I have talked about these verses before... but I want to add a layer.
Exodus 19:5-6 (NIV)
Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all the nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.
This is one of the amazing promises that God gave to Israel. And we are offered this same promise.
1 Peter 2:5,9 (NIV)
You also, like living stones, are being built up into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness and into His wonderful light.
We are a Kingdom of Priests
That is who we are. There is nothing new here yet. This is long time church doctrine rooted in good biblical exegesis. The next step is where things get fun for me.
What the heck does that mean? What do we do? And again, I have talked about this before but quick review...
Priests serve 4 basic functions:
1. They become the physical representation of their god - They put their god on display
2. They are the mediator that is the voice box of their god to the people - They speak the words of their god to the people
3. They intercede on the people's behalf to their god - They tell the god what the people need
4. They properly distribute their god's resources to meet needs - they make a statement about the power of their god by caring for those less fortunate
I want to ask one simple question with this post that is pretty important to wrestle with.
How do I put my God on display to the world?
At one level, the answer is simple: obey. And that is true, but there may be a few more layers to unfold before we get down to the nitty-gritty of living as a priest of our God.
What does obedience look like? Simple answer - do what God says. Follow the rules. Okay that sounds fairly straight forward. But there seems to be a million more questions that need to be asked before I can just obey.
When I was a kid, the idea of simple obedience didn't work. It had to be connected to something deeper. My parents hoped that when I got older, maturity would bring a trust that would allow me to just do what I was supposed to without the questions, and without the "trial and error."
It didn't.
In fact, at one level, getting older made it worse. I had more and more questions about what obedience actually is and why these rules and who does He think He is and on and on.
Some thoughts: first, obedience isn't about control. He isn't trying to make us obey for obedience's sake. God's rules are about revealing His nature. We don't steal because God is generous. We don't murder because God is life. We take care of the alien, the orphan and the widow because God is compassionate. We don't commit adultery because God is love. Each of God's "laws" are a revelation of His amazing character.
Second, consistent within these laws, is the truth that we will each fulfill these commandments in slightly different ways. "Love your neighbor as yourself" is a command of God and obviously has direct implications on my time, my energy, and my self control. But what it specifically looks like is as unique as I am. And that may be the bigger point (more on that in a bit).
Some will love their neighbor by being kind. Some will love their neighbor by taking them a meal, or mowing the lawn, or building a solid friendship. All of these things would be considered "loving" but not all of them will be done by everybody. Loving my neighbor for some would include helping on a home improvement project. I can promise you that I would not be loving to my neighbor if I got involved in that. But to sit down have a meaningful conversation with them about tough issues - this would be me acting in a very loving way.
And God smiles when I act in ways that are consistent with 2 things: His "rules, laws, and commands" that reveal His character. And, my created design that is unique and important but displays a piece of God in the situation that only I can bring.
And BOTH of these truths needs to be in line for us to truly understand what it means to put our God on display. We reveal the nature and the character of God as we obey His commands consistent with who we are. This is at the core of us possessing the image of God.
The "Imago Dei" doctrine says that God put a little piece of Himself in you. What is that piece?
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him male and female he created them.
Genesis 1:26-27
Is this just a broad overarching thing like, we have a soul and we walk on 2 legs? Or is there something deeper, more mysterious, and more profound? If God is consistent with with all the rest of the text, I choose deeper and more profound.
What does it mean to bare the Imago Dei?
Simply this: God has put an amazing piece of Himself in you. Not all of Himself, but a piece. And that piece is important - it is God Himself revealing to the world who He is through you. But in order to truly experience all of God's nature, we need others who are also given this little piece of God's nature. And together we round one another out and give a broader picture of our God than we ever thought possible.
So maybe the notion that I need to just obey is incomplete. Obedience is God's love language, no doubt. But maybe a better way to understand following God is that I obey His commands in a way that is consistent with the design God gave me within the context of a community that calls out and celebrates the design God puts in people and His work around us.
Does your church do that?
Monday, December 15, 2014
Saturday, November 1, 2014
A Key to Unlock Jesus...
http://ourrabbijesus.com/2014/10/31/jesus-the-metaphorical-theologian-ken-bailey/
This is worth reading. ANY serious bible scholar MUST understand Jesus in His historical context before EVER making ANY interpretive assumptions.
This is worth reading. ANY serious bible scholar MUST understand Jesus in His historical context before EVER making ANY interpretive assumptions.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
A Lesson I am Learning...
I don't always have much that is profound to write. I am just pondering or still considering the issues faced in the last post. So, it is always a challenge to come up with something that I at least believe is worth giving up the 15 minutes you will sacrifice to read this. Today is one of those days. I don't have anything of particular significance to write about. And in the spirit of nothing to say, I thought I would just write down a few words about where God has me in my own growth and how I am seeing it play out.
So here is the question I am wrestling with… How does God change us?
Set the theological constructs aside for a minute and consider the question. God and I have amazing conversations. And by amazing conversations, I mean that I talk a lot and He listens. And He reassures me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. And He reminds me that I am in His grip. And He gently whispers to me that I am never out of the reach of His mighty arm.
And then, I still act insecure and fearful. I act as if I am alone and betrayed. I act as though I had never acknowledged God's promises as true to begin with.
Then I come to another amazing conversation. And He reassures me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. And He reminds me that I am in His grip… And so on… And His loving kindness always trumps the conversation.
And then a good friend shared something with me one day… How does God change me? His loving kindness.
And I wept.
For all my foolishness and fear, God's invitation is to love what He put in me as much as He does. And God simply and continually reaffirms the goodness and potential of what He knit into my soul in my mother's womb.
And this powerful truth changes me somehow. I can rest in what God has made me rather than seeing it as a curse or a problem.
But it raises another question… How am I doing at reflecting that loving kindness to others? And here, it gets real sticky, real quick.
Like many people, I struggle to "listen to others without agenda." What I mean is, too often I find myself already giving a person direction on how to "fix" their problem before I have even truly heard what the real problem is.
My same friend said it this way - When you listen to truly understand someone, you make money. When you talk, you spend it. That is a bit of a dagger in my heart considering what I do for a living - I teach, I talk, I direct, I lead.
But I want to listen more. I want to fight to truly understand those around me better. And as with my conversations with God, the more I practice this idea, something changes in me.
So here is my tactic… maybe you can try it on and see how it goes. No promise from me about the outcome. I am still on this journey as well. When someone talks to me, all I do is fight for clarity. No agenda, no leading, no "fixing", no help - just listening to understand. Fighting for clarity.
This isn't some parroting back exercise either. It is not counseling nor is it a "technique to get people to move." It is simply trying to act like God acts in my amazing conversations with Him. Listen a lot. Work to truly understand. And invite people to consider the truth of who they are from God's vantage point.
What I am beginning to uncover - this is like nuclear power in my life, and the lives of those I care enough about to truly fight to understand. The power is not in my ideas, or fixes, or "help." But the power lies in truly feeling "heard" and understood by another human being. And it ties into something deeper in a person than I have ever experienced. This eternal piece of us that longs to be unleashed and set free. And it unlocks and transforms places in our lives where we would have otherwise felt stuck.
And again, God reaffirms to me that I cannot separate loving Him and loving people.
Try it on and let me know what happens. No fixing, no counseling, just listening for understanding.
So here is the question I am wrestling with… How does God change us?
Set the theological constructs aside for a minute and consider the question. God and I have amazing conversations. And by amazing conversations, I mean that I talk a lot and He listens. And He reassures me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. And He reminds me that I am in His grip. And He gently whispers to me that I am never out of the reach of His mighty arm.
And then, I still act insecure and fearful. I act as if I am alone and betrayed. I act as though I had never acknowledged God's promises as true to begin with.
Then I come to another amazing conversation. And He reassures me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. And He reminds me that I am in His grip… And so on… And His loving kindness always trumps the conversation.
And then a good friend shared something with me one day… How does God change me? His loving kindness.
And I wept.
For all my foolishness and fear, God's invitation is to love what He put in me as much as He does. And God simply and continually reaffirms the goodness and potential of what He knit into my soul in my mother's womb.
And this powerful truth changes me somehow. I can rest in what God has made me rather than seeing it as a curse or a problem.
But it raises another question… How am I doing at reflecting that loving kindness to others? And here, it gets real sticky, real quick.
Like many people, I struggle to "listen to others without agenda." What I mean is, too often I find myself already giving a person direction on how to "fix" their problem before I have even truly heard what the real problem is.
My same friend said it this way - When you listen to truly understand someone, you make money. When you talk, you spend it. That is a bit of a dagger in my heart considering what I do for a living - I teach, I talk, I direct, I lead.
But I want to listen more. I want to fight to truly understand those around me better. And as with my conversations with God, the more I practice this idea, something changes in me.
So here is my tactic… maybe you can try it on and see how it goes. No promise from me about the outcome. I am still on this journey as well. When someone talks to me, all I do is fight for clarity. No agenda, no leading, no "fixing", no help - just listening to understand. Fighting for clarity.
This isn't some parroting back exercise either. It is not counseling nor is it a "technique to get people to move." It is simply trying to act like God acts in my amazing conversations with Him. Listen a lot. Work to truly understand. And invite people to consider the truth of who they are from God's vantage point.
What I am beginning to uncover - this is like nuclear power in my life, and the lives of those I care enough about to truly fight to understand. The power is not in my ideas, or fixes, or "help." But the power lies in truly feeling "heard" and understood by another human being. And it ties into something deeper in a person than I have ever experienced. This eternal piece of us that longs to be unleashed and set free. And it unlocks and transforms places in our lives where we would have otherwise felt stuck.
And again, God reaffirms to me that I cannot separate loving Him and loving people.
Try it on and let me know what happens. No fixing, no counseling, just listening for understanding.
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Being Jesus to Christians...
I know I will take some flack for this one… it is okay. I choose grace.
Recently, Mark Driscoll made a video for HIS church family (not everyone in the world, even though we all seem to want to see it). In it, he talked about some of the things going on with Mars Hill in "this season of the church."
My summation: along the way, he has made some enemies because of how he has conducted himself in banter on all kinds of topics from women's rolls to doctrine to contemporary issues to the treatment of some of his staff.
Let me state for the record - I think he was wrong for HOW he did what he did.
Many of those who are God followers have responded with "an eye for an eye". He deserves to be treated the same way he treated others. The "punishment must fit the crime." Tit for tat. However you want to put it, many who would say that they are motivated, awakened, and changed by the love of Jesus have responded in kind in trying to make sure that he understands the depth of the hurt and damage that he has caused.
The concern I have - the reason we get so upset at him for the abrupt words and positions that he has used over the years is that we believe that in Christ, no one should be treated that way - no one. Jesus says - even an enemy.
Now to the point - He is repenting, and trying to fix it. And the truth is, that takes a lot of character. No matter what any of us might think about him as a person, I admire that he has really exposed his mistake and been vulnerable about the whole issue.
So, I have a few thoughts I would like to share that I hope would help all of us who are in the Christian community with the chance to process this series of events with other believers.
1. If you have been personally wounded and/or offended by Mark, I am sorry. I don't pretend to know what all has gone on in really any of the conversations and issues that have happened.
That being said, I am absolutely confident that airing dirty laundry on a social media is not in line with any form of how Jesus said that we who say we follow Him are to deal with conflict.
2. Whether or not we believe that ANY Christian leader should be in a leadership position, it is the Lord who sets up kings and tears down kingdoms. I would submit David's conversation with Abishai concerning the chance to kill Saul in his sleep, "Who am I to touch the Lord's anointed?"
The fact is whether or not any of us thinks someone should be in a position of influence is of absolutely no consequence. God gave that person their position of influence whether I think it is a good idea or not. And my ability to come to terms with that says more about me and my relationship to God than it does about any leader. This is His world and He can take care of it in His way and His time. My job is to trust His story and be faithful in my own life.
Our task is to pray for those who are in that position because it is in all our best interest if they do well, not if they "pay for their mistakes."
3. When we beat someone up for confessing sin, we keep them from wanting to confess again. The church is a place of healing and redemption, not a place of making someone pay.
And for many of you who are barking the loudest, you work in churches or are a part of church families where broken people (including you) come to church every week. If the response of anger and venom and vindication that is being portrayed becomes known to your people, it will not only shape their ability to respect christian leaders, but it will also keep them quiet about their own sin, even if it is not connected to the issue that is out front.
4. "It is mine to avenge, I will repay says the Lord." Do you believe that?
I want to say again, I do not agree in any way with what Driscoll said in many places and how he said it was abrasive and terse to put it kindly. However, being Jesus in those circumstances has to mean that I do not hold the anger and pain of those things against him.
"For though he was reviled against, He reviled not." This is Jesus, and it should be you.
I am excited to see a Christian leader with the guts to at least admit that he has dirty laundry and that he is at least trying to clean it up. When was the last time we saw that happen? And if we don't lovingly forgive and show the grace we have been given, then we will keep that from happening in more christian leaders down the road.
And as a pastor, I know that I am not perfect, and that I need permission to be able to confess and repent without the fear of being ridiculed and demeaned. No one should ever agree with me sinning, but my hope is that we can begin to love and forgive enough that other leaders feel like they can get their junk on the table as well.
If you want to see Jesus do something amazing in the U.S., I think it begins from this posture.
Our response really isn't even about Mark Driscoll or any other single christian leader. It is about creating an environment where sinners get forgiven and people are set free. It is about all of us - especially you.
Recently, Mark Driscoll made a video for HIS church family (not everyone in the world, even though we all seem to want to see it). In it, he talked about some of the things going on with Mars Hill in "this season of the church."
My summation: along the way, he has made some enemies because of how he has conducted himself in banter on all kinds of topics from women's rolls to doctrine to contemporary issues to the treatment of some of his staff.
Let me state for the record - I think he was wrong for HOW he did what he did.
Many of those who are God followers have responded with "an eye for an eye". He deserves to be treated the same way he treated others. The "punishment must fit the crime." Tit for tat. However you want to put it, many who would say that they are motivated, awakened, and changed by the love of Jesus have responded in kind in trying to make sure that he understands the depth of the hurt and damage that he has caused.
The concern I have - the reason we get so upset at him for the abrupt words and positions that he has used over the years is that we believe that in Christ, no one should be treated that way - no one. Jesus says - even an enemy.
Now to the point - He is repenting, and trying to fix it. And the truth is, that takes a lot of character. No matter what any of us might think about him as a person, I admire that he has really exposed his mistake and been vulnerable about the whole issue.
So, I have a few thoughts I would like to share that I hope would help all of us who are in the Christian community with the chance to process this series of events with other believers.
1. If you have been personally wounded and/or offended by Mark, I am sorry. I don't pretend to know what all has gone on in really any of the conversations and issues that have happened.
That being said, I am absolutely confident that airing dirty laundry on a social media is not in line with any form of how Jesus said that we who say we follow Him are to deal with conflict.
2. Whether or not we believe that ANY Christian leader should be in a leadership position, it is the Lord who sets up kings and tears down kingdoms. I would submit David's conversation with Abishai concerning the chance to kill Saul in his sleep, "Who am I to touch the Lord's anointed?"
The fact is whether or not any of us thinks someone should be in a position of influence is of absolutely no consequence. God gave that person their position of influence whether I think it is a good idea or not. And my ability to come to terms with that says more about me and my relationship to God than it does about any leader. This is His world and He can take care of it in His way and His time. My job is to trust His story and be faithful in my own life.
Our task is to pray for those who are in that position because it is in all our best interest if they do well, not if they "pay for their mistakes."
3. When we beat someone up for confessing sin, we keep them from wanting to confess again. The church is a place of healing and redemption, not a place of making someone pay.
And for many of you who are barking the loudest, you work in churches or are a part of church families where broken people (including you) come to church every week. If the response of anger and venom and vindication that is being portrayed becomes known to your people, it will not only shape their ability to respect christian leaders, but it will also keep them quiet about their own sin, even if it is not connected to the issue that is out front.
4. "It is mine to avenge, I will repay says the Lord." Do you believe that?
I want to say again, I do not agree in any way with what Driscoll said in many places and how he said it was abrasive and terse to put it kindly. However, being Jesus in those circumstances has to mean that I do not hold the anger and pain of those things against him.
"For though he was reviled against, He reviled not." This is Jesus, and it should be you.
I am excited to see a Christian leader with the guts to at least admit that he has dirty laundry and that he is at least trying to clean it up. When was the last time we saw that happen? And if we don't lovingly forgive and show the grace we have been given, then we will keep that from happening in more christian leaders down the road.
And as a pastor, I know that I am not perfect, and that I need permission to be able to confess and repent without the fear of being ridiculed and demeaned. No one should ever agree with me sinning, but my hope is that we can begin to love and forgive enough that other leaders feel like they can get their junk on the table as well.
If you want to see Jesus do something amazing in the U.S., I think it begins from this posture.
Our response really isn't even about Mark Driscoll or any other single christian leader. It is about creating an environment where sinners get forgiven and people are set free. It is about all of us - especially you.
Monday, May 5, 2014
A question about influence, and holiness, and dreams, and other stuff
Genesis 12:1-3
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Call of Abram
12 Now the Lord said[a] to Abram, “Go from your country[b] and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
2 Samuel 7:8-10
English Standard Version (ESV)
8 Now, therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince[a] over my people Israel. 9 And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 10 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more.And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly,
1 Kings 1:46-48
English Standard Version (ESV)
46 Solomon sits on the royal throne. 47 Moreover, the king's servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself on the bed. 48 And the king also said, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who has granted someone[a] to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it.’”
1 Chronicles 17:7-9
English Standard Version (ESV)
7 Now, therefore, thus shall you say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be prince over my people Israel, 8 and I have been with you wherever you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 9 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall waste them no more, as formerly,
So, I just got back from the Exponential Conference in Orlando, Florida. For those that have not heard about this conference, it is the largest church planting conference in the world. I got the amazing privilege of speaking there at a couple of break out sessions.
The line up of main stage speakers was amazing. They were challenging and inspirational. They were moving and convicting. And they weren't any better than the break outs that I attended. Which leads me to a question…
What determines influence? Why does one guy get to speak on the main stage and another guy who is equally a moving and inspirational speaker gets to speak to 15 people in a portable that is 90 degrees and terribly uncomfortable?
This really isn't about an ax to grind for me. I am curious what determines influence? Is this simply a sovereign choice of God? or is there something on my part connected to this idea? Is personal holiness connected to this?
I really don't know… I would love your input.
So, I just got back from the Exponential Conference in Orlando, Florida. For those that have not heard about this conference, it is the largest church planting conference in the world. I got the amazing privilege of speaking there at a couple of break out sessions.
The line up of main stage speakers was amazing. They were challenging and inspirational. They were moving and convicting. And they weren't any better than the break outs that I attended. Which leads me to a question…
What determines influence? Why does one guy get to speak on the main stage and another guy who is equally a moving and inspirational speaker gets to speak to 15 people in a portable that is 90 degrees and terribly uncomfortable?
This really isn't about an ax to grind for me. I am curious what determines influence? Is this simply a sovereign choice of God? or is there something on my part connected to this idea? Is personal holiness connected to this?
I really don't know… I would love your input.
Thursday, April 3, 2014
It's funny… Not really...
The opening line of my last post read something like this…
"So I will be straight… this post is going to be a soap box. And quite frankly, if you disagree, keep it to yourself."
Actually it didn't read something like that, this is a copy and paste quote from my last blog post. And I said that because I wanted to further my case on my impetuous for the blog post from the beginning. I knew people couldn't keep their opinions to themselves. And they didn't. And they won't on this one either. Because they can't. And because they believe that if I or everyone else just saw things from their perspective, it would all be fixed. Not only is that terribly naive and foolish, but it is a complete disregard for the complexity of the human condition. There is no one size fits all solution for humanity. Unless we want to get as broad as we all must just love Jesus. I agree with that. But it seems that the application of that is as vast and nuanced as people themselves.
So, I want to rebut a few of the statements that have been made along the way in hopes of refining what I am saying to make sure that I am saying it correctly.
But before that, 2 side notes:
First, Thanks for reading all this. As an external processor, a blog is a great outlet to process where I am coming from for myself. Hopefully, it can be a blessing to others as well. And may this conversation be inspirational for us all!
Second, one comment about the Noah movie, then back to the real issue. One point that is being harped on over and over is the "rock monsters." We would read in the Bible that they are the Nephilim. First, for anyone to say that they couldn't be rock creatures gives you more insight than anyone else in history. Quite frankly, no one knows what the Nephilim were. Now, we have some speculations. And there are some educated guesses. But no one knows what they were for sure… NO ONE! Aronofsky (who has a Jewish background) does in fact have some grounds to consider here. There is much written in the Midrash about the Nephilim. And part of that conversation is about rock monsters. So please be careful. Before you start slinging mud out of your own ignorance make sure that you have done the right research. You do not have to agree with him, but trying to turn unstable ground into solid places to take a stand is not good and only serves to make one look foolish and irrelevant.
There is much more I would like to say about this… translucent bodies for Adam and Eve, etc. But we will save that conversation for that cup of coffee I offered in my last post. No one has taken me up on that yet, by the way. But they sure have taken the opportunity to write about how they think I am wrong.
Back to my point:
There have been 3 main arguments put up as reasons why what I am saying is inadequate or wrong or however you want to put it. There are obviously subsets of these 3 but it falls into one of 3 areas that I want to address here.
1. It seems like you are just compromising your doctrine.
I see where you are coming from with this one. It could feel that way. But I have some thoughts on this that might change your mind.
First, not every biblical disagreement is a doctrinal one. For example, the rock monsters. This is not a doctrinal disagreement, nor does it affect any of our orthodoxy or orthopraxy at any level. It is one idea that is as equally valid as any other idea about the Nephilim. And you will probably want to fight me on that, but be careful the ground on which you stand. Make sure it is as solid as you might think. Just because someone that you trusted as a good Bible scholar said something about them one time doesn't make it so. And while their opinion matters in the conversation, it is no more valid than any other opinion.
Second, I am not leading us down a primrose path to apathy. In fact, I am asking for the exact opposite. I want all of us to be passionate about what Jesus was passionate about. He was not passionate about proving people wrong. Oh, He did that from time to time, but read His message. What He was passionate about was liberation for the oppressed. He was passionate about loving God with EVERYTHING in a person. He was passionate about meeting brokenness on its own terms and inviting it to wholeness. He was passionate about generosity, forgiveness, and grace.
He was NOT passionate about making sure that His opinion was heard or even understood. "He who has ears let him hear."
2. We HAVE to stand up for what is right, and you are saying we can't.
I do not see this one at all. But let's look at it for a moment.
Never, EVER, did I say, "do not have an opinion." Never, EVER, did I say, "Do not express your opinion." I would say at this point that those values (the ability and need to express your opinion) are American, not necessarily biblical, but as long as we live in a country that gives us the freedom to express our opinion, we can and should do so.
HOWEVER, you do not have the right to fight like the devil for the things of God. You are a God follower first, and a citizen second - period. And my point is to simply consider the fruit of your delivery method. you can post big sweeping statements on Facebook all day long and only serve to make people more angry and more alienated.
-OR-
You can sit down with someone that you care about deeply and visit with them over a cup of coffee. Believe me I have done enough of both in my life to know that caring enough about someone to invest my time in the relationship has produced some amazing fruit. In their lives and in my own. I am a richer, fuller, more well rounded person because of the investment of time. It heals my soul at the same time that they can hear my point.
And for those of you who happen to agree with me… you do not have the right to spout off either. You cannot throw this down and say SEE... WHAT HE SAID!!! We must all do our best to walk as Jesus walked. And at the risk of turning this into a Bible lesson - Halach is the Hebrew word for walk. It also means obey, do, act.
Don't let anyone ever allow the excuse of "I am not Jesus so I don't have to be nice" demean the reputation of your God.
3. We can only know God through the Word and so any time someone uses the Word in a way that I don't agree with, I HAVE to say something.
Let me be blunt… this is simply not true. And it will take only a few paragraphs to prove it.
Now, before I get going, I am not saying that you can know God completely outside of Scripture either. So don't do there. But to say that the Holy Spirit only works in and through us within the context of the Word is narrow and inadequate at every level.
The truth is, it is a mixture of the Word of God and our experiences that give us our understanding of who God is.
Back to the Noah movie…
One of the major critiques of the movie by Christians has been that it portrays God as mean and vengeful. And that God is loving and compassionate. Okay, I agree, but let's think for a minute. Where in the world would people get the notion that God is vengeful and mean?
Have you heard yourself lately? It is a contradiction at every level to say God is loving and full of grace and then talk about how God is going to bring down our country if we don't stop going down this moral path to destruction. To talk about how God is going to have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah if He doesn't do something soon in the U.S.????
I am not saying you are wrong, but hear what you are saying from the other side for a minute. You create a schism in people's minds that is irreparable. It is another example where Christians talk about one thing but show another. Or at a minimum we talk out of both sides of our mouths.
And to take it a step further… Have you ever had the world come crashing down around you? Be honest, and tell me your first thought wasn't that God was upset at you because you had done something or somethings wrong. Tell me you didn't think it was your fault - that God was somehow upset at you.
We have felt that way too. So rather than trying to belittle the movie, why not go out and find people who are in that desperate place (I promise they are not hard to find) and give them the hope that while there are stories that look that way in the Bible that there is a deeper story being told through those circumstances - a truer true that says that even the darkest parts of our lives have purpose and they are redeemed because God is good, not because the situation was good, but God is good and His mercies are new every morning.
But that isn't how we westerners do it. We don't want to have to get into real relationships. We just want to have the irrefutable truth and spout it from afar. We are much more concerned with being right than we are with being Godly.
And this brings us full circle… The right thing, done the wrong way, becomes the wrong thing.
Still waiting for that cup of coffee...
"So I will be straight… this post is going to be a soap box. And quite frankly, if you disagree, keep it to yourself."
Actually it didn't read something like that, this is a copy and paste quote from my last blog post. And I said that because I wanted to further my case on my impetuous for the blog post from the beginning. I knew people couldn't keep their opinions to themselves. And they didn't. And they won't on this one either. Because they can't. And because they believe that if I or everyone else just saw things from their perspective, it would all be fixed. Not only is that terribly naive and foolish, but it is a complete disregard for the complexity of the human condition. There is no one size fits all solution for humanity. Unless we want to get as broad as we all must just love Jesus. I agree with that. But it seems that the application of that is as vast and nuanced as people themselves.
So, I want to rebut a few of the statements that have been made along the way in hopes of refining what I am saying to make sure that I am saying it correctly.
But before that, 2 side notes:
First, Thanks for reading all this. As an external processor, a blog is a great outlet to process where I am coming from for myself. Hopefully, it can be a blessing to others as well. And may this conversation be inspirational for us all!
Second, one comment about the Noah movie, then back to the real issue. One point that is being harped on over and over is the "rock monsters." We would read in the Bible that they are the Nephilim. First, for anyone to say that they couldn't be rock creatures gives you more insight than anyone else in history. Quite frankly, no one knows what the Nephilim were. Now, we have some speculations. And there are some educated guesses. But no one knows what they were for sure… NO ONE! Aronofsky (who has a Jewish background) does in fact have some grounds to consider here. There is much written in the Midrash about the Nephilim. And part of that conversation is about rock monsters. So please be careful. Before you start slinging mud out of your own ignorance make sure that you have done the right research. You do not have to agree with him, but trying to turn unstable ground into solid places to take a stand is not good and only serves to make one look foolish and irrelevant.
There is much more I would like to say about this… translucent bodies for Adam and Eve, etc. But we will save that conversation for that cup of coffee I offered in my last post. No one has taken me up on that yet, by the way. But they sure have taken the opportunity to write about how they think I am wrong.
Back to my point:
There have been 3 main arguments put up as reasons why what I am saying is inadequate or wrong or however you want to put it. There are obviously subsets of these 3 but it falls into one of 3 areas that I want to address here.
1. It seems like you are just compromising your doctrine.
I see where you are coming from with this one. It could feel that way. But I have some thoughts on this that might change your mind.
First, not every biblical disagreement is a doctrinal one. For example, the rock monsters. This is not a doctrinal disagreement, nor does it affect any of our orthodoxy or orthopraxy at any level. It is one idea that is as equally valid as any other idea about the Nephilim. And you will probably want to fight me on that, but be careful the ground on which you stand. Make sure it is as solid as you might think. Just because someone that you trusted as a good Bible scholar said something about them one time doesn't make it so. And while their opinion matters in the conversation, it is no more valid than any other opinion.
Second, I am not leading us down a primrose path to apathy. In fact, I am asking for the exact opposite. I want all of us to be passionate about what Jesus was passionate about. He was not passionate about proving people wrong. Oh, He did that from time to time, but read His message. What He was passionate about was liberation for the oppressed. He was passionate about loving God with EVERYTHING in a person. He was passionate about meeting brokenness on its own terms and inviting it to wholeness. He was passionate about generosity, forgiveness, and grace.
He was NOT passionate about making sure that His opinion was heard or even understood. "He who has ears let him hear."
2. We HAVE to stand up for what is right, and you are saying we can't.
I do not see this one at all. But let's look at it for a moment.
Never, EVER, did I say, "do not have an opinion." Never, EVER, did I say, "Do not express your opinion." I would say at this point that those values (the ability and need to express your opinion) are American, not necessarily biblical, but as long as we live in a country that gives us the freedom to express our opinion, we can and should do so.
HOWEVER, you do not have the right to fight like the devil for the things of God. You are a God follower first, and a citizen second - period. And my point is to simply consider the fruit of your delivery method. you can post big sweeping statements on Facebook all day long and only serve to make people more angry and more alienated.
-OR-
You can sit down with someone that you care about deeply and visit with them over a cup of coffee. Believe me I have done enough of both in my life to know that caring enough about someone to invest my time in the relationship has produced some amazing fruit. In their lives and in my own. I am a richer, fuller, more well rounded person because of the investment of time. It heals my soul at the same time that they can hear my point.
And for those of you who happen to agree with me… you do not have the right to spout off either. You cannot throw this down and say SEE... WHAT HE SAID!!! We must all do our best to walk as Jesus walked. And at the risk of turning this into a Bible lesson - Halach is the Hebrew word for walk. It also means obey, do, act.
Don't let anyone ever allow the excuse of "I am not Jesus so I don't have to be nice" demean the reputation of your God.
3. We can only know God through the Word and so any time someone uses the Word in a way that I don't agree with, I HAVE to say something.
Let me be blunt… this is simply not true. And it will take only a few paragraphs to prove it.
Now, before I get going, I am not saying that you can know God completely outside of Scripture either. So don't do there. But to say that the Holy Spirit only works in and through us within the context of the Word is narrow and inadequate at every level.
The truth is, it is a mixture of the Word of God and our experiences that give us our understanding of who God is.
Back to the Noah movie…
One of the major critiques of the movie by Christians has been that it portrays God as mean and vengeful. And that God is loving and compassionate. Okay, I agree, but let's think for a minute. Where in the world would people get the notion that God is vengeful and mean?
Have you heard yourself lately? It is a contradiction at every level to say God is loving and full of grace and then talk about how God is going to bring down our country if we don't stop going down this moral path to destruction. To talk about how God is going to have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah if He doesn't do something soon in the U.S.????
I am not saying you are wrong, but hear what you are saying from the other side for a minute. You create a schism in people's minds that is irreparable. It is another example where Christians talk about one thing but show another. Or at a minimum we talk out of both sides of our mouths.
And to take it a step further… Have you ever had the world come crashing down around you? Be honest, and tell me your first thought wasn't that God was upset at you because you had done something or somethings wrong. Tell me you didn't think it was your fault - that God was somehow upset at you.
We have felt that way too. So rather than trying to belittle the movie, why not go out and find people who are in that desperate place (I promise they are not hard to find) and give them the hope that while there are stories that look that way in the Bible that there is a deeper story being told through those circumstances - a truer true that says that even the darkest parts of our lives have purpose and they are redeemed because God is good, not because the situation was good, but God is good and His mercies are new every morning.
But that isn't how we westerners do it. We don't want to have to get into real relationships. We just want to have the irrefutable truth and spout it from afar. We are much more concerned with being right than we are with being Godly.
And this brings us full circle… The right thing, done the wrong way, becomes the wrong thing.
Still waiting for that cup of coffee...
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
As a Christian, I want to say that Christians are difficult if not impossible to please.
So I will be straight… this post is going to be a soap box. And quite frankly, if you disagree, keep it to yourself.
And I want to be clear about the audience for this post. It is for anyone who would call yourself a follower of Jesus.
As we have seen in the past few months, the Bible seems to have taken center stage in our culture. The mini-series followed up by the movie Son of God and now we have the movie Noah that is in theaters.
And why not? There are some amazing stories in the Scripture. Whether you believe in God and the inspiration of the Scriptures or not, there are some amazing stories of hope in hopelessness and redemption and freedom for the oppressed. Why wouldn't Hollywood want to tell these stories? They are truly amazing!
And one would think that while this new interest in the Bible is taking root, that Christians would take the amazing opportunity to invite people into real relationships where they can discuss the implications of these stories with others in a GENUINE, RELATIONAL, COMPASSIONATE, UNDERSTANDING environment.
I find that works much better than just simply putting someone on blast over Facebook and validating my opinion because I copied and pasted a blog post that someone else wrote.
Some simple questions, then I will move on…
1. When was the last time any movie said - Exactly like the event happened?
2. When was the last time you got upset because Chariots of Fire didn't get the exact details of the events correct? Or Texas Chainsaw Massacre? Or the Passion of the Christ? Or Alive? Or ANY OTHER MOVIE EVER SAID TO BE BASED ON A TRUE STORY?
3. When was the last time Christians agreed on anything?
And that last question is really to my point. The truth is, if they had made the movies verbatim to the story (which would have been a terribly boring way to make a movie) Christians would have picked it apart a thousand ways. We always do.
Which leads me to an aside. I am so tired of Christians talking about how the world is always out to get them. If I was with people who are as grumpy and disagreeable as Church goers, I would want them gone too. But that is another post.
How about this: what if we took the chance that has been given to us and rather than nit pick, we started entering into real conversations with others about what it means to believe this stuff and not just try to make sure everyone knows that I disagree with what happened.
Your disagreement never saved anyone. Jesus' love does. So maybe the better thing to put on display is the love of Christ, not everything that you agree or disagree with. How do we lovingly invite people into a real conversation about what the Bible says and how we can line up with God's agenda to bring heaven crashing into earth. I am not saying that this is easy, but no one seems to be having this conversation at all.
And that is the bigger issue isn't it? As a Christian, you are not doing the world or your God any favors by making sure that world knows everything you are against. Maybe the better conversation is about focusing on what you are for. And what it means to love God with all your heart and soul and strength. And maybe the better action isn't to pick everything apart because you think it should have been done differently.
There are a whole segment of passionate, Jesus loving people who don't even believe that Noah actually happened but that it was a story told to make a bigger point about God and His agenda for the world. But guess what, if you choose to just blast everything you disagree with, you will never be able to hear that maybe they aren't as "dumb" and closed minded as you might think. And that perhaps the closed minded one doesn't stare back at you in the street, but in the mirror.
Whole new worlds of God's grace and depth of Scripture open up to us when we care enough to listen and attend to issues with grace and not disagreement.
And a Christian had to say it. Because if a non-believer said it, you would just dismiss it as their foolish heart being darkened.
So, for the record: The Noah movie does in fact take some liberties that are not written in the story. And yes, that is an interesting point to ponder. And I would love to have that conversation over a cup of coffee. But don't condemn anyone over a Facebook post or a blog post because it didn't play out the way you would have done it.
Praise God that the conversation is happening.
And before you dismiss my post as one that is "doing the very thing that I am spouting against," I know exactly what I am doing. How does it make you feel? Do you want to talk gently and gracefully with me? Or do you want to fight?
Consider how we can spur one another on towards love and good deeds." - Hebrews 10:25
Does your disagreeable post spur anyone on to love and good deeds? Or did you just widen the chasm between the amazing love of Jesus and a world that desperately needs to know that love?
The right thing done the wrong way becomes the wrong thing.
And I want to be clear about the audience for this post. It is for anyone who would call yourself a follower of Jesus.
As we have seen in the past few months, the Bible seems to have taken center stage in our culture. The mini-series followed up by the movie Son of God and now we have the movie Noah that is in theaters.
And why not? There are some amazing stories in the Scripture. Whether you believe in God and the inspiration of the Scriptures or not, there are some amazing stories of hope in hopelessness and redemption and freedom for the oppressed. Why wouldn't Hollywood want to tell these stories? They are truly amazing!
And one would think that while this new interest in the Bible is taking root, that Christians would take the amazing opportunity to invite people into real relationships where they can discuss the implications of these stories with others in a GENUINE, RELATIONAL, COMPASSIONATE, UNDERSTANDING environment.
I find that works much better than just simply putting someone on blast over Facebook and validating my opinion because I copied and pasted a blog post that someone else wrote.
Some simple questions, then I will move on…
1. When was the last time any movie said - Exactly like the event happened?
2. When was the last time you got upset because Chariots of Fire didn't get the exact details of the events correct? Or Texas Chainsaw Massacre? Or the Passion of the Christ? Or Alive? Or ANY OTHER MOVIE EVER SAID TO BE BASED ON A TRUE STORY?
3. When was the last time Christians agreed on anything?
And that last question is really to my point. The truth is, if they had made the movies verbatim to the story (which would have been a terribly boring way to make a movie) Christians would have picked it apart a thousand ways. We always do.
Which leads me to an aside. I am so tired of Christians talking about how the world is always out to get them. If I was with people who are as grumpy and disagreeable as Church goers, I would want them gone too. But that is another post.
How about this: what if we took the chance that has been given to us and rather than nit pick, we started entering into real conversations with others about what it means to believe this stuff and not just try to make sure everyone knows that I disagree with what happened.
Your disagreement never saved anyone. Jesus' love does. So maybe the better thing to put on display is the love of Christ, not everything that you agree or disagree with. How do we lovingly invite people into a real conversation about what the Bible says and how we can line up with God's agenda to bring heaven crashing into earth. I am not saying that this is easy, but no one seems to be having this conversation at all.
And that is the bigger issue isn't it? As a Christian, you are not doing the world or your God any favors by making sure that world knows everything you are against. Maybe the better conversation is about focusing on what you are for. And what it means to love God with all your heart and soul and strength. And maybe the better action isn't to pick everything apart because you think it should have been done differently.
There are a whole segment of passionate, Jesus loving people who don't even believe that Noah actually happened but that it was a story told to make a bigger point about God and His agenda for the world. But guess what, if you choose to just blast everything you disagree with, you will never be able to hear that maybe they aren't as "dumb" and closed minded as you might think. And that perhaps the closed minded one doesn't stare back at you in the street, but in the mirror.
Whole new worlds of God's grace and depth of Scripture open up to us when we care enough to listen and attend to issues with grace and not disagreement.
And a Christian had to say it. Because if a non-believer said it, you would just dismiss it as their foolish heart being darkened.
So, for the record: The Noah movie does in fact take some liberties that are not written in the story. And yes, that is an interesting point to ponder. And I would love to have that conversation over a cup of coffee. But don't condemn anyone over a Facebook post or a blog post because it didn't play out the way you would have done it.
Praise God that the conversation is happening.
And before you dismiss my post as one that is "doing the very thing that I am spouting against," I know exactly what I am doing. How does it make you feel? Do you want to talk gently and gracefully with me? Or do you want to fight?
Consider how we can spur one another on towards love and good deeds." - Hebrews 10:25
Does your disagreeable post spur anyone on to love and good deeds? Or did you just widen the chasm between the amazing love of Jesus and a world that desperately needs to know that love?
The right thing done the wrong way becomes the wrong thing.
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Go make disciples!… Why?
Matthew 28:18-20
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
This is one of the most famous passages in the Bible. And at its core is a clear mandate of action for us as believers. But I have some questions to throw at it and see if there isn't something that can help us actually pull it off…
I have read 100's of books on discipleship. I have used and written curriculum on discipleship. I have discipled people and been discipled. And I have a thought long and hard about what this discipleship thing is all about.
Here is my observation: the vast majority of disciple making books, curriculum, and conversations revolve around a couple of ideas. First, the biblical case for discipleship. Which I am going to be so bold as to say - that to me is sad! Really, we have to build a case to convince people that discipleship is the lifestyle that Jesus asked us to walk out?
Sorry for the bold statements here, but it is pretty simple. 1 John 2:6 says, "Whoever claims to live in Him [Jesus] must live as Jesus did." (NIV)
Did Jesus make disciples? Then we must also make disciples! No excuses. No rationale. Do what Jesus did.
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
This is one of the most famous passages in the Bible. And at its core is a clear mandate of action for us as believers. But I have some questions to throw at it and see if there isn't something that can help us actually pull it off…
I have read 100's of books on discipleship. I have used and written curriculum on discipleship. I have discipled people and been discipled. And I have a thought long and hard about what this discipleship thing is all about.
Here is my observation: the vast majority of disciple making books, curriculum, and conversations revolve around a couple of ideas. First, the biblical case for discipleship. Which I am going to be so bold as to say - that to me is sad! Really, we have to build a case to convince people that discipleship is the lifestyle that Jesus asked us to walk out?
Sorry for the bold statements here, but it is pretty simple. 1 John 2:6 says, "Whoever claims to live in Him [Jesus] must live as Jesus did." (NIV)
Did Jesus make disciples? Then we must also make disciples! No excuses. No rationale. Do what Jesus did.
Jeremiah 6:16
New International Version (NIV)
This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look, ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.'
And isn't that the bigger issue? Jesus says make disciples, Jesus lived making disciples, so make disciples!
The second idea is about the "how" of discipleship. Here is the lesson plan for discipleship. Here is the structure for discipleship. Here is the organizational management system for discipleship. And this is a major step in the right direction.
As I travel around and speak to churches, I find that this is an idea that scratches an itch that many pastors and church leaders have: "How do I pull this off?"
And it is a good line of thinking. There is now even a strong movement towards discipleship through community. Which is the only way that real discipleship can happen. And this conversation is very valuable!
But I wonder if it is missing a key component that I don't see a lot of conversation about at all.
Why are we making disciples at all?
I think that for years I made disciples so that they would "stay a Christian." Essentially, I would get them to say "Yes!" to Jesus (Gospel of Salvation)More on that here And then hopefully I could "disciple" them so that they were willing to hang in there till the end of things so that they could get to heaven. Cause we all know the alternative isn't pretty.
Jesus' Gospel was an invitation to the Kingdom of God. It is as if He was saying to all of us, "There is a place of healing and joy and freedom. And I am dying to let you be a part of it. Come join Me. Life is good and full and meaningful here."
Jesus' Gospel was the Good News about the Kingdom of God. Now, think Jewish for just a minute… from an Eastern perspective, kingdoms don't take up territory. They aren't spacial in nature. The only boundary for a kingdom is that it is where a King is reigning. So, if Jesus is reigning in your heart, then He is King and you are in the Kingdom of God - wherever you might be.
You, then, are an ambassador for your King. Your sacred job is to invite people to be a part of the Kingdom of your King. But this is NOT about getting people to say yes to Jesus, only. this is about getting each person you meet to LIVE IN THE KINGDOM. This is not the same thing as getting them to say yes to Jesus. Not even close!
Our sacred responsibility and privilege is to bring The Kingdom of God crashing into earth. this is what Jesus did. And this is what Jesus taught. We have 38 recorded parables of Jesus. 21 of them say directly, "The Kingdom of God is like…" or "The Kingdom of Heaven is like…" (these are the same statements. Matthew is the only one who uses Heaven in the phrase and that is because of his agenda.).
So, if the Kingdom of God is like a generous landowner, then so should we be! Is that how people would describe you? Not the church you attend - YOU! The Kingdom of God is like a Mustard seed that becomes a big tree and gives shade to the birds. Do people who are not "saved" receive blessing because you are in their lives? Not the church you attend - YOU!
Discipleship is not about organizational development. It is all about me bringing heaven crashing into earth. And in the process, I tell a redemptive story of how my God feels about the world and people and social causes and the "less than" in my community and the marginalized people around the world. Not the church I attend - ME!
It bothers me that we have these conversations going on around the Christian world about whether a church should be a "social justice" church or a "discipleship" church. How did those things ever get separated? Engaging in social justice issues should deepen our walk with Jesus and invite others to join us. And Discipleship should always lead us to action in our community in a way that makes a profound difference in every aspect of people's lives, not just salvation.
I think one of the best evidences that a church is doing a good job of discipling is that we have people in our congregation that are actively pursuing social causes in the name of Christ - with the sole intent of bringing the Kingdom of God crashing in to that situation.
I do believe that it is sin for God's people to idly sit by and watch others suffer.
We have to do what Jesus did. Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, restore the oppressed, set the captives free. this isn't just a Jesus job. This is a Jesus follower job. And that is why we disciple. To empower and equip those around us to effectively engage the darkness and kick at the darkness with absolute resolve until it bleeds daylight.
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Blogging Ideas???
I find myself lost in my own head. Sometimes I have so many things that I want to blog about. And sometimes I have none - for long stretches of time.
I am trying to think about where to take this blog. I think I will do a video blog as part of it. I think I will try some other series…
What would you like to see discussed? How can we make this a useful place to wrestle with the Christian life?
I am trying to think about where to take this blog. I think I will do a video blog as part of it. I think I will try some other series…
What would you like to see discussed? How can we make this a useful place to wrestle with the Christian life?
Monday, January 27, 2014
Thoughts on tithing, giving, generosity, and all that jazz...
Before I begin with this post, I want to quote a book. Now, don't get all hung up on the book or the author. Just listen to the quote… it's good!
"I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn't resolve. But I was outside the Bagdad Theater in Portland one night when I saw a man playing the saxophone. I stood there for 15 minutes, and he never opened his eyes.
After that I liked jazz music.
Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way."
- Donald Miller, Blue Like Jazz
Now to the focus of this post… as a kid that grew up in church, there was this thing about tithing that never resolved for me. A splinter in my mind if you will that still won't let me go.
As I have processed and processed this idea, I wrestle with how to explain God's expectations for money to people who live in the richest country in the world. Let's be real for just a minute. I don't want to lay heavy burdens on people unjustly. And at the same time I don't want to remove clear obligations either. And because people are so weird about money it puts a lot of pressure on me to state the things that I believe are true, but say them in a way that can move both extremes (and there are lots of people in both extreme camps) to what I believe is a healthy and theocentric view of how we are to handle time, talents, and treasure.
I know there is a pressure to land one place or another. And I know that wherever we land, if we are going to be true to our conviction, there is a cost. So, as I have been doing over the past few posts, rather than writing to convince, I am going to give what I think are some healthy guiding principles for this discussion.
1. Proof texting any point is never a good idea. And the debate over tithing is one of the most proof texted and least understood conversations in scripture. On one side are those who bring out a few texts about tithing (i.e. Malachi 3) and on the other side are those who want to say that tithing is Old Testament and we are not bound by that covenant anymore.
I want to state emphatically and for the record - both sides are dead wrong. It is wrong to proof text and manipulate people by doing that. It is also wrong to assume that: 1. there are 2 stories of God working among man; 2. That God undoes one covenant to start another; 3. that we can use the Old Testament when we like it and disregard it when we don't (which gets done all the time); and 4. that just because God states something that He wants His people to do in the Old Testament and doesn't repeat it in the New Testament (which I don't believe is true in the case of tithing, but that is not the point) doesn't mean that we have no obligation to it (i.e. don't murder).
2. God's people understand that the earth is the Lord's and everything in it. So, exactly "none" of my money, time or abilities are mine to use as I see fit.
God's people are never asking the question, "How much should I give?" they are asking the question, "How much should I keep?" And that is a very different place to come from.
3. This new generation loves to give to causes not organizations or institutions. This has lead to people trying to justify splitting their tithe out among several different causes that they deem admirable or needed.
For the record, I love giving to what are called "parachurch" organizations. These are organizations like WorldVision, Campus Crusade, Innervarsity, Navigators, etc. There is nothing wrong with these organizations and this is certainly not a post on the efficacy of the parachurch. My wife and I absolutely support some of these out of our "over and above" giving.
But there is not one example that you can find, Old or New Testament, where there was ever anyone who got to choose when and how to give their money. They always came and gave it at the temple in the Old Testament, and they laid it at the apostle's feet in the New in order to have it properly distributed to meet the needs of the body and the community.
Resolving this tension and where you land on it is not on the shoulders of those who believe in a full tithe going to the church. I am not going to be dogmatic about where your tithe goes, but I am going to say that if you want to "buck the model," the burden of proof is on you, not those who up hold traditional acquisition and distribution.
4. 10% is SO NOT the point. Many people want to camp out here and say we don't have to give 10% anymore. And you should therefore allow everyone to decide how much and where they are going to give. The truth is that, for most, this is an excuse to not have to be generous at all.
That will never be okay with God. Therefore, that should never be okay with His people. God is a generous God and so His Kingdom of Priests should be as well. We are putting Him on display after all.
For the record, no one owes me an explanation of where and how they spend their money. And I am not calling for a reckoning of those who feel differently. What I would suggest is something far deeper.
For those of us who have matured in our faith, who have wrestled with the limitless goodness and blessing of our God, we should all be looking at 10% in the rear view mirror. That should be the starting point upon which we build a much more generous lifestyle.
10% isn't a goal, it is a starting line.
5. The New Testament does in fact give us a standard for giving. And for what it is worth, for anyone who actually says that they don't like 10% because that is Old Testament and they want to give as a "New Testament" Christian (which is a terrible term from start to finish), I am happy for them to do so. But actually do it. Read the examples of what they did in their giving and do that.
If you decide to do that, and you actually do it, 10% won't be a problem at all. you will be way above that.
And before you throw "don't give grudgingly or under compulsion for God loves a cheerful giver" in my face. That is NOT God saying that if you don't want to, it is okay for you to not give. You are still commanded to give regardless. But to do so grudgingly says more about how you feel about your God than about the money you are giving.
6. Our giving is not about us - at all!! In fact, the more we give, the more we can see that to be true.
First of all, giving reminds me that it is all His.
Second, no matter what western culture says to me, I am obligated to the community that I am a part of before I take care of myself. That is foundational to the Jesus way of engaging the world.
I will close with this rewriting of the opening thought.
I used to hate giving because I didn't see any benefit to it. Then one day I was part of a group with a tremendously generous person. And I watched as he told me the story of the blessing that it was to fulfill a need in someone else by laying down his pursuit of his own lifestyle and comfort. He had tears of joy in his eyes the whole time.
Then I saw what giving can do. So, I started giving more. And now, the more I give, the more I love giving.
Sometimes, you have to watch somebody who loves giving before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way to bring heaven crashing into earth.
"I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn't resolve. But I was outside the Bagdad Theater in Portland one night when I saw a man playing the saxophone. I stood there for 15 minutes, and he never opened his eyes.
After that I liked jazz music.
Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way."
- Donald Miller, Blue Like Jazz
Now to the focus of this post… as a kid that grew up in church, there was this thing about tithing that never resolved for me. A splinter in my mind if you will that still won't let me go.
As I have processed and processed this idea, I wrestle with how to explain God's expectations for money to people who live in the richest country in the world. Let's be real for just a minute. I don't want to lay heavy burdens on people unjustly. And at the same time I don't want to remove clear obligations either. And because people are so weird about money it puts a lot of pressure on me to state the things that I believe are true, but say them in a way that can move both extremes (and there are lots of people in both extreme camps) to what I believe is a healthy and theocentric view of how we are to handle time, talents, and treasure.
I know there is a pressure to land one place or another. And I know that wherever we land, if we are going to be true to our conviction, there is a cost. So, as I have been doing over the past few posts, rather than writing to convince, I am going to give what I think are some healthy guiding principles for this discussion.
1. Proof texting any point is never a good idea. And the debate over tithing is one of the most proof texted and least understood conversations in scripture. On one side are those who bring out a few texts about tithing (i.e. Malachi 3) and on the other side are those who want to say that tithing is Old Testament and we are not bound by that covenant anymore.
I want to state emphatically and for the record - both sides are dead wrong. It is wrong to proof text and manipulate people by doing that. It is also wrong to assume that: 1. there are 2 stories of God working among man; 2. That God undoes one covenant to start another; 3. that we can use the Old Testament when we like it and disregard it when we don't (which gets done all the time); and 4. that just because God states something that He wants His people to do in the Old Testament and doesn't repeat it in the New Testament (which I don't believe is true in the case of tithing, but that is not the point) doesn't mean that we have no obligation to it (i.e. don't murder).
2. God's people understand that the earth is the Lord's and everything in it. So, exactly "none" of my money, time or abilities are mine to use as I see fit.
God's people are never asking the question, "How much should I give?" they are asking the question, "How much should I keep?" And that is a very different place to come from.
3. This new generation loves to give to causes not organizations or institutions. This has lead to people trying to justify splitting their tithe out among several different causes that they deem admirable or needed.
For the record, I love giving to what are called "parachurch" organizations. These are organizations like WorldVision, Campus Crusade, Innervarsity, Navigators, etc. There is nothing wrong with these organizations and this is certainly not a post on the efficacy of the parachurch. My wife and I absolutely support some of these out of our "over and above" giving.
But there is not one example that you can find, Old or New Testament, where there was ever anyone who got to choose when and how to give their money. They always came and gave it at the temple in the Old Testament, and they laid it at the apostle's feet in the New in order to have it properly distributed to meet the needs of the body and the community.
Resolving this tension and where you land on it is not on the shoulders of those who believe in a full tithe going to the church. I am not going to be dogmatic about where your tithe goes, but I am going to say that if you want to "buck the model," the burden of proof is on you, not those who up hold traditional acquisition and distribution.
4. 10% is SO NOT the point. Many people want to camp out here and say we don't have to give 10% anymore. And you should therefore allow everyone to decide how much and where they are going to give. The truth is that, for most, this is an excuse to not have to be generous at all.
That will never be okay with God. Therefore, that should never be okay with His people. God is a generous God and so His Kingdom of Priests should be as well. We are putting Him on display after all.
For the record, no one owes me an explanation of where and how they spend their money. And I am not calling for a reckoning of those who feel differently. What I would suggest is something far deeper.
For those of us who have matured in our faith, who have wrestled with the limitless goodness and blessing of our God, we should all be looking at 10% in the rear view mirror. That should be the starting point upon which we build a much more generous lifestyle.
10% isn't a goal, it is a starting line.
5. The New Testament does in fact give us a standard for giving. And for what it is worth, for anyone who actually says that they don't like 10% because that is Old Testament and they want to give as a "New Testament" Christian (which is a terrible term from start to finish), I am happy for them to do so. But actually do it. Read the examples of what they did in their giving and do that.
If you decide to do that, and you actually do it, 10% won't be a problem at all. you will be way above that.
And before you throw "don't give grudgingly or under compulsion for God loves a cheerful giver" in my face. That is NOT God saying that if you don't want to, it is okay for you to not give. You are still commanded to give regardless. But to do so grudgingly says more about how you feel about your God than about the money you are giving.
6. Our giving is not about us - at all!! In fact, the more we give, the more we can see that to be true.
First of all, giving reminds me that it is all His.
Second, no matter what western culture says to me, I am obligated to the community that I am a part of before I take care of myself. That is foundational to the Jesus way of engaging the world.
I will close with this rewriting of the opening thought.
I used to hate giving because I didn't see any benefit to it. Then one day I was part of a group with a tremendously generous person. And I watched as he told me the story of the blessing that it was to fulfill a need in someone else by laying down his pursuit of his own lifestyle and comfort. He had tears of joy in his eyes the whole time.
Then I saw what giving can do. So, I started giving more. And now, the more I give, the more I love giving.
Sometimes, you have to watch somebody who loves giving before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way to bring heaven crashing into earth.
Monday, January 13, 2014
Some further thoughts on the future of the church...
I want to run down this trail for awhile longer. There is a lot more to say. We will see how far I get…
I recently had a great conversation with an awesome guy who is getting a Doctorate in Ministry. His degree emphasis is preaching to millennials.
For those of us that don't know what this means - the millennial generation, also known as generation Y, is the generation of folks who follow Generation X. They are people who were born from the early 80's to the early 2000's. While there is no specific date as to when it stops and starts, this is the basic boundary of this socio-demographic.
The explanation of why this matters and the research involved in defining all this is vast and there are volumes written on it. But since it would bore most of us to tears, I want to simply draw some observations about how I believe that the church must respond to this next generation without delving too far into the why. If it resonates, please let me know.
First, and probably most profound for this whole conversation, we have to stop talking about this generation as if they don't care about what is true or what is right. This is neither accurate, nor does it help to further the conversation.
Regardless of what you may think about the way we should understand truth, we live in a world where there is no way to keep from being influenced by a thousand different sources of input in a single day.
I can literally get online and listen and watch the top 20 leaders from any world religion at any moment I choose. And I can also listen to any anti-religious or non-religious speakers as well. My ability to take in information has exponentially increased, and the capacity to process the information has increased as well.
That leads me to my second thought… People are not dumber than they used to be. They are in fact, more aware and more rounded in their perspective than ever. And to try to blow off other points of view simply because they don't line up with your own is foolish and degrading to others.
People can and do process information at a higher rate now than ever in history. But writing and talking at someone are having diminishing affects. That doesn't mean that they aren't important, or that they don't work anymore. It just has less affect than it used to have. And this is due in part to the lack of trust in authority in general in our culture (see my previous blog post). We as a culture are not willing to "take someone at their word" anymore.
Put up or shut up. That is the Modus Operandi of our culture.
These 2 thoughts lead me to a couple of bigger thoughts that are really important as the church moves forward.
First, in order to see the next generation be open to a relationship with Jesus, we have to find a way to keep them part of the conversation long enough for God to get ahold of their hearts.
Prepositional, dogmatic preaching is quickly becoming a thing of the past. And to go back to the beginning of this post, that doesn't mean we have to compromise truth to effectively preach. It means we have to communicate truth better. Beautiful, compelling, inspiring sermons on the foundations of truth and life practice can be done and done well without the preacher turning into an insensitive bully in the process.
And many people will validate that you are "bringing a hard word" and that you "need to give it to us straight." I would suggest 2 things: 1. in relationship, there is no straight - it weaves and winds all over the place. That is the nature of community, and that is what we are asking people to be a part of; and 2. these people that are validating the "hard word" are already Christian. Did your "truth telling approach" bring anyone else to Jesus? Or did it reinforce the lies in people's souls that tell them that God could never truly love someone as messed up as they are?
And I would say that extends even to people who have said yes to Jesus. They might have said yes to being willing to follow Jesus. But do they truly believe that He loves them? Do they truly believe that He sees them as full of potential, not as mistakes or mess-ups. For that matter, do you believe that about yourself? and about others?
I think that for too long, what I would label as "Pulpit bullies" have reigned in our churches. They essentially have approached sermons with an attitude of - my job is to convince you that I am right and that you must agree with me or you are "out." As so there is a lot of pushing and convincing and drawing lines. And to be frank, many of the lines that get drawn are foolish and bound up in tradition not Scripture so they wind up having to get redrawn over and over again. And the church looks foolish because of it.
Second major point - I truly believe that in order to reach the next generation, we have got to stop talking about certain groups of people as if they are second rate. And before you dismiss this point as one you don't struggle with, hear me out.
Over Christmas I got to spend some great time with my family. It was so much fun and probably one of the most memorable Christmases that I have ever experienced. But there were several conversations that caused me to wonder about some things.
Now, my family are all Christians and in ministry. We all love Jesus and we all love the church. And I would say that we all love people from all walks of life. But some of the comments that were made off the cuff about people who are different than us lead me to believe that there are some underlying realities that we are taking for granted.
That which is not intentional is not reproducible. And if we don't intentionally validate and value other people, we will accidentally say all kinds of foolish things about them. And it only drives those who don't know Jesus yet further away from Him.
Nobody said anything intentionally mean. But a few of the statements that were made really made me think about the implications of many of my own statements and how I can say things without thinking that really hurt others.
And people in general have a tendency to do that. We joke and laugh about others that we perceive as weak or weird. It is just like junior high only we are all older. And I get it - I do. I fail at this more often than I want to admit. But our sacred privilege as followers of Jesus is to put our God on display to the world. And those people that we make our careless comments towards are precious to Jesus. So, when we say things off the cuff about other people, it isn't just that we invalidate them as human beings, we also paint an inaccurate picture of our God. And that is never a good thing!
So perhaps the place to begin is with these questions…
How do we determine to intentionally live out being a blessing to EVERYONE around us regardless of their past, present, or how we see their future?
How do we intentionally make sure that the people who come into contact with us are better when they leave than when they came?
How do we invite people into the life transforming relationship with Jesus and keep them a part of the conversation long enough to have it take hold?
I recently had a great conversation with an awesome guy who is getting a Doctorate in Ministry. His degree emphasis is preaching to millennials.
For those of us that don't know what this means - the millennial generation, also known as generation Y, is the generation of folks who follow Generation X. They are people who were born from the early 80's to the early 2000's. While there is no specific date as to when it stops and starts, this is the basic boundary of this socio-demographic.
The explanation of why this matters and the research involved in defining all this is vast and there are volumes written on it. But since it would bore most of us to tears, I want to simply draw some observations about how I believe that the church must respond to this next generation without delving too far into the why. If it resonates, please let me know.
First, and probably most profound for this whole conversation, we have to stop talking about this generation as if they don't care about what is true or what is right. This is neither accurate, nor does it help to further the conversation.
Regardless of what you may think about the way we should understand truth, we live in a world where there is no way to keep from being influenced by a thousand different sources of input in a single day.
I can literally get online and listen and watch the top 20 leaders from any world religion at any moment I choose. And I can also listen to any anti-religious or non-religious speakers as well. My ability to take in information has exponentially increased, and the capacity to process the information has increased as well.
That leads me to my second thought… People are not dumber than they used to be. They are in fact, more aware and more rounded in their perspective than ever. And to try to blow off other points of view simply because they don't line up with your own is foolish and degrading to others.
People can and do process information at a higher rate now than ever in history. But writing and talking at someone are having diminishing affects. That doesn't mean that they aren't important, or that they don't work anymore. It just has less affect than it used to have. And this is due in part to the lack of trust in authority in general in our culture (see my previous blog post). We as a culture are not willing to "take someone at their word" anymore.
Put up or shut up. That is the Modus Operandi of our culture.
These 2 thoughts lead me to a couple of bigger thoughts that are really important as the church moves forward.
First, in order to see the next generation be open to a relationship with Jesus, we have to find a way to keep them part of the conversation long enough for God to get ahold of their hearts.
Prepositional, dogmatic preaching is quickly becoming a thing of the past. And to go back to the beginning of this post, that doesn't mean we have to compromise truth to effectively preach. It means we have to communicate truth better. Beautiful, compelling, inspiring sermons on the foundations of truth and life practice can be done and done well without the preacher turning into an insensitive bully in the process.
And many people will validate that you are "bringing a hard word" and that you "need to give it to us straight." I would suggest 2 things: 1. in relationship, there is no straight - it weaves and winds all over the place. That is the nature of community, and that is what we are asking people to be a part of; and 2. these people that are validating the "hard word" are already Christian. Did your "truth telling approach" bring anyone else to Jesus? Or did it reinforce the lies in people's souls that tell them that God could never truly love someone as messed up as they are?
And I would say that extends even to people who have said yes to Jesus. They might have said yes to being willing to follow Jesus. But do they truly believe that He loves them? Do they truly believe that He sees them as full of potential, not as mistakes or mess-ups. For that matter, do you believe that about yourself? and about others?
I think that for too long, what I would label as "Pulpit bullies" have reigned in our churches. They essentially have approached sermons with an attitude of - my job is to convince you that I am right and that you must agree with me or you are "out." As so there is a lot of pushing and convincing and drawing lines. And to be frank, many of the lines that get drawn are foolish and bound up in tradition not Scripture so they wind up having to get redrawn over and over again. And the church looks foolish because of it.
Second major point - I truly believe that in order to reach the next generation, we have got to stop talking about certain groups of people as if they are second rate. And before you dismiss this point as one you don't struggle with, hear me out.
Over Christmas I got to spend some great time with my family. It was so much fun and probably one of the most memorable Christmases that I have ever experienced. But there were several conversations that caused me to wonder about some things.
Now, my family are all Christians and in ministry. We all love Jesus and we all love the church. And I would say that we all love people from all walks of life. But some of the comments that were made off the cuff about people who are different than us lead me to believe that there are some underlying realities that we are taking for granted.
That which is not intentional is not reproducible. And if we don't intentionally validate and value other people, we will accidentally say all kinds of foolish things about them. And it only drives those who don't know Jesus yet further away from Him.
Nobody said anything intentionally mean. But a few of the statements that were made really made me think about the implications of many of my own statements and how I can say things without thinking that really hurt others.
And people in general have a tendency to do that. We joke and laugh about others that we perceive as weak or weird. It is just like junior high only we are all older. And I get it - I do. I fail at this more often than I want to admit. But our sacred privilege as followers of Jesus is to put our God on display to the world. And those people that we make our careless comments towards are precious to Jesus. So, when we say things off the cuff about other people, it isn't just that we invalidate them as human beings, we also paint an inaccurate picture of our God. And that is never a good thing!
So perhaps the place to begin is with these questions…
How do we determine to intentionally live out being a blessing to EVERYONE around us regardless of their past, present, or how we see their future?
How do we intentionally make sure that the people who come into contact with us are better when they leave than when they came?
How do we invite people into the life transforming relationship with Jesus and keep them a part of the conversation long enough to have it take hold?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)