Good Question

Sunday our Pastor was speaking from 1Peter 2:4-12. It was an interesting topical sermon that posed a question which made me think.

He was talking about Christian character and whether people could tell that we love them by the way we live. He spoke about the increasing violence and protests against churches and Christianity. Protest that takes a more overt form these days than just verbal disagreement. The question he asked is if somone threw a brick through one of our windows than burst into the church in order to “protest” Christianity – would our love be such that they would be compelled to stop their protest and recognize the difference in our lives? 

Of course it is a fairly unrealistic question – because no one knows exactly what they would do in that situation. If the protester were obviously unarmed, I suspect the deacons would be on him in a heartbeat.   On the other hand, if he were armed – well best case scenario would be we had one of our “men in service” attending that morning and he would respond appropriately. If not, well – who knows what would happen. Perhaps someone in attendance would be carrying and intervene. It is unlikely, people would stand around while a shooter takes out the congregation, hoping he would eventually see the love of Christ as bodies fall. But it does pose an interesting question.

We live in violent world. Everyday, it seems, gunman snuff innocent lives simply for a few bucks or some  household items. There used to be a time when you could simply say, “Take what you want, just leave my family alone.”  Those days appear distant.  Often I play the scenario in my mind as to how long it would take me to get to my gun were someone to kick our front door down and attempt to enter. Granted, we don’t have much, but the evil men don’t know that. Then the question comes, could I or would I be willing to shoot?

I would like to ask the question, “What would Jesus do?” However, I’m not sure it is appropriate. Would he stand by and watch his disciples become random victims, simply hoping that the perpetrator would sense God’s love and lay down his weapon?

Yes, we live in disturbing times. Perhaps not as disturbing as days past, we simply have more access to coverage of such events. Nevertheless, what should a Christian’s response be to personal or family attack – IF there is an option? Should we defend ourselves and others, or simply let it happen?

One Step Behind or Ahead

It seems that often, after I write a post, I read something that speaks directly to the issue and wonder, “Why didn’t I wait until I had read this?” Of course, if I knew the applicable writing or reading segment were out there, I would have studied it first. But since, I don’t, I don’t. (?)

Yesterday’s post centered on moving from “milk” to the meat of the Word and the value it has for important dialogue and interaction in the faith community. Often times it seems, rightly or wrongly, that pastors and churches are fearful of confronting difficult issues when it comes to the biblical text or social issues that are impacted by the biblical text. I suppose, from a pastors standpoint, it could be for fear of job security. From the churches standpoint it may be because they don’t know how to engage in that type of dialogue.

For a rather simple example, let me share observations regarding the church my wife and I attend. It happens to be a Southern Baptist Church. It has both a “Covenant of Faith” and a doctrinal statement called “The Baptist Faith and Message.” Now I don’t know this for certain, but I would be willing to wager, a fairly large percentage of the members, both new and “old”, may not be in total agreement with those two pieces. That does not mean they don’t feel comfortable with the majority of the beliefs, it simply means they may feel that some of them may not be appropriate any longer. They do not see that as a reason for leaving or not joining the church, they simply don’t agree with certain statements and will live with the incongruencies. I suspect that is a common practice in many churches not just Southern Baptist.

Southern Baptists are pretty good at falling on the idiom, “The Bible says it, I believe it, that settles it.” A position that certainly has merit for some, but not for all. That idiom allows many to circumvent the difficult issues found in scripture and simply rely on a “I don’t want to talk about it” or “I have my mind made up and no matter what you say, it won’t change what I believe.” A good many people like that kind of position. It keeps them safe to some degree. It also allows them to remain shielded from any real dialogue on what Scot McKnigt calls “the blue parakeet” verses in the Bible. The one Scot addresses specifically in his book is that of women in ministry, particularly those gifted as teachers and preachers.

Having said all this, let me direct you to the Jesus Creed blog for a discussion of the difficult issues found in the Old Testament. The post starts with a personal position and then you can follow the “comments” to see how the dialogue unfolds and the many postions presented. It’s a healthy “dialogue.”

Personally, I have always been a fan of the OT. Its beauty, its poetry, its characters. Indeed there are some issues in there that call for genuine discussion such as creation, God’s charge to kill all men, women and children and His seemingly on again off again relationship with His covenant people. Areas of tension that are not often addressed with rational thought either from the pulpit nor in Bible studies. Nevertheless, these tensions exist.

 Anyway, here is the linkI have referenced.  Enjoy!

Grow Up To Salvation

“The cow is of the bovine ilk, one end is moo the other milk”.  A rather simple poem by Ogden Nash – straight forward and to the point. However, today the issue of milk is no easy matter. There is whole milk, 1%, 2%, Skim Milk, Protein Milk made with soy, and powdered milk. It’s no longer a simple matter to say, “Pick up some milk while you’re at the store.”

In the setting of scripture, two apostles use an analogy of milk in two different ways. Both writing to a community of believers and both using the idea of milk as a nutrient to get their point across. The apostle Peter uses milk in a positive way simply referring to the idea of being “born again”. And as new babes must suckle at their mother’s breast for initial nourishment for survival, so should those “born again” in Christ, seek the pure spiritual milk that will allow them to “grow up to salvation…” (1Peter 2:1-3).  The issue is no so much the initial state of belief as it is the need for and imperative nature of growing through proper nourishment. It is pure milk that is the emphasis.

In 1 Corinthians 3:1-3, the apostle Paul uses the concept of “milk” in a negative sense. Christians who should be well beyond the elementary feeding of milk should, by now, be on to solid food. But, as Paul notes, “You were not ready for it.” In fact, being drawn to a personality and not to the power of the gospelhas created jealousy and strife. Evidence that they are not thinking spiritually but merely in a human manner. Yes, Paul wishes that he could provide them with solid nourishment, but it is evident by the immature thinking and acting that they are not ready.

I suspect in many churches the two scenarios presented by Peter and Paul are playing themselves out. There are those who provide new believers with the nourishment they need to begin their spiritual journey, and there are those who find that “milk” is all they have to offer and people are stagnating in their growth. Oh, they may be psyched and enthused because of a personal allegiance or stimulated by enthusiastic activity, but they are not maturing in their relationship to Christ. They are confusing activity with accomplishment.

This issue here is discipleship. A disciple is a follower-learner of Christ. Often times the concept of discipling stops with the following part and takes weak stabs at the learner part. The focus becomes distorted and the emphasis of growing people in the knowledge of God becomes simple social club activities where glad handing is the order of the day and not growth.  Yes, it’s true that there needs to be a fellowship of the faith, but that is the by product of discipleship not the means of discipleship.

Some friends of ours have been attending a local church that my wife and I had attended for a while. They were going through a new members class and the question came up about teaching even if you did not subscribe to the full compliment of the denominations belief system. They were advised that having a “different” belief about certain doctrines is fine as long as they did not lead people to question their allegiance to the denomination.  Does that not sound like Paul’s problem with the Corinthians? Arguing over personal allegiances, in this case a denomination, and forsaking genuine growth in Christ.

In every denomination or “convention”, there are going to be misguided allegiances because of immature growth. But, as Christians, we are not following a denominational agenda, we are following Christ. In one of the blogs I read regularly, there was a letter from a pastor that was posted for comment.  The pastor had voted for Obama. Some people in the church felt betrayed because of Obama’s obvious stance on abortion and thinking their pastor would surely not support that view, so they left the church.  The pastor, who had tried to keep his voting choice “secret”, was devastated that people, when they learned of it, would have such a drastic reaction.

When I read that post I thought two things. One, why did the pastor feel like his choice had to be a secret? And two, only people still strapped to the nursing bottle of milk would leave a fellowship without having a dialogue about why the pastor made this choice.

Growing people in Christ, examining the depth of Scripture, is what leads to a healthy environment for dialogue and questions. Did the pastor make the right voting choice? In my opinion, no. But does that automatically mean he is “pro-choice” and not “pro-life?” Only an open and frank dialogue could determine that. Does that mean that his “faith” is less valid than my faith or that of another? Absolutely not.  But when you give people only milk, they spit-up from time to time and react.  Would dialogue and discussion kept those people from leaving the church? Perhaps not, but at least the opportunity would have been there to make an intelligent decision.

Everyone should have the opportunity to develop a strong biblical belief system. Not just adopt another persons system or that of a denomination. That kind of development only comes from an open and honest conversation and dialogue about scripture. That is what allows people to grow up to salvation.

“No Soup For You”

I have a touch of Catholicism in my background. My step dad was Catholic and consequently, like many good church goers (Catholic and Protestant alike) our family went on Easter and Christmas. If I remember correctly, I believe there was a time when my step dad went to mass other days during the week, but we did not.  However, at some point, my sister and I did end up in catechism.

I don’t remember much about those classes. Nor do I recall a lot about the Catholic tradition. But what I do remember and believed for quite some time, is that people liked being Catholic because they really didn’t need to think for themselves. The church told them what to believe and how to practice their faith.

Many churches (denominations) practice that type of religion. There is a central authority figure that dispenses what people should believe and then encourages them to practice it. Don’t question it. Don’t examine it and make decisions for yourself, just believe it and do it.  I suspect that is why you don’t find many churches who make an effort at discipling people. When you disciple people, you equip them with knowledge and knowledge leads to questions and questions lead to examination and examination leads to more questions.

In the “Great Commission” making disciples and teaching them is central to the charge. So why are so many churches hesitant to equip people with knowledge and the ability examine the scriptures to see if what they hear and see is true? I suspect it could be threatening to some pastors to have congregants who are inquisitive and challenging. I suspect it could be unnerving to have people studying the Word and feeding on its “meat”. I also suspect that feeding on the Word, digesting its truth and examining its difficulties is what produces strong churches. I did not say large churches, I said strong churches.

Now, let me offer some perspective…in the last five or six years my wife and I have lived in three different states. We have attended, even joined, churches in each of those locations. What I have discovered is that based on denomination, give me the passage of scripture, and I’ll bet you I can tell you what the pastor’s sermon will consist of. That does not mean all churches are preaching the same gospel, it simply means that some denominations are predictable in the package they deliver. Oh, the three points and a poem may be different, but the essence is usually the same. Is it any wonder that many churches are filled with people who have a biblical understanding four miles wide and a quarter inch deep?

If we were to examine closely the development of the disciples who followed Jesus, it becomes fairly clear that their progression of “belief” went through stages. At times their next growth step came as a result of a public teaching moment by the Christ. At other times, it came when they inquired just exactly what he meant by a certain statement or parable. What if Jesus were like the soup Nazi from Jerry Seinfelds series….instead of “No soup for you!!!!”, Jesus would say, “No questions from you!” How listless would the gospel become?

Whether it is “make disciples, teaching them…” or “being transformed by the renewal of your mind”, discipleship is the essence of growing in Christ. The more I know him, the more I understand myself and my responsibility as a follower of the Christ. It may be boiled down to Love God and love others, but arriving at that purity of truth comes from maturing in Christ.

Veteran’s Day

It’s Veteran’s Day today. For many, it is nothing more than a day out of school or work, an extra shopping day, or an “oh my gosh, no mail today!” But, for me, as I mature, this day has more and more meaning.

My mom recently returned from a trip to Hawaii. Naturally, she visited the Pearl Harbor war memorial. In her words it was “eerie”. She felt overwhelmed standing over the wreckage of the Arizona and watched as other visitors, men whom she guessed were veterans, wept as the “relived” that event.

She sent us some of the information available at the site. I was amazed to learn that almost 2,300 people were killed that day. Most of them Navy personnel. Another eleven hundred or so wounded – again a majority of them Navy personnel. These were staggering numbers to me and it moved me to tears as I read a brief accounting of the events on that day.

Last night, on the evening news, they had a “special feature” on Canadian citizens who have spontaneously begun to line up along roadsides and on overpasses, as their fallen soldiers are transported to the military morgue. One mother, who had lost her son to a roadside bomb, recounts the day her son’s body made that trip. On an overpass, in an old rusty pick-up truck, were a man and his son - standing erect and a offering a firm salute as the soldier’s body passed by. It moved her deeply that someone would care that much. Apparently, thousands are continuing to do just that each time a soldier makes that trip. Watching the story moved me to tears.

I’ve shared this before, but I choose to share it again. I can’t do much when it comes to defending our country in a time of war. If they allowed men my age to enlist, I would do it in a heartbeat – then again, it was my “heartbeat” that kept me from service in the first place. Nevertheless, I would be there to put my name on the dotted line. But what I can do is say “THANK YOU” when I have the opportunity. And I do. Wherever I see a soldier in uniform I walk up, shake their hand and say “Thank you for the job you do in defending our freedom.”  If I see a Sheriff, a Police officer, a Firefighter, I do the same thing. I walk up, shake their hand and say, “Thank you for the job you do.”   It’s not much I know, but it is something.

On our recent flight to Washington, back in August, I did witness this. A military personnel was on our flight. Once we got ready to take off, the flight attendant came up and invited the soldier to sit in an empty seat in first class. It moved me to tears. Such a simple gesture, but so profound in its message.

I suppose I have become a cry baby in some respects. There are many things that move me to tears these days. However, the two things that always prime the pump….Those who serve our country and the Christ who sacrificed his all.

Say “thank you” to a Veteran today!

Here are a couple treats – I hope you enjoy. The first is a song called “A Pittance of Time” ; the second is a High School groups performance of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic“.