The Spiritual Reformation

Lessons Learned During a Crisis

2020-05-13T11:53:00.000-07:00

As someone who loves history and making connections between humanity and history, I find myself reflecting upon those commonalities that we as humans experience and why we do what we do. History shows us that crises have come and gone and that regardless of their origin (European nations wanting to flex their newly found military might and establish new territorial borders in WWI, or a sociopath wanting to reestablish his country’s standing in the world and eradicate all others in the process in WWII), crises throw us into chaos but eventually find their own homeostasis.

Individual crises are similar as they challenge us to find a new normal. Losses such as the death of loved ones or the loss of a job challenge us to understand a new way of living without that part of our lives or person who was important to us. Losing my eighty-year-old father at the age of twenty-eight was both expected and yet unexpected as I learned from an early age that it was not a matter of if but when my father would pass away. His debilitating stroke when I was fourteen exposed me to the idea that death was an inevitable part of life even before my young brain could process what that meant.
The lessons I learned during that time of loss, grief, and faith crisis have stayed with me into our current world crisis as learning moments often do. Unfortunately, we as humans do not always learn the needed lessons the first time around and usually have to learn and relearn lessons through future crises.

Lesson 1: We are learning about our own self-importance and how unimportant and important we are at the same time.

While every life is important and part of an interconnected web of relationships, our self-absorption and individual demands for sympathy are tempered at a time of global crisis. We are all struggling in various ways, and many are suffering during this time. None of us has the “market cornered” on suffering at this time, though some of us are legitimately hurting and struggling more than others.
While we are not as important as we tend to think we are, we are still learning how much we need human contact to survive.

Lesson 2: We are learning that can find new ways of having and being church.

While the gathering of fellow believers is important on some level, we are learning that gatherings do not have to constitute a mass of people in order to fulfill that need.
While help from a variety of places is needed, whether the government or our employers, we are learning that the church can and should return to its biblical roots of caring for each other.

Lesson 3: We are learning about priorities and learning to differentiate between desires and needs.

While we enjoy watching sports, going to movies, going to Disneyland, going to concerts, going to the beaches, and going out to shop or dine, we need human contact, a sense of purpose, and continued growth.

Lesson 4: We are learning that the desire for individual homeostasis and self-preservation can overtake the need to care for our fellow humans.

While we are learning how to manage during this crisis, we are learning that it is not just important to survive; how we survive and whom we hurt or help is actually most important.

Lesson 5: We are learning that our interconnectedness as humans goes beyond technological advances in history, and the web of human relationships has always existed.

While our needs matter, the needs of others matter just as much. (What happens “over there” (wherever “there” is), will eventually affect us “over here.” Remember that it wasn’t until America was forced into WWII through Pearl Harbor, until we actually had “skin in the game,” that we entered into a World War that had already decimated Europe and was seeing millions of Jews slaughtered.)

Lesson 6: I am learning, and continuously re-learning, that God is more concerned about what is happening in me than He is what is happening to me. And that He is using what is happening to me to help shape what is inside me.

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matt. 6:31-33, NIV).

May we re-learn quickly these important lessons and love abundantly in the process.

https://www.sum.edu/lessons-learned-during-a-crisis/

Life Lessons from the Book of Job

2018-07-23T22:23:00.001-07:00

The Law of Cause and Effect, which says that for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction, is a reality that is illustrated throughout life.

We operate our lives around this way of thinking, attributing causes to actions ourselves or others took, always trying to answer the fundamental question of why various things happen, especially when a cause is not readily apparent.

Pacifying the “gods”

Throughout religious history, people attributed the root cause of all events to pagan gods. In ancient times there was a belief that sacrifices to pagan gods would appease them if things were not going well in life. One would offer a sacrifice to a particular god who controlled a certain area of life, hoping to pacify the god for whatever one had done to cause their disapproval.

In Eastern religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism, rather than believing that life’s experiences were at the hands of a God or gods, they believe that things that happen to people are the result of karma. We are familiar with this term “karma,” and use it often as a substitute for the law of cause and effect. The twist, however, with karma is that the karmic belief says that everything that happens in life can be attributed to the actions of people, the consequences of what we have done in this life or in previous lives (reincarnation).

The theology reflected in the Old Testament goes one step further and ascribes blessings and suffering as a punishment or reward from God rather than the whim of various gods. Success in whatever way it is measured, was a sign of God’s approval or reward; ill health, poverty, and loss of life, were a punishment from God.

Within this belief that says when things are going well, we are having success, or we are experiencing good health, there is a basic assumption that somehow, we are in right standing with God or that God is blessing us. Material blessings became a sign of God’s blessing, and difficult times reflect the opposite, a sign of God’s punishment.

Job’s Counter-Narrative

Yet, the book of Job in the Bible tells another story, the purpose of which is to address this theology. The story of Job seems to be making this statement: “When things are going well, it is not necessarily a sign of God’s approval, and when things are going poorly, it does not necessarily indicate God’s punishment or disapproval.”

In this narrative, Job was deemed a righteous man (Job 1:1) yet still suffered one tragedy after another. His story seemed to defy the prevalent theological expectation of God at that time, challenging this basic assumption: if Job was so righteous, why was he suffering? The answer from his friends was that Job must have sinned, and God must be punishing him.

Moreover, such a theology of God sees material blessings through the lens of karma and places a high premium on what we currently have or are experiencing; my current blessed state in life is a result of God’s favor upon me, or, my current difficult state in life is because God is displeased with me. Our current state of affairs is the measure of God’s blessing, all the while ignoring the potential of what our current condition may be preparing us for in the future, or how our past choices or the actions of others may be affecting us.

Success, then, is equated to God’s approval of our lifestyle and actions; struggle, poverty, ill health, or challenging circumstances signal that once again, we have displeased God and He is punishing us.

We make similar assumptions about the prosperity and suffering of others: when someone is doing well, when churches are thriving, or when countries seem to be prosperous, their actions and the actions of their leaders have met with God’s approval. As a sign of this approval, God is blessing them or allowing their success, wealth, and growth.

This type of theology does not merely reside in the Old Testament; it can be seen in John chapter 9 and the story of the blind man who was healed by Jesus. Jesus’s disciples famously ask, “who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind” (Jn. 9:2, NIV). Jesus wastes no time in correcting this view (which can also be seen in his sermon the mount and the sermon on the plain in Matthew 5-7 and Luke 7) by asserting, “neither this man nor his parents sinned,” “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him” (9:3, NIV).

Our Reality

And so, like the disciples, we still struggle to see beyond the material to the spiritual, beyond outward fame and success to the deeper issues. Our struggle is always with the present challenge, and the present blessing or success. We think the good times can’t possibly end, and we fear the bad times never will. We also think the times of both good and bad reflect God’s attitude and actions toward us.

Can wealth and prosperity bring glory to God? Absolutely. Does it always? No.

Can suffering, tragedy, loss, and poverty bring glory to God? Yes. Does it always? Definitely not.

While there is a law of cause and effect, not everything can be simplified so easily. And not all events in life have the stamp of approval or disapproval by God.

This much we can say for certain: beyond the outward struggle or outward rewards, God is attempting to do something inwardly, something that will bring glory to Him and reveal His Kingdom, His goodness, and His love. Through the good and the bad, God wants us to reveal His works, using all things for good, as the apostle Paul tells us in Romans 8:28.

Thomas the Doubter, Peter the Liar, and Judas the Betrayer (Excerpts from "Shaken Faith")

2016-02-06T14:29:00.000-08:00

Thomas the doubter, Peter the liar, and Judas the betrayer—biblical figures who reflect personal moments when faith is shaken to the core. Defining moments that either turned them toward God or saw them fall away from God.

"The story of Peter reflects the possibility of getting up and moving beyond our crises and our failures, while the story of Judas reveals to us the danger of allowing ourselves to be swallowed up by our crisis and giving up on our faith. Lastly, the story Thomas provides a clear glimpse of "coming to believe" and giving up old paradigms that no longer "fit."[1]

The crisis itself does not cause us to abandon our faith; it is our decision in those moments of challenge to either cling to or let go of God.

https://www.facebook.com/shakenfaith

[1] Sanejo Leonard, Shaken Faith: What you Don't Know (and Need to Know) about Faith Crises and How They Affect Spiritual Growth, (Eugene, OR: WIPF and STOCK, 2015), 114.

Faith Must be Deep (Excerpts from "Shaken Faith")

2016-01-14T16:00:00.001-08:00

“Figuring out concepts on our own is not always something we enjoy doing. The path with the least resistance is usually what we are looking for; the mindset is, “where is the shortcut to whatever it might be, and tell me exactly how to get there.”

Yet, if our simplification of the gospel message is our main way of communicating these ideas, our faith and the faith of those we lead will be shallow, thus only wading in simple ideas of a complex God. True faith grows and changes as we grow in our understanding of God, and this is faith and faith crises: a challenge to our understanding and preconceptions of a complicated and paradoxical God who is both knowable and unknowable at the same time.”[1]

[1] Sanejo Leonard, Shaken Faith: What You Don’t Know (and Need to Know) about Faith Crises and How They Affect Spiritual Formation (Eugene, OR: WIPF and STOCK, 2015), 106-107.

What we don't know can hurt us (Excerpts from "Shaken Faith")

2015-05-23T12:37:00.002-07:00

"Sometimes ignorance is bliss, and what we do not know is better than attempting to know and have all the answers. However...it is in our humanity, our being that is made in the image of God, to ask, question, challenge, and to know. Though there are things we cannot know and will not know...our curiosity and endeavor to learn and question are what allow us to innovate, develop electricity, build and fly airplanes and create...."[1]

Where do questions about God, life, and its complexities fit into a 21^st century faith model?

www.facebook.com/shakenfaith

[1] Sanejo Leonard, Shaken Faith: What You Don’t Know (and Need to Know) about Faith Crises and How They Affect Spiritual Formation (Eugene, OR: WIPF and STOCK, 2015), 6.

Shaken Faith: What you don't know (and need to know) about Faith Crises and how they Affect Spiritual Growth

2015-05-04T07:00:00.000-07:00

I'm very excited to announce the publication of my book, Shaken Faith, through Wipf and Stock publishers.
This book is at least three years in the making, including the initial dissertation foundation, and the many months of interviews, research, and reshaping of this work.
My prayer is that this work becomes a resource to those in crisis, a place of rest to those whose faith is weary from struggle and wrestling, and a beacon of hope to those who have lost or fear losing their faith.
Faith is resilient, and through it God is at work, reshaping us to better see Him and His work in our lives and in the world.

https://www.facebook.com/shakenfaith?ref=hl
http://wipfandstock.com/shaken-faith.html

Capitalism or Socialism? An Attempt at a Biblical View...

2012-08-11T17:53:00.001-07:00

With the political environment as it is today, and the financial state of America being what it is, political dialogue on both sides is shaped by saying that the other side is wrong, possibly even immoral, and certainly “un-Christian,” especially as it relates to the topic of capitalism vs. socialism.

No Objective View

Yet in all the political debates, (and being the political wonk that I am, I listen to most of it), I rarely hear an honest debate on the merits of each side’s view. I’ve never heard an objective person, with no bias or motivation to sway the discussion, debate the pros and cons of each position. However, what is a greater tragedy, is that I rarely hear someone debate the issue from an unbiased Biblical stance; well, here is my effort to do so.

Capitalism: Good or Bad?

The first question that comes to mind when I hear of the debate over capitalism and socialism, and whether one concept is more “Christian,” “moral,” or simply better than the other, is, “Are all types of capitalism bad?” We know that capitalism can exploit the marginalized of society; we may even have a personal story or first-hand experience of someone’s greed crushing a part of our lives. Yet, is capitalism itself bad? Moreover, saying that capitalism is always wrong or immoral indicates that when any person makes money or becomes rich, he or she does so at someone's expense; is this always true? Is it possible to make money in an honest and ethical way, so that no person is exploited?

Socialism: Good or Bad?

The second question that comes to my mind is, “Are all forms of socialism bad”? We know in Acts 2:42-47 that the first century church participated in socialism. Yet, it was not an imposed socialism, but rather a voluntary act of sharing and giving to all in need. An imposed socialism can take away a person’s incentive or ambition to work hard if they are never able to earn more than they do, and it can reinforce laziness in others, as Paul says, “Anyone unwilling to work should not eat.”[1] Yet, overall, it seems that socialism at its core does not want anyone to be left out of society, and desires to see even the poor and marginalized have something.

Biblical Thoughts on Money

Yet if we look at this discussion from a broader framework, without getting into the nitty gritty of politics, like whether a person’s taxes should be raised, whether we should have welfare programs, and how much involvement the government should have in our lives, how does the Bible in general talk about the concept of money?

Jesus tells his disciples to “Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”[2]

However, though Jesus encouraged his disciples to give up money, some of his women disciples were the ones funding his ministry, with money.[3] And we know that Paul praised those churches who voluntarily and generously gave to his ministry (which also takes money to run).[4]

Lastly, it was also Paul who said that it was not money itself that was evil, but rather the love of money that is the root of all evil.[5]

The Bible itself, though explicitly warning against exploitation of others, focuses more on how we react to money than whether or not we have it.

Jesus: Capitalist or Socialist?

It has been noted that Jesus spent more time talking about money than he did talking about prayer.[6] Unfortunately, this leads some on both sides of the argument to try and draw a guideline regarding money based upon Jesus’ words: Jesus was a capitalist because he acknowledges that the poor will always be with us;[7] Jesus was a socialist because he told various people to sell all that they had and give to the poor.[8]

[1]

Yet I contend that painting Jesus as either a capitalist or socialist with such broad strokes misses the point, and that is that money itself is amoral, and therefore it is simply what we do with it and how we get it that creates its value, whether good or bad.

Dallas Willard in his classic Spirit of the Disciplines book makes this statement, “But it must be noted that such failures [to give when we should] concern the use of goods, not their possession;”[9] i.e. it is not merely the possession of money that makes one’s actions regarding money either moral or immoral, but rather the use of the money.

Jesus’ Kingdom: a New Supra-Political Reality

Additionally, asking if Jesus was or would be a capitalist or a socialist presupposes that Jesus would have aligned himself with any governmental structure that elevated the “kingdoms of this world.” Jesus was never interested in building upon an established earthly kingdom; he came to establish a completely new kingdom, his own. Jesus’ kingdom calls people to a political position that is above the concerns that plague the current political system, a supra-political party. This does not mean that we alienate ourselves from political parties or society, but it does mean our perspective must come from a different place.

Again Dallas Willard, says it best, “The state is emblematic of all those worldly power structures [both Republican and Democratic and any other human political party] based on oppression and the power of pain and death. The real presence of Christ as a world-governing force will come solely as his called out people occupy their stations in the holiness and power characteristic of him, as they demonstrate to the world the way to live that is best in every respect.”[10]

Therefore, I wonder if we are missing the point, focusing on whether capitalism or socialism are right or wrong, good or bad, and therefore how we can further these two concepts in our society. I wonder if the broader question is how can we as a society further Christ’s kingdom and his social, moral, and monetary values?

Can we re-frame our paradigm in this political climate by primarily seeing ourselves as not either Republican or Democrat, capitalist or socialist, but rather disciples of Jesus’ kingdom? I wonder what that would look like….

[1] 2 Thessalonians 3:10, NRSV.

[2] Luke 12:33-34, NIV.

[3] Luke 8:3, NIV.

[4] Philippians 4:15-16, NIV.

[5] 1 Timothy 6:10, NIV.

[6] Kenneth E. Bailey, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels, (Intervarsity Press, 2008).

[7] Matthew 26:11, NIV

[8] Matthew 19:21, Luke 12: 33-34, Mark 10:21

[9] Dallas Willard, The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding how God Changes Lives, (San Francisco: Harper One, 2008), p. 194.

[10] Ibid., p.239

Faith: Living in Tension

2012-04-13T13:56:00.000-07:00

Happily Ever After?

Have you ever noticed that there are some stories within the Bible that do not have a resolved ending? The story of Jonah leaves us hanging as we do not know how Jonah finally responds to God's act of mercy upon the Ninevite city. The Prodigal Son is another story that does not illustrate a neat ending, as we are left hanging upon the Father's rebuke to his more responsible son.

Characters in Tension

Or how about the seemingly dual nature of some of our heroes of faith, such as Abraham who twice lied about Sarah being his wife, Jacob the deceiver who spent a lifetime in deception and chaos, and Moses and David, both murderers? Sometimes it seems as if stories exist in the Bible to tell us what not to do, as in the case of Samson's entire life. And speaking of Judges, the closing story of the book ends on the somber note that "In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit" (Judges 21:25, NIV).

Faith in Tension

We do not like unresolved conflicts, tension, or stories. We especially do not like unresolved tension in our spiritual life. We like to know that everything will always work out. We would prefer to have things neatly packaged and stories resolved, yet as Walter Brueggemann said, "Faith is not always resolved in life."

Faith calls for our us to live within the tension of conflict and peace, deliverance and oppression, and unresolved stories and circumstances that do not always have a clear ending. Just as life cannot be neatly packaged and resolved, so our faith is not always neat, not always resolved, and often in tension.

As our faith grows, the more we can accept the unknown and the unresolved as our faith ultimately resides in the God who has overcome the world. As Jesus himself honestly said, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33, NIV).

Faith involves living between two worlds: the now and the not yet, and that causes us to live in tension....

Brueggemann, W. (1984). The Message of the Psalms: A Theological Commentary. Minneapolis: Augsburg.

Remember when...

2012-03-11T18:55:00.000-07:00

Shared History

"So that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, "What do those stones mean to you?' then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the Israelites a memorial forever" (Joshua 4:6-8, NRSV).

Remember the times when you get together with people of shared history, and the stories start out with, "Remember when..."

When my family gets together, the same stories are told over and over. Remember when...

...some of us used to jump off the roof of the house into trash cans full of water, and one of us missed, straddling the trash can...

...one of us sat on a hot curling iron...

...we weren't supposed to be jumping on the bed, and one of us hit our head on a nail sticking out of the top bunk...

...when we used to get into trouble together, lining up in single file to get spanked....

Israel had a shared history of experiencing God's miraculous deliverance from Egypt to the Promised Land. They were to remember and share these amazing stories forever, so that they wouldn't forget their past, the past out of which God had brought them to experience a new present and future.

Memorials of Faith

The Bible is replete with instructions to remember, emphases upon symbols that would be a sign, and using objects as memorials that can be used to remind us of what we need to remember.

The Ark of the Covenant-a visual reminder of God's presence

The manna from the wilderness wandering-a reminder of God's provision

The cross-a reminder of God's sacrifice

Communion-a reminder of God's redemption and restoration of lost humanity

Baptism-an event reminding each person of their new life

We as humans have a short attention span; focusing on the present and worrying about the future. And too often, we remember what we are supposed to forget, and forget that which we are supposed to remember. We find it easy to remember past mistakes or past hurts, yet forget God's provision and presence in our lives.

"Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm" (Deut. 5:15).

"Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles..." (1 Chron. 16:12).

"Do this in remembrance me..." (Luke 22:19).

We are told to remember because we have a tendency to forget.

Remembering God

Remember when...

...God miraculously provided...

...God comforted you during a dark moment...

...God first touched your life...

...God answered your prayer...

It's good to remember when...

Prayer: Our Will or God's? (Part II)

2012-01-15T16:35:00.000-08:00

Prayer is one of the staples of a life devoted to God. It provides the primary way with which we interact with the supernatural reality of God. Prayer and its importance for the believer cannot be overstated. Yet, the Bible shows us that prayer is more than a needs-oriented or request-oriented relationship with God.

Jeremiah's Struggle

Jeremiah himself, though seemingly praying a noble prayer for Jerusalem and against its destruction, was told by God to stop praying: "Then the LORD said to me, "Do not pray for the well-being of this people" (Jer. 14:11).

Jeremiah, known as the weeping prophet, was weeping and praying for the preservation of his people. And it seems as if God couldn't or wouldn't act until Jeremiah stopped praying. As in the case of King Hezekiah, God answered his prayer. And in this situation, Jeremiah's prayers were keeping God from bringing judgment upon the city, which shows the power of prayer. But it also reflects that Jeremiah was praying for what wasn't the Lord's will.

Jeremiah's natural response was to pray for his people; but God had a different plan. After centuries of apostasy and abandonment of God, of committing incredibly sinful and evil acts, God had to remove His people from the land.

Our Struggle

Is it possible that we often use prayer as a means of force, forcing our will upon God and others, not often taking the time to consider what God's will might be for the situation? Is it possible that too often our prayers are focused on ourselves and what we think we need for the situation, and not what God's will might be for the entire situation and others involved?

The perpetual struggle in life is to let go, and the struggle in prayer is to let go of our will.

Prayer tends to be too individualistic rather than globally concerned, and too momentarily rather than holistically focused. We often become caught up in the here and now, and miss the larger picture of what God is doing in our lives, both in the present and for our future.

The main question seems to be, what is God doing in and through this need, this trauma, or this problem, and how can I pray for rather than get in the way of His will?

Maybe it isn't that we are to pray less, or ask, seek, and knock any less, or that we are not to pray for our needs, but that we are to pray with a different focus in mind; that God's kingdom come, and that His will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven.

Prayer: Our will or God's?

2012-01-13T17:28:00.000-08:00

The Paradox

We are told in prayer to ask, seek and knock. We are further told to be persistent when we pray, and to have faith and believe. Finally, we are told to say to mountains, "move," and they are to move.

Prayer for many of us is an incredible aspect of our relationship with the Lord, and we can testify to the miraculous results.

Yet there is one story of prayer that is haunting: King Hezekiah in the book of 2 Kings, told by the prophet Isaiah that he was to prepare himself because he was going to die, responds by crying out to the Lord in earnest for God to remember and have mercy on him.

The Lord responds by sending Isaiah back to Hezekiah, telling him that the Lord had heard his prayer and would grant his request, extending the king's life 15 more years.

What is often not known or simply overlooked, is that in that 15 year life-extension, a son is born to Hezekiah, Manasseh, who takes over at the age of 12 when his father dies. This son, Manasseh as King of Judah, takes on the dubious distinction of shedding so much innocent blood that he "filled Jerusalem from end to end" (2 Kings 21:16), and essentially bears the blame for Judah's future exile.

Under Manasseh's reign of terror and evil, Judah goes beyond apostasy into such atrocities that they had never done before (2 Kings 21). It is also thought that this dangerous king was the one to kill this same prophet Isaiah, by cutting him in half.

How are we to understand this story: a miraculous healing yet future disastrous consequences?

The Dilemma

Struggling for his life in the grip of an illness and upon news of his impending death, Hezekiah responds as we all would; to beg God for mercy, and to pray for healing.

Was it wrong for Hezekiah to pray for healing?

Note the prayer and Hezekiah's response to the news of his death as recorded in scripture: "Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, "Remember, O LORD, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes." And Hezekiah wept bitterly" (2 Kings 20:2-3).

Additionally, note his response later on, when he learns that his kingdom and the land of his people in Judah will be destroyed and that judgment is coming: "The word of the LORD you have spoken is good," Hezekiah replied. For he thought, "Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?" (2 Kings 20:19).

We might be able to understand his initial devastation at news of the loss of his life, but seeing his response to the news of future judgment that does not affect him, it makes one wonder, did Hezekiah care about others, or was his character primarily selfish?

The Nature of Prayer

This story indicates the power of prayer, and that God indeed listens to His people. Yet this story also indicates that prayer has the power to move God's hand, sometimes with undesirable consequences.

We must ask ourselves, is our primary motivation in prayer to ask for things, and is our primary method in prayer to unburden ourselves by focusing upon what we want, never seeking God's will?

The perpetual struggle in life is to let go, and the struggle in prayer is to let go of our will.

It seems that prayer must be understood in the larger context of a dialogue and conversation with the God of the universe, who has entrusted us with the precious power of prayer. We need to see prayer as more than an opportunity to wield our will upon our lives.

Prayer is powerful, and for that reason alone prayer must be undertaken with care. Prayer, though bringing about incredible results, is ultimately about our way of connecting with the Father, in conversation, communion, and concern for His will....

God's Absence

2012-01-09T15:35:00.000-08:00

A Pattern of Abandonment?

There have been long stretches of time throughout Biblical history where God was absent from the scene:

Beginning with the hundreds of years while the Israelites were in Egypt, some of that time enslaved. Virtually none of that time is recorded in the Bible. The story moves from Jacob's travel to Egypt to many years later with the story of the birth of Moses. Additionally, though the story starts out well for Jacob's progeny, over time, the Egyptians turn the Israelites into slaves, and at one point mass genocide is committed against all male Israelite babies.

Another period of time reflecting a lack of God's presence was after the period of the Judges. 1 Samuel 3:1 tells us that "the word of the LORD was rare" in those days," preceding God's call to Samuel. The period of the Judges saw incredible chaos in the land, and "everyone did as he saw fit" (Judges 21:25). And at the end of the story of the Judges, God seems to be absent from the scene.

The book of Esther is another example of God's absence. The book of Esther contains no mention of God whatsoever. During an incredibly difficult and nearly tragic time for the Israelite people, who were facing extinction at the hands of an evil man, God is no where mentioned.

Finally, the Intertestamental period, the time between the Old and New Testaments, contains 400 years of silence, when none of God's prophets were speaking, and no mention of what is going on during this time is contained in the Protestant canon of the Bible. The Bible takes us from Malachi to Matthew, with centuries of silence. Yet in this time the people of Israel are conquered by the Greeks and Romans, their temple is once again destroyed, and any hope of a future nation is obliterated.

How are we to understand this pattern of absence?

Perception is not Reality

Often, things are not what they seem. What is often thought to be God's absence is really His silence, and God's silence does not mean a lack of action on our behalf, compassion for our needs, or purpose for our lives.

In these examples of God's Absence:

God responded to the cries of the Israelites in Egyptian slavery, and that is what caused Him to act-"God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant..." (Ex. 2:24).
God, though silent, was in the process of developing and raising up a prophet named Samuel, who would anoint the future King David, who would bring the people of Israel together in unity
God, working behind the scenes, used Mordecai and Esther to save His people from the impending tragedy
And God, during the Intertestamental period, was preparing His people for the coming Messiah who provided the ultimate form of deliverance and restoration for all people.

What can we learn from God's absence:

God's silence does not indicate His absence or His lack of involvement in our lives
God is not a magic genie or a butler, who is at our beck and call, only serving our individual and immediate wants and desires-
-Yet God does respond to our cries for help-even when we do not realize it
Often God is at work behind the scenes, working on our behalf as Isaiah 64:4 tells us, "...no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him"

There is always a larger purpose involved in the silent moments of our lives, and in the silent moments of history.

Therefore, God's silence forces us to "Be still and know" that He is God (Ps. 46:10), because He has promised, "never will I leave you; never will I forsake you" (Heb. 13:5).

We can trust that though we do not always see what He is doing in our lives, He is at work on behalf of not only our lives, but all of humanity as well.

Life: Hold Lightly

2012-01-02T13:44:00.000-08:00

"...I have learned to be content with whatever I have" (Phil. 4:11, NRSV).

Life is Fragile, and No One is Exempt

Life flies by in a matter of seconds; and in the blink of an eye everything can change. From the housing market crash of 2008, to the terrorist attack on 9/11, to the loss of jobs, houses, money, and most importantly, lives. In a mere moment, what we have can be taken from us. As much as we try to control life and hold onto our possessions, the truth is, we simply cannot.

Life, as the saying goes, is fragile, and as people of faith, we are no more exempt from things being stripped away from us than the rest of the world. That which we cherish is fair game in the uncertainty and fragility of life. We cannot prevent disaster from striking us anymore than non-believers, as Jesus declared in Matthew 5:45, God sends both sun and rain on the righteous and the unrighteous; we all experience the fragility of life.

Possessing Stuff or Stuff Possessing Us?

The age-old problem, as illustrated in the parable of the rich fool who stored up his possessions, trying to amass as much as he could, not realizing that his death was imminent (Lk. 12), is still a present reality. We find ourselves gripping onto things and people harder than we should, much like a child's security blanket, and we all have something to which we cling: fame, family, friends, house, career, money, security, perception, and power.

Our grip on our possessions, on our need for security and comfort, and on the "creature comforts" often reverses with these items gripping and possessing us. Though we learn how to grip from infancy, needing to hold onto something or someone in order to find comfort and security, yet over time we find that we are in the grip of those things as the stuff of life possesses us instead.

Our Deepest Need

Thus loss of any kind can remind us that we are to hold lightly to life, both objects and people, because there is One who desires our attention and love more than anything. No, we are not called to isolate ourselves from the world, refusing to love and enjoy both people and things. But I think that we are called to hold onto them lightly, knowing that in a second they are gone, and they were never meant to fulfill our deepest longing anyway. As Saint Augustine wrote, "Thou has made us for thyself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee."

Something to Hold On to...

Augustine has also said, "Find out how much God has given you and from it take what you need; the remainder is needed by others."

When we begin to realize that we have more than we really need, that we are blessed with what we do have (especially in a rich country like America as compared to the rest of the world), and let go of our grip on things, the more freely we can give away. If we can learn to loosen our grip, to give back to God and others, we will find freedom from life's grip and security in our Father's.

Life: hold lightly. God: hold tightly.

This is our daily struggle, to loosen our grip on life while holding tightly to God, whether it is people or possessions; holding lightly to those things, while holding tightly to Him.

The Simplicity of the Season

2011-12-15T18:01:00.000-08:00

At this time of the year, it is important to remember what is most important.

"Remember the true meaning of Christmas" is something we typically hear around this time of the year, the maybe one or two voices that we hear above the noise of the season attempting to bring us back to reality.

For a second, we remember what Christmas is about, and then we go on our way, worrying about finding and receiving the perfect gifts, and surviving the craziness of the busy season.

It is times like these, when the commercialization of Christmas and the "you really do need a new Lexus" commercials are on overload, that I am reminded of a great movie clip about what is important in life.

The movie is Schindler's List, and the clip is from one of the last scenes, where Schindler faces his own reality of what is important in life.

So What is Most Important?

Understanding that Jesus came to provide hope for the hopeless (every type of hopeless condition)-

Realizing that even from birth there were those who did not understand the purpose of Jesus' life-

Remembering that Jesus was born in simplicity in an animal feeding trough rather than a palace-

Grasping that life is not about you, or me, or what we want....

It is important to remember at all times what is most important.

References:

Spielberg, S. (1993). Schindler's List [Motion Picture]. USA: Universal Pictures.

When in Doubt, Ask

2011-11-27T17:54:00.000-08:00

Doubt in Times of Uncertainty

All of us have experienced times of difficulty where we doubt our purpose, doubt God's care for us, or even doubt His existence. The difficulty of the unknown and uncertainty in our lives challenges not only our faith but our purpose in life.

John the Baptist, the bold proclaimer, baptizez, and cousin of Jesus seems to have experienced such a time of doubt.

Matthew 11:2-3 relays a message from John's disciples to Jesus: "When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples 3 to ask him, "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?" (Matt. 11:2-3)

John at this time was in prison, his ministry days were over, and all that was left was his impending death. John, who was sent ahead of Jesus to prepare his way, fades from the scene after Jesus' arrival and then baptism, being imprisoned by Herod and then killed as a result of his wife's whims. It is understandable, after such difficulty for John to wonder, "Is this the person I waited for and whose ministry I helped to prepare?"

With the benefit of four gospels we have the opportunity to go back and view an encounter early on in Jesus' ministry, in John chapter 1. Verses 29 through 31 describe the encounter, "The next day John [the baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel."

This account in the gospel of John illustrates that John the Baptist knew clearly who Jesus was, so why ask the question in Matthew 10: "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?"

Is it possible that John the Baptist did not fully understand Jesus' ministry or mission? That he expected Jesus to come with military force, as many thought at that time? Is it possible that John thought the world would end and Jesus would usher in his new kingdom and reign physically on earth? Or is it possible that John, stuck in prison, with his ministry behind him and death before him, simply began to wonder if this was the person for whom he had suffered? That this person really was the Messiah?

Spiritual Darkness: Dark Nights

For whatever reason John asked the question, John was struggling with doubt. His spiritually dark place obscured his vision of the spiritual reality, something with which we all struggle. Struggles can involve a spiritual darkness, making it hard to see what is real and what is true.

This concept of spiritual darkness causing obscurity comes from church history. Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross from the 16th century utilized this concept of obscure, from the root Spanish word oscura, translated as "dark" (May, 2004). The obscurity or darkness of the moment prevents people from seeing God clearly, and causes one to rely solely upon his or her faith.

Assurance in Obscurity

It seems as if John needed Jesus to reassure him that what he was going through was not in vain.

So Jesus responds by saying, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me [italics added]" (Matt. 11:4-6).

Jesus was saying, "John, here is my ministry; here is what is really important. I am the Messiah, I will take away the sins of the world. Have faith, John. Keep your faith."

In our dark nights, the spiritually dark times where reality may be obscured and we seem to be alone, what a comfort to know that we can call out to God, to ask Him for reassurance, and for reminders that our faith is not in vain.

References:

May, G. G. (2004). The Dark Night of the Soul. Harper Collins e-books.

Working at Resting

2011-11-23T13:00:00.000-08:00

Come to me...and you will rest

One of my favorite scriptures (I have many favorites) is in Matthew 11:28-30:

"Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (NRSV).

Who of us doesn't love hearing that we can find rest in Jesus? Knowing that he can provide rest for our weariness is like a breath of fresh air. Yet if you are like me, resting is not so easy to do. Especially when we realize that we have to do something, like "take my yoke" and "learn from me." That doesn't sound like resting.

The Yoke

The concept of a "yoke" is not, as has been assumed, referring to the type of yoke with which you would connect two animals and a plow. The word "yoke" is in reference to a Rabbi's interpretation of the Law of Moses, and each Rabbi followed a school of thought regarding the Law. Their teaching reflected their "yoke" or understanding of the Old Testament Law, therefore, to take a Rabbi's yoke meant to follow that Rabbi and become his disciple.

So what does it mean to take "Jesus' yoke"?

Jesus, in declaring that we are to take his yoke, was providing a safe haven for those who had been under the "yoke" of the Pharisaical legalism of the law. Jesus was providing a different way of following God. The current way of following God at that time involved following an impossible list of additional laws, not created by God, but created by some of the religious leaders of that day.

Today, we may think we know what it means to follow God as Jesus was teaching it, but I wonder if we really do. We may not struggle with legalism as they understood it back then, but I think we struggle with an entirely new concept, a "Culture of Christianity" that does not reflect what it means to be Christ-like. It is a culture, much like an ethnic culture, that simply defines a person but does not necessarily shape his or her character to be like Christ.

Dallas Willard in his book The Spirit of the Disciplines says it best by saying, "Our mistake is to think that following Jesus consists in loving our enemies, going the "second mile," turning the other cheek, suffering patiently and hopefully-while living the rest of our lives just as everyone around us does [italics added]" (p.5).

What does it mean today to be a disciple of Jesus?

To understand how to shake off the "Yoke of the Christian Culture," it must tie back to Jesus' statement in verse 29 of Matthew 11, "learn from me." In order to find rest for our souls we have to take up Jesus' radical yoke, and in order to take up the yoke, we have to learn from Jesus.

Not learn a set of rules, do's and don't's, or simply acting like a Christian, but learning from Jesus, following Jesus, and embracing his lifestyle as our own. It involves being aware that a disciple is an active learner, who works at understanding how to follow his or her master. Not working to earn salvation, but working to learn to follow, and thus working to rest.

References:

Willard, D. (1988). The Spirit of the Disciplines. New York: Harper.One.

Skeletons in the Family Closet

2011-10-23T17:15:00.000-07:00

What do a prostitute, an adulterer, a foreigner, and a woman who slept with her father-in-law to keep the family lineage, all have in common? No. This is not the start of a joke, though one might think so with such descriptions.

These four women are contained within the genealogy of Jesus, as recorded in Matthew 1. This concept alone is startling, as none of us like to think about the “black sheep” in our family (especially if we are the black sheep). Yet this concept is even more startling when we consider that it wasn’t common practice at this time in history, 2,000 years ago, to include women in a genealogy. Even today, we usually follow the male name when tracing our ancestry because of the tradition with taking the male surname.

Additionally, both Matthew and Luke record Jesus’ family history, with Luke’s account going back to Adam, and Matthew’s account going back to Abraham. Both accounts intended to show that Jesus was indeed part of the kingly line of David, that he was a son of Abraham, and that he was connected even to Adam.

Yet Matthew’s account deviates from the norm with his inclusion of these four women: Rahab-a prostitute, Ruth-a Moabite or foreigner, Bathsheba-an adulterer, and Tamar-who slept with her father-in-law Judah to keep the line of Judah going; talk about a colorful family history!

So why does Matthew include these infamous women? Especially when we consider that he is providing this genealogy to prove that Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah, from the royal line of David; why would he include such a checkered history in his account?

I think he does so to illustrate that God uses imperfect humanity to bring about His perfect will. That God does not see our past and hold it against us, but instead chooses to use us anyway. As the scripture says, “as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions [sins] from us” (Ps. 103:12, NIV).

If God could use these four women to bring about the coming of the Messiah, what can He do in our lives today? Our imperfections, our mistakes, and our weaknesses do not have to hold us back from what God wants to do in our lives today….

Calling All Doubters

2011-10-20T18:16:00.000-07:00

Poor Thomas. Throughout the past 2,000 years, Doubting Thomas has received such a bad rap, which might be understandable, with a moniker such as “Doubting Thomas.”

For many years, we have chastised the apostle Thomas and his lack of faith, with his need to see Jesus for himself and touch him to believe that he was actually alive. After all, Jesus did tell him to “stop doubting and believe” (Jn. 20:27, NIV).

Yet, as with all Biblical stories, I believe there is more to this story, and specifically more than an illustration of a lack of faith. In fact, I don’t think this story is about Thomas’ lack of faith at all, but rather an illustration of belief and the different ways we come to believe.

In order to see the progression of belief, we have to go back to the beginning of this chapter and the empty tomb.

John Gets It

Upon hearing from Mary Magdalene that Jesus’ tomb was empty, Peter and John race to the tomb, with Peter rushing past John who had stopped at the opening of the tomb. When John finally enters the tomb with Peter, the Bible says that John “saw and believed” (20:8). All that John needed to believe was to see the empty tomb.

Mary Gets It

However, the story continues with Mary hanging around the tomb crying, because she doesn’t understand what has happened. She doesn’t realize yet that Jesus is risen, and thinks instead that people have stolen his body. Mary begins to interact with someone whom she assumes is a gardener, but who is really Jesus, and she doesn’t realize that it is Jesus until he calls her by name: “Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out…Rabboni!” (20:16). All that Mary needed to believe was for Jesus to call her by name.

Thomas Gets It (Finally)

And then the story comes to Thomas, who for some reason was absent the first time Jesus appears to his disciples behind locked doors. He indicates that he will not (or cannot) believe until he can both see and touch Jesus. And when he does? He responds by uttering something no one else had declared and maybe understood up to this point, he declares Jesus’ divinity and his humanity by saying, “My Lord and my God!” (20:28). What Thomas needed to believe was Jesus standing in front of him.

It may have taken Thomas much longer to get it, but when he got it, he really got it. Thomas may have needed something more to believe, but his belief transforms his understanding of Jesus.

There are times when we may struggle with doubt, needing a little something extra to get us through a difficulty or a trial, yet our connections and stories to God are all unique and individual just as much as we are unique and individual. In all of the examples, God meets us where we are, with what we need to believe, and hopefully, when we get it, we really get it….

Miracles Take Time

2011-10-17T14:54:00.000-07:00

Wrestling with Time…

Time is something that we all wrestle with, and it seems as if time is the enemy in our lives. We have deadlines, time constraints, and we are constantly racing against time so we can feel like we are living our lives and not "wasting time." We live our lives by watches, clocks, and timers.

Our world is marked by time, but God is not. God does not rush around making sure all His miracles and plans happen.

Consider this thought…

From the time of Adam and Eve, it was anywhere from 4-6 thousand years for Jesus to be born, and we have been waiting almost 2000 years for Jesus to return.

Consider this passage in Luke 8:40-56…

Both of these stories have to do with time:

The woman had been bleeding for 12 years.
The girl was 12 years old.
When the woman touched Jesus in verse 44, it says “immediately” her bleeding stopped.

Jesus took the Time…

Notice what Jesus does in this story with the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years. After the woman touched him, she was healed; there was nothing more that was needed. The woman was healed, everybody could have gone on their own way, because Jesus after all was in a hurry to go and heal the little girl.

Yet he stopped, and asked “who touched me?” The woman was already healed, Jesus knew who touched him, so why would Jesus take the time to do this?

Jesus needed to make a connection with this woman, for him to tell her that her faith had healed her, for him to recognize her public healing, and that she was no longer an outcast because of her illness. Jesus needed to acknowledge her and her faith. Jesus took the time to minister to this woman fully, and not just heal her physically, but heal her emotionally.

Timing for the Girl’s Miracle…

However, in the space of time that it took for the woman to be healed, another person who was supposed to be healed, died. Someone else seemed to get in the way of the Synagogue ruler’s miracle.

I wonder if he thought, “Why is Jesus stopping to ask who touched him, when there is a crowd of people around him? Everybody is touching him. Doesn’t he know that my daughter is dying.

And then the blow: a servant comes out to tell them that the daughter is dead.

Yet that’s not the end of the story. What looked to be a hopeless situation, God miraculously restored.

12 Years…

· There is a reason why Luke indicates the girl’s age as being the same length of time that the woman had been sick

· There is a reason why Jesus was delayed in getting to the sick little girl.

· There is a reason why the thing that delayed Jesus from coming was a miracle 12 years in the making for somebody else.

We often look at the things that seem to prevent our miracle from happening rather than see what God is trying to do in our lives. Yet God moves in ways that go against our concept of time; God has a time schedule that transcends ours.

Miracles always take time. While miracles may seem to be instantaneous, they may have been days, weeks, months, or even years in process, and it is in the process that God changes our lives inwardly while we wait for the outward miracle….

God's Pursuit

2011-10-14T15:23:00.000-07:00

The story of Jonah has been a great children’s story, told and re-told so many times that as with some familiar stories, it can lose its impact over time.

It is the story of one man running from a mission from God he did not want to do. Jonah's attempt to flee from God reminds me of the poem by Francis Thompson, titled "The Hound of Heaven."

"I FLED Him, down the nights and down the days;

I fled Him, down the arches of the years;

I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways

Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears

I hid from Him, and under running laughter.

Up vistaed hopes I sped;

And shot, precipitated, Adown Titanic glooms of chasmèd fears,

From those strong Feet that followed, followed after [italics added] [sic]" (para. 1).

This dynamic story of Jonah and God illustrates an unusual aspect of God not often seen in scripture. Can you think of any other story in the Bible, where God pursued someone who was running from a task to which God called them? Was God chasing Jonah to show him who was boss? Or is it possible that the mission to which God called Jonah was important, and therefore, why was Jonah's mission so important?

Is it possible that this story isn’t about Jonah but about the group of people God was trying to save?

Consider the last verse of the book:

“But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city [italics added]” (Jonah 4:11, NIV).

Consider also His response to the city’s repentance: “When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened [italics added]” (Jonah 3:10).

Could it be that God’s pursuit of Jonah in this story is not about Jonah, though Jonah certainly thought it was (Jonah 4:1-9), but about His pursuit of the nation of Assyria? The over-arching theme in this story shows God’s love for everyone, even a despised Gentile nation who were not the chosen ones of Israel. This story reflects God's love, His compassion, and His love for a despised people. This story is about God, not Jonah, and His pursuit of a group of people upon whom He wanted to show compassion.

This story, as are all Biblical stories, are about God and how His story connects to humanity’s story….

References

Thompson, F. (2000). The Hound of Heaven. In D.H.S. Nicholson and A.H.E. Lee (Eds.), The Oxford Book of English Mystical Verse (239.). New York: Bartleby.com.

Fruit & Growth

2011-10-13T18:32:00.000-07:00

Acting as if We Cared is Not Enough

We are all familiar with Paul’s words in Galatians 5:22-23, where he discusses the fruit of the spirit. We might even be able to list all eight of the fruits. Yet I think very few of us, myself including, understand Paul’s tree and fruit analogy.

I used to think that all one needed to do was to simply act loving, kind, gentle, etc., and I would then bear the fruit of the spirit. Yet this belief does not square with Paul’s use of the tree analogy.

Trees & Growth

The tree analogy illustrates that only a healthy tree can produce good fruit, in the right season, and as a result of proper amounts of sunshine, water/rain, and pruning. A tree does not simply decide to bear fruit because it thinks it should or whenever it wants to. It bears fruit as a result of something happening within, without, and with the help of nature.

Comparing the spiritual walk with trees is common throughout scripture. Psalm 1:3 describes the person who is “like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season” (NIV). This person yields fruit because he or she first delights in God’s word, and meditates on it day and night (Psalm 1:2). Additionally John 15 contains the famous “I am the vine, you are the branches” metaphor. Jesus indicates that “If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit….”

As Jesus, the writer of Psalm 1, and Paul describe it, fruit is born out of a relationship with the Spirit, a relationship to God’s Word, and a relationship that remains in Jesus. In other words, those who remain intimately connected to Jesus, those who meditate and absorb God’s word, and those who live by the Spirit, bear fruit as a result.

Actions Only = No Growth

Paul goes on tells us in verses 24-25 of this same passage in Galatians that, “Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”

What does the law have to do with bearing fruit? Merely following the law-doing good works, obeying rules, and performing certain religious practices-will not cause you to bear spiritual fruit. Following the law as the priority focuses on outward actions or behaviors, and does not necessarily cause a person to examine the condition of the heart or spirit. Yet bearing the fruit of the Spirit involves living by the Spirit, the term “living” implying not just actions, but also a lifestyle of abiding in the Spirit (John 15:5).

Therefore, while action is important in our walk with the Spirit, acting in a certain way alone does not cause a person’s spirit to bear fruit. Bearing the fruit of the Spirit comes as a result of intentionally remaining in Jesus and being connected to the vine, purposefully living by the Spirit, and meditating upon God’s Words.

Picked Last

2011-10-12T17:39:00.000-07:00

If you ever had the experience as a child of being picked last while the playground sports teams were being divided up, you might resonate with this story that Jesus tells in Matthew 20.

Growing up, I never really understood this parable. It is the story of the generous landowner, or the parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, but being the person who followed the rules and worked hard, I never thought this story was fair. How was it fair to give the same amount of money to those workers who were hired last as those who were hired first? Was Jesus really saying that it did not matter how hard a person worked, that their reward would be the same?

After spending some time on this parable, I realized that I immediately identified with those workers who had been working all day, and who were incensed that the landowner would give the same amount of wages to everyone, despite what time they were hired.

I then decided I would put myself in the position of those workers who were hired last, and I then began to ask, why were these workers hired last? I began to examine the landowner’s interaction with the workers in verses 6-7: "About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?' 7 " 'Because no one has hired us,' they answered. "He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard [italics added]" (NRSV).

It was the end of the day, but no one had hired them; why? Everyone else had been hired, but they had not.

If we were hiring people to do manual labor for us, we would want the strongest, possibly the youngest, or the most able people we could find. (I have moved quite a few times in the last few years, seeking assistance from many teenagers and college students, and I can attest to the need for strong and able helpers!)

Therefore, is it possible that these “eleventh hour” workers were not the strongest, youngest, or most able? Had they been rejected by other landowners? Moreover, would these workers have had families to feed, mortgages, and bills to pay? How would these workers have felt to be hired at the end of the day, when no one else would hire them? What would their response have been to the landowner’s generosity when he paid them the same amount as the others?

When we look at it from the “picked last” group’s perspective, we see another side to this parable. This parable illustrates how far-reaching God's love is. This parable tells us that the Kingdom of God is for everyone, that despite your background, your intelligence, or your socioeconomic status, you are welcome in God's Kingdom.

For those of us who have ever felt not good enough, not pretty enough, not smart enough, not talented enough, God still chooses us! God chooses us even when everyone else has passed us by or rejected us. We may be picked last, but as Jesus says in the verse preceding this parable in 19:30, "But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first" (NIV).

Perfection: An Impossible Standard?

2011-10-10T14:08:00.000-07:00

Being the perfectionist that I am, I have always struggled with this verse from Matthew 5:48, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect" (NIV).

Definition of Perfection

In order to understand and apply this concept, we have usually said that though we cannot be perfect in actuality, we still need to strive for perfection because God looks at our effort and that is all that matters. However, this borders a little on legalism, trying to earn our salvation through our own effort (Rom. 3:20). Moreover, as a self-proclaimed "perfectionaholic," I can testify to the trap this type of legalism offers.

Unfortunately, our Americanized understanding of the word "perfect" has imposed an impossible standard upon this verse. We view the concept of being perfect as without any imperfections or problems, cracks, errors, mistakes, etc. Yet this modern connotation strips the depth, growth, and maturity denotations from the original Greek word teleios, which means "complete, perfect, whole," in addition to "full-grown," and "mature" (The Greek New Testament, p. 180).

Additionally, notice that the verses preceding this one in Matthew talk about loving our enemies, which is by itself an incredibly hard task.

John Wesley on Perfection

John Wesley, the originator of the concept of "Christian Perfection" had a different type of perfection in mind. According to Lawrence W. Wood (1988), "For Wesley, holiness is a process of becoming in reality what already is ours in Christ through the new birth. Holiness is the dialectic moment in which Christ's pure love becomes an inner reality for the believer. This dialectic moment is a becoming, a process" (p. 96). Elsewhere Wood, continuing to comment on Wesley's theology, says, "Sanctification [the process of being holy/perfect] is love for God and others" (p. 115).

Loving Perfection

Therefore, what Jesus is telling us in this passage of Matthew is to strive for wholeness, completeness, and maturity as he is whole, complete, and our "perfect" example of maturity. To be perfect, and to be like God in completeness and perfection, we are to love in a way that stretches us at the core of our being, which is the act of loving those who do not deserve it. To be perfect, is to be whole and to be whole is to love like God loves. Without this type of wholeness or growth in wholeness, we cannot love effectively, not to mention even attempt to love our enemies. Out of our growth in God and growth toward maturity, we become able to love and thus more like.

References:

Aland, B., Aland, K., Karavidopoulos, J., Martini, C.M., & Metzger, B.M. (Eds). (2001). The Greek New Testament. Fourth Revised Edition ed. Germany: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, United Bible Societies.

Wood, L.W. (1988). The Wesleyan View. In Alexander, D. L., (ed.), Christian Spirituality: Five Views of Sanctification. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

Wrestling

2011-10-10T13:14:00.000-07:00

None of us like pain. The old adage that once you put your hand on a hot stove, you learn not to put your hand there again is true. Unfortunately, our body's natural reaction to pain is also what hinders us from growth; as another old adage says, "No pain, no gain."

Jacob’s Wrestling

In Genesis 32 Jacob experienced this concept of no gain without pain firsthand. Jacob is worriedly awaiting his brother Esau's impending arrival and having sent his family and possessions ahead of him, he stops for the night by the river Jabbok and prays; it is here that he experiences pain with incredible gain.

There by the river Jacob encounters a mysterious person with no introduction, no name, yet somehow Jacob knows that this person is important. We find out later in the story and in Hosea 12 that this person was God. In a curious manner, Jacob wrestles with this "man" all night. As a way to free himself, the man wrenches Jacob's hip from its socket, an incredibly painful thing for anyone who has experienced a joint out of socket. Yet Jacob still refuses to let the man go until he receives a blessing from him.

Jacob’s Transformation

Finally, the man asks for Jacob's name. Names were attached to a person’s identity in that time in history, and they declared a person’s character. Your name defined you as a person and had significance. Yet what was Jacob's name? It meant "deceiver," or literally, "he grasps the heel." Jacob, with one utterance of his name, defined himself as a deceiver, which is what he had been all his life. He exposed his character to this "man," yet in so doing receives more than he could have imagined. He receives not just a blessing, but also a transformation; his name is changed to Israel, which means "he struggles with God." His name and therefore his character is changed in that instant.

Jacob wrestled because he was in desperate need. His brother was heading towards him, and Jacob had no way of knowing how everything would turn out. Jacob was in need of a blessing, and in turn, he receives a transformation. His wrestling with God changed his life forever. (Notice though, that he is forever reminded of the event with a limp.)

Our Transformation

Too often, we are guilty of not "wrestling" with God to a place of transformation. We give up, we avoid the pain, or we simply lose hope. Yet our understanding of God cannot grow and our relationship with Him cannot mature unless we wrestle. Our theology is shallow until it becomes deeply rooted in the process of wrestling with God. Our character is not fully developed until we have learned to wrestle and struggle with God. Otherwise, our theology or our understanding and study of God, if not rooted deeply, will in times of crisis become uprooted quickly.

No pain, no gain.