

In the words of Jesus in John 14, "I have much more to say to you..." But alas, I'll save some of my thoughts for Sunday's sermon.  :-)   

Hope to see some of you there!  God's shalom.

The Not-So-Simple Spirit

Text for this week's sermon/discussion at The River:  John 16:5-15 (NLT)

But now I am going away to the One who sent me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment.

...When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me.

Wow, this week has been tough in so many ways. Not the least of which, I looked at the Church of the Nazarene's third Article of Faith - the Holy Spirit - and wondered how in the world I'm going to tackle this hugely difficult subject in a single sermon. I feel a bit like a snake trying to swallow a rabbit... only in this case, it's more like a garter snake trying to swallow a buffalo!

Hmmmmm... what can I say about the Holy Spirit??? Certainly not enough to do it justice... but hey, I'll try to at least bring up a few important points in this post.

First of all, I think it's imperative that we realize that the Spirit of God is a Who, not a what. That may be kind of a duh thing for a pastor to say, but I've come to believe that most Christians don't really worship a trinitarian Godhead (Father, Son and Spirit)... but rather, more often-than-not a binitarian one (Father and Son). In that line if thinking, the Spirit isn't really a divine Person that dynamically and graciously moves, thinks, breathes, reveals, and convicts so much as "it" is the "good stuff" or "essense" of God the Father... something like how a pleasant-smelling perfume emanates from an attractive woman. 

Frankly, I can see how people come to that conclusion... at least in one sense. After all, the Bible doesn't exactly make it crystal clear that the Holy Spirit is very Who-like, right? (Note: I mean that as in a personal being... not the Dr. Seuss variety!) For goodness sake, it took the Church 400 years to even come to the conclusion that the Spirit of God is God! Nevertheless, conclude it they did... and for many, many centuries now, Christians have been confessing that the Holy Spirit is (a) real, (b) alive, and (c) worthy of our adoration and worship. But how do we recognize and give praise to the invisible (and seemingly very shy) member of the Trinity? How do we deal with the One who is described to us throughout Scripture in unusual ways such as a dove, wind, breath, and fire?

Simple... by humbling ourselves (which is in itself a gift of the Spirit)... allowing Him to guide us into all truth. That is, by turning away from ourselves, and turning our heart to God (i.e., repenting)... we thus allow the Spirit of Revelation to give us the heavenly ability to confess that the Father is Abba, and the Son is Kurios (Lord). When this divine-human transaction takes place, we suddenly realize that this One True (community of) God is completely worthy of our praise. Honestly, that's all there is to it. :-)

The pervasive curse of sin makes us want to believe that I am (we are) the most important entity in the universe... therefore godlike. However, when we finally (if ever) become tired of and/or broken by that lie... then the ever-beckoning Spirit is there to convict us of sin, and guide us into all truth - that is, the Truth of God's redeeming love. In other words, when we stop running around in circles looking for love in all the wrong places, He is there to breathe eternal life into our formerly dead hearts. At that point of spiritual rebirth, we can then "see" that the Father is in the Son... the Son is in the Father... and (mysteriously) the fullness of their love is graciously imparted to us by... (you guessed it)... His Spirit.

Ya... simple!  :-)