Vitality
Jesus had a lot to say about the nature and quality of this “Life.” Many of the ways He described it suggest that it is characterized by a “New Vitality.” It is not the cold, rigid, unappealing way of life so often associated with religion. It is not religion. It is a vital relationship with the Creator, Lord of the universe!
When talking with a woman beside a well outside the Samaritan Village of Sychar he told her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” (John 4:10) He repeated this in verse 14. “(W)hoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Later, at a Festival in Jerusalem, He stood in a public place and loudly declared, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” (John 17: 37 & 38) This time John explains the metaphor. “By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.” (verse 39) This is a vivid description – a word picture – of what it will be like when the Holy Spirit enters our lives.
The greatest Teacher of all, with inexhaustible imagery at His disposal, uses the metaphor of “springs” and “streams” of water, to paint this picture of the “His new kind of Life.” And anyone who’s familiar with arid places knows what streams and rivers do to a desert. They create an oasis. So life, in the Spirit, is a veritable oasis not just for the one in whom the Spirit lives but the people around them.
The compelling quality of this “Life” He offers is more dramatically emphasized in the broadly emphatic language of John 10:10. Describing Himself as “the Good Shepherd,” Jesus says, “I have come that they – ‘my sheep’ – may have life, and have it to the full.” The Greek word translated “full,” – “abundantly” in other translations – is one of those “broad stroke” words. Its root meaning is “beyond.” This “Life,” is “beyond.” “Beyond what,” someone might ask? “Beyond” just about any measure we might apply to quality of life. In the day-to-day common use of this word ideas like “superabundant;” “excessive;” “exceeding;” “very highly;” “beyond measure;” “superfluous:” “lavish;” were being communicated. THE MESSAGE paraphrase translates Jesus statement, “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.” Jesus is telling us that His Life for us is simply “beyond” whatever measure of well-being we might have. Our Lord fills the “cups” of His followers lavishly!
Sixteen times, in his biography, John recalls Jesus describing this “New Life,” as “eternal.” While it has a beginning, this “life in the Spirit,” is endless. It is “forever.”
On top of all of this Jesus spends a lot of time, particularly in His final
days with His friends, insisting, emphatically that “Life” with Him – “in Him” – is joy filled. At the Seder table the night before His rigged trial and crucifixion, He told His friends, “I have told you this – these things I have been teaching you – so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” (John 15:11) Using imagery most anyone can relate to He frankly describes how His “joy” will come not despite certain hard times but as a direct by product of such pain and suffering.
“I tell you the truth; you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.” (John 16:20 – 22)
“Ask,” He assured them, “and you will receive …” Whatever you receive from me will result in, “your joy” being “complete.” (John 16:24) And when He prayed for His followers that night He assured His Father, and ours, “I’m saying these things in the world’s hearing so my people can experience my joy completed in them.” (John 17:13 & 14 THE MESSAGE) There is no question but that “joy” is the intended experience of people who have been “born from above.” The “kingdom of heaven,” is a joy filled world! “Joy,” C.S. Lewis writes, “is the serious business of Heaven.”
People “born from above” learn, from Jesus the Life Master, how to live in the “oasis” of His present “Kingdom.” They learn, early in their “walk” with Him, that theirs is an endless life and they live accordingly. They find a quality of character being forged in them that sharpens their perception of the “joy” that can be discovered even in their suffering. More and more often they are lighthearted and joyfully expectant no matter what is going on in the “kingdoms of this world,” that surround them, threatening to overwhelm and destroy them.
Here ends John’s telling of the “Greatest Story Ever Told.” No, it isn’t the end of the story. For this story is the real “Never Ending Story.” Day after day the birth we celebrate Christmas after Christmas is celebrated far beyond the crèche in your Home or neighborhood or Church. This very day, this exact moment, somewhere in the world – perhaps in your heart – someone is being “born from above.” And the epilogue to the Christmas story, which John carefully tells, is retold. It is a story “Forever told”!
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
LifeLog - 12.19.07 - The Greatest Story Ever Told: Forever Told 6.
God With Us … In Us
Probably the most comprehensive and detailed description of this “birth of the Spirit” is what Jesus said about it during His extensive conversation around the Seder table on the night of His trial.
The conversation takes up five chapters in all; John 13 through 17. Chapters 14 through 16 contain numerous references to the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of Jesus’ followers. In order to fully see the description we need to break it down into a sequential view of the points He made.
He begins with a statement,
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him
and have seen him.”
This point seems clear enough. To know Jesus is to know God. Knowing “me” he states, is to “know my Father as well.” So, knowing “me” is to know “Him.” Seeing “me” is to have “seen Him.”
Phillip, one of His followers, obviously didn’t get it. His request, which follows immediately on Jesus affirmation of His unity with the Father, shows how much a man “of this world” he really was. His and his Friends’ ideas of God’s ultimate plans were like those of Nicodemus and other Jews. They expected a dramatic world takeover. Phillip and his fellows believed they’d been following the “Hope of Israel;” “Messiah.” They further believed that, with the takeover, they would be key players in the conquest and the New World Order. That’s why, frequently, they argued about who was going to be “greatest” in this new Kingdom. So he asked for something you might expect he’d want. “Lord show us the Father and that will be enough.” Show us the Father. Phillip wanted something dramatic. He knew what happened when Moses made a similar request. And He wanted something like that to happen now. Quite likely he was expecting that the appearance of the Father would, inevitably, set in motion the phenomenal events he was still expecting. But Jesus would have nothing to do with it. He pressed the point He made earlier.
“Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone
who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you
believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not
just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.”
The point is clear and the principal issue is our relationship with Jesus.
- He and Father God are one and the same person. The work that Jesus does is the exact
same work that the Father is doing. “Heaven,” is “opened.” Heaven and Jesus are fully
co-operating in the work of the “Kingdom of God.” Anyone who truly “knows” Jesus
understands this profound unity that exists between Father and Son. To see one is to see
the other.
His next points add new meaning to His earlier teaching about our need to be “born of the Spirit.” He says,
“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give
you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept
him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and
will be in you.”
There are three critical points here.
- Love for Jesus involves taking what He says seriously and acting on it. If He asks us to
do certain things we’ll do them simply because we love Him and want to please Him.
- If we do what He asks, out of this loving desire to please Him, He will give us another
“Counselor,” someone to hereafter assume the role He’s filled in our lives while here in
person.
- That “Counselor” is the Spirit of truth. The same Spirit that was given to Him “without
measure,” will be given to us. We must get this! The Spirit will be “with” us and “in” us.
This is what being born of the Spirit is. The Spirit who empowered and directed Jesus takes
up residence at the core of our being – spirit/heart/will – and assumes the role of Jesus.
At this point Jesus takes us to a whole new level. He says, “I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you.”
- Jesus has been talking about going somewhere. He’s told His followers that they’ll have
someone else to fill the place He’s occupied in their lives. But now, He’s saying He will
“come” to them. The only explanation for this seeming ambivalence is that He’s teaching
something about His and the Spirit’s relationship. And so He is.
The lesson becomes a bit clearer in a following statement.
“If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to
him and make our home with him.”
- This is the most direct statement Jesus has made yet about His and the Father’s
relationship with the Holy Spirit. Just a few sentences earlier He’s told these Friends that
the Holy Spirit will soon come in His place. Then He says that the Spirit’s coming would be
one and the same thing as His coming. Now He’s teaching them that the Spirit’s coming is
one and the same thing as the coming of both Himself and the Father. And, their coming,
like that of the Spirit, will be “forever.” They are coming to “make their home” with the one
in whom “what they want done is being done.”
Just in case you think that the unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is not as clear as I’ve suggested the following statements establish it to be so with increasing certainty. “… (T)he Counselor, the Holy Spirit,” He says, “whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
- As Jesus was the Teacher, the ultimate “Word” from God,” – in every lesson He taught
doing the work of the Father,” – the “Counselor, the Holy Spirit,” will “teach” them “all
things.” He will “remind” them of “everything” Jesus “said to them.” The work of the Spirit
will be the work of the Son which is the work of the Father.
In Chapter 15 verse 26 Jesus says, “When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, He will testify about me.”
- Jesus is now stating that He will “send” the “Counselor … from the Father.” Just moments
before He had said that He would ask the Father and the Father would “give” the
Counselor. Now He asserts that He “will send” “the Spirit of truth.” These three are so
intimately interrelated that to talk about one is to talk about the other.
Jesus makes the final and conclusive statement in Chapter 16 verses 12 through 15.
“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit
of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak
only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by
taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine.
That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.”
Here is the summary.
- The Spirit works with “what is mine,” Jesus insists. “What is mine,” is “all that belongs to
the Father.” These three are all working together. Their material, their work, their
objectives are the same. Of course! They are one. The Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit are
one. To have the Spirit “in” us is to have “Father” and “Son” in us. The Holy Spirit has
“come upon” us. The “power” of the “Most High has overshadowed us.” This is the
detailed description of what a “birth from above” is all about. It is, what St. Paul described
as a “mystery” revealed. It is “Christ in you the hope of Glory.” (See Colossians 1:26 & 27)
Only someone living this “new” kind of life is capable of “seeing” – looking on – “the Kingdom of God.” Certainly it is the only kind of life that will survive and flourish in such a “Kingdom.” “The Spirit gives birth to spirit.” Such “spiritual” life will not “perish.” Jesus said it. And most anyone familiar with the Bible remembers the statement.
“God loves the world so much that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in Him
shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
Some time later, in a prayer, Jesus makes a most enlightening statement. Remember, He’s praying.
“Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ,
whom you have sent.” (John 17:3)
The spiritual life Jesus is teaching us about is “eternal.”
Moreover it has a singular focus. It is bent on “knowing” God; Father and Son. Jesus said pretty much the same thing while encouraging people to stop worrying about the stuff we usually worry about.
“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we
wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you
need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be
given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:31 – 33)
To “seek” someone’s Kingdom is to pursue an understanding of the nature of things under their rule. The true “seeker” wants to “know” the ruler personally as well. But beyond that someone who “seeks” a Kingdom is “searching” for a destiny; a way of life they can trust for safety, freedom, and well-being. The King they choose will be someone they’ve come to believe they can trust their lives with. Jesus is teaching that it is only when we trust all aspects of our lives to the Father’s Sovereign control that we will “know” Him well. And it makes perfect sense. If the one and only God is “in us,” there is no further place for any illusions that we might be the masters of our own “destiny.” He is fully in charge. Then and only then is He free to reveal Himself to us completely. Then and only then will we really “know” Him. Finally, we know what it is like to live with “the Holy Spirit” at work in us; “overshadowed by the Most High.” With that we “know” the Father and what it is like to be His “children.” As “children of the Heavenly Father,” we discover we are Christ’s brothers and sisters. With the Father, our Lord Jesus, and the Spirit - God - alive in us we find we are gradually becoming like Jesus Himself. Usually we're the last ones to notice. But it's happening. We and the “Kingdom of the Heavens” are in growing collaboration. We are in lock step on more and more issues, daily. The “Heavens” have been “opened.” Heavenly beings “ascend and descend on” us continually. We are “filled with all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:19) Everyday it is more apparent, to those who observe us, that we “have been with Jesus.” Our presence is perceived as the presence of someone “filled with the Spirit.” The Kingdom, flourishing in us quietly but certainly, asserts its influence in the world; among the people where we live. People we interact with are coming under His rule. When He returns business in us and such people will simply go on as usual. After all we will have been becoming “the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.” Then and there, on the foundation of those hearts, He will finally “make everything new.”
Probably the most comprehensive and detailed description of this “birth of the Spirit” is what Jesus said about it during His extensive conversation around the Seder table on the night of His trial.
The conversation takes up five chapters in all; John 13 through 17. Chapters 14 through 16 contain numerous references to the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of Jesus’ followers. In order to fully see the description we need to break it down into a sequential view of the points He made.
He begins with a statement,
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him
and have seen him.”
This point seems clear enough. To know Jesus is to know God. Knowing “me” he states, is to “know my Father as well.” So, knowing “me” is to know “Him.” Seeing “me” is to have “seen Him.”
Phillip, one of His followers, obviously didn’t get it. His request, which follows immediately on Jesus affirmation of His unity with the Father, shows how much a man “of this world” he really was. His and his Friends’ ideas of God’s ultimate plans were like those of Nicodemus and other Jews. They expected a dramatic world takeover. Phillip and his fellows believed they’d been following the “Hope of Israel;” “Messiah.” They further believed that, with the takeover, they would be key players in the conquest and the New World Order. That’s why, frequently, they argued about who was going to be “greatest” in this new Kingdom. So he asked for something you might expect he’d want. “Lord show us the Father and that will be enough.” Show us the Father. Phillip wanted something dramatic. He knew what happened when Moses made a similar request. And He wanted something like that to happen now. Quite likely he was expecting that the appearance of the Father would, inevitably, set in motion the phenomenal events he was still expecting. But Jesus would have nothing to do with it. He pressed the point He made earlier.
“Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone
who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you
believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not
just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.”
The point is clear and the principal issue is our relationship with Jesus.
- He and Father God are one and the same person. The work that Jesus does is the exact
same work that the Father is doing. “Heaven,” is “opened.” Heaven and Jesus are fully
co-operating in the work of the “Kingdom of God.” Anyone who truly “knows” Jesus
understands this profound unity that exists between Father and Son. To see one is to see
the other.
His next points add new meaning to His earlier teaching about our need to be “born of the Spirit.” He says,
“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give
you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept
him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and
will be in you.”
There are three critical points here.
- Love for Jesus involves taking what He says seriously and acting on it. If He asks us to
do certain things we’ll do them simply because we love Him and want to please Him.
- If we do what He asks, out of this loving desire to please Him, He will give us another
“Counselor,” someone to hereafter assume the role He’s filled in our lives while here in
person.
- That “Counselor” is the Spirit of truth. The same Spirit that was given to Him “without
measure,” will be given to us. We must get this! The Spirit will be “with” us and “in” us.
This is what being born of the Spirit is. The Spirit who empowered and directed Jesus takes
up residence at the core of our being – spirit/heart/will – and assumes the role of Jesus.
At this point Jesus takes us to a whole new level. He says, “I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you.”
- Jesus has been talking about going somewhere. He’s told His followers that they’ll have
someone else to fill the place He’s occupied in their lives. But now, He’s saying He will
“come” to them. The only explanation for this seeming ambivalence is that He’s teaching
something about His and the Spirit’s relationship. And so He is.
The lesson becomes a bit clearer in a following statement.
“If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to
him and make our home with him.”
- This is the most direct statement Jesus has made yet about His and the Father’s
relationship with the Holy Spirit. Just a few sentences earlier He’s told these Friends that
the Holy Spirit will soon come in His place. Then He says that the Spirit’s coming would be
one and the same thing as His coming. Now He’s teaching them that the Spirit’s coming is
one and the same thing as the coming of both Himself and the Father. And, their coming,
like that of the Spirit, will be “forever.” They are coming to “make their home” with the one
in whom “what they want done is being done.”
Just in case you think that the unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is not as clear as I’ve suggested the following statements establish it to be so with increasing certainty. “… (T)he Counselor, the Holy Spirit,” He says, “whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
- As Jesus was the Teacher, the ultimate “Word” from God,” – in every lesson He taught
doing the work of the Father,” – the “Counselor, the Holy Spirit,” will “teach” them “all
things.” He will “remind” them of “everything” Jesus “said to them.” The work of the Spirit
will be the work of the Son which is the work of the Father.
In Chapter 15 verse 26 Jesus says, “When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, He will testify about me.”
- Jesus is now stating that He will “send” the “Counselor … from the Father.” Just moments
before He had said that He would ask the Father and the Father would “give” the
Counselor. Now He asserts that He “will send” “the Spirit of truth.” These three are so
intimately interrelated that to talk about one is to talk about the other.
Jesus makes the final and conclusive statement in Chapter 16 verses 12 through 15.
“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit
of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak
only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by
taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine.
That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.”
Here is the summary.
- The Spirit works with “what is mine,” Jesus insists. “What is mine,” is “all that belongs to
the Father.” These three are all working together. Their material, their work, their
objectives are the same. Of course! They are one. The Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit are
one. To have the Spirit “in” us is to have “Father” and “Son” in us. The Holy Spirit has
“come upon” us. The “power” of the “Most High has overshadowed us.” This is the
detailed description of what a “birth from above” is all about. It is, what St. Paul described
as a “mystery” revealed. It is “Christ in you the hope of Glory.” (See Colossians 1:26 & 27)
Only someone living this “new” kind of life is capable of “seeing” – looking on – “the Kingdom of God.” Certainly it is the only kind of life that will survive and flourish in such a “Kingdom.” “The Spirit gives birth to spirit.” Such “spiritual” life will not “perish.” Jesus said it. And most anyone familiar with the Bible remembers the statement.
“God loves the world so much that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in Him
shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
Some time later, in a prayer, Jesus makes a most enlightening statement. Remember, He’s praying.
“Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ,
whom you have sent.” (John 17:3)
The spiritual life Jesus is teaching us about is “eternal.”
Moreover it has a singular focus. It is bent on “knowing” God; Father and Son. Jesus said pretty much the same thing while encouraging people to stop worrying about the stuff we usually worry about.
“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we
wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you
need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be
given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:31 – 33)
To “seek” someone’s Kingdom is to pursue an understanding of the nature of things under their rule. The true “seeker” wants to “know” the ruler personally as well. But beyond that someone who “seeks” a Kingdom is “searching” for a destiny; a way of life they can trust for safety, freedom, and well-being. The King they choose will be someone they’ve come to believe they can trust their lives with. Jesus is teaching that it is only when we trust all aspects of our lives to the Father’s Sovereign control that we will “know” Him well. And it makes perfect sense. If the one and only God is “in us,” there is no further place for any illusions that we might be the masters of our own “destiny.” He is fully in charge. Then and only then is He free to reveal Himself to us completely. Then and only then will we really “know” Him. Finally, we know what it is like to live with “the Holy Spirit” at work in us; “overshadowed by the Most High.” With that we “know” the Father and what it is like to be His “children.” As “children of the Heavenly Father,” we discover we are Christ’s brothers and sisters. With the Father, our Lord Jesus, and the Spirit - God - alive in us we find we are gradually becoming like Jesus Himself. Usually we're the last ones to notice. But it's happening. We and the “Kingdom of the Heavens” are in growing collaboration. We are in lock step on more and more issues, daily. The “Heavens” have been “opened.” Heavenly beings “ascend and descend on” us continually. We are “filled with all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:19) Everyday it is more apparent, to those who observe us, that we “have been with Jesus.” Our presence is perceived as the presence of someone “filled with the Spirit.” The Kingdom, flourishing in us quietly but certainly, asserts its influence in the world; among the people where we live. People we interact with are coming under His rule. When He returns business in us and such people will simply go on as usual. After all we will have been becoming “the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.” Then and there, on the foundation of those hearts, He will finally “make everything new.”
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
LifeLog - 12.18.07 - The Greatest Story Ever Told: Forever Told 5.
New Life
It all began with a strong affirmation of Jesus stature as a Teacher “from God.” The weight of the acclaim was great. The man who gave it was, himself, a knowledgeable man – a Pharisee who could legitimately assert that he not only knew all Jewish Scripture and commentary, but practiced it “blamelessly” (See Philippians 3:5). He was, also, a “member of the Jewish ruling Council” (John 3:1)
Jesus met this prestigious man’s recognition with a direct, almost disrespectful declaration. “I tell you the truth, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born from above.” Later Jesus would say to this man’s inquisitive colleagues, “the Kingdom of God is within you.” Here, much earlier in His public life, He is essentially saying the same thing. The rule of God begins on the inside of a person. His way of teaching this radical truth is to reiterate what John had said about Him earlier. He had the authority to give, to anyone who believed in Him, the right to become a “child of God, … born of God.” (John 1:13) In order for someone to “see the Kingdom of God,” the “Holy Spirit” must “come on them, and the power of the Most High overshadow them,” and they must be born, “a child of God.” (Luke 1:35) It may seem irreverent, even heretical, to use the explanation of Jesus virgin birth in this context. But that is, essentially, what Jesus did.
This man, who first heard the declaration that “birth from above,” was necessary if anyone wanted to “see the Kingdom of God,” was, as you might expect, baffled. “How,” he protested, “can a man be born when he is old?” He even got a bit sarcastic. “Surely he cannot enter his mother’s womb a second time to be born!” Jesus explained.
“I tell you the truth; no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water
and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You
shouldnot be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows
wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or
where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” (John 3:5 – 8)
This is not about obstetrics and gynecology. This is about spiritual things. It’s about supernatural things. Just as, in the waters of baptism, He, Jesus, had surrendered himself to the rule of God in His life, so anyone who wishes to be part of the Kingdom of God must be “born of the Spirit.”
Jesus expressed His disappointment with this Pharisee’s surprise by referring to a phenomenon they both would understand. “The wind,” he said, “blows where it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going.” In referring to the wind Jesus was not only appealing to Nicodemus common sense. He was also referring to his scholarly sense. Jesus and Nicodemus were both fluent in Greek. They both knew – their Bible was the Greek Septuagint – that the Greek word for Spirit and wind was one and the same pneuma. And they both knew that it was this pneuma that moved over the abyss at creation. They, together, knew that the “breath of God,” is the source of all life. Still Nicodemus was confused. “How can this be?” he asked. With this Jesus challenged Nicodemus. “You are Israel’s teacher and you do not understand these things?” Jesus seems to be a little testy here. But He’s justifiably disturbed. Nicodemus, like his fellows, had been missing critical aspects of God’s purpose as it was explained in their Scriptures. Because they had interpreted what God was attempting to communicate to them from a nationalistic, political, economic perspective they had missed the spiritual implications of God’s word to them. This prejudicial and inaccurate understanding of the Scriptures was especially obvious with regard to spiritual matters such as Jesus is now attempting to explain. Nicodemus really should have known better. At least three times in their sacred writings God had revealed His intention to “rebirth” His chosen people. The first is in Jeremiah’s prophecy. In chapter 31 verses 33 and 34 the prophet says,
“‘This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,’” declares
the LORD. ‘I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be
their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a
man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the
least of them to the greatest,’ declares the LORD.”
Transformed minds and hearts; a complete, intimate, personal knowledge of God: this is God’s intention for His people. The second and third instances in which God affirms this design for the people He’s chosen are in the prophecy of Ezekiel. In chapter 11 verses 19 and 20 he says,
“I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from
them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my
decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their
God.”
Then, in chapter 36 verses 24 – 27 his message is even more emphatic.
“I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring
you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be
clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give
you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of
stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to
follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.”
The theme is the same in each of these messages. God intends to change the hearts – the spirits – of His people. Jesus and Nicodemus had both memorized these passages. Jesus was disturbed that this “teacher in Israel,” and all his fellows completely missed its significance.
Have we missed its significance? Do we understand that we must “be born from above?” Does the idea of the “Holy Spirit” coming on us and “the power of the Most High overshadowing us,” really make sense to us? Can we truthfully say that we have grasped the meaning of Christ’s words, “The Spirit gives birth to spirit”? There’s no doubt Jesus is insisting on the absolute necessity for us to not only believe it but experience it.
It all began with a strong affirmation of Jesus stature as a Teacher “from God.” The weight of the acclaim was great. The man who gave it was, himself, a knowledgeable man – a Pharisee who could legitimately assert that he not only knew all Jewish Scripture and commentary, but practiced it “blamelessly” (See Philippians 3:5). He was, also, a “member of the Jewish ruling Council” (John 3:1)
Jesus met this prestigious man’s recognition with a direct, almost disrespectful declaration. “I tell you the truth, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born from above.” Later Jesus would say to this man’s inquisitive colleagues, “the Kingdom of God is within you.” Here, much earlier in His public life, He is essentially saying the same thing. The rule of God begins on the inside of a person. His way of teaching this radical truth is to reiterate what John had said about Him earlier. He had the authority to give, to anyone who believed in Him, the right to become a “child of God, … born of God.” (John 1:13) In order for someone to “see the Kingdom of God,” the “Holy Spirit” must “come on them, and the power of the Most High overshadow them,” and they must be born, “a child of God.” (Luke 1:35) It may seem irreverent, even heretical, to use the explanation of Jesus virgin birth in this context. But that is, essentially, what Jesus did.
This man, who first heard the declaration that “birth from above,” was necessary if anyone wanted to “see the Kingdom of God,” was, as you might expect, baffled. “How,” he protested, “can a man be born when he is old?” He even got a bit sarcastic. “Surely he cannot enter his mother’s womb a second time to be born!” Jesus explained.
“I tell you the truth; no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water
and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You
shouldnot be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows
wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or
where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” (John 3:5 – 8)
This is not about obstetrics and gynecology. This is about spiritual things. It’s about supernatural things. Just as, in the waters of baptism, He, Jesus, had surrendered himself to the rule of God in His life, so anyone who wishes to be part of the Kingdom of God must be “born of the Spirit.”
Jesus expressed His disappointment with this Pharisee’s surprise by referring to a phenomenon they both would understand. “The wind,” he said, “blows where it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going.” In referring to the wind Jesus was not only appealing to Nicodemus common sense. He was also referring to his scholarly sense. Jesus and Nicodemus were both fluent in Greek. They both knew – their Bible was the Greek Septuagint – that the Greek word for Spirit and wind was one and the same pneuma. And they both knew that it was this pneuma that moved over the abyss at creation. They, together, knew that the “breath of God,” is the source of all life. Still Nicodemus was confused. “How can this be?” he asked. With this Jesus challenged Nicodemus. “You are Israel’s teacher and you do not understand these things?” Jesus seems to be a little testy here. But He’s justifiably disturbed. Nicodemus, like his fellows, had been missing critical aspects of God’s purpose as it was explained in their Scriptures. Because they had interpreted what God was attempting to communicate to them from a nationalistic, political, economic perspective they had missed the spiritual implications of God’s word to them. This prejudicial and inaccurate understanding of the Scriptures was especially obvious with regard to spiritual matters such as Jesus is now attempting to explain. Nicodemus really should have known better. At least three times in their sacred writings God had revealed His intention to “rebirth” His chosen people. The first is in Jeremiah’s prophecy. In chapter 31 verses 33 and 34 the prophet says,
“‘This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,’” declares
the LORD. ‘I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be
their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a
man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the
least of them to the greatest,’ declares the LORD.”
Transformed minds and hearts; a complete, intimate, personal knowledge of God: this is God’s intention for His people. The second and third instances in which God affirms this design for the people He’s chosen are in the prophecy of Ezekiel. In chapter 11 verses 19 and 20 he says,
“I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from
them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my
decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their
God.”
Then, in chapter 36 verses 24 – 27 his message is even more emphatic.
“I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring
you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be
clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give
you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of
stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to
follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.”
The theme is the same in each of these messages. God intends to change the hearts – the spirits – of His people. Jesus and Nicodemus had both memorized these passages. Jesus was disturbed that this “teacher in Israel,” and all his fellows completely missed its significance.
Have we missed its significance? Do we understand that we must “be born from above?” Does the idea of the “Holy Spirit” coming on us and “the power of the Most High overshadowing us,” really make sense to us? Can we truthfully say that we have grasped the meaning of Christ’s words, “The Spirit gives birth to spirit”? There’s no doubt Jesus is insisting on the absolute necessity for us to not only believe it but experience it.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
LifeLog - 12.15.07 - The Greatest Story Ever Told: Forever Told 4.
Heaven Opened
Later on in John’s informative 1st Chapter Jesus meets a man He appears to be meeting for the first time. As Jesus sees the man coming He greets him as if He knows him. The man is a bit surprised and asks, “How do you know me.” Jesus replies, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Phillip called you.” The man, Nathanael, is blown away and blurts out, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God. You are the King of Israel.” Jesus is not impressed. He tells Nathanael that this paranormal phenomenon, which he’s so impressed with, will be shown to be a mere token as “heaven is opened and the angels of God ascend and descend on the Son of Man.”
For the first time since Adam and Eve hid from God in the Garden of Eden God and a human being will cooperate with one another continuously. The Son of Man will be fully engaged in the work of Heaven just as Heaven is involved in the day-to-day goings on of the Son of Man. Heaven and the Son of Man will cooperate completely in the work of the “Kingdom of the Heavens.” Later, when his detractors accused Jesus of overpowering the devil and his minions by the power of the devil himself, Jesus said to them, “… if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.” (Luke 11:20) The “finger of God” was, indeed, the instrument by which He did His work. The “Kingdom of God,” has come to us. The will of the Father is now being fully done in the life of a man; the Son of God, who, is at the same time, the Son of Man.
Jesus, the “Son” of our race – the Child of our highest hopes – is more than our Hero. He’s intimately involved in our lives. There’s no air of superiority; no distance. He has come to live among us. He “became poor so that we can be rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9) Identifying so completely with us and living under the same circumstances we do He becomes a real life role model of how our lives were intended to look. He is also our Mentor/Teacher. He said, of Himself, “I am … the truth …” (John 14:6) He is the most knowledgeable, discerning, wise man we will ever meet. As Dallas Willard put it, “He is simply the smartest person who ever lived.” (The Divine Conspiracy, pg. 94) And John is quick to remind us of important things He taught while He was here. The most important of those lessons is about the “new kind of life” He’s demonstrating in His own day-to-day living.
Later on in John’s informative 1st Chapter Jesus meets a man He appears to be meeting for the first time. As Jesus sees the man coming He greets him as if He knows him. The man is a bit surprised and asks, “How do you know me.” Jesus replies, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Phillip called you.” The man, Nathanael, is blown away and blurts out, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God. You are the King of Israel.” Jesus is not impressed. He tells Nathanael that this paranormal phenomenon, which he’s so impressed with, will be shown to be a mere token as “heaven is opened and the angels of God ascend and descend on the Son of Man.”
For the first time since Adam and Eve hid from God in the Garden of Eden God and a human being will cooperate with one another continuously. The Son of Man will be fully engaged in the work of Heaven just as Heaven is involved in the day-to-day goings on of the Son of Man. Heaven and the Son of Man will cooperate completely in the work of the “Kingdom of the Heavens.” Later, when his detractors accused Jesus of overpowering the devil and his minions by the power of the devil himself, Jesus said to them, “… if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.” (Luke 11:20) The “finger of God” was, indeed, the instrument by which He did His work. The “Kingdom of God,” has come to us. The will of the Father is now being fully done in the life of a man; the Son of God, who, is at the same time, the Son of Man.
Jesus, the “Son” of our race – the Child of our highest hopes – is more than our Hero. He’s intimately involved in our lives. There’s no air of superiority; no distance. He has come to live among us. He “became poor so that we can be rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9) Identifying so completely with us and living under the same circumstances we do He becomes a real life role model of how our lives were intended to look. He is also our Mentor/Teacher. He said, of Himself, “I am … the truth …” (John 14:6) He is the most knowledgeable, discerning, wise man we will ever meet. As Dallas Willard put it, “He is simply the smartest person who ever lived.” (The Divine Conspiracy, pg. 94) And John is quick to remind us of important things He taught while He was here. The most important of those lessons is about the “new kind of life” He’s demonstrating in His own day-to-day living.
Friday, December 14, 2007
LifeLog - 12.14.07 - The Greatest Story Ever Told: Forever Told 3.
Jesus is the Son of Man.
“The Word,” John writes, “became a human and lived among us.”
Repeatedly, when “the Word” now human – Jesus – referred to Himself, it was as “the Son of Man.” This “Son of Man,” came to another John – the Baptist – to be baptized as a testimony of His surrender to the rule of God; the introduction of the “Kingdom of God,” into His own life.
The Baptist described what happened next. “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.” Here is clear testimony concerning Jesus humanity. Granted John ends his statement by calling Him the “Son of God.” But he earlier describes Him as “the man” the “Spirit come(s) down and remains (on) …” This is a “man.” And it is a man on whom the Spirit remains.
Now, if He is exclusively the “Son of God,” there would be no need for the Spirit to remain on Him. Because, though He’s God He’s laying aside everything about Himself that is Divine, including any supernatural power not accessible to another human being. He, like the rest of us, has no power of His own. As a man He is completely dependent on the Spirit constantly. Furthermore, if He will eventually empower others to share His “new kind of life,” by giving them the Holy Spirit – “baptizing with the Holy Spirit” – He must be given the Spirit “without limit.” (John 3:34)
I noted, earlier, that Jesus repeatedly referred to Himself as “the Son of Man.” At the close of this first chapter of John He refers to Himself as the “Son of Man.” He is the Son of God become the Son of Man – the “Christ.”
Another writer summarizes the importance of Jesus being the “Son of man.”
“The Word,” John writes, “became a human and lived among us.”
Repeatedly, when “the Word” now human – Jesus – referred to Himself, it was as “the Son of Man.” This “Son of Man,” came to another John – the Baptist – to be baptized as a testimony of His surrender to the rule of God; the introduction of the “Kingdom of God,” into His own life.
The Baptist described what happened next. “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.” Here is clear testimony concerning Jesus humanity. Granted John ends his statement by calling Him the “Son of God.” But he earlier describes Him as “the man” the “Spirit come(s) down and remains (on) …” This is a “man.” And it is a man on whom the Spirit remains.
Now, if He is exclusively the “Son of God,” there would be no need for the Spirit to remain on Him. Because, though He’s God He’s laying aside everything about Himself that is Divine, including any supernatural power not accessible to another human being. He, like the rest of us, has no power of His own. As a man He is completely dependent on the Spirit constantly. Furthermore, if He will eventually empower others to share His “new kind of life,” by giving them the Holy Spirit – “baptizing with the Holy Spirit” – He must be given the Spirit “without limit.” (John 3:34)
I noted, earlier, that Jesus repeatedly referred to Himself as “the Son of Man.” At the close of this first chapter of John He refers to Himself as the “Son of Man.” He is the Son of God become the Son of Man – the “Christ.”
Another writer summarizes the importance of Jesus being the “Son of man.”
“God is the One who made all things, and all things are for his glory. He wanted
to have many children share his glory, so he made the One who leads people to
salvation perfect through suffering … sharing their humanity … like His brothers
in every way. Jesus, who makes people holy, and those who are made holy
are from the same family. So he is not ashamed to call them his brothers
and sisters.” (Hebrews 2:10 – 17, NCV/NIV)
Thursday, December 06, 2007
LifeLog - 12.05.07 - The Greatest Story Ever Told ... Forever Told 2.
Some readers, even students, of the Bible believe there is no “Birth Narrative” in the Gospel of John. I disagree. There are actually two. The simple statement that “the Word – Jesus – “came to us” His own, “became flesh and lived among us.” (John 1:11 & 14) is John’s telling of Jesus coming. The declaration that He gives the “right to become Children of God,” to those who “receive Him,” who “believe in His name,” is the story of a New Birth initiated at the same moment Jesus, Son of Man/Son of God, comes to live with us. It is this Birth into “eternal life” that John wrote to tell about. It is the full “Birth Narrative”! No biographer presents the story of this radical new way of life better than John. He wrote what he wrote, he said, selectively for a specific purpose.
“Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded
in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30 & 31).
THE MESSAGE paraphrase of these two verses reads,
“Jesus provided far more God-revealing signs than are written down in this book. These are
written down so you will believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and in the act of
believing, have real and eternal life in the way he personally revealed it.”
“Messiah,” and “Son of God,” are two very different identities. “Messiah,” means “anointed,” “Christ.” The “anointed” is a chosen man. “Messiah,” is that man in whom all other “anointed” men see the purpose, for which they were called, fully realized. He is the Consummate Man! The “Son of Man”! But “Son of God”? That’s a reach. When Jesus claimed that status for himself His Jewish fellows reacted violently. (See John 8.)
Still, John is saying Jesus is both. He wants us to believe it is so. That Jesus is at once the consummate man and the Son of God. Jesus called Himself the Son of Man almost exclusively. Only once did He call Himself the Son of God. He did call God His Father, and John acknowledges that repeatedly. His primary objective in writing is that we see Jesus is both. Beyond that he wants us, “in the act of believing,” to have “real and eternal life in the way Jesus personally revealed it.”
The person we see, as we meet Jesus then, is the first of His kind. A man, living since sin first contaminated life, in whom the Spirit of God is at work not just periodically or partially, but constantly, completely. A man who is also Divine. Jesus is the prototype of a new kind of life. He is the forerunner of a “new humanity.” (Colossians 3:12 Phillips) “The Son stands first in the line of humanity He restored.” (Romans 8:29 THE MESSAGE) We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in Him. We were originally made “in the image of God;” in His “likeness.” Sin corrupted that Divine image. Christ has come, John is telling us, to give us the “power to become Children of God.” This means that, as we’ve seen in John chapter 1, Jesus has the power to make it possible for us to live His kind of life. He can and will, if we “receive Him,” if we “believe in His Name,” give us the authority and ability to “become children of God.” We can, because of what Jesus has gone ahead of us and done, become sons and daughters of God. We can “experience the Divine nature.” (2 Peter 1:4) We can be “transformed into His likeness with ever increasing glory …” (2 Corinthians 3:18) The “image of God,” can be restored to us. John's declaration of this is the final chapter in “The Greatest Story Ever Told”!
“Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded
in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30 & 31).
THE MESSAGE paraphrase of these two verses reads,
“Jesus provided far more God-revealing signs than are written down in this book. These are
written down so you will believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and in the act of
believing, have real and eternal life in the way he personally revealed it.”
“Messiah,” and “Son of God,” are two very different identities. “Messiah,” means “anointed,” “Christ.” The “anointed” is a chosen man. “Messiah,” is that man in whom all other “anointed” men see the purpose, for which they were called, fully realized. He is the Consummate Man! The “Son of Man”! But “Son of God”? That’s a reach. When Jesus claimed that status for himself His Jewish fellows reacted violently. (See John 8.)
Still, John is saying Jesus is both. He wants us to believe it is so. That Jesus is at once the consummate man and the Son of God. Jesus called Himself the Son of Man almost exclusively. Only once did He call Himself the Son of God. He did call God His Father, and John acknowledges that repeatedly. His primary objective in writing is that we see Jesus is both. Beyond that he wants us, “in the act of believing,” to have “real and eternal life in the way Jesus personally revealed it.”
The person we see, as we meet Jesus then, is the first of His kind. A man, living since sin first contaminated life, in whom the Spirit of God is at work not just periodically or partially, but constantly, completely. A man who is also Divine. Jesus is the prototype of a new kind of life. He is the forerunner of a “new humanity.” (Colossians 3:12 Phillips) “The Son stands first in the line of humanity He restored.” (Romans 8:29 THE MESSAGE) We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in Him. We were originally made “in the image of God;” in His “likeness.” Sin corrupted that Divine image. Christ has come, John is telling us, to give us the “power to become Children of God.” This means that, as we’ve seen in John chapter 1, Jesus has the power to make it possible for us to live His kind of life. He can and will, if we “receive Him,” if we “believe in His Name,” give us the authority and ability to “become children of God.” We can, because of what Jesus has gone ahead of us and done, become sons and daughters of God. We can “experience the Divine nature.” (2 Peter 1:4) We can be “transformed into His likeness with ever increasing glory …” (2 Corinthians 3:18) The “image of God,” can be restored to us. John's declaration of this is the final chapter in “The Greatest Story Ever Told”!
LifeLog - 12.01.07 - The Greatest Story Ever Told ... Forever Told
Recently a Friend wrote to me asking about “end times.” She’d been hearing some things that were causing her deep concern about her Family’s fate should these ideas be true.
Her questions lead to a rather extensive e-mail conversation.
One of her questions was, “Is ‘just being prepared’ our most important concern in light of the end of time?” As I thought about this I realized the question had two answers.
Yes it is!
No it’s not!
“Just being prepared,” suggests we do something. But doing is not all there is to it.
Jesus talked, in Matthew 24, about being prepared. He said, in verse 42, “Therefore keep watch.” The remainder of that chapter and the one that follows describe ways to go about “keeping watch.” However, everything Jesus says about this “vigilance,” He says with an assumption. His assumption is that all we do is more about who we are than about the deed. Being prepared requires doing. It also involves our being. Actually, it is more about being than doing. What is done, in the life of a Christ follower, comes out of who we are.
Luke writes, in chapter 17, that Jesus conversation with His followers about “end times” began with a question. Pharisees, he tells us, “asked … when the Kingdom of God would come …” Jesus response is profoundly significant. In these few words we are given a radical new understanding of who we are; what God’s purposes are for us. “Jesus replied,” Luke wrote,
“The kingdom of God is within you.”
This is a summary of God’s Sovereign plan. The men who asked the question which prompted it understood the “kingdom” in a particular way. They believed that they and their ancestors were chosen by God to rule the world. Their vision of that was national, political, cultural, and economic. Jesus rejects that vision throughout His life, and now, in these final days of His life on earth, explains why. The Kingdom of God is a personal thing. The “rule of God,” He says, “is now accessible to everyone.” (Mark 1:15.) Our “being prepared,” requires that we understand this.
Look back across the history of God’s dealings with our ancestors from the Fall in Eden to this Luke 17 moment in the life of Jesus. When the man and woman He created disobeyed Him he cursed them; the serpent who deceived them; and everything else. But, implicit in that curse is a promise. The promise is hidden in His curse of the serpent. “I will make you and the woman; you and your offspring, her and her offspring; enemies,” He declared. “He, her offspring, will crush your head. You will strike his heel.” Obviously a “crushed head” is more serious than a “bruised heel.” A child of woman will prevail over the tempting deceiver. This is a promise. God will ultimately undo the mess sin brought on our race and our world.
The rest of the story of the Bible is about that “undoing.” All of the goings on in Jewish history over millennia were moving this chosen race, and all people effected by these events, to a crucial, dramatic, Divine intervention. Jews believed that and for generations looked forward to it. Ironically their expectations and God’s fulfillment of the promise were diametrically different. They expected a Kingdom with all the customary pomp and power. God was working in the completely opposite direction. They were correct in their anticipation that they, the Jewish people, would be prominent in all of it. But they were mistaken as to how. C.S. Lewis describes God’s direction well in an essay titled “The Grand Miracle.”
God’s Grand Scheme to rescue the Human Race from the mess it got itself into is reduced to the work He will do in and through one, humble, Jewish girl, Mary. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you,” the Heavenly messenger said to her. “The holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”
With this radical departure from the usual drama, so often seen as the necessary sign of a great event. God begins what we now know to be the “Greatest Event in Cosmic History.” The Incarnation – God becoming human so that we may become Divine.
Our “being prepared” for the return of Christ hinges on this very thing. The “Holy Spirit” coming “upon” humble, prayerful individuals empowering them with the “power of the Most High God,” and bringing about the birth of “children of God.” These are words right out of John’s telling of the “Greatest Story Ever Told.” (See John 1:12 &13.) This is the Christmas Story fully told. We must understand this. We must know what it means to us personally. The “Kingdom of Heaven,” as Matthew repeatedly calls it, comes inconspicuously, sometimes imperceptibly, one heart at a time. Because Christ is born it can actually happen! Your heart; my heart can be one of those hearts.
Her questions lead to a rather extensive e-mail conversation.
One of her questions was, “Is ‘just being prepared’ our most important concern in light of the end of time?” As I thought about this I realized the question had two answers.
Yes it is!
No it’s not!
“Just being prepared,” suggests we do something. But doing is not all there is to it.
Jesus talked, in Matthew 24, about being prepared. He said, in verse 42, “Therefore keep watch.” The remainder of that chapter and the one that follows describe ways to go about “keeping watch.” However, everything Jesus says about this “vigilance,” He says with an assumption. His assumption is that all we do is more about who we are than about the deed. Being prepared requires doing. It also involves our being. Actually, it is more about being than doing. What is done, in the life of a Christ follower, comes out of who we are.
Luke writes, in chapter 17, that Jesus conversation with His followers about “end times” began with a question. Pharisees, he tells us, “asked … when the Kingdom of God would come …” Jesus response is profoundly significant. In these few words we are given a radical new understanding of who we are; what God’s purposes are for us. “Jesus replied,” Luke wrote,
“The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people
say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you."
“The kingdom of God is within you.”
This is a summary of God’s Sovereign plan. The men who asked the question which prompted it understood the “kingdom” in a particular way. They believed that they and their ancestors were chosen by God to rule the world. Their vision of that was national, political, cultural, and economic. Jesus rejects that vision throughout His life, and now, in these final days of His life on earth, explains why. The Kingdom of God is a personal thing. The “rule of God,” He says, “is now accessible to everyone.” (Mark 1:15.) Our “being prepared,” requires that we understand this.
Look back across the history of God’s dealings with our ancestors from the Fall in Eden to this Luke 17 moment in the life of Jesus. When the man and woman He created disobeyed Him he cursed them; the serpent who deceived them; and everything else. But, implicit in that curse is a promise. The promise is hidden in His curse of the serpent. “I will make you and the woman; you and your offspring, her and her offspring; enemies,” He declared. “He, her offspring, will crush your head. You will strike his heel.” Obviously a “crushed head” is more serious than a “bruised heel.” A child of woman will prevail over the tempting deceiver. This is a promise. God will ultimately undo the mess sin brought on our race and our world.
The rest of the story of the Bible is about that “undoing.” All of the goings on in Jewish history over millennia were moving this chosen race, and all people effected by these events, to a crucial, dramatic, Divine intervention. Jews believed that and for generations looked forward to it. Ironically their expectations and God’s fulfillment of the promise were diametrically different. They expected a Kingdom with all the customary pomp and power. God was working in the completely opposite direction. They were correct in their anticipation that they, the Jewish people, would be prominent in all of it. But they were mistaken as to how. C.S. Lewis describes God’s direction well in an essay titled “The Grand Miracle.”
“One people picked out of the whole earth; that people purged and proved again
and again. Some are lost in the desert before they reach Palestine; some
stay in Babylon; some becoming indifferent. The whole thing narrows and
narrows, until at last it comes down to a little point, small as the point of a
spear – a Jewish girl at her prayers. That is what the whole of human
nature has narrowed down to before the Incarnation takes place.”
God’s Grand Scheme to rescue the Human Race from the mess it got itself into is reduced to the work He will do in and through one, humble, Jewish girl, Mary. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you,” the Heavenly messenger said to her. “The holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”
With this radical departure from the usual drama, so often seen as the necessary sign of a great event. God begins what we now know to be the “Greatest Event in Cosmic History.” The Incarnation – God becoming human so that we may become Divine.
Our “being prepared” for the return of Christ hinges on this very thing. The “Holy Spirit” coming “upon” humble, prayerful individuals empowering them with the “power of the Most High God,” and bringing about the birth of “children of God.” These are words right out of John’s telling of the “Greatest Story Ever Told.” (See John 1:12 &13.) This is the Christmas Story fully told. We must understand this. We must know what it means to us personally. The “Kingdom of Heaven,” as Matthew repeatedly calls it, comes inconspicuously, sometimes imperceptibly, one heart at a time. Because Christ is born it can actually happen! Your heart; my heart can be one of those hearts.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
LifeLog - 11.26.07 - Love - Our Purpose, Our Destiny, Our Fulfillment
We live in an infinite environment of boundless love.
Love is our destiny … the only way to actual fulfillment.
In 1977 the 26th Pocket Book edition of Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning was published. The original and all subsequent editions contained this introduction to Dr. Frankl, “Dr. Viktor E. Frankl is Europe’s leading psychiatrist. His new theory, Logotherapy, has rocketed him to fame as the leader of the Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy and the most significant modern thinker in the field.”
The book is in part a story of personal torture and deprivation in Nazi concentration camps over a period of three years. It is, as well, a living verification of the strength of the human spirit when nurtured by “closely guarded images of beloved persons, by religion, by a grim sense of humor, and even by glimpses of the healing beauties of nature – a tree or a sunset.”
One particularly poignant recollection is of a time of meditation during a torturous march to the day’s worksite. Dr. Frankl writes, “Then I grasped the meaning of the greatest secret that human poetry and human thought and belief have to impart: the salvation of man is through love and in love. I understood how a man who has nothing left in this world still may know bliss, be it only for a brief moment, in the contemplation of his beloved. In a position of utter desolation, when man cannot express himself in positive action, when his only achievement may consist in enduring his sufferings in the right way – an honorable way – in such a position man can, through loving contemplation of the image he carries of his beloved, achieve fulfillment. For the first time in my life I was able to understand the meaning of the words ‘the angels are lost in perpetual contemplation of an infinite glory.’”
“Perpetual contemplation” is not a particularly modern idea. Nor is it something we commonly do. Images on the screens of our televisions change in “nano seconds.” We, as one pundit put it, “pace in front of our microwaves.” Boredom is epidemic. There is so much variety. Buying something as simple as bread can be stressful. There are so many varieties. Our days are cluttered with an endless array of diversions. Much of our attention is diverted to incidentals. But, when Dr. Frankl’s focus was narrowed, by deprivation, to the quintessential, he understood the value of love and could imagine being “perpetually” enthralled with contemplation of the “beloved.”
The greatest of all loves is the love of the Creator God in giving us life and the timeless gift of not only being loved but loving. His love is, finally, ultimately expressed in the Christ; the “Son of Man.” To ponder this love with passionate desire to know it; to embrace and be embraced by it; will take us to a place where we are “lost in perpetual contemplation of an infinite glory.” Perfect “love” is the “warm glow” of that glory! It is the great and never ending glory of all time, and of all eternity!
Lord, create for the eyes of our spirits a true image of you, our most beloved. Quiet us. Focus our attention to a fine vision which, contemplated, makes vivid the grandeur of your love. Stir in us a love like your own for yourself our “beloved.” We would not dare to ask for suffering though it is, so often, the only way to get our attention. But we humbly accept the means you choose to turn our eyes to you. We plead for a clear vision. Let us be enthralled by the wonder of you. Give us such fulfillment in the vision that all other realities pale in its light. “Show us your glory, Oh loving Father!”
Oh Lord, our God, you are great. Immeasurable in your person, you are infinite. Timeless, all knowing, you are without limit. Invincible, all power is yours. Indescribably magnificent, “wonderful beyond description too marvelous for words,” you are glorious! Terrified in your powerful presence we fall on our face before you. Then, as we lie broken and trembling at your feet you, our God, stoop to where we’ve fallen. At great personal cost you enter our experience, love us, and lift us up.
Lord Jesus you have loved us no matter where love took you. Despite what it required - even your life - you gave. You loved us without condition. No one has loved us like this. “There” really is “no love like your love.” You who are, “from before there was time,” the source of all power and all things, the God before whom “mountains crumble,” even “melt like wax,” have come to where we are and loved us like this.
Such love has stirred us. Because you’ve loved us; called us your beloved, we love you. You are, now, our beloved! We surrender ourselves to this love now. We welcome its growing influence. May our hearts be changed until no thing, nor no one, matters more than you. May we find that your promise of “life” is fulfilled in our surrender to you. “Lost in perpetual contemplation of you,” may we find our true and ultimate fulfillment in the love you inspire for yourself and our fellows. AMEN!
Love is our destiny … the only way to actual fulfillment.
In 1977 the 26th Pocket Book edition of Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning was published. The original and all subsequent editions contained this introduction to Dr. Frankl, “Dr. Viktor E. Frankl is Europe’s leading psychiatrist. His new theory, Logotherapy, has rocketed him to fame as the leader of the Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy and the most significant modern thinker in the field.”
The book is in part a story of personal torture and deprivation in Nazi concentration camps over a period of three years. It is, as well, a living verification of the strength of the human spirit when nurtured by “closely guarded images of beloved persons, by religion, by a grim sense of humor, and even by glimpses of the healing beauties of nature – a tree or a sunset.”
One particularly poignant recollection is of a time of meditation during a torturous march to the day’s worksite. Dr. Frankl writes, “Then I grasped the meaning of the greatest secret that human poetry and human thought and belief have to impart: the salvation of man is through love and in love. I understood how a man who has nothing left in this world still may know bliss, be it only for a brief moment, in the contemplation of his beloved. In a position of utter desolation, when man cannot express himself in positive action, when his only achievement may consist in enduring his sufferings in the right way – an honorable way – in such a position man can, through loving contemplation of the image he carries of his beloved, achieve fulfillment. For the first time in my life I was able to understand the meaning of the words ‘the angels are lost in perpetual contemplation of an infinite glory.’”
“Perpetual contemplation” is not a particularly modern idea. Nor is it something we commonly do. Images on the screens of our televisions change in “nano seconds.” We, as one pundit put it, “pace in front of our microwaves.” Boredom is epidemic. There is so much variety. Buying something as simple as bread can be stressful. There are so many varieties. Our days are cluttered with an endless array of diversions. Much of our attention is diverted to incidentals. But, when Dr. Frankl’s focus was narrowed, by deprivation, to the quintessential, he understood the value of love and could imagine being “perpetually” enthralled with contemplation of the “beloved.”
The greatest of all loves is the love of the Creator God in giving us life and the timeless gift of not only being loved but loving. His love is, finally, ultimately expressed in the Christ; the “Son of Man.” To ponder this love with passionate desire to know it; to embrace and be embraced by it; will take us to a place where we are “lost in perpetual contemplation of an infinite glory.” Perfect “love” is the “warm glow” of that glory! It is the great and never ending glory of all time, and of all eternity!
Lord, create for the eyes of our spirits a true image of you, our most beloved. Quiet us. Focus our attention to a fine vision which, contemplated, makes vivid the grandeur of your love. Stir in us a love like your own for yourself our “beloved.” We would not dare to ask for suffering though it is, so often, the only way to get our attention. But we humbly accept the means you choose to turn our eyes to you. We plead for a clear vision. Let us be enthralled by the wonder of you. Give us such fulfillment in the vision that all other realities pale in its light. “Show us your glory, Oh loving Father!”
Oh Lord, our God, you are great. Immeasurable in your person, you are infinite. Timeless, all knowing, you are without limit. Invincible, all power is yours. Indescribably magnificent, “wonderful beyond description too marvelous for words,” you are glorious! Terrified in your powerful presence we fall on our face before you. Then, as we lie broken and trembling at your feet you, our God, stoop to where we’ve fallen. At great personal cost you enter our experience, love us, and lift us up.
Lord Jesus you have loved us no matter where love took you. Despite what it required - even your life - you gave. You loved us without condition. No one has loved us like this. “There” really is “no love like your love.” You who are, “from before there was time,” the source of all power and all things, the God before whom “mountains crumble,” even “melt like wax,” have come to where we are and loved us like this.
Such love has stirred us. Because you’ve loved us; called us your beloved, we love you. You are, now, our beloved! We surrender ourselves to this love now. We welcome its growing influence. May our hearts be changed until no thing, nor no one, matters more than you. May we find that your promise of “life” is fulfilled in our surrender to you. “Lost in perpetual contemplation of you,” may we find our true and ultimate fulfillment in the love you inspire for yourself and our fellows. AMEN!
Saturday, November 24, 2007
LifeLog - 11.19.07 - Thanksgiving 2007 (Part 3)
Granted I’ve gone through a somewhat convoluted process to reach this resolve (... to thank God this Thanksgiving and all year long.) But it’s been worth it because, once again, I’ve come to the fundamental fact of our “faith.” Our God favors us! Call it mercy. Call it grace. Call it love. Ultimately it’s “the Lord’s favor.” And, you must certainly know, most if not everything we can think of to be thankful for is the by-product of mercy.
One of the best-selling books in the late 70’s and most of the 80’s – an actual “best seller” for 4 years – was written by a Psychiatrist; M. Scott Peck. His book was titled, “The Road Less Traveled.” To me the most amazing thing about Dr. Peck’s book is that he devoted an entire section of it – 14 chapters of it – to “Grace.” I find it quite remarkable that a psychiatrist would even acknowledge, let alone celebrate, “Grace.” But he does. In one of those 14 chapters, “The Miracle of Health,” he writes, “We know very well why people become mentally ill. What we don’t understand is why people survive the traumas of their lives as well as they do. We know exactly why certain people commit suicide. We don’t know, within the ordinary concepts of causality, why certain others don’t commit suicide … An individual may suffer a single, relatively mild attack of ulcerative colitis … recover completely, and go on to live through life without ever again experiencing this difficulty. Another may have repeated attacks and become chronically crippled by the disorder. A third may … go on to die rapidly from even the first attack … The amazing thing is not the failures of the resistance system; it is that the resistance system works as well as it does. In the ordinary course of things we should be eaten alive by bacteria, consumed by cancer, clogged up by fats and clots, eroded by acids. It is hardly remarkable that we sicken and die; what is truly remarkable is that we don’t usually sicken very often and we don’t die very quickly.” He continues in his reflection on what he acknowledges as the “truly amazing grace” that surrounds us. It is remarkable “not simply that certain people at certain times in their lives are accident prone; it is that in the ordinary course of things most of us are accident resistant … Although [this whole variety of phenomena] generally regarded as separate, I have come to believe that their commonality indicates that these phenomena are part of or manifestations of a single phenomenon: a powerful force originating outside of human consciousness which nurtures the spiritual growth of human beings. For hundreds and even thousand of years before the scientific conceptualization of such things as immune globulins … this force has been consistently recognized by the religious, who have applied to it the name of grace. And have sung its praise. ‘Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound …’.”
Reflecting on this marvelous truth today I am inspired. God wants us to live long and well; forever, in fact. Furthermore He’s created a universe in which we can. Evidence of it is all around us. Dr. Peck shows us some of that evidence. As I examine my life now in the light of “Amazing Grace,” I must acknowledge its influence in even more personal ways. This year our 8th Grandchild was born. His name is Luke James Denison. Check out the middle name! And he is well; very well in fact. He is Jonah’s Brother. Jonathan and Larina say his disposition is, thankfully, much more mellow than Jonah’s though he’s not a traveler. Our first Son, Jim, his Wife Korenne, and their 3 Sons, Samuel, Evan, and Kaleb, have made the radical decision to leave a position with salary and benefits to plant a new Church. They’ve had to sell their house and move to a new Community – Canterbury an hour away from where they previously lived. They have no guaranteed income. They’ve already been able to purchase a new house and are finding provision daily. Shirley and I are in the same place financially. We have no guaranteed income. But everything we’ve needed has been provided. Before this year ends we will need an exceptionally dramatic demonstration of our Lord’s provision due to some living expenses that have been generously held over ‘til then. Still we live in the embrace of His AMAZING GRACE! Jason and Ingvild, and their 3 Kids Marissa, Maddie, and Ethan, survived the wildfires in Spring Valley – Greater San Diego. They were evacuated for a night but spared any loss. We work with parents, often, who are brokenhearted over what has become of their Children. We have 3 great Sons who are walking with, working with our Lord. Their Wives are exceptional partners who seek God passionately too. They are great Mothers and beautiful, delightful people. They are highly competent professionals. And, of course, the Children they’ve borne are the smartest, fittest, most beautiful and delightful in the world! Why should we be so favored? It is, simply, “mercy”!
Our business venture, “destiny:Life!” is gradually expanding. Our Board of Directors continues to stand with us, despite the financial challenges, and believe in us; our vision; and the Lord who has called us to it. We have a small but growing group of spiritual partners who pray for us and give money to support us and our work. More opportunities for speaking, teaching, mentoring, writing and caring for people are coming available. And always we are being inspired by our Lord as we prepare to declare, to our world, that “LIFE IS REALLY ONLY LIFE WHEN IT’S LIVED JESUS WAY!”
Above all of that, we are deeply grateful for a continually new awareness of God; His presence; the wonders of the world around us; and the expanding influence He’s trusting us with. While Shirley’s battle with migraines and an issue diagnosed as parathyroidism concern us, this spiritual well-being truly is “our strength.”
We are most highly favored and on this “Thanksgiving 2007” we sing “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I’m found; was blind but now I see!”
One of the best-selling books in the late 70’s and most of the 80’s – an actual “best seller” for 4 years – was written by a Psychiatrist; M. Scott Peck. His book was titled, “The Road Less Traveled.” To me the most amazing thing about Dr. Peck’s book is that he devoted an entire section of it – 14 chapters of it – to “Grace.” I find it quite remarkable that a psychiatrist would even acknowledge, let alone celebrate, “Grace.” But he does. In one of those 14 chapters, “The Miracle of Health,” he writes, “We know very well why people become mentally ill. What we don’t understand is why people survive the traumas of their lives as well as they do. We know exactly why certain people commit suicide. We don’t know, within the ordinary concepts of causality, why certain others don’t commit suicide … An individual may suffer a single, relatively mild attack of ulcerative colitis … recover completely, and go on to live through life without ever again experiencing this difficulty. Another may have repeated attacks and become chronically crippled by the disorder. A third may … go on to die rapidly from even the first attack … The amazing thing is not the failures of the resistance system; it is that the resistance system works as well as it does. In the ordinary course of things we should be eaten alive by bacteria, consumed by cancer, clogged up by fats and clots, eroded by acids. It is hardly remarkable that we sicken and die; what is truly remarkable is that we don’t usually sicken very often and we don’t die very quickly.” He continues in his reflection on what he acknowledges as the “truly amazing grace” that surrounds us. It is remarkable “not simply that certain people at certain times in their lives are accident prone; it is that in the ordinary course of things most of us are accident resistant … Although [this whole variety of phenomena] generally regarded as separate, I have come to believe that their commonality indicates that these phenomena are part of or manifestations of a single phenomenon: a powerful force originating outside of human consciousness which nurtures the spiritual growth of human beings. For hundreds and even thousand of years before the scientific conceptualization of such things as immune globulins … this force has been consistently recognized by the religious, who have applied to it the name of grace. And have sung its praise. ‘Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound …’.”
Reflecting on this marvelous truth today I am inspired. God wants us to live long and well; forever, in fact. Furthermore He’s created a universe in which we can. Evidence of it is all around us. Dr. Peck shows us some of that evidence. As I examine my life now in the light of “Amazing Grace,” I must acknowledge its influence in even more personal ways. This year our 8th Grandchild was born. His name is Luke James Denison. Check out the middle name! And he is well; very well in fact. He is Jonah’s Brother. Jonathan and Larina say his disposition is, thankfully, much more mellow than Jonah’s though he’s not a traveler. Our first Son, Jim, his Wife Korenne, and their 3 Sons, Samuel, Evan, and Kaleb, have made the radical decision to leave a position with salary and benefits to plant a new Church. They’ve had to sell their house and move to a new Community – Canterbury an hour away from where they previously lived. They have no guaranteed income. They’ve already been able to purchase a new house and are finding provision daily. Shirley and I are in the same place financially. We have no guaranteed income. But everything we’ve needed has been provided. Before this year ends we will need an exceptionally dramatic demonstration of our Lord’s provision due to some living expenses that have been generously held over ‘til then. Still we live in the embrace of His AMAZING GRACE! Jason and Ingvild, and their 3 Kids Marissa, Maddie, and Ethan, survived the wildfires in Spring Valley – Greater San Diego. They were evacuated for a night but spared any loss. We work with parents, often, who are brokenhearted over what has become of their Children. We have 3 great Sons who are walking with, working with our Lord. Their Wives are exceptional partners who seek God passionately too. They are great Mothers and beautiful, delightful people. They are highly competent professionals. And, of course, the Children they’ve borne are the smartest, fittest, most beautiful and delightful in the world! Why should we be so favored? It is, simply, “mercy”!
Our business venture, “destiny:Life!” is gradually expanding. Our Board of Directors continues to stand with us, despite the financial challenges, and believe in us; our vision; and the Lord who has called us to it. We have a small but growing group of spiritual partners who pray for us and give money to support us and our work. More opportunities for speaking, teaching, mentoring, writing and caring for people are coming available. And always we are being inspired by our Lord as we prepare to declare, to our world, that “LIFE IS REALLY ONLY LIFE WHEN IT’S LIVED JESUS WAY!”
Above all of that, we are deeply grateful for a continually new awareness of God; His presence; the wonders of the world around us; and the expanding influence He’s trusting us with. While Shirley’s battle with migraines and an issue diagnosed as parathyroidism concern us, this spiritual well-being truly is “our strength.”
We are most highly favored and on this “Thanksgiving 2007” we sing “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I’m found; was blind but now I see!”
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
LifeLog - 11.19.07 - Thanksgiving 2007 (Part 2)
Habakkuk is God’s messenger to me this Thanksgiving. He has reminded me that, regardless of what I see with my flesh eyes, there’s something else, far more important, that I must see by faith. My faith must see that what is going on is revealing. We are learning. God is teaching us what we need to know about ourselves and Him. We are learning that our “labor,” – the “desperate flurry of panting feverishness” that is our life – “is only fuel for the fire.” We “exhaust ourselves for nothing.” Facing that head on, honestly, we recognize how “unmanageable” our lives really are. Here God’s promise that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord,” gets our attention. There is something “glorious,” despite our despair. The proverbial “pot of gold at the end of the rainbow,” may just exist. But before we run off into fantasy God stops us short and reminds us that He is the one whose “glory” is being revealed. “God is in His holy temple – He’s still the one on the throne where ultimate decisions are made – we on earth must silence ourselves in His presence and wait for His intervention.” (Habakkuk 2:20) It is in the “silent” waiting, as we are “still,” that we come to “know” God (Psalm 46:10) And, “knowing” God is really what we need most. In fact, Jesus said it is the essence of our lives as immortal beings. “(L)ife eternal,” He said, in a conversation with our Heavenly Father, is “to know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (John 17:3)
This has been my passionate desire for most of my life and especially during recent years. Our Father used Habakkuk to refocus my attention this Thanksgiving Week and I am, truly, grateful. I’m grateful for the nudge back to “first things.” But I’m even more grateful for some new insights. I’m also grateful for his reminders.
One new insight, in particular, stands out for me. As I read God’s direct command to Habakkuk, “the LORD is in his holy Temple. Let all the earth be silent before him,” for the umpteenth time, I wonder, why would He use “temple” in this context? He’s talking like a ruler but using a religious term. I began to unpack the words. “Holy,” to the Hebrews is about being “clean.” “Clean” in the sense of “consecrated.” Something that is “holy,” to the God of the Bible, is something that is prepared meticulously, and used, exclusively, by Him, or for Him. The “holy temple,” is for and about God and God alone. The more I thought about the “temple” itself the more I realized how awesome and formidable it is. In the Scriptures of the Jewish people it is the place where God lives. Before there was a temple there was a “tabernacle.” Descriptions of the construction of that “traveling temple,” in the Exodus, are meticulously intricate in their detail and jaw dropping exquisite in their elegance. The same is true of the temple Solomon built (2 Chronicles 3 & 4). The reverence and wonder ... the phenomenal demonstrations of God’s presence that characterize its history truly expose the raw power of the “God of terrible aspect.” No part of the temple embodies that more than the “Holy of Holies.” This place, “set apart” from all the other rooms, and halls, and porticoes of the temple was where God and His chosen representative man met face-to-face. The meeting, once a year at a precisely appointed time, was a terrifying prospect. No one who was unprepared and unacceptable to God would survive in that place. Men died in there because they weren’t worthy to be there. Special provisions were routinely made for their removal should they fall before the “unapproachable” God. But, once inside, a marvelous reality awaited the yearly visitor. The “ark,” kept in this holy place, was covered by a skillfully crafted gold cover. Moses describes this “cover.” “(A) lid of pure gold for the Ark … forty-five inches long and twenty-seven inches wide … two seraphs with wings … one on each end of the lid … one seraph attached on one end of the lid and the other … on the other end … both one piece with the lid at the ends. The seraphs’ wings … spread upward, covering the lid, and they … face each other across the lid.” Moses recalls the directions God gave Him for this lid. “Put this lid on top of the Ark, and put in the Ark the Agreement which I will make with you. I will meet with you there, above the lid between the two winged creatures on the Ark … . There I will give you all my commands for the Israelites.” That “lid” was called “The Mercy Seat.” The priest had just entered the presence of the unapproachable God. He’d survived. He had to be relieved. He may have been tempted to dwell on the ways he’d met the ritual requirements for such an entrance. This golden symbol of the “mercy” of His God checked that inclination. The “God of terrible aspect,” whose presence silenced worshippers for millennia, had met their representative, yet again, in a Spirit of "mercy." Year-after-year the Priest was reminded that the God he met with on behalf of the people of Israel was not a vengeful potentate. The symbols in the “holiest” place declared beyond question that He is a “merciful Lord.” The God who is “in His Holy Temple,” is, truly, the God before whom “the earth trembles.” But, once we are “silent before Him,” we discover He is “mercy.”
Hundreds of years after Habakkuk staged his protest, and learned this lesson, a Christian writer wrote to Hebrew Christians, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16) He and his readers were Jews who believed that Jesus was their Messiah. They had come to realize that Jesus is the consummate expression of the mercy of our God. They knew that He was then in the “throne room” of the Father, “seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2) They knew that, because of the work of Jesus, it was, now and forever, the “throne of mercy.” The “throne of God,” is "the mercy seat." And, because Christ’s death brought down the “veil” that prevented our coming near it, any one of us can, now, approach the King. Not only can we approach Him. We are invited to “come boldly.” Once there we are assured we’ll find more than “mercy.” We'll find “grace that will be helpful to us in our time of need.” God’s favor is revealed to be a given. If we’ll presume it is so and come to him “with confidence,” He will provide whatever help we need regardless of the situation.
Needless to say my mood has changed. That’s what happens every time someone listens to God. It’s what happened to Habakkuk. He reveals truth to us. He shows us how things really are. Knowing the truth we’re no longer jaded by what seems to be. We expect the best despite appearances. That is what “faith” looks like. Then Thanksgiving is the only appropriate response; official Holiday or any day!
With that I will thank our God this Thanksgiving and all year long! ... There is more ...
This has been my passionate desire for most of my life and especially during recent years. Our Father used Habakkuk to refocus my attention this Thanksgiving Week and I am, truly, grateful. I’m grateful for the nudge back to “first things.” But I’m even more grateful for some new insights. I’m also grateful for his reminders.
One new insight, in particular, stands out for me. As I read God’s direct command to Habakkuk, “the LORD is in his holy Temple. Let all the earth be silent before him,” for the umpteenth time, I wonder, why would He use “temple” in this context? He’s talking like a ruler but using a religious term. I began to unpack the words. “Holy,” to the Hebrews is about being “clean.” “Clean” in the sense of “consecrated.” Something that is “holy,” to the God of the Bible, is something that is prepared meticulously, and used, exclusively, by Him, or for Him. The “holy temple,” is for and about God and God alone. The more I thought about the “temple” itself the more I realized how awesome and formidable it is. In the Scriptures of the Jewish people it is the place where God lives. Before there was a temple there was a “tabernacle.” Descriptions of the construction of that “traveling temple,” in the Exodus, are meticulously intricate in their detail and jaw dropping exquisite in their elegance. The same is true of the temple Solomon built (2 Chronicles 3 & 4). The reverence and wonder ... the phenomenal demonstrations of God’s presence that characterize its history truly expose the raw power of the “God of terrible aspect.” No part of the temple embodies that more than the “Holy of Holies.” This place, “set apart” from all the other rooms, and halls, and porticoes of the temple was where God and His chosen representative man met face-to-face. The meeting, once a year at a precisely appointed time, was a terrifying prospect. No one who was unprepared and unacceptable to God would survive in that place. Men died in there because they weren’t worthy to be there. Special provisions were routinely made for their removal should they fall before the “unapproachable” God. But, once inside, a marvelous reality awaited the yearly visitor. The “ark,” kept in this holy place, was covered by a skillfully crafted gold cover. Moses describes this “cover.” “(A) lid of pure gold for the Ark … forty-five inches long and twenty-seven inches wide … two seraphs with wings … one on each end of the lid … one seraph attached on one end of the lid and the other … on the other end … both one piece with the lid at the ends. The seraphs’ wings … spread upward, covering the lid, and they … face each other across the lid.” Moses recalls the directions God gave Him for this lid. “Put this lid on top of the Ark, and put in the Ark the Agreement which I will make with you. I will meet with you there, above the lid between the two winged creatures on the Ark … . There I will give you all my commands for the Israelites.” That “lid” was called “The Mercy Seat.” The priest had just entered the presence of the unapproachable God. He’d survived. He had to be relieved. He may have been tempted to dwell on the ways he’d met the ritual requirements for such an entrance. This golden symbol of the “mercy” of His God checked that inclination. The “God of terrible aspect,” whose presence silenced worshippers for millennia, had met their representative, yet again, in a Spirit of "mercy." Year-after-year the Priest was reminded that the God he met with on behalf of the people of Israel was not a vengeful potentate. The symbols in the “holiest” place declared beyond question that He is a “merciful Lord.” The God who is “in His Holy Temple,” is, truly, the God before whom “the earth trembles.” But, once we are “silent before Him,” we discover He is “mercy.”
Hundreds of years after Habakkuk staged his protest, and learned this lesson, a Christian writer wrote to Hebrew Christians, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16) He and his readers were Jews who believed that Jesus was their Messiah. They had come to realize that Jesus is the consummate expression of the mercy of our God. They knew that He was then in the “throne room” of the Father, “seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2) They knew that, because of the work of Jesus, it was, now and forever, the “throne of mercy.” The “throne of God,” is "the mercy seat." And, because Christ’s death brought down the “veil” that prevented our coming near it, any one of us can, now, approach the King. Not only can we approach Him. We are invited to “come boldly.” Once there we are assured we’ll find more than “mercy.” We'll find “grace that will be helpful to us in our time of need.” God’s favor is revealed to be a given. If we’ll presume it is so and come to him “with confidence,” He will provide whatever help we need regardless of the situation.
Needless to say my mood has changed. That’s what happens every time someone listens to God. It’s what happened to Habakkuk. He reveals truth to us. He shows us how things really are. Knowing the truth we’re no longer jaded by what seems to be. We expect the best despite appearances. That is what “faith” looks like. Then Thanksgiving is the only appropriate response; official Holiday or any day!
With that I will thank our God this Thanksgiving and all year long! ... There is more ...
LifeLog - 11.19.07 - Thanksgiving 2007 (Part 1)
It is, for the 230th time, Thanksgiving – or the 218th time depending on whether you count from the 1st year, 1777, when the 13 Colonies celebrated it at the same time, or 1789 the year George Washington declared it a Holiday.
So what do we do?
Some of us eat ‘til we’re engorged and near comatose and call it “Turkey” day. I’m never sure whether the “turkey” is the fowl or the fool spread eagled on the couch.
Others of us go through a kind of quasi religious exercise by which we attempt to project some appearance of gratitude.
Many of us grope for some sort of authentic observance of festivities that seem almost incongruous.
If you’re sensing skepticism in my tone you’re perceptive. I’ve been reviewing the 360 plus days since our last “T” day and many of the things I’ve heard and observed are troubling. I have Friends who’ve suffered through the death of a Child. A young woman, who’s harassed by influences that must be devilish, is battling an obsession with self-mutilation. Colleagues are crippled by an economic downturn, inflated energy prices which have pushed up the cost of just about everything else, and back breaking mortgages coming due as the bubble of a delusionary housing boom busts around them. We are feeling the monetary crunch personally. Families we know have lost their Homes in the wildfires. A man I’ve provided with periodic guidance is literally just days away from homelessness and desperately hopeless. The endless cacophony of radio, television, newspapers, signboards, and pubic conversation relentlessly bombards us with politically correct predictions of doom, partisan prophecies, empty promises, and mindless offers of health and wealth to the tune of rapid fire recitations of sinister “side effects.” Folks are bewildered to the point of despair.
Disturbed by all of this I was drawn to the reflections of an ancient prophet. Habakkuk – not a name you’d want to give to your Son – lived in a time much like ours. He was bewildered too. Being a man of faith he took his complaint to his God. “How long, O LORD, must I call for help? But you do not listen! ‘Violence!’ I cry, but you do not come to save. Must I forever see this sin and misery all around me? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight. The law has become paralyzed and useless, and there is no justice given in the courts. The wicked far outnumber the righteous, and justice is perverted with bribes and trickery.” (Habakkuk 1:2 – 4 NLT) Sound familiar?
Interestingly, God replies. The way Habakkuk tells it the response was immediate. God told the prophet he’d be astounded at what he was about to hear. Sure enough God’s words were as far from what Habakkuk was expecting as they could be. “Look at the nations and be amazed! Watch and be astounded at what I will do! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it. I am raising up the Babylonians to be a new power on the world scene. They are a cruel and violent nation who will march across the world and conquer it. They are notorious for their cruelty. They do as they like, and no one can stop them.” (Habakkuk 1: 5 – 7) Habakkuk’s call for help is answered with a promise of more trouble.
He can’t understand why his God would do such a thing and He says so. “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong. Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?” (Habakkuk 1:13) He doesn’t just protest. He takes action. His action is virtually a one man protest movement. “I will stand like a guard to watch and place myself at the tower. I will wait to see what He will say to me; I will wait to learn how God will answer my complaint.” (Habakkuk 2:1) This is a protest vigil.
True to His nature God comes out and talks with the protestor. He reminds the exasperated prophet, “people’s labor is only fuel for the fire, that the nations exhaust themselves for nothing?” (Habakkuk 2:13) All that is going on in the kingdoms of men is futile and burns itself out. Babylon will be just one more nation, “full of sound and fury signifying nothing.” God makes a promise to His messenger. Things that last will ultimately appear and “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:14) “But the LORD,” God declares, “is in his holy Temple. Let all the earth be silent before him.” (Habakkuk 2:20)
What follows is dramatically illustrative of what “faith” is all about. Habakkuk says, to his God, “I’ve heard what our ancestors say about you, and I’m stopped in my tracks, down on my knees. Do among us what you did among them. And as you bring judgment, as you surely must, remember mercy.” (Habakkuk 3:2 THE MESSAGE) He proceeds to summarize what God did “among” his “ancestors.” And then he concludes, “I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones – they felt like liquid – and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights – the high places.” (Habakkuk 3:16 – 19) ... There's more ...
So what do we do?
Some of us eat ‘til we’re engorged and near comatose and call it “Turkey” day. I’m never sure whether the “turkey” is the fowl or the fool spread eagled on the couch.
Others of us go through a kind of quasi religious exercise by which we attempt to project some appearance of gratitude.
Many of us grope for some sort of authentic observance of festivities that seem almost incongruous.
If you’re sensing skepticism in my tone you’re perceptive. I’ve been reviewing the 360 plus days since our last “T” day and many of the things I’ve heard and observed are troubling. I have Friends who’ve suffered through the death of a Child. A young woman, who’s harassed by influences that must be devilish, is battling an obsession with self-mutilation. Colleagues are crippled by an economic downturn, inflated energy prices which have pushed up the cost of just about everything else, and back breaking mortgages coming due as the bubble of a delusionary housing boom busts around them. We are feeling the monetary crunch personally. Families we know have lost their Homes in the wildfires. A man I’ve provided with periodic guidance is literally just days away from homelessness and desperately hopeless. The endless cacophony of radio, television, newspapers, signboards, and pubic conversation relentlessly bombards us with politically correct predictions of doom, partisan prophecies, empty promises, and mindless offers of health and wealth to the tune of rapid fire recitations of sinister “side effects.” Folks are bewildered to the point of despair.
Disturbed by all of this I was drawn to the reflections of an ancient prophet. Habakkuk – not a name you’d want to give to your Son – lived in a time much like ours. He was bewildered too. Being a man of faith he took his complaint to his God. “How long, O LORD, must I call for help? But you do not listen! ‘Violence!’ I cry, but you do not come to save. Must I forever see this sin and misery all around me? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight. The law has become paralyzed and useless, and there is no justice given in the courts. The wicked far outnumber the righteous, and justice is perverted with bribes and trickery.” (Habakkuk 1:2 – 4 NLT) Sound familiar?
Interestingly, God replies. The way Habakkuk tells it the response was immediate. God told the prophet he’d be astounded at what he was about to hear. Sure enough God’s words were as far from what Habakkuk was expecting as they could be. “Look at the nations and be amazed! Watch and be astounded at what I will do! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it. I am raising up the Babylonians to be a new power on the world scene. They are a cruel and violent nation who will march across the world and conquer it. They are notorious for their cruelty. They do as they like, and no one can stop them.” (Habakkuk 1: 5 – 7) Habakkuk’s call for help is answered with a promise of more trouble.
He can’t understand why his God would do such a thing and He says so. “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong. Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?” (Habakkuk 1:13) He doesn’t just protest. He takes action. His action is virtually a one man protest movement. “I will stand like a guard to watch and place myself at the tower. I will wait to see what He will say to me; I will wait to learn how God will answer my complaint.” (Habakkuk 2:1) This is a protest vigil.
True to His nature God comes out and talks with the protestor. He reminds the exasperated prophet, “people’s labor is only fuel for the fire, that the nations exhaust themselves for nothing?” (Habakkuk 2:13) All that is going on in the kingdoms of men is futile and burns itself out. Babylon will be just one more nation, “full of sound and fury signifying nothing.” God makes a promise to His messenger. Things that last will ultimately appear and “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:14) “But the LORD,” God declares, “is in his holy Temple. Let all the earth be silent before him.” (Habakkuk 2:20)
What follows is dramatically illustrative of what “faith” is all about. Habakkuk says, to his God, “I’ve heard what our ancestors say about you, and I’m stopped in my tracks, down on my knees. Do among us what you did among them. And as you bring judgment, as you surely must, remember mercy.” (Habakkuk 3:2 THE MESSAGE) He proceeds to summarize what God did “among” his “ancestors.” And then he concludes, “I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones – they felt like liquid – and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights – the high places.” (Habakkuk 3:16 – 19) ... There's more ...
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
LifeLog -- 10.08.07 -- Our Health and Our Life
Yesterday morning I met a guy I haven’t talked to in over 2 years. I was in the Men’s Room drying my hands when he walked in. He was adjusting his hearing aid and muttering something about the noise in the lobby just outside the door. I asked him how he was doing. He said he’d just had a recent bout with prostate cancer. He’d been free of complications lately but, during a recent checkup, was told that his “PSA counts” were up – “PSA, prostate specific antigen, is a protein produced by the prostate cells. A PSA test is a blood test used to measure prostate health. A high PSA level can be a sign of Enlarging Prostate or Prostate Cancer.” What he said next prompted me to reflect on the things I’m now writing about. “I guess,” he said, “that if I didn’t go to the doctor I wouldn’t know there was anything wrong with me.”
Before I go any further with these thoughts I must affirm the importance of what my Friend learned from his Doctor. I do not intend to discourage regular “checkups.” Nor do I wish to disparage the place of the “medical” Doctor in our lives. I do, however, intend to raise some concerns about our obsession, as a society, with our physical health.
What do we need to know about our physical condition?
When is quality of life more important than quantity or length of life?
Is the medical or surgical solution always the best?
Sometimes we are better off not knowing everything there is to know about the goings on in our bodies. The same Doctors who tell us that stress is a primary cause of our high blood pressure will also tell us that our cholesterol is at unhealthy levels; our prostate is enlarged; we need to lose weight; and our toenails have fungus. They will have a pill for each of these issues. If we take all of the pills there will quite likely be some drugs that are incompatible with others. This can cause further problems. More often than we should be comfortable with, other medications will be introduced and a vicious cycle will begin. On this “medical chairs” carousel our stress reaches lethal levels and we’re more apt to have a stroke than we were before we knew we had high blood pressure. George Carlin is a comedian. He’s a cynical guy whose philosophy of life is pretty dark. But in one of his routines he, quite inadvertently I think, touched on something. Ridiculing our obsession with diets he quipped, “What we’ll likely, eventually discover is what we’ve known all along. The best thing for us is a beer and a cigarette.” Absurd? Yes! But remember, exaggeration is a figure of speech. And common sense – "what we’ve known all along" – is not too far short of all we need to know on these matters.
We need to know that we are highly suggestible creatures. That the more we obsess about something, the more control it takes of our lives.
Before I go any further with these thoughts I must affirm the importance of what my Friend learned from his Doctor. I do not intend to discourage regular “checkups.” Nor do I wish to disparage the place of the “medical” Doctor in our lives. I do, however, intend to raise some concerns about our obsession, as a society, with our physical health.
What do we need to know about our physical condition?
When is quality of life more important than quantity or length of life?
Is the medical or surgical solution always the best?
Sometimes we are better off not knowing everything there is to know about the goings on in our bodies. The same Doctors who tell us that stress is a primary cause of our high blood pressure will also tell us that our cholesterol is at unhealthy levels; our prostate is enlarged; we need to lose weight; and our toenails have fungus. They will have a pill for each of these issues. If we take all of the pills there will quite likely be some drugs that are incompatible with others. This can cause further problems. More often than we should be comfortable with, other medications will be introduced and a vicious cycle will begin. On this “medical chairs” carousel our stress reaches lethal levels and we’re more apt to have a stroke than we were before we knew we had high blood pressure. George Carlin is a comedian. He’s a cynical guy whose philosophy of life is pretty dark. But in one of his routines he, quite inadvertently I think, touched on something. Ridiculing our obsession with diets he quipped, “What we’ll likely, eventually discover is what we’ve known all along. The best thing for us is a beer and a cigarette.” Absurd? Yes! But remember, exaggeration is a figure of speech. And common sense – "what we’ve known all along" – is not too far short of all we need to know on these matters.
We need to know that we are highly suggestible creatures. That the more we obsess about something, the more control it takes of our lives.
The placebo effect plays a significant role in an alarming number of cases. A placebo is a “pill which has no pharmacological properties,” or a procedure recommended by a respected physician or health care provider, that the patient believes in. These measures work “because they trigger the body’s own ability to right itself, given reasonable conditions of freedom from stress and the patient’s complete confidence that the doctor knows what he’s doing.” A “striking example” of this phenomenon was observed “in an experiment in which patients with bleeding ulcers were divided into two groups. Members of the first group were informed, by the doctor, that a new drug had just been developed that would undoubtedly produce relief. The second group was told by nurses that a new experimental drug would be administered, but that very little was known about its effects. 70% of the people in the first group received sufficient relief from their ulcers. Only 25% of the patients in the second group experienced similar benefit. Both groups had been given the identical ‘drug’ – a placebo.” Norman Cousins, for over 40 years Editor of Saturday Review, and, in his later years, a member of the faculty of the University of California School of Medicine, wrote about this phenomenon in his book, “Anatomy of an Illness.” He describes the dramatic healing influence of distraction and laughter in his own battle with cancer. “It worked. I made the joyous discovery that ten minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep. When the pain-killing effect of the laughter wore off, we would switch on the motion-picture projector again, and, not infrequently, it would lead to another pain-free sleep interval … If laughter did in fact have a salutary effect on the body’s chemistry, it seemed at least theoretically likely that it would enhance the system’s ability to fight the inflammation. So we took sedimentation rate readings (“sed rate” is the speed with which red blood cells settle in a test tube … generally proportionate to the severity of an inflammation or infection …) just before as well as several hours after the laughter episodes. Each time, there was a drop of at least five points. The drop by itself was not substantial, but it held and was cumulative. I was greatly elated by the discovery that there is a physiologic basis for the ancient theory that laughter is good medicine.”
We need to know that pain does not always need to be silenced. It can be a valuable component of our lives. Yes, one of its values is that it alerts us of more serious issues that need attention. Along with that, though, come the benefits we gain when we learn of limits it reveals and how pushing beyond them can make us stronger, more mature, wiser, more stable people. “Hardship,” one biblical author noted, “produces tenacity, and tenacity refines character …” In “A Confession,” Leo Tolstoy, a renowned Russian novelist, recounts his own discovery of the place of suffering in human existence. Describing himself as a member of the “circle of the rich and learned … a searching, disillusioned, despairing soul …” he contrasts himself and this “circle,” with what he calls the “laboring masses.” For these “masses,” he observes, “… the whole of life … was passed in heavy labor, and they were content …” Unlike his elite “circle,” who were completely “disillusioned,” and offended that they should be expected to suffer even the slightest discomfort or inconvenience, these humble folk, “ … accepted illness and sorrow without any perplexity or opposition, and with a quiet and firm conviction that all is good …The faith of these common people was the same Christian faith as was professed by the pseudo-believers of our circle … but the (beliefs) of (those) among the laboring masses conformed so with their lives … were a necessary condition of their life … a confirmation of the meaning of life, which their faith gave them …”
We need to know that our appetites are not exclusively about pleasure. Every appetite and drive we have is present to serve a higher purpose. We want to eat, and find pleasure in doing so, because our body needs food. The pleasure is a kind of first stage incentive. The well-being that healthy eating habits provide is the higher reward. When we understand this and use food accordingly we will enjoy better health. When we use our appetites in ways they were never intended to be used, indulging them excessively and exclusively for the first stage, primitive pleasures they provide, our well-being is compromised. One of the best kept secrets in Modern Western Civilization is that our abuse of our desire for food and drink, our libido, and our desperate longing for affection are far-and-away the greatest contributor to our sickness and the Health Care crises our nations face. We have our sex drives because our first mandate is to “be fruitful and multiply.” To keep this mandate brings great pleasure. But to pursue that pleasure exclusive of the higher purpose it serves harms the body as well as the heart. Our sex drives were intended for specific situations. When we disregard this and “do it our way,” we hurt ourselves and others. The burden of treatment for all “sexually transmitted diseases,” in our society today is increasingly overwhelming not just to those who are promiscuous but to everyone. What are naively called “lifestyle” choices – they might be better called “deathstyle” choices – are resulting in damaging relationships, addictions, obesity and eating disorders, as well as increasing emotional chaos that has lead to tragic levels of suicide and self-mutilation.
We need to know that “moderation” is the best measure for pretty much everything. Moderate consumption of most foods will nourish most bodies. Life, even quality life, comes with some stress. Moderate rest – 1/3 of every day and 1/7 of each week – will richly enhance or lives. Moderate exercise – an activity that is compatible with our personal body structure and reasonably enjoyable which pushes our heart rate to near maximum levels for 30 minutes 3 times a Week – will improve the quality of everything else we do. Caring, affirming, lasting, mutually enjoyable relationships with a few people add joy and years to our lives.
When it comes to the question of quality vs. quantity of life I opt for quality without hesitation. Just this past Week I learned of someone who shares this view. A Friend of a Friend has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. His medical advisors recommended radical chemotherapy and the usual companion regimens. He opted to let the disease take its course. He will live his life well, learning and growing through the sickness and pain, until that moment when God calls him to a higher place for greater purposes. I told someone about this, and, in the telling, stated my belief that, “he made the right decision.” “But what about his Family?” they asked. “What about people who are depending on him?” I did not respond right away. Actually I am only now responding. It is clear to me that in the time left to him this man can carefully, lovingly finish the work of preparing people he loves to go on living well after he has moved on. We know well that no human being is indispensable. If we’ve left intact any illusion that we are – in our own or anyone else’s mind – we must clear it up now! If we have Adult Children who are still dependent on us we owe it to them to cut the apron strings, and any other false security devices, so they don’t have to learn these inevitable lessons in a shocking way. Death is a part of life! To live well is dignifying. To die well is consummately dignifying; the crowning achievement of a noble life.
Obviously I do not believe the medical solution is always the best. I do not pretend to be a physician here. Nor do I play one on TV. In fact, I didn't "stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night." But I am a professional spiritual guide and personal counselor who has been intimately involved with people in every imaginable kind of pain for over 37 years. I know my opinion is not in harmony with popular views. But we must examine what is popularly held to be true. We must insist on complete, rigorous testing of the notion that there is, or eventually will be, a medical solution to everything that is uncomfortable about life. The pharmaceutical conglomeration is now one of the most powerful and profitable in the world. Certain segments of the television day could be legitimately called the “Parade of Pills.” This endless wave of maladies and remedies is overwhelming. Most alarming, in all of it, is the cacophonous, naïve disregard for any intelligence. The visual images portray increasingly imaginary and compelling lifestyles, tropical vacations, leisurley bike rides on perfectly manicured trails, happy couples skiing side by side on fresh powder while the audio track drones out a litany of chilling alarms. “Don’t take … with alcohol … dizziness, drowsiness, weakness, and cough may occur. … your doctor has prescribed this medication because the benefit to you is greater than the risk of side effects. Many people using this medication do not have serious side effects. … may reduce blood flow to your hands and feet causing them to feel cold … smoking may worsen this effect … Dress warmly and avoid tobacco use … unlikely but serious side effects … bluish color of the fingers/toenails, hair loss (reversible) mental/mood changes (e.g., depression, confusion memory problems), numbness/tingling, decreased sexual ability, swelling of the ankles/feet, severe tiredness, vision changes, wheezing, unexplained/sudden weight gain … chest pain, jaw/left arm pain, slow/irregular/fast heartbeat, severe dizziness/fainting … various serious allergic reaction unlikely but may include rash, itching, swelling, severe dizziness, trouble breathing …” As usual, image proves to be everything and we become more and more medicated; made over; and mutilated; all in the name of well-being.
Before we agree to medicate any illness or undergo a surgical procedure I suggest we determine …
- Is this being prescribed to treat a symptom or the root problem? We can live with a lot of symptoms ‘til we identify the root issue, if ultimate quality of life is not seriously threatened by these secondary things.
- Are there alternative solutions? How does a healthy body deal with this malady? What means are there that can work with the body naturally to strengthen its immune systems?
- How soon can the medicine be discontinued? If it is “for life” we would do well to weigh what we’re trading and make careful decisions concerning the value of that compared to what we will get in return.
- When in doubt we must seek widespread counsel. Yes we should consult our Medical Doctor. We should also consult a physician with verifiable expertise in natural remedies. Furthermore, we should seek spiritual guidance and prayer. Remember God is the one who does the healing. And if your physician does not recognize and acknowledge that I recommend you look for another physician.
The Bible is full of assurances that God cares about the quality of our lives. In the Psalms He is portrayed as our Benefactor. For example, …
We need to know that pain does not always need to be silenced. It can be a valuable component of our lives. Yes, one of its values is that it alerts us of more serious issues that need attention. Along with that, though, come the benefits we gain when we learn of limits it reveals and how pushing beyond them can make us stronger, more mature, wiser, more stable people. “Hardship,” one biblical author noted, “produces tenacity, and tenacity refines character …” In “A Confession,” Leo Tolstoy, a renowned Russian novelist, recounts his own discovery of the place of suffering in human existence. Describing himself as a member of the “circle of the rich and learned … a searching, disillusioned, despairing soul …” he contrasts himself and this “circle,” with what he calls the “laboring masses.” For these “masses,” he observes, “… the whole of life … was passed in heavy labor, and they were content …” Unlike his elite “circle,” who were completely “disillusioned,” and offended that they should be expected to suffer even the slightest discomfort or inconvenience, these humble folk, “ … accepted illness and sorrow without any perplexity or opposition, and with a quiet and firm conviction that all is good …The faith of these common people was the same Christian faith as was professed by the pseudo-believers of our circle … but the (beliefs) of (those) among the laboring masses conformed so with their lives … were a necessary condition of their life … a confirmation of the meaning of life, which their faith gave them …”
We need to know that our appetites are not exclusively about pleasure. Every appetite and drive we have is present to serve a higher purpose. We want to eat, and find pleasure in doing so, because our body needs food. The pleasure is a kind of first stage incentive. The well-being that healthy eating habits provide is the higher reward. When we understand this and use food accordingly we will enjoy better health. When we use our appetites in ways they were never intended to be used, indulging them excessively and exclusively for the first stage, primitive pleasures they provide, our well-being is compromised. One of the best kept secrets in Modern Western Civilization is that our abuse of our desire for food and drink, our libido, and our desperate longing for affection are far-and-away the greatest contributor to our sickness and the Health Care crises our nations face. We have our sex drives because our first mandate is to “be fruitful and multiply.” To keep this mandate brings great pleasure. But to pursue that pleasure exclusive of the higher purpose it serves harms the body as well as the heart. Our sex drives were intended for specific situations. When we disregard this and “do it our way,” we hurt ourselves and others. The burden of treatment for all “sexually transmitted diseases,” in our society today is increasingly overwhelming not just to those who are promiscuous but to everyone. What are naively called “lifestyle” choices – they might be better called “deathstyle” choices – are resulting in damaging relationships, addictions, obesity and eating disorders, as well as increasing emotional chaos that has lead to tragic levels of suicide and self-mutilation.
We need to know that “moderation” is the best measure for pretty much everything. Moderate consumption of most foods will nourish most bodies. Life, even quality life, comes with some stress. Moderate rest – 1/3 of every day and 1/7 of each week – will richly enhance or lives. Moderate exercise – an activity that is compatible with our personal body structure and reasonably enjoyable which pushes our heart rate to near maximum levels for 30 minutes 3 times a Week – will improve the quality of everything else we do. Caring, affirming, lasting, mutually enjoyable relationships with a few people add joy and years to our lives.
When it comes to the question of quality vs. quantity of life I opt for quality without hesitation. Just this past Week I learned of someone who shares this view. A Friend of a Friend has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. His medical advisors recommended radical chemotherapy and the usual companion regimens. He opted to let the disease take its course. He will live his life well, learning and growing through the sickness and pain, until that moment when God calls him to a higher place for greater purposes. I told someone about this, and, in the telling, stated my belief that, “he made the right decision.” “But what about his Family?” they asked. “What about people who are depending on him?” I did not respond right away. Actually I am only now responding. It is clear to me that in the time left to him this man can carefully, lovingly finish the work of preparing people he loves to go on living well after he has moved on. We know well that no human being is indispensable. If we’ve left intact any illusion that we are – in our own or anyone else’s mind – we must clear it up now! If we have Adult Children who are still dependent on us we owe it to them to cut the apron strings, and any other false security devices, so they don’t have to learn these inevitable lessons in a shocking way. Death is a part of life! To live well is dignifying. To die well is consummately dignifying; the crowning achievement of a noble life.
Obviously I do not believe the medical solution is always the best. I do not pretend to be a physician here. Nor do I play one on TV. In fact, I didn't "stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night." But I am a professional spiritual guide and personal counselor who has been intimately involved with people in every imaginable kind of pain for over 37 years. I know my opinion is not in harmony with popular views. But we must examine what is popularly held to be true. We must insist on complete, rigorous testing of the notion that there is, or eventually will be, a medical solution to everything that is uncomfortable about life. The pharmaceutical conglomeration is now one of the most powerful and profitable in the world. Certain segments of the television day could be legitimately called the “Parade of Pills.” This endless wave of maladies and remedies is overwhelming. Most alarming, in all of it, is the cacophonous, naïve disregard for any intelligence. The visual images portray increasingly imaginary and compelling lifestyles, tropical vacations, leisurley bike rides on perfectly manicured trails, happy couples skiing side by side on fresh powder while the audio track drones out a litany of chilling alarms. “Don’t take … with alcohol … dizziness, drowsiness, weakness, and cough may occur. … your doctor has prescribed this medication because the benefit to you is greater than the risk of side effects. Many people using this medication do not have serious side effects. … may reduce blood flow to your hands and feet causing them to feel cold … smoking may worsen this effect … Dress warmly and avoid tobacco use … unlikely but serious side effects … bluish color of the fingers/toenails, hair loss (reversible) mental/mood changes (e.g., depression, confusion memory problems), numbness/tingling, decreased sexual ability, swelling of the ankles/feet, severe tiredness, vision changes, wheezing, unexplained/sudden weight gain … chest pain, jaw/left arm pain, slow/irregular/fast heartbeat, severe dizziness/fainting … various serious allergic reaction unlikely but may include rash, itching, swelling, severe dizziness, trouble breathing …” As usual, image proves to be everything and we become more and more medicated; made over; and mutilated; all in the name of well-being.
Before we agree to medicate any illness or undergo a surgical procedure I suggest we determine …
- Is this being prescribed to treat a symptom or the root problem? We can live with a lot of symptoms ‘til we identify the root issue, if ultimate quality of life is not seriously threatened by these secondary things.
- Are there alternative solutions? How does a healthy body deal with this malady? What means are there that can work with the body naturally to strengthen its immune systems?
- How soon can the medicine be discontinued? If it is “for life” we would do well to weigh what we’re trading and make careful decisions concerning the value of that compared to what we will get in return.
- When in doubt we must seek widespread counsel. Yes we should consult our Medical Doctor. We should also consult a physician with verifiable expertise in natural remedies. Furthermore, we should seek spiritual guidance and prayer. Remember God is the one who does the healing. And if your physician does not recognize and acknowledge that I recommend you look for another physician.
The Bible is full of assurances that God cares about the quality of our lives. In the Psalms He is portrayed as our Benefactor. For example, …
Psalm 91: 14 – 16 – “Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation.”
The Wisdom writings of Judaism affirm the relationship between wise living and quality of life. In Proverbs 3:16, we are taught that, “Long life is in (wisdom’s) right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.” Or, as one paraphrase puts it, “You’re blessed when you meet Lady Wisdom, … With one hand she gives long life …”
Jesus of Nazareth said, of His mission, “I came so they (any who follow me) can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.”
I have chosen to believe Him and live my life as His apprentice. I made that choice 51 years ago. The quality of life I’ve experienced is truly more than I could have ever dreamed it would be! The guy I talked with in the Men’s Room recently shares my experience. He will continue to live well even if the cancer does return and he dies. No disease can “take the life” of a follower of Jesus! If you’d like to know more about this marvelous way and the well-being that it leads to I’d be delighted to hear from you.
Thursday, October 04, 2007
On Divorce: A Letter to a Friend
My Friend,
You asked about divorce. You talked about divorce leaving the parties with only 2 choices; living celibate for the rest of their lives or marrying and living in perpetual adultery. You mentioned, in passing, the traditional, third scenario, in which, due to the sexual promiscuity of one or the other of the partners, the “innocent” partner is free to remarry.
Putting it all into the simplest terms I must tell you that God is “against” divorce for any reason. Divorce is “adultery” in the mind of God. It “adulterates” – i.e. corrupts – a Divinely created bond; the “one flesh bond” of the Creation story. Read any of the passages in the New Testament that address it – Matthew 5:31 & 32; Matthew 19:3 – 8; Mark 10:2 – 12; 1Corinthians 7:11 – 27 – and you will find that it is anathema with God. In light of this we must accept that divorce is sin.
So what do we do? We do what we do in the event of any other sin. We acknowledge it. We confess it, repent of it and all the stuff that lead to it, ask God, and anyone else whose been affected by it, for forgiveness, and humbly seek God’s and other’s guidance and training in the areas where we’ve behaved wrongly.
Right about here, though, is where the protests begin. “But I wasn’t the unfaithful partner!” “I’m the innocent victim here.” Karl, the “innocent victim” piece is fraudulent. The phrase, “except for marital unfaithfulness,” has been misinterpreted. Remember, the issue here is the adulteration of the “one flesh bond,” and when it has been adulterated. THE MESSAGE paraphrase of the confusing passage reveals that misinterpretation. “If you divorce your wife, you’re responsible for making her an adulteress (unless she has already made herself that by sexual promiscuity).” So the NIV reading, “ … I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery,” would more accurately reflect Jesus’ intent here if it read, “… I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife causes her to corrupt or profane the ‘one flesh bond,’ unless, of course, she’s already profaned it by promiscuous behavior.” Please take careful note. The profaning of the bond is at issue here. And one way or another, that bond is corrupted by divorce. There is no getting around it. Innocence is not even mentioned nor does it fit in this conversation. Jesus has one thing and one thing only on His mind here. Divorce corrupts a Divinely established bond and is, therefore, contrary to God’s plan. Anything that runs counter to God is sin.
You may say, at this point, that I have made an already difficult issue even more complicated. I agree that it seems, at least, that I have. But when you read the Matthew 19 discussion you find Jesus explaining why Moses allowed for divorce when it’s such a big deal to God. “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives,” He said, “because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning.” Note His reiteration that this is not what God intended. Still, despite that, “because of your hardness of heart,” the permission to divorce was granted. Do you get it? God is making a gracious concession to our stubborn rebellious nature. That is what He has repeatedly done and continues to do. It is called “GRACE.” I’ve capitalized it on purpose. We are stubborn, rebellious creatures. God has gone an infinite distance to break into our hard hearts with this loving Grace. He wants to redeem us and He will do so even if it costs Him everything. And He will meet us where we are. If we’re divorced He’ll forgive us. That means He will put it behind Him, and us, and allow us to start over “brand new.” It’s called “new birth.”
Do we, then, presuming on the Grace, opt for lives of serial monogamy in the hope that we’ll find that perfect match. Of course not. St. Paul makes that clear in Romans 6. Such behavior is no more remorseful and penitent than that of an alcoholic who’s been going to “Meetings” for 10 years but continues to stock his stash. And there can be no Grace there because there’s no recognition of the need of it.
Anyone who wants to live married God’s way, even though they’ve been divorced, can do so. All those who've been divorced need to do is accept that they’ve lived in a way displeasing to God; accept His forgiving Grace; seek His life changing Grace; and submit to His training Grace in preparation for a new and improved way of loving.
You asked about divorce. You talked about divorce leaving the parties with only 2 choices; living celibate for the rest of their lives or marrying and living in perpetual adultery. You mentioned, in passing, the traditional, third scenario, in which, due to the sexual promiscuity of one or the other of the partners, the “innocent” partner is free to remarry.
Putting it all into the simplest terms I must tell you that God is “against” divorce for any reason. Divorce is “adultery” in the mind of God. It “adulterates” – i.e. corrupts – a Divinely created bond; the “one flesh bond” of the Creation story. Read any of the passages in the New Testament that address it – Matthew 5:31 & 32; Matthew 19:3 – 8; Mark 10:2 – 12; 1Corinthians 7:11 – 27 – and you will find that it is anathema with God. In light of this we must accept that divorce is sin.
So what do we do? We do what we do in the event of any other sin. We acknowledge it. We confess it, repent of it and all the stuff that lead to it, ask God, and anyone else whose been affected by it, for forgiveness, and humbly seek God’s and other’s guidance and training in the areas where we’ve behaved wrongly.
Right about here, though, is where the protests begin. “But I wasn’t the unfaithful partner!” “I’m the innocent victim here.” Karl, the “innocent victim” piece is fraudulent. The phrase, “except for marital unfaithfulness,” has been misinterpreted. Remember, the issue here is the adulteration of the “one flesh bond,” and when it has been adulterated. THE MESSAGE paraphrase of the confusing passage reveals that misinterpretation. “If you divorce your wife, you’re responsible for making her an adulteress (unless she has already made herself that by sexual promiscuity).” So the NIV reading, “ … I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery,” would more accurately reflect Jesus’ intent here if it read, “… I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife causes her to corrupt or profane the ‘one flesh bond,’ unless, of course, she’s already profaned it by promiscuous behavior.” Please take careful note. The profaning of the bond is at issue here. And one way or another, that bond is corrupted by divorce. There is no getting around it. Innocence is not even mentioned nor does it fit in this conversation. Jesus has one thing and one thing only on His mind here. Divorce corrupts a Divinely established bond and is, therefore, contrary to God’s plan. Anything that runs counter to God is sin.
You may say, at this point, that I have made an already difficult issue even more complicated. I agree that it seems, at least, that I have. But when you read the Matthew 19 discussion you find Jesus explaining why Moses allowed for divorce when it’s such a big deal to God. “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives,” He said, “because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning.” Note His reiteration that this is not what God intended. Still, despite that, “because of your hardness of heart,” the permission to divorce was granted. Do you get it? God is making a gracious concession to our stubborn rebellious nature. That is what He has repeatedly done and continues to do. It is called “GRACE.” I’ve capitalized it on purpose. We are stubborn, rebellious creatures. God has gone an infinite distance to break into our hard hearts with this loving Grace. He wants to redeem us and He will do so even if it costs Him everything. And He will meet us where we are. If we’re divorced He’ll forgive us. That means He will put it behind Him, and us, and allow us to start over “brand new.” It’s called “new birth.”
Do we, then, presuming on the Grace, opt for lives of serial monogamy in the hope that we’ll find that perfect match. Of course not. St. Paul makes that clear in Romans 6. Such behavior is no more remorseful and penitent than that of an alcoholic who’s been going to “Meetings” for 10 years but continues to stock his stash. And there can be no Grace there because there’s no recognition of the need of it.
Anyone who wants to live married God’s way, even though they’ve been divorced, can do so. All those who've been divorced need to do is accept that they’ve lived in a way displeasing to God; accept His forgiving Grace; seek His life changing Grace; and submit to His training Grace in preparation for a new and improved way of loving.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
LifeLog - 04.10.2007 - Easter
Easter is over!
Easter over?
Is that possible?
For us who have this incorrigible need to make life’s exceptional moments more meaningful; filling it, in the process, with busyness; business; work; time consuming, people consuming, hard work; it is, thankfully, over!
And, perhaps, with a sigh of relief.
This Easter, though, because an exceptional Team of people we know as Journey Community Church, were willing to do the mind bending, heart rending, back breaking work of creatively bringing Easter into our experience, we have been moved profoundly.
Our Son, Jason, Worship Pastor of this unique Community in La Mesa, California, and his Family, invited us to share Easter with them. Because he and his Wife were both “working” that morning we – my Wife Shirley and I – cared for the Kids. We would be their escorts to “Church.” We had three choices that morning. We could “go to Church” at 7:30; 9:30; or 10:30. We chose the third.
I knew I was in for something out of the ordinary when I couldn’t find a place to park. There were so many people coming and going we had to wait in lines just to get into the Worship Center. There was an age appropriate place for our three year old Grandson but we wanted him to join us for “the music.” His five and seven year old Sisters had options too. They wanted to be with us. It wasn’t easy to find four seats together but we did. The room was nothing like “Church.” Everything was black. There were cameras and screens. The stage filled the front. There were instruments – drums, guitars, a keyboard. There were microphones. The lighting was soft and welcoming. There was music that drew us easily into the experience of Easter. The screens told about “Journey” in a most inviting way. And then it was pitch black.
What happened next was like no Easter Sunday I have ever experienced. I have been to “Church” for over 50 Easters. None was like this!
Subtle light focused on a young woman. Music and imagery surrounded her. A beautiful garden, rich with vegetation and lush colors was spread before us. She sang. “One choice, one tree.” The tree appeared. There was a piece of fruit, brilliantly crimson. She sang, “one fall for humanity.” We were there. The Kids were still and quiet. We were experiencing that fall – the enticing beauty of it all. She sang. “One lie” – the shining fruit glistened before our own eyes. She sang. “One liar” – the serpent lurked, leered from the shadowy branches. She sang. “One bite is all death required.” An arm reached from the shadows, grasped the fruit, raised it to the edge of the darkness, the dreadful bite was taken. She sang. “one great regret, one squandered chance …” The fruit fell surreally hanging, yet falling, vividly crimson through the darkness that enveloped us. “And yet,” she sang, “one hope.” The scenes change. Jesus appears. Images and symbols of his life and passion reach deep into our hearts. We are there. The Children are really there. She sang. “One day, one name above all names, one bridge between then and now. One way to discover how. One price. One tree.” Then it was dark; falling through the blackness a vivid, crimson orb glistened in its solitude. “One drop of crimson covers me.” The orb, a drop of blood, exploded into a million particles and we were bathed in its, subtle, pervasive, deeply embracing light. Covered by the crimson light we remembered we’d been covered by His life giving blood. I cried. Our grandkids were transfixed. Again it was black. Light rose to play subtly over a regally shaded backdrop; a vast curtain. The screens were telling the story of Solomon’s temple and the “Veil.” This wasn’t just a “veil.” It wasn’t even a “curtain.” A flaming sword locked Eden. This, a cosmic barrier, of infinite, intricately interwoven fabrics, 60 feet high and 3 inches thick, impenetrable, indestructible guarded the place, the holiest place, the place where God and man – one man for all people – met on God’s terms, at His time, precisely or else. But this morning, before our own eyes and ears, Jesus cried, from that “one tree,” His cross – the place of concentrated, cosmic crisis – “IT IS FINISHED!” In that instant the indestructible was destroyed! There, before our own eyes, “The veil was torn in two from top to bottom,” and a brilliantly blinding – truly “BLINDING” – cross of light blazed into view! We knew we were, for that electrifying moment, face-to-face with “The One who dwells in unapproachable light!” Marissa, Maddie, Ethan, and all the rest of us were in awe. We had just experienced “His Story … Our Story.” Those Children and I will never forget it.
We sang now. The instruments were skillfully played. There were singers who sang with passion and strength. There was a choir. The sound was rich and full and moving. No one was celebrated but Jesus. We sang about Him; “author of salvation.” We sang, “He has conquered the grave.” We sang of His forever “reign.” We had been to the cross. I remembered that, “It is the experience of genuine grief that prepares us for ‘JOY.’” This was “JOY!”
Ed, Journey’s teaching Pastor, explained that this is the “What is it?” of Christ’s and His followers’ lives. It’s the “EVENT.” Less than 30 years after it happened, he reminded us, the earliest of Christ’s followers were telling it all over their world, in person and in letters.” “He is risen!” Recalling the words of Max Lucado, he told us that if the journey to rescue humankind has taken “10,000 steps God has taken 9,999 of them.” The “veil” has been “torn from top to bottom.” Only someone from above could have done that. God did it. The “veil” is reduced to carpet. We are welcome!
THIS IS LOVE!
Ed invited us to open our hearts to this love, as the singers sang,
Many did, that morning. I resolved, again, to let God love me through this marvelous Man, Jesus, His risen, conquering, Sovereign Son.
By the skilful interweaving of virtually every available medium, this Worship Team, at great personal cost, lead us into a vibrantly real experience of “HIS STORY … Our Story.” Our Grandkids, the Children of a media age, will never be the same again. Nor will I …
Thank you, Journey Community Church for the mind bending, heart rending, back breaking work you’ve done so that Easter will never, really be over for us!
Easter over?
Is that possible?
For us who have this incorrigible need to make life’s exceptional moments more meaningful; filling it, in the process, with busyness; business; work; time consuming, people consuming, hard work; it is, thankfully, over!
And, perhaps, with a sigh of relief.
This Easter, though, because an exceptional Team of people we know as Journey Community Church, were willing to do the mind bending, heart rending, back breaking work of creatively bringing Easter into our experience, we have been moved profoundly.
Our Son, Jason, Worship Pastor of this unique Community in La Mesa, California, and his Family, invited us to share Easter with them. Because he and his Wife were both “working” that morning we – my Wife Shirley and I – cared for the Kids. We would be their escorts to “Church.” We had three choices that morning. We could “go to Church” at 7:30; 9:30; or 10:30. We chose the third.
I knew I was in for something out of the ordinary when I couldn’t find a place to park. There were so many people coming and going we had to wait in lines just to get into the Worship Center. There was an age appropriate place for our three year old Grandson but we wanted him to join us for “the music.” His five and seven year old Sisters had options too. They wanted to be with us. It wasn’t easy to find four seats together but we did. The room was nothing like “Church.” Everything was black. There were cameras and screens. The stage filled the front. There were instruments – drums, guitars, a keyboard. There were microphones. The lighting was soft and welcoming. There was music that drew us easily into the experience of Easter. The screens told about “Journey” in a most inviting way. And then it was pitch black.
What happened next was like no Easter Sunday I have ever experienced. I have been to “Church” for over 50 Easters. None was like this!
Subtle light focused on a young woman. Music and imagery surrounded her. A beautiful garden, rich with vegetation and lush colors was spread before us. She sang. “One choice, one tree.” The tree appeared. There was a piece of fruit, brilliantly crimson. She sang, “one fall for humanity.” We were there. The Kids were still and quiet. We were experiencing that fall – the enticing beauty of it all. She sang. “One lie” – the shining fruit glistened before our own eyes. She sang. “One liar” – the serpent lurked, leered from the shadowy branches. She sang. “One bite is all death required.” An arm reached from the shadows, grasped the fruit, raised it to the edge of the darkness, the dreadful bite was taken. She sang. “one great regret, one squandered chance …” The fruit fell surreally hanging, yet falling, vividly crimson through the darkness that enveloped us. “And yet,” she sang, “one hope.” The scenes change. Jesus appears. Images and symbols of his life and passion reach deep into our hearts. We are there. The Children are really there. She sang. “One day, one name above all names, one bridge between then and now. One way to discover how. One price. One tree.” Then it was dark; falling through the blackness a vivid, crimson orb glistened in its solitude. “One drop of crimson covers me.” The orb, a drop of blood, exploded into a million particles and we were bathed in its, subtle, pervasive, deeply embracing light. Covered by the crimson light we remembered we’d been covered by His life giving blood. I cried. Our grandkids were transfixed. Again it was black. Light rose to play subtly over a regally shaded backdrop; a vast curtain. The screens were telling the story of Solomon’s temple and the “Veil.” This wasn’t just a “veil.” It wasn’t even a “curtain.” A flaming sword locked Eden. This, a cosmic barrier, of infinite, intricately interwoven fabrics, 60 feet high and 3 inches thick, impenetrable, indestructible guarded the place, the holiest place, the place where God and man – one man for all people – met on God’s terms, at His time, precisely or else. But this morning, before our own eyes and ears, Jesus cried, from that “one tree,” His cross – the place of concentrated, cosmic crisis – “IT IS FINISHED!” In that instant the indestructible was destroyed! There, before our own eyes, “The veil was torn in two from top to bottom,” and a brilliantly blinding – truly “BLINDING” – cross of light blazed into view! We knew we were, for that electrifying moment, face-to-face with “The One who dwells in unapproachable light!” Marissa, Maddie, Ethan, and all the rest of us were in awe. We had just experienced “His Story … Our Story.” Those Children and I will never forget it.
We sang now. The instruments were skillfully played. There were singers who sang with passion and strength. There was a choir. The sound was rich and full and moving. No one was celebrated but Jesus. We sang about Him; “author of salvation.” We sang, “He has conquered the grave.” We sang of His forever “reign.” We had been to the cross. I remembered that, “It is the experience of genuine grief that prepares us for ‘JOY.’” This was “JOY!”
Ed, Journey’s teaching Pastor, explained that this is the “What is it?” of Christ’s and His followers’ lives. It’s the “EVENT.” Less than 30 years after it happened, he reminded us, the earliest of Christ’s followers were telling it all over their world, in person and in letters.” “He is risen!” Recalling the words of Max Lucado, he told us that if the journey to rescue humankind has taken “10,000 steps God has taken 9,999 of them.” The “veil” has been “torn from top to bottom.” Only someone from above could have done that. God did it. The “veil” is reduced to carpet. We are welcome!
THIS IS LOVE!
Ed invited us to open our hearts to this love, as the singers sang,
“the end of fear is where we begin
the moment we decided to let love in
there's nothing we can do about
the things we have to do without …
the only way to feel again is let love in …”
Many did, that morning. I resolved, again, to let God love me through this marvelous Man, Jesus, His risen, conquering, Sovereign Son.
By the skilful interweaving of virtually every available medium, this Worship Team, at great personal cost, lead us into a vibrantly real experience of “HIS STORY … Our Story.” Our Grandkids, the Children of a media age, will never be the same again. Nor will I …
Thank you, Journey Community Church for the mind bending, heart rending, back breaking work you’ve done so that Easter will never, really be over for us!
Stranger than Fiction ... A Movie Review
Imagine you are, by a most bizarre twist of events, aware that you’re caught in the web of “little did he/she know.” You are the principal figure in a narrator’s “third person omniscient” telling of a life story. That story is yours. And you will soon die.
You are, more over, a person who, up to this moment, have meticulously managed every piece of your life down to the most intricate detail.
How will you respond? Will you tighten your hold on the controls? Will you let go and have that fling you’ve saved life for? Will you, finally, look outside yourself for help? Will you cower in the gloom of despair? Will you pursue some noble cause with your final breaths?
These are questions posed in Lindsay Doran’s “Stranger Than Fiction.” Will Ferrell (Harold Crick) whom I never imagined to have a serious cell in him (Roadside promotions of his most recent “Blades of Glory” do nothing to dispel that presumption.) plays the leading role surprisingly well, making his character’s carefully nuanced, yet ultimately admirable life quite believable. The rest of the primary cast – Dustin Hoffman (Professor Jules Hilbert); Emma Thompson (the eccentric Author and The Voice); Queen Latifah (the Publisher’s Assistant); Maggie Gyllenhaal (Ana!) and His Wristwatch (His Wristwatch) – superbly support him, making the story compelling; even inspiring. Inspiring in that it moves us to remember and live as though, “the nuances, the anomalies, the subtleties, that we assume only accessorize our days, are in fact here for a much larger and nobler purpose ...”
Despite an annoyingly predictable acquiescence to the idea of a need for explicit treatment of romantic encounters, this movie, directed by Marc Forster, is worth seeing. Jim Denison April 2, 2007
You are, more over, a person who, up to this moment, have meticulously managed every piece of your life down to the most intricate detail.
How will you respond? Will you tighten your hold on the controls? Will you let go and have that fling you’ve saved life for? Will you, finally, look outside yourself for help? Will you cower in the gloom of despair? Will you pursue some noble cause with your final breaths?
These are questions posed in Lindsay Doran’s “Stranger Than Fiction.” Will Ferrell (Harold Crick) whom I never imagined to have a serious cell in him (Roadside promotions of his most recent “Blades of Glory” do nothing to dispel that presumption.) plays the leading role surprisingly well, making his character’s carefully nuanced, yet ultimately admirable life quite believable. The rest of the primary cast – Dustin Hoffman (Professor Jules Hilbert); Emma Thompson (the eccentric Author and The Voice); Queen Latifah (the Publisher’s Assistant); Maggie Gyllenhaal (Ana!) and His Wristwatch (His Wristwatch) – superbly support him, making the story compelling; even inspiring. Inspiring in that it moves us to remember and live as though, “the nuances, the anomalies, the subtleties, that we assume only accessorize our days, are in fact here for a much larger and nobler purpose ...”
Despite an annoyingly predictable acquiescence to the idea of a need for explicit treatment of romantic encounters, this movie, directed by Marc Forster, is worth seeing. Jim Denison April 2, 2007
Thursday, April 05, 2007
A Truly Out-of-the-Ordinary Triumph
It is, again, what many Christians call “Holy Week.” That world changing week that began with a triumphant, regal procession and ended with a tragic, horrific execution.
For the fourth consecutive year I’ve relived those iconoclastic days with a most gifted writer, Walter Wangerin, Jr. He tells their story in riveting detail on the pages of a book titled, Reliving the Passion. And year-after-year my heart has been deeply moved by his words. Often, in the daily Lenten readings that comprise the book, Wangerin recalls events through the eyes, and minds, but especially through the hearts of people who were there. This year I was especially moved by the experience of the Centurion charged with Jesus execution.
A consummate soldier, as Wangerin so skillfully reminds us, this Officer carries out his duty with precision and dispatch. He could have felt this day’s assignment was beneath him. “Under other circumstances,” Wangerin writes, “this Centurion commands a hundred fighting men, not four at a quick execution. He ranks with sixty brother-Centurions in a legion of six thousand troops. He stands nowhere near the top of that brotherhood, but he isn’t a grunt, he isn’t the boy at the bottom.” He is, though, a Roman Officer. Among the finest warriors of the Super Power of his day he always did what had to be done; he did it unwaveringly; he did it by the book; with skill. On assignments across Rome’s vast Empire he lead men on “forced marches down stone roads,” out-front or alongside; bringing out the best in them when they had, they thought, nothing more to give. He inspired courage in men even when they knew they were going to their death. He saw them die. He knew the sounds and smells of death. Some had begged him to “put them out of their misery.” “‘Kill me, kill me, kill me – ’ And he answered more than a few … The sword can honor a dying man. A dying soldier. Not a criminal.” This was a battle toughened, grizzled veteran. Nothing was beyond or beneath him. “And so he has lingered through a truly terrifying storm, a blackness three hours long, here on a hill, exposed to the wind’s lash.” Standing watch on this another soldier’s day; observing one more crucifixion; things are seeming not quite ordinary. This storm has been like no other; almost cosmic in its magnitude and intensity. And the darkness; blacker than any night he’d lived through. But this man Jesus. He’s different. Who is he? “Whereas his companions have begun shivering and crying in the cold, till now he has held his peace. One curses. One weeps. Common responses. The man in the middle – Jesus – flares his nostrils and groans.” Men dieing on crosses break. He’s not breaking. But then, “just in the last minutes, he breathed deeply, he swelled his chest and bellowed a horse word: ‘Eloi, Eloi – ” the Officer can’t make it out. It’s a different language. But it’s more what he expects. They’re all the same. Oh some are stronger than others. Jesus of Nazareth is a strong one. But he, too, has broken. It’s just a matter of time –
“WHAT WAS THAT?!”
“A LOUD SHOUT! Phone megale! WHAT? … This is not what the Centurion expects! It’s a cry he has heard before, to be sure – but never in defeat and never, never in death … This is a cry of triumph!
The Centurion whirls ‘round to see Jesus: he see eyes like fiery darts in the darkness; he sees a mouth thin and thin, as thin as the blade of a sword, grinning!”
“Then suddenly, he dies … suddenly! That’s what rivets the Centurion. It is as if this man chose to go fully conscious straight to the wall of death, and then to strike it with all his might and, in the striking die. Aware of absolutely everything. … how can a crucified criminal act so convincingly like the victor?!”
Because He is!
Because there, in that darkest of all moments, the greatest of all conquests was “FINISHED!” The cosmic battle against death and all its futile threats has been won. Satan, sin, death – defanged, empty, defeated: not as you pretended “mighty and dreadful.”
At that same moment “the veil of the temple was torn, from top to bottom and separated.” We are no longer banished from the presence of God. We can approach Him now. And His “seat” is “mercy!”
Oh Jesus! THANK YOU!
For the fourth consecutive year I’ve relived those iconoclastic days with a most gifted writer, Walter Wangerin, Jr. He tells their story in riveting detail on the pages of a book titled, Reliving the Passion. And year-after-year my heart has been deeply moved by his words. Often, in the daily Lenten readings that comprise the book, Wangerin recalls events through the eyes, and minds, but especially through the hearts of people who were there. This year I was especially moved by the experience of the Centurion charged with Jesus execution.
A consummate soldier, as Wangerin so skillfully reminds us, this Officer carries out his duty with precision and dispatch. He could have felt this day’s assignment was beneath him. “Under other circumstances,” Wangerin writes, “this Centurion commands a hundred fighting men, not four at a quick execution. He ranks with sixty brother-Centurions in a legion of six thousand troops. He stands nowhere near the top of that brotherhood, but he isn’t a grunt, he isn’t the boy at the bottom.” He is, though, a Roman Officer. Among the finest warriors of the Super Power of his day he always did what had to be done; he did it unwaveringly; he did it by the book; with skill. On assignments across Rome’s vast Empire he lead men on “forced marches down stone roads,” out-front or alongside; bringing out the best in them when they had, they thought, nothing more to give. He inspired courage in men even when they knew they were going to their death. He saw them die. He knew the sounds and smells of death. Some had begged him to “put them out of their misery.” “‘Kill me, kill me, kill me – ’ And he answered more than a few … The sword can honor a dying man. A dying soldier. Not a criminal.” This was a battle toughened, grizzled veteran. Nothing was beyond or beneath him. “And so he has lingered through a truly terrifying storm, a blackness three hours long, here on a hill, exposed to the wind’s lash.” Standing watch on this another soldier’s day; observing one more crucifixion; things are seeming not quite ordinary. This storm has been like no other; almost cosmic in its magnitude and intensity. And the darkness; blacker than any night he’d lived through. But this man Jesus. He’s different. Who is he? “Whereas his companions have begun shivering and crying in the cold, till now he has held his peace. One curses. One weeps. Common responses. The man in the middle – Jesus – flares his nostrils and groans.” Men dieing on crosses break. He’s not breaking. But then, “just in the last minutes, he breathed deeply, he swelled his chest and bellowed a horse word: ‘Eloi, Eloi – ” the Officer can’t make it out. It’s a different language. But it’s more what he expects. They’re all the same. Oh some are stronger than others. Jesus of Nazareth is a strong one. But he, too, has broken. It’s just a matter of time –
“WHAT WAS THAT?!”
“A LOUD SHOUT! Phone megale! WHAT? … This is not what the Centurion expects! It’s a cry he has heard before, to be sure – but never in defeat and never, never in death … This is a cry of triumph!
The Centurion whirls ‘round to see Jesus: he see eyes like fiery darts in the darkness; he sees a mouth thin and thin, as thin as the blade of a sword, grinning!”
“Then suddenly, he dies … suddenly! That’s what rivets the Centurion. It is as if this man chose to go fully conscious straight to the wall of death, and then to strike it with all his might and, in the striking die. Aware of absolutely everything. … how can a crucified criminal act so convincingly like the victor?!”
Because He is!
Because there, in that darkest of all moments, the greatest of all conquests was “FINISHED!” The cosmic battle against death and all its futile threats has been won. Satan, sin, death – defanged, empty, defeated: not as you pretended “mighty and dreadful.”
At that same moment “the veil of the temple was torn, from top to bottom and separated.” We are no longer banished from the presence of God. We can approach Him now. And His “seat” is “mercy!”
Oh Jesus! THANK YOU!
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