I am trying on a new idea... Please help me process:
The hypothesis is this: knowing truth doesn't change very much.
Jesus is true. He says He is the way the Truth and the life and no one comes to the Father accept through Him. Once He makes that claim, He is either right or He is wrong. I happen to believe with conviction that He was right. I believe it with so much conviction that I have given my life in full time service to that reality.
That being said, I am not sure that "knowing" that truth does very much for me. That prepositional reality is not the transformational power that I hoped it would be. There are lots of truths that I know to be true, but I do not follow them. Eating healthy is better for me. Exercising will give me more energy. From the way I spend money to the way I interact with others to how I fix things around the house, there are truths that I know, but do not follow.
Extrapolate this out to the average American Christian... We all know vast amounts of Scripture that we hold to be true. We hear sermons each week full of sound biblical truth. But are we changed?
Let me take a stab at where your mind is right now... But what about the verse that says, "you will know the truth and the truth will set you free...?"
That is just it.. In order for that to be correct, truth has to be more than a prepositional treatise that I ascribe to. Truth has to be a person. And that person is Jesus. So, then, knowing the truth is more about knowing how to interact with Jesus in a legitimate relationship than it is about being right. He said is the truth. Truth is a person, not a preposition or an idea.
But then that leads to a whole other set of questions. Not the least of which is: How do I have relationship with Jesus? Or what does relationship with Jesus look like? Or how do I know when I am in the kind of relationship with Jesus that He wants? Or how can I feel safe in how much I have done to be faithful to that relationship? Or how do I experience God's favor as an overflow of that relationship? Or any other of about a million other questions....
Now we move into the guts my thought. Jesus tells 38 stories that we have recorded in Scripture. Of those, 20 say this - the Kingdom of God (or Heaven) is like... Somehow, Jesus is expressing this transformational reality of relationship with Him as living in a Kingdom. So, then, if we are going to understand how to be truly transformed by a relationship with Jesus, we are going to have to come to terms with what this whole Kingdom thing really is all about.
So, I am going to do a series of posts about the Kingdom, Our role in it, and how that can truly change the world. May we all be brought to life in a fresh way through this process.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Is Christmas Worth Defending?
This is taken from another website and I openly admit that this is NONE of my own work, but many of my own thoughts expressed well.
Here is the link: http://www.thinkchristian.net/index.php/2010/12/08/is-christmas-worth-defending/
Is Christmas Worth Defending?
Posted December 8th, 2010 @ 7:12 am by Bethany Keeley-Jonker
The more I think about Christmas traditions, the more I discover a strange amalgam of silly (but fun) cultural traditions, Christian symbolism, and unbridled consumerism. For instance, consider the following symbols of Christmas that would be unrecognizable in first century Israel: snowmen, reindeer, pine boughs, holly, bells, sleigh rides, electric Christmas lights, electronics wrapped in colorful paper and ribbons. Perhaps we can separate these things from “the reason for the season” or point to how they developed from the real gift of God With Us and the generosity of a real Saint Nicolas. I love a lot of these things, and I freely admit to buying a lighted garland to put on our mantle, and listening to Christmas songs that range from the profound (“O Come O Come Emmanuel”) to the ridiculous (“Christmas Don’t Be Late”).
Nonetheless, I am perplexed by people who fiercely defend these traditions and the use of phrases like “Merry Christmas” or “Christmas Party” as opposed to less specific references to “holidays” in the name of Christianity. To be perfectly honest, I’d feel more comfortable if a sale on sweaters at Old Navy stayed far away from my worship of Christ. I wonder if people concerned about the alleged “War on Christmas” are engaging in a deep conflation of Christianity with American Traditions. I want to suggest that while there is nothing wrong with bringing a pine tree indoors and putting some sparkling ornaments on it, it has little to do with the birth or life of Christ.
The more I think about the influences that go into the celebration of Christmas, the more uncertain I am about the appropriate Christian response. I think the holiday season helps me, in its best moments, to develop virtues like generosity and hospitality. I spend a lot of time thinking about other people, what they need and what they like, as I try to buy the perfect gift. I also think there’s nothing wrong with the things we associate with Christmas that have more to do with December at certain latitudes: piles of snow, snuggling up by a fireplace, time off work to spend with family. I think there is a profound message of incarnation in “In the Bleak Midwinter” even though I highly doubt the infant Christ ever saw any “snow on snow.”
I’m therefore torn between my affection for American (and global) holiday traditions and my awareness of potential syncretism. Christmas seems the time we most easily conflate our consumer culture with a religious celebration, a tendency that the documentary What Would Jesus Buy? highlights effectively. I hesitate to identify an advent longing for God’s peace with a childish anticipation of new toys. Around this time of year, I find myself in a difficult posture of enthusiasm and skepticism, and I wonder if those who aggressively trumpet Christmas as an expression of Christianity want to also cling to a harmless infant Christ rather than a challenging God who made a radical choice to dwell among us.
My current compromise is to enjoy the traditions, but think of them as separate from and unrelated to my contemplation of a God who became incarnate to save us, after centuries of waiting, and who is still saving us and will bring true justice again. But perhaps it reflects the spirit of advent that I’m a bit uncomfortable with my current state, and long for God to bring real peace to our broken world.
Here is the link: http://www.thinkchristian.net/index.php/2010/12/08/is-christmas-worth-defending/
Is Christmas Worth Defending?
Posted December 8th, 2010 @ 7:12 am by Bethany Keeley-Jonker
The more I think about Christmas traditions, the more I discover a strange amalgam of silly (but fun) cultural traditions, Christian symbolism, and unbridled consumerism. For instance, consider the following symbols of Christmas that would be unrecognizable in first century Israel: snowmen, reindeer, pine boughs, holly, bells, sleigh rides, electric Christmas lights, electronics wrapped in colorful paper and ribbons. Perhaps we can separate these things from “the reason for the season” or point to how they developed from the real gift of God With Us and the generosity of a real Saint Nicolas. I love a lot of these things, and I freely admit to buying a lighted garland to put on our mantle, and listening to Christmas songs that range from the profound (“O Come O Come Emmanuel”) to the ridiculous (“Christmas Don’t Be Late”).
Nonetheless, I am perplexed by people who fiercely defend these traditions and the use of phrases like “Merry Christmas” or “Christmas Party” as opposed to less specific references to “holidays” in the name of Christianity. To be perfectly honest, I’d feel more comfortable if a sale on sweaters at Old Navy stayed far away from my worship of Christ. I wonder if people concerned about the alleged “War on Christmas” are engaging in a deep conflation of Christianity with American Traditions. I want to suggest that while there is nothing wrong with bringing a pine tree indoors and putting some sparkling ornaments on it, it has little to do with the birth or life of Christ.
The more I think about the influences that go into the celebration of Christmas, the more uncertain I am about the appropriate Christian response. I think the holiday season helps me, in its best moments, to develop virtues like generosity and hospitality. I spend a lot of time thinking about other people, what they need and what they like, as I try to buy the perfect gift. I also think there’s nothing wrong with the things we associate with Christmas that have more to do with December at certain latitudes: piles of snow, snuggling up by a fireplace, time off work to spend with family. I think there is a profound message of incarnation in “In the Bleak Midwinter” even though I highly doubt the infant Christ ever saw any “snow on snow.”
I’m therefore torn between my affection for American (and global) holiday traditions and my awareness of potential syncretism. Christmas seems the time we most easily conflate our consumer culture with a religious celebration, a tendency that the documentary What Would Jesus Buy? highlights effectively. I hesitate to identify an advent longing for God’s peace with a childish anticipation of new toys. Around this time of year, I find myself in a difficult posture of enthusiasm and skepticism, and I wonder if those who aggressively trumpet Christmas as an expression of Christianity want to also cling to a harmless infant Christ rather than a challenging God who made a radical choice to dwell among us.
My current compromise is to enjoy the traditions, but think of them as separate from and unrelated to my contemplation of a God who became incarnate to save us, after centuries of waiting, and who is still saving us and will bring true justice again. But perhaps it reflects the spirit of advent that I’m a bit uncomfortable with my current state, and long for God to bring real peace to our broken world.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)