TheologyWebsite: Reflection Archives

December 06, 2007

I'm okay, you're okay. Really?

How do we judge our own spiritual health? What are the indicators of whether we are growing and thriving in our relationship with God and the world, or whether we are falling on our faces? How do we know we are not fooling ourselves?

Many would say, “I’m not where I would like to be, but I’m doing reasonably well. No overt sin, no rebellion, none of the nasties associated with living a ‘worldly’ life.” But am I seeing things clearly? Are you? Are we dealing with reality, or our own wishful thinking?

It’s easy living a “Christian life”—which in most of America means I don’t drink, cuss, smoke or chew, or go with girls who do…too much. Anyone can refrain from the things that “Christians” don’t do. For the most part, it’s simply living a more or less healthy, more or less moral life.

But that’s not what being a follower of Jesus is about. Christianity is not defined by the things we don’t do. In fact, as an indicator of whether I am spiritually okay with God, the things I don’t do are mostly worthless. There is far more to life than simply avoiding negatives.

Anyone can live this sort of Christian life under two conditions: first, if things in your life are pretty much going your way, and second, if you accept a definition of Christian that is grossly watered down and bears little resemblance to anything in scripture.

But what about people who don’t want to live on baby food—there actually are some—and the times in life when it seems nothing is going your way? What about those whose hearts long for substance in life, and who can write a book about living in despair, struggling with depression, wondering if God has forgotten them? How do they know if they are doing well or falling flat, especially when everything in them screams, “Failure”?

You have perhaps heard the line in the detective story, when the bad guy says the cops got nuttin’ on him: “It’s all circumstantial. I means nothing.” Circumstantial evidence is evidence derived from interpreting circumstances. And circumstantial evidence in life, as in crime fiction, is unreliable. We should not trust it. Our circumstances lie.

Someone once said, teaching about Job and his faithfulness in the most trying of circumstances, “If Job teaches us anything, it’s this: The fact that your life is falling apart doesn’t necessarily mean that you are doing something wrong. In fact, it might mean that you are doing something right.”

Focusing on circumstances is a dangerous way to live. Our situations are not reliable indicators, because we can see them only from an extremely limited perspective. We can’t see the big picture. It’s also dangerous because it takes our focus off of God and moves it to ourselves and what’s happening to us. It’s certain that our trials and problems look far different from the other side of the sky, where true reality is evident. We can’t see from there, so wisdom suggests that we trust the one who can.

In hard times and in easy times, it is not our task to measure how we are doing. We are not to be engaged in continually trying to take our own spiritual temperature, to measure our own productivity. We can’t do it. Our task is simple: Be faithful. Trust God. Wait on him. This is the lesson of Job: do not deny God. Our focus and our certainty of coming successfully through trials, is in trusting God, remaining focused on him, and waiting for him to bring us through to the place he has prepared for us.

It’s up to him to decide if we are healthy or not.

Posted by Avi at 02:34 PM | Comments (4)

November 08, 2007

Muchas gracias: lots of graces

God has chosen us to represent him, to act like him, speak like him, learn to think like him, and be like him. We are called to be good, to reflect the character of our Jesus. As we do that in gratitude for his grace to us, we demonstrate his love through our lives, and we pass his gracious forgiveness—grace we experienced first—on to others who need to experience it next. The goodness that is in us—the character of Jesus—is practical, influencing our every decision through the day. God’s goodness in us reaches out and touches everyone around us.

I was reading recently in my Spanish Bible, in Colossians, and encountered the phrase, “abundando en acciones de gracias,” or in the English NIV, “overflowing with thankfulness.” It occurred to me that overflowing with thankfulness—gratitude—is both a part of goodness and a result of goodness. And the Spanish is especially interesting, when we consider that gracias means both “thanks” and “graces.” So we might say that we are to be “abounding in graces.” Literally translated, the Spanish phrase means “abounding in actions of graces.”

Gratitude and goodness are manifested as we abound in the graces of God, showering them on everyone we touch. As we tell people thanks—gracias—we can think of ourselves as telling them, “Graces to you.” And we can do much worse than that.

Posted by Avi at 04:37 PM | Comments (1)

October 04, 2007

A rant

Okay, I gotta get it off my chest: I don’t understand. Why are so many people, men and women who run around calling themselves Christians, so complacent about their “faith”? I don’t understand how people who profess to have placed their trust in Jesus and given their lives to him are utterly unconcerned with what that means in daily life, and have little interest in learning.

I recently read an article in which the author was trying to understand why churches are full of spiritually immature, baby Christians. It was disturbing, but nice to read in a way, because I have been frustrated by the same issue, and don’t know what to do about it. It was reassuring to know that I am not the only one.

I attend churches and meet people who call themselves Christians. And I meet self-identified Christians elsewhere in the world, and it seems like most members of these groups have at least two things in common: They are utterly ignorant of the Bible, and don’t much care. And, as long as their life is going along in a reasonably comfortable manner, they’re satisfied. Their world revolves around their comfort.

How can we live this way? Do we not believe that there is a God to whom we are accountable? Do we really believe that what matters most in life is our own happiness here and now? Are we satisfied when our lives agree with the Greek philosopher Aristotle, that “the masses choose the lives of grazing animals”?

Please say it ain’t so. Please tell me that intelligent people are not really willing to live as sheep.

A fundamental longing in every person is for significance. We want to know that we matter, that our struggles and pain and living in a sucky and brutal world is not for nothing. And yet, we live a life that guarantees we will not matter: One centered on ourselves and our own whims and “needs.”

How can this be? In the churches, too often it’s a case of the blind leading the blind. “Leaders” who have no concept of God’s call or of anything but perpetuating mediocrity. Outside the churches, it’s little different, except individuals agree with themselves to remain blind and ignorant.

Perhaps we would do well to consider what the Bible says about those who “will not see.” Life is not about us. The number of toys or degrees or the amount of money does not determine whether we “win” in life.

It’s all about Jesus. And our relationship with him determines the quality and ultimate value of our lives.

That’s how I see it, anyway.

Posted by at 02:38 PM | Comments (15)

June 27, 2007

The purpose of life

The purpose of life is not
. . .to be happy

but

. . .to matter
. . .to be productive
. . .to be useful
. . .to have it make a difference
. . . . .that you live at all

-- Leo Rosten

Posted by at 01:16 PM | Comments (2)

June 21, 2007

A cry

Ah, Lord God, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power.
Ah, Lord God, you have made the heavens and the earth by your outstretched arm.
Nothing is too difficult for you.

Lord God, God of my fathers, my God, I worship you. You are a wonder, O my God; you surpass my ability to understand. Truly, my Father, such knowledge is too wonderful for me.

O God, my God, through time sons of men have struggled to believe in you. Most have not believed. And those who have believed in you have not truly believed you.

When you tell us you have created us for a purpose, we struggle to believe.
When you tell us you have chosen us from among the masses, we struggle to believe.
When you tell us you have chosen us to represent you, we struggle.
When you tell us your Son gives life in abundance, we see our situations, and we struggle.

Forgive us, O Lord! Heal us, O God! Hear my cry and heal us!

Our Father, we have made an obscenity of our world, the world you pronounced “good.” We have filled it with brutality, with barbarism and with unspeakable cruelties.

We live pointless and empty lives.

Heal us, O God! Hear our cry and heal us!

Lord God, my heart cries out to you.
Lord God, you know my heart, that it is yours.
Lord God, I belong to you, and beside you, there is no other.

I need your touch, O God, I need your touch!
Heal us, O God! Heal me!

You are our Light and our Salvation. In you we place our hope. Without you we are nothing. Without you I am nothing.

Hear my cry, O God, and heal me! Help me to believe you.

Posted by at 09:20 AM | Comments (0)

June 07, 2007

Hallelujah! I'm free!

I started recently to read through the book of Romans. I’ve read it before, probably much more than once. But I have been drawn back for some while now. So I began in chapter 1, and got as far, over several weeks, as the middle of chapter 9. It took me so long primarily because I spent a long time in chapters 6 through 8.

In fact, I stopped in mid-9, and went back to reread 6–8. What a fascinating book! But I was especially interested in Paul’s account of the struggle within himself, as he did things he didn’t want to do and failed to do things he wanted to do. His words are moving, as he tells of this battle within, and we can hear his heart torn.

I am especially touched because I have similar battles within me. I do things I don’t want to do, and I neglect doing things I want to do. Why do I act this way? It’s discouraging and very frustrating. Really hammers my self esteem, too.

I decided a good while ago that if I was going to be follower of Jesus, I was going to be one all the way. A characteristic of my personality is that I don’t have a passive bone in my body. I am either all the way in, or I am not interested at all. And I don’t want to live life calling myself a “Christian” – though I seldom use that term about myself – when I know inside that I am living the life of a hypocrite.

I want to be able to look at my life, and look at what the Bible ways about those who follow Jesus, and thank God for his grace and mercy that lets me live a life that honors him. I don’t want to read my Bible and then look at my life and say, “This just can’t be what God has in mind.” And I especially don’t want to come to the end of my life and find that God is ashamed and embarrassed by the way I have lived.

But there’s good news: I am dead! That’s right! Larry Baden is dead! He died on a cross with Jesus. And so, because of that, I am no longer bound by the law of sin, but am free. Sin has no power over me..

But I still sin. And so did Paul Why? I think there’s a simple answer: I choose to. That’s right, I can’t say, “The devil made me do it.” When I accept this fact and deal with it head-on, I’m making a giant step toward living in freedom.

I sin because I choose to. Sin has no inherent power over me, and nobody can force me to sin. I am a follower of Jesus, and followers of Jesus are dead to sin. And because we are dead to sin, when we recognize that we have a choice in the matter, we are on the way to living in the new nature that God has given us. And that’s really good news!

Someone wrote that when Israel left Egypt, they were no longer slaves. But they were not free people, either. They were simply not slaves. Living as free men and women takes learning and time, and it doesn’t happen automatically.

When I died with Jesus, I ceased to be a slave to sin. Now I am learning what it is to live as a free man, being responsible and making choices that I never could make before. Now I am learning how to live a life that both enjoys and honors God.

And I love it. Hallelujah!

Posted by at 04:09 PM | Comments (1)

May 19, 2007

He had FUN!

I was looking at a magazine a while back and came across an ad that just stopped me right there. I would say it stopped me cold, but it was a warm tropical scene, a beautiful beach with sugar-like sand and transparent blue water. Anchored off the beach was a sailboat — that got my attention right there — and it was a picture that I think must be something like heaven.

You need to understand the immensity of that statement for a Colorado mountain boy. It’s huge. The place certainly sounds like heaven to me, though if I work at it, I can convince myself that it really isn’t.

WE NEED TO PLAY

There is in all of us, I think, a desire to relax, to enjoy ourselves, to just play now and then. It’s a healthy desire, one God designed into us. When we lose it, we have lost something very important about ourselves. God, it seems from looking at the world He created, has a great capacity for enjoyment. Even in Genesis, at the creation account, God pronounced things good, and then very good. He created a world of breathtaking beauty and infinite variety. And reading the Old Testament prophets, we see in God a depth of passion and love that is astonishing. So, created in his image, it is not surprising that we reflect that capacity for pleasure.

Contrary to the impression we might get from observing some “Christians,” it is not a sin to enjoy ourselves. In fact, it might be a sin to not enjoy ourselves, when the source of our pleasure is the God who loves us and redeemed us.

However….

When pleasure and enjoyment become the focus of our lives, something is badly out of order, and we are in trouble. We have lost our true focus, our reason for living, and we are in a dangerous place. A life that focuses on pleasure is guaranteed to be an empty life, with a tragic ending.

AN EXERCISE IN PERSPECTIVE

It is a useful exercise, I think, for us to occasionally read an obituary or two. Obituaries are what other people think of the life of someone who is no longer here. Reading them can be pretty sobering, and sometimes downright depressing. People live for a longer or a shorter time and go through many hard places. When we read their obituaries, we are struck that many leave nothing of significance behind. Many would say that their life was wasted. People who live for pleasure should consider the obituary: “John died yesterday. He lived 43 years, and left a wife and three children. He had fun.” Depressing, isn’t it? Looking at these, we can better understand Aristotle, who said “the masses choose the life of grazing animals.”

A WARRIOR PEOPLE

We sometimes lose sight of the fact that God calls us to a life of service to the King, and that we are together with him engaged in a war to the death. We are called to be warriors, people with a mission and a focus that drives our lives. In the Bible, God is often called the Lord of Hosts. In Hebrew it is “Adonai tzva’ot.” It doesn’t mean that he is simply the boss of a bunch of people. The word has the concept of an army: God is the leader of a great army, disciplined and ready to do battle in his name and with his power.

Soldiers are focused, they are disciplined and mission-oriented, but soldiers do not live lives devoid of pleasure. They enjoy many things, just like everyone else. However, there are two constants in their lives: conflict and change. They live and breathe their mission. If they are not in direct conflict with the enemy, they are training for the time when they will be. And they go anywhere and do anything the mission requires.

REEVALUATION

Periodically, I have had occasion to examine the reason for my life, and check my priorities. There was a time when I was “downsized,” and went through the unpleasant process of searching for employment. As I did that, I observed my responses to an array of job prospects, in different locations, for varying amounts of money. I was a little surprised at what I saw.

After that process, I was thoroughly confused. In the end, I didn’t have a clue what my “perfect job” might look like. So in the end, it came down to this: “God, I am your servant. Send me where you will, and do with me what you will, and I will serve you.” And this is where it should have been in the beginning, and where I actually thought it was, until it was tested.

I spent the first couple decades of my adult life in the military, and moved extensively. I spent years on alert, ready to go anywhere on a four-hour notice. And I enjoyed it. I had a great time.

Then I left the military, and sought a place to settle down, earn a living and serve God quietly for the next portion of my life. It didn’t happen. To my surprise, I have moved as often since leaving the military as I did in the military. And I found that disturbing. I wanted to settle down, put down roots, and enjoy my “advancing years.”

NO RETIREMENT

However, I lost site of the fact that I am still in God’s “military” and I am still very much on active duty. Someone asked a missionary once what sort of retirement plan the organization offered. “A graveyard next to the mission station,” he replied. There is no retirement from active duty with God until He takes us home to rest in his presence. And it is there, ironically, that we shall have no need of rest.

We resist change, especially as we get older. We like the comfort of familiar surroundings, the security of predictability. But we forget that stability in life, in employment, in our home, is an illusion. We have only the appearance of stability in these things. There is true stability only in God, not in things or jobs or anything else in the world. Our jobs, as many have discovered in recent years, can vanish in a moment. Our homes can become ashes in minutes. There is security only in God.

A GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD?

Despite this, people repeatedly put their faith in the world system, ignoring God, disobeying God, and living lives far below what God has prepared for them. In fact, many people who call themselves Christians are de facto atheists, claiming to belong to God, but living as though there were no God.

Most people will say, in some form, that they “have a good relationship with God.” Someone has said that a good response to that statement might be, “Perhaps, but what standard do you use to know if God has a good relationship with you?” Many of us are fooling ourselves, and are in for a major shock.

I urge you to consider your life, and your relationship with God. What are you living for? Do you truly believe that there is only one God, and that He is the God of the Bible? Does your life show it? Is knowing and serving this God the most important thing in your life? If not, you aren’t seeing things clearly.

Posted by at 08:52 AM | Comments (1)

March 29, 2007

The spice of life: Many graces...

Recently, I was writing on forgiveness, a topic that is not always easy. But there is something that both compels us to forgive, and that wells up in us when we do forgive. It’s gratitude. It’s a deep sense of thankfulness to the One who redeems us, forgives us so freely, and makes us his own. It is this that adds “flavor” to our life, bring into our life the sweet aroma lf being like Jesus.

A key factor in both loving and forgiving is gratitude. As we are thankful for what God has done for us, and our relationship with him, we can more easily move into other areas that are otherwise difficult.

Americans especially have a hard time with this. Most of us grew up and live in a “gimme” culture. An enormous part of our tax money goes to pay for “entitlement programs,” things we believe are ours by right. We are entitled to them.

And as we are bombarded by the propaganda of advertisers – repeated to us over and over like a mantra – perhaps the one that captured it best was for McDonald's restaurants: “You deserve a break today.”

The truth is, we are spoiled. Even those among us who are less well off materially live a life of luxury by the standards of most of the world. When we consider what we really deserve, it’s not a mediocre hamburger and fries. In fact, looking about us at the colossal mess we have made of our world and the utter disregard we have for the God who made us and loves us, what we really deserve is too unpleasant to talk about here.

The truth is, none of us reading this has gotten what we deserve. And the truth is, without exception, we have been the recipients of God’s abundant, lavish love and grace. We have been forgiven of our rebellion – or worse, our apathy – washed clean and adopted into the family of the King. We are blessed beyond our understanding.

People without socks

Have you ever heard the expression, “Bless your socks off”? It doesn’t mean much to those in places where everyone wears sandals, perhaps. No socks, right? But in other climates and cultures, we usually wear socks, whether for comfort, convention, or to keep from freezing our toes off. But we can all understand that the expression means something a little like getting hit by a bolt of lightning that knocks us right out of our shoes and socks. It's an experience that is life-changing.

We are all barefooted. There is nobody reading this who is wearing spiritual socks. There is nobody reading this who has not experienced the abundant grace of God. The problem is, we experience his grace so much and so commonly that we become oblivious to it. We take it for granted.

Blessings pop into our lives when we least expect them, if we simply pay attention. Some years ago, I was living in Bavaria in southern Germany and was on my way to a castle near the Alps. The place was “off the beaten path.” I first took a train, and then a bus. Finally, the bus dropped me off a mile or two from the castle, leaving me standing at the side of the road with a backpack and a suitcase. In the winter. And just about that time, it began to snow. Hard. Of course. I was not feeling blessed.

As I began walking along the road, schlepping my luggage and rapidly becoming a walking snowman, a song came to my mind, and I began singing:

The Lord is blessing me, right now, right now;
The Lord is blessing me, right now, right now.
He woke me up this morning;
I was clothed in my right mind;
He didn’t have to wake me,
But He does it all the time.
The Lord is blessing me, right now, right now, right now.

And as I sang, my eyes opened and my attitude changed. I began to experience a profound joy and thankfulness to God for letting me experience that beautiful place.

Some of us enjoy material abundance. Others do not. Some of us have enjoyable jobs, others not. Some have the freedom to do what we choose with our day, others do not. Some of us seem to live in a perpetual blizzard. But all of us have experienced God’s abundant blessing and grace. Even if we are getting dumped on by a snow storm. However, we often forget about expressing our thanks to God.

Muchas gracias: lots of graces

We are called to represent our God, to think like him, act like him, speak like him, and be like him. We are called to be good, to reflect the character of our Jesus. As we do that in gratitude for his grace to us, we demonstrate his love through our lives, and we pass his gracious forgiveness – grace we experienced first – on to others who need to experience it next. The goodness that is in us – the character of Jesus – is practical, influencing our every decision through the day. God’s goodness in us reaches out and touches everyone around us.

I was reading in Colossians in a Spanish Bible, and encountered the phrase, “abundando en acciones de gracias,” or in the English NIV, “overflowing with thankfulness.” It occurred to me that overflowing with thankfulness – gratitude – is both a part of goodness and a result of goodness. And the Spanish is especially interesting, when we consider that gracias means both “thanks” and “graces.” So we might say that we are to be “abounding in graces.” Literally translated, the Spanish phrase means “abounding in actions of graces.”

Gratitude and goodness are manifested as we abound in the graces of God, showering them on everyone we touch. As we tell people thanks – gracias – we can think of ourselves as telling them, “Graces to you.” And we can do much worse than that.

Posted by at 03:49 PM | Comments (8)

March 07, 2007

An amazing thing...

In John 17:23, there is this amazing statement:

"I in them, and you in me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that you have sent me, and have loved them as you have loved me."

This is Jesus speaking, taking to the Father. The phrase of interest (italics) is that the Father loves us to the same degree, or just as much, as he loves Jesus. The Greek is very clear, and many English translations miss the significance. What an amazing statement!

Posted by at 12:13 AM | Comments (1)

February 25, 2007

How we grow: Lessons from a tree

It seems to me there are basically two kinds of people: those who tell discouragingly familiar stories of struggles to change their ways, and others who just, well, lie about it. The fact is, most everyone knows something of the internal warfare of which the Apostle Paul writes in Romans 6-8 of the New Testament.

This should not be. We spend way too much time struggling for “victory” over things in our life that need to go. These are things that do us no good, and hold us back from growing as God would have us grow. But there is a better way. The dead leftovers of a previous life are not so hard to get rid of, once the process is understood. And to understand, it is helpful to consider a tree.

We have all seen trees in summer, green and covered with leaves. They provide us with those wonderfully cool shady places on hot summer days. And we have seen those same trees in winter, as bare skeletons, with little sign of life. We have also seen the dead leaves fall off the trees in autumn, as the tree transitions between the two seasons. You know how it works: First the leaves turn brown and die, then a little wind comes along, and down they go, right into the yard we just finished raking. The problem with this statement, however, is that it isn’t true. Leaves don’t just “fall off” of trees.

Now, I can hear the objections: “Of course they fall. We’ve seen it thousands of times.”

Sorry. They don’t. Consider a branch torn from a tree in mid-summer, perhaps by a storm. It’s covered with leaves, it fell, it died, and the leaves died with it. After both the branch and the leaves were dead, did the leaves fall off? No. Though dead, they remained as firmly attached as ever. Leaves don’t fall off.

They are pushed. And the force that pushes the old, dead leaf from the tree in autumn is the growth of the bud of the new leaf, getting ready for the next spring. The development of the new life pushes off the remains of the old. And all that is needed for the new life to happen is that the branch remain well-attached to the tree. Period.

Now here’s the good news: Our sins, bad habits and other unpleasantness from earlier days, like last summer’s leaves, will simply fall off when the right conditions are met. Our problem is that we focus on the offending behavior and work to get rid of it, not knowing that the effort is self-defeating. Our focus must be on God, the source of new life, not on what remains from the old life.

Jesus perhaps had this in mind when He said He was the vine and we were the branches (John 15:1-6). He says that our focus, and the key to experiencing a fruitful life, must be simply remaining attached to him. And what have we seen happen? As the branches remain firmly attached to the vine, they just naturally bear fruit. No work, no strain, no sweat. And at the end of each season, the old growth – dead leaves – is discarded naturally by the normal preparation for the next season of growth.

This brings us to the most difficult challenge in living a godly life. It’s not praying faithfully, and it’s not reading the Bible. It’s not, in fact, any action or practice. The hardest part is focus: staying vitally attached to the Vine. It’s not difficult to overcome temptation, to resist sin, if we are focused on God and attached to Him. The hard part – and it can be hard, indeed – is maintaining that focus.

Those who grew up in church have been taught that we should work hard to live “Christian” lives, to “witness for Jesus,” to read our Bible every day, to always be happy, to . . . well, you understand, right? Most of us have experienced guilt and frustration as we have tried and failed to do these things. And they are not bad things: We should be doing many of them. But we should not – in fact, we cannot – do them in our own power, or out of a feeling that we should do them because . . . well, we just should. We’re Christians, after all.

To live a fruitful life, we must focus simply on living in the closest possible relationship with God, and the rest will take care of itself. Stay focused. Stay attached to the Vine. Therein lies success.

Most of our struggles resolve themselves as we focus on the Source of Life. Do you lack peace? Seek the Prince of Peace, and focus on Him, not on your lack of peace. As you focus on Him, He causes the Holy Spirit to be active in your life, bringing forth the fruit of His presence, an aspect of which is peace (Gal. 5:22). As you focus on the problem, you give that problem a prominent place – a place of control – in your life. You are reinforcing the very thing you want to be rid of. How about excessive eating? Or compulsive shopping? Or any of the myriad behaviors we blame on “lack of will-power”? The answer is the same.

I will say it again: Staying focused is not easy. As we go through life, there will be an endless supply of distractions, yapping dogs of circumstance, seeking to move our focus off of who we are in God and why we are here, and onto things which, though often fearsome in appearance, are secondary at best. They are the yapping dogs of distraction.

There is an account of a reporter from a major American newspaper being sent to do a story on a man who had for many years been a missionary on a remote island in the Pacific. The reporter flew across the ocean, then took a smaller airplane to an island. There, he boarded a boat, bound for a still more remote island, where he took a still smaller boat up a river. At the end of the river, he began walking, and after a trek of several days, he arrived at the place where the missionary lived.

When the missionary’s wife answered his knock, the reporter identified himself and said, “I have come from America to interview your husband.” She graciously invited him in, but said, “I’m sorry, but today is Monday, my husband’s day of prayer. You will have to wait until tomorrow to see him.”

The missionary – and his wife – understood focus, and understood that “urgent” things must be put off to remain focused on the important things.

The key to a successful life: Stay focused. Trust God. And understand the lesson of the tree. God will deal with the yapping dogs.

Posted by at 06:10 PM | Comments (4)

February 15, 2007

Three important questions

The passage in Exodus 3 and 4, a conversation between Moses and God, is fascinating. There is enough here to write several books, and indeed, many have been written. As I read this portion, at least three things jump out at me.

We all know the scene, where God spoke to Moses from the burning bush, telling him that He has heard the cries of the Israelites, and that He is going to rescue them. And he tells Moses: 3:10 "Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt."

But Moses responds with a question: 11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?"

Good question: Who am I? I’m a nobody, and how is it that I am supposed to go out and tell people that I am here to save them, because God has spoken to me? Who am I, after all?

And God responded by not telling him who he was: 12 And He said, "Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain."

Notice two things: First, who Moses was didn’t matter, because God would be with him, and that’s the deciding factor, no matter who Moses is. Or who we are. Second, the “sign” God gives is only going to happen after the fact. Moses has to step out in obedience first, and then God will show that he was in fact acting on God’s instruction.

Then, Moses asks another perfectly logical question: “Who are you?” 13 Then Moses said to God, "Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' Now they may say to me, 'What is His name?' What shall I say to them?"

And God’s response, again, is very important—then and now: 14 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"

Now this is one that generates reams of writing and discussion. But here’s a good way we might understand it. The ancient world was not interested in gods as some abstract theological concept. They would have thought modern theologians, by and large, were crazy. A god—or God—was of value only as he acted in the lives of the people, protecting them, providing for them, meeting the needs of their daily lives. And he did this as an outworking of who he was: his character, personality, and power.

So we might understand this statement by God, instead of “I am who I am,” rather “As who I am, I will be present for you in your circumstances, as who I am.” A little awkward to get hold of, but probably closer to how Moses understood it. And it’s equally important to us. Our God is not some abstract, distant theological concept.

4:10 Then Moses said to the LORD, "Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue." 11 The LORD said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? 12 "Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say."

So then Moses raises another important issue: I am not equipped. I don’t have the talent, gifts, intelligence, charisma, or whatever else, to go out in your name. Sound familiar? And God responded, “Who made your mouth?” If God made us, certainly he can work thorough us as we act in obedience to him.

These three questions are ones that we ask over and over when God wants us to step out and do things in his name. God wasn’t impressed by Moses’ objections, and He isn’t any more impressed by ours.

Posted by at 09:50 PM | Comments (5)

January 03, 2007

Where is God when it hurts?

“Where is God when it hurts?” Seems like there was a book some years ago with a title something like that. Was it by Phillip Yancey? Seems right. I don’t remember much about the book, but I think it was about physical suffering.

I am not physically suffering, but I might argue that emotional pain is harder to deal with than physical pain. And perhaps the most painful condition is living in the absence and silence of God.

The question is one that spends a lot of time wandering through the corridors of my mind. Every time I turn around, I hear the echo of its footsteps. And I am tired of hearing it. I want it to go away. I want to see the face of God, to feel his touch in the midst of pain. I want to know that I am not alone, abandoned by the One to whom I have given my life.

Have you ever been in a situation where you were trying your best to be faithful to God, and yet the situation was so painful you didn’t know what to do? You know, you reach a place where you think you cannot continue, that unless God does something for you, you will die?

When I get into one of those places, it’s so hard to maintain my focus. It’s especially hard to maintain the one thing that I believe is essential to continuing: hope. Without hope, we die. It’s as essential to life as air and food.

Yet, it seems that sometimes God just disappears and goes silent. David wrote about some of these times in the Psalms, crying out to God. It’s not a new occurrence, nor is it limited to any particular group within the people of God. But it does seem that the more we seek to be near to God, to know him and to serve him, the harder life becomes.

I am reminded of Teresa of Avila, the saint who once told God it was no wonder He didn’t have more friends, looking at the way He treated the few He did have.

So, where is God when it hurts? Well, I have to conclude that He’s the same place He always is. God doesn’t move away when we enter into a hard time. He is right there. But I think sometimes our hearing and vision both go dim. We focus so much on the pain and frustration that we are oblivious to the One standing by us. But He is there, without question.

I would like to say I follow God out of the joy he gives me, and the purpose in life, and the forgiveness from sin. And sometimes that would be true. But not always.

Sometimes, I identify with the disciples of Jesus who watched the crowds melt away at the hard things Jesus was teaching. And when He asked them if they were going to leave, too, they said, “Who else has the words of life?”

Sometimes I follow God in joy and delight. Sometimes I follow him in desperation: Who else is there who has words of life? Where else would I go?

So, hurt or not, sensing God’s presence or not, hearing his voice or not, I follow him. Who else is there?

Posted by at 05:14 PM | Comments (7)

December 14, 2006

Having fun?

I was looking at a magazine and came across an ad that just stopped me right there. I would say it stopped me cold, but it was a warm tropical scene, a beautiful beach with sugar-like sand and transparent blue water. Anchored off the beach was a sailboat — that got my attention right there — and it was a picture that I think must be something like heaven.

WE NEED TO PLAY

We all have a desire to relax, to enjoy ourselves, to just play now and then. It’s a normal and healthy desire. When we lose it, we have lost something very important about ourselves. God, it seems from looking at the world He created, has a great capacity for enjoyment. Even in Genesis, at the creation account, God pronounced things good, and then very good. He created a breathtakingly beautiful world, with infinite variety. And reading the prophets, we see a depth of passion and love that is overwhelming. So, created in his image, it’s not surprising that we reflect that capacity for pleasure.

Contrary to the impression we might get from observing some Christians, it’s not a sin to enjoy ourselves. In fact, it might be a sin to not enjoy ourselves, when the source of our pleasure is the God who loves us and redeemed us.

However, when pleasure and enjoyment become the focus of our lives, something is badly out of order, and we are in trouble. We have lost our true focus, and we’re in a dangerous place. A life that focuses on pleasure is guaranteed to be an empty life, and one that results in a tragic ending.

AN EXERCISE IN PERSPECTIVE

It’s a useful exercise for us to occasionally read an obituary or two. I highly recommend it. Obituaries are what other people think of the life of someone who is no longer here. Reading them can be pretty sobering, and sometimes downright depressing. People live for a longer or a shorter time and go through many hard places. When we read their obituaries, we’re struck that many leave behind nothing of significance. Their life served no lasting purpose. People who live for pleasure should consider the obituary: “John lived 43 years, and left a wife and three children. He had fun.” Depressing, isn’t it? Looking at these, we can better understand Aristotle, who said, “The masses choose the life of grazing animals.”

A WARRIOR PEOPLE

We sometimes lose sight of the fact that our life as Christians is one of service to the King, and that we are together with him engaged in a war to the death. We are called to be people with a mission and a focus that drives our lives. In the Bible, God is often called the Lord of Hosts. In Hebrew it is “Adonai tzva’ot.” It doesn’t mean that He is simply the boss of a big bunch of people. The word carries the concept of an army: God is the master of a great army, disciplined and ready to do battle in his name and with his power.

REEVALUATION

I have had occasion to examine the reason for my life, and check my priorities. I was “downsized” some time ago, and had to endure the unpleasant process of searching for employment. As I did so, I observed my responses to an array of job prospects, in different locations, for varying amounts of money. I was a little surprised at what I saw in my responses.

After these self-observations, I was thoroughly confused. In the end, I didn’t have a clue what my “perfect job” might look like. So in the end, it came down to this: “God, I’m your servant. Send me where you will, and do with me what you will, and I will serve you.” And this is where it should have been in the beginning, and where I actually thought it was, until it was tested.

I spent the first couple decades of my adult life in the military, and moved extensively. I spent years on alert, ready to go anywhere on a four-hour notice. And I enjoyed it. I had a great time.

NO RETIREMENT

A GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD?

Despite this, Christians repeatedly put their faith in the world system, ignoring God, disobeying God, and living lives far below what God has prepared for them. In fact, many people who call themselves Christians are de facto atheists, claiming to belong to God, but living as though there were no God.

Consider your life and your relationship with God. What are you living for? Do you truly believe that there is only one God, and that He is the God of the Bible? Does your life show it? Is knowing and serving this God the most important thing in your life? If it is not, you aren’t seeing things clearly.

Amen.

Posted by at 10:39 AM | Comments (0)

January 21, 2006

Wanna be free?

I was reading this morning in John’s gospel, chapter 8. I came on a portion that I have read many times before, but which struck me differently this time. It’s verses 31 and 32: “To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’”

There seems to be a progression here that tells us something important. First, “If you hold to my teaching.” That’s the NIV, and the NASB says “If you abide in my word.” In either case, it is telling us something about living – spending extended time – in the teaching of Jesus, and obeying that teaching. It’s about learning who He is and what He is about by living in his teaching and letting it live in us.

Then He continues, however, and continues the same sentence, saying, “If you live in my teaching, you are really my disciples.” We might understand this two ways. First, if we live in his word, the outcome will be that we will become his followers. Or, the fact of our living in his word is evidence that we are indeed his followers. Both are true.

Then, an additional outcome is that if we abide in his word, and live as his followers, we will know the truth. Truth – ultimate truth – is found in only one place: in the place where we can learn of the One who is Truth. So now, our progression tells us that if we live in his teaching, we will be his followers, and we will know the truth.

Finally, the outcome of following him and knowing the truth is that we are set free. In this passage, the next portion has his listeners responding to him that they are Abraham’s children and have never been slaves of anyone. Jesus passes over the obvious point that these people were in fact living under Roman domination, and had limited freedom. Their protestation is loaded with irony. However, Jesus says to them that they are, indeed, in bondage, though their master is not Rome or any man, but their own sin.

So now we can see the full progression: As we live in the words of Jesus, we become his followers; as we follow him, we learn the truth, because He is Truth, and as we know the truth, we are set free.

Hallelujah!

Posted by at 09:10 AM | Comments (3)

January 03, 2006

Bored? Pray for trouble. Yeah, right.

In Romans 5, the Apostle Paul wrote that he exulted in tribulation. Assuming that Paul was sane, and that he genuinely meant what he wrote, what do we do with that? “Exult in tribulation”? What kind of person gets excited when life falls apart?

Paul did, and if we understand what happened in Paul, we might, too.

Someone has said that “giftedness is energized by problems.” We learn what gifts God has given us and how He put us together when we face problems. We grow deeper roots in the midst of trial. We can bear greater fruit as the result of what happens in tribulation.

Paul rejoiced in suffering because he was energized and enlivened by challenges and problems which activated his gifts. He was brought to a place where he could say, “I was born for this.”

I once taught from the letters to the churches in Revelation. I told the group that if they were spiritually high-centered, if life had gotten stagnant and boring, one certain solution is to pray for God to send tribulation into your life. Pray for trouble.

Of course, there was no rush of people wanting to tell me what a great teaching that was. But some months later, a young woman who had been there came and told me that she had taken me seriously. She had been dissatisfied with her lukewarm spirituality, and had asked God to stir up her life by sending trials her way.

She told me how that prayer had been answered in abundance, and how it was the turning point in her relationship with God. She began to grow, to know God more intimately, and in the end she became a woman of great godliness. She no longer took God for granted.

Not many of us can say, “I was born for this.” Not many of us want so badly to grow in our relationship with God that we will pray for God to send us trouble.

But those who do find something greater than the finest gold. Those who do find Life. They find life in richness, in abundance, life worth living. And they truly understand what it is to “exult in tribulation.”

Posted by at 02:53 PM | Comments (2)

December 25, 2005

A reason to celebrate?

It has long been a contentious issue, the question of this day, this Christmas. Should we celebrate? Should we ignore it? Is it pagan? The questions will likely not cease until the return of the One about whose birth we argue.

It is certain that Jesus was not born on December 25. Arguments are made for different dates, but the truth is, no writer of scripture thought it important to note when He was born, only that He was born and how and why.

But what of the argument that, since nothing like “Christmas” is found in scripture, we ought not to celebrate this day? Would not the Father have told us if He wanted us to celebrate?

This, it seems to me, grossly misunderstands our Father. How is it that the One who loves us deeply and delights in us would be offended that we wish to celebrate his Son and our Savior? How is it that God would disapprove of our desire to honor the Son?

And then there are those who say this is an adaptation of a pagan holiday, and therefore should be shunned, lest we inadvertently honor a pagan god. But this claim is nonsense. It is impossible to “accidentally” or “inadvertently” worship anyone. Worship is by definition an act of our choosing.

So should we celebrate this day? Yes! A thousand times yes! Let me tell you why.

This day celebrates the greatest event in the history of humanity. Never before and never since has anything like this occurred, where God, the one true and living God, the creator and sustainer of all that is, became a man. He became a man, just like me. This simple statement -- God became man -- is simply beyond us. It is far past anything I can understand.

But this I do understand: When He came, He changed the course of history. When He came, the world changed from a place without hope to a place of light and hope. It became a place where there was a reason to live.

Before this day – whenever it was, it doesn’t matter – before this day there was darkness. God was silent, and had not spoken for four hundred years! Those few who worshipped him groaned to see their redemption.

And then, in one day, in one seemingly insignificant birth, history changed! Hope entered the world! We are no longer in darkness! We are no longer in a world where God is silent. The Word of God came and dwelt among us! God has spoken, and the Light has come!

Hallelujah! Celebrate! Celebrate! We have hope!

Posted by at 11:59 AM | Comments (3)

December 14, 2005

Vacuum-packed Christianity

It seems that American Christianity is lived in a vacuum. BY that, I mean that there are few opportunities to build truly deep relationship, few opportunities for genuine discipleship. This is especially true for men, it seems.

How do we live and be the people of God without each other? How can we reflect Jesus to the world if we don’t even know each other? Jesus said the world would know we were his followers by the love we have for each other.

How do we overcome the American “rugged individualist” model and genuinely enter into a life together?

Jesus said the world would know we are his disciples by our love for each other, and He further instructed us to love each other the way He loved us. How do we do that? What does it look like?

Posted by at 04:27 PM | Comments (0)

December 06, 2005

Forgiveness: A Key to Life

Forgiveness according to Jesus

Luke 23:33-43
When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. But Jesus was saying, "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing."

And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves. And the people stood by, looking on. And even the rulers were sneering at Him, saying, "He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One." The soldiers also mocked Him, coming up to Him, offering Him sour wine, and saying, "If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!"

Now there was also an inscription above Him, "THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS."

One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, "Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!" But the other answered, and rebuking him said, "Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong."

And he was saying, "Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!"

And He said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise."

Matthew 18:21-35

Then Peter came and said to him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?"

Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made.

“So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.' And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt.

"But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe.'

"So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you.'

"But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed.

"So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened.

"Then summoning him, his lord said to him, 'You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?' And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him.

"My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."

Peter thought he was going to be a really bighearted guy. He would be willing to forgive someone even seven times! Jesus takes his magnanimous gesture and “super sizes” it to ten times that amount. So does that mean that you can quit when you reach seventy seven? No. Jesus was speaking in hyperbole and basically saying that you never stop forgiving. And as a matter of fact, if you know when you hit 77, one might wonder about the quality of the “forgiving,” right?

Forgiveness: The puzzle wrapped in an enigma

Few things are as misunderstood as forgiveness. Our understanding of it is usually confused and confusing, and much of what we are told is simply wrong. And reading what the Bible says about is – as in the two passages above – sometimes raises even more questions.

In the first passage, about Jesus on the cross, we are simply amazed at the generosity and graciousness of the forgiveness he extended to others. Even the criminal hanging from the cross beside him received a loving and forgiving response. We are in awe at this, and struggle to really grab the sort of grace that Jesus demonstrated.

Then we come to the second passage, which actually took place earlier. Wow. What’s this “handed over to the torturers” and “do the same to you” stuff about?

It seems that the first passage tells us – perhaps among many other things – that God’s forgiveness and grace come to us with no preconditions of performance or action on our part. The thief simply asked Jesus to remember him. Implied in that is a recognition that Jesus was who He claimed, but his only direct words to Jesus were the request to “remember me.” God offers us the same grace: As we simply say, “Lord, remember me,” it opens the gates of his grace and forgiveness toward us.

The second is a parable, of course, and like many parables, it has figures of speech and wordplays that are lost to modern English readers. However, the point is clear: We are to forgive as we have been forgiven. This is not the only place where Jesus says this, nor is it the only place where He says that when we refuse to forgive, we risk not being forgiven ourselves. “Forgive as your have been forgiven.”

Let’s look further at this puzzle.

Forgive and forget? No.

There are perhaps two aspects of a Christian life that are most troublesome for most of us: self-control and forgiving. Since we are, by coincidence, talking about forgiving, let’s take a closer look at forgiveness.

Now, those who remember Paul’s “fruit list” may be confused at this point, so we should assure you that you are correct: Forgiveness is not listed in Galatians 5. However, in the similar list in Colossians 3, forgiveness is emphasized, especially with the command in verse 13: “Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” This echoes Jesus’ words after giving a model prayer to his first followers (Matthew 6:14-15), telling them if they forgive those who sin against them, God will also forgive their own sins. But if they do not forgive others their sins, God will not forgive them their own sins. Because of this, I am including forgiveness in our list of the patterns of the Spirit’s fruit. I believe forgiveness is foundational.

“Salvation” as presented by Paul is above all relational: It is about being reconciled in our relationship with God and equally reconciled with each other. Lack of forgiveness prevents growth in relationship. It hinders us both vertically and horizontally: with God and with brothers and sisters. If we do not deal with the issue of forgiveness, the relationship is crippled, and the work of the Spirit is hindered. There is not true community, but only an appearance of community. It is a sort of pseudo-community that really means little. Unforgiveness causes aloneness to continue, even while people are together.

Putting it simply: We cannot come into a mature, fruitful Christian life if we have not addressed this area. We either learn to forgive – both others and ourselves – or we stagnate. Forgiving is the only way to be fair to ourselves. Getting even is a loser’s game. Those who want someone who has hurt them to pay – to suffer a fine or prison time – find that they still have the pain and resentment even after the person has been found guilty and is serving the sentence. Why? Only forgiveness stops the reruns of sin. Freedom comes not from the sentence the offender receives, but from what we do about the hurt in us.

People are pretty resistant to this, however, and our hesitancy is not hard to understand, when we consider that forgiveness involves giving up our right to demand justice from one who has hurt us.

Everything in us cries out against this. We are hurt – and rightfully outraged – and we are asked to tell the offending person, “I forgive you for causing the pain I feel. I will not hold it against you.”

Even when the offender does nothing to acknowledge our pain. Even when the offender acts in a way that aggravates the pain! I gotta be kidding, right? This really is tough stuff to hear.

Part of the reason we have so much trouble with forgiveness is that we misunderstand it. Forgiveness is not saying, “Oh, that’s okay. It wasn’t important.” The fact is that we have been hurt, and it’s not okay! Forgiveness is never about fluffing over the offense, acting as if it never happened. “Forgive” is biblical; “forgive and pretend” is not. The “path of least resistance” is not God’s way. On the contrary, forgiveness – true forgiveness – requires that we acknowledge the reality of the pain. We need to emphasize this: We hurt, and it’s not okay!

Forgiveness is when, in our pain, we tell the offending person that we willingly give up our right to justice. When we forgive, we are not saying that the hurtful action is without significance, and we are certainly not saying that we have not been hurt. Nor are we saying we respect or even necessarily like the other person. The offense is significant, and our pain is real, and the offender might callously hurt us and others over and over. We have a right to expect justice. Nevertheless, we renounce our right.

Why in the world…

But why would we want to do that? Why would we want to end the possibility of justice when everything in us cries out for it? Why forgive, especially when the offender is unrepentant, and perhaps even continues the offense? The answer is simple: We forgive because we must. We must because God commands it (Matthew 6:12, 14-15). We must because we cannot expect God to forgive us when we do not forgive others. And closest to home, we must because if we choose to not forgive, we let the hurt and the wrong actions of another become controlling factors in our life. Not a good idea, right? We don’t need or want that. Forgiveness is a first and necessary step to freedom and healing.

So, we forgive primarily because God requires it of us. It is an act of obedience. But following as a close second – and this may be at least part of God’s motivation – we forgive so that we may be set free. That’s a pretty good start. And a possible side result might be the beginning of freedom for the other person, also.

Okay, a good point, but still…

Even with great logic, it’s still emotionally difficult for us to really want to forgive one who has deeply hurt us. There is something in us – something good – that cries out for justice. Someone should make things right, and whoever’s job it is, he or she needs to get at it, now! Our desire for justice is a deep-rooted part of us, and an essential factor in living in a civilized society.

Where does this desire for justice come from? It seems nearly all of us have it. Could it be that it’s a part of the deep longing in us for significance, the desire that someone recognize that our life and the hurt done to us really matter? For someone to suggest that we easily forgive someone who has done us great harm is to say that our pain – and therefore our self – is insignificant. It devalues us, saying that we don’t matter.

But that’s not what God thinks about it, and not what He expects from us. It’s not what He models for us, nor is it what we should do. Let’s take a look at where God is coming from in his own experience of being deeply hurt:

He created a man and a woman to live in a wonderful place of intimate love with each other and with him. Such a deal, right? We should all have it so good (Genesis 2, 3).

They rejected him.

Then, after many years of not showing much promise while living on their own, they had fallen into a slavery that was cruel beyond our imagination. So He rescued them and told them they were his special chosen people. He also made an agreement with them, and said that if they lived up to it, they would be blessed beyond imagination (Exodus-Deuteronomy).

And again they rejected him.

For hundreds of years, He came after them, wooing them, encouraging them, cajoling them, seeking their return to the relationship (Prophets).

Still they rejected him.

The prophet Hosea graphically illustrated the deep burning passion of God for his people who, like Hosea’s wife Gomer, were whores, running after this harlotry and that depravity. Hosea took Gomer back, on one occasion even buying her – redeeming her – out of slavery. And God took his people back – pursuing them, redeeming them, rescuing them out of their bondage. And He did it again and again, each time they wandered off (Hosea).

And yet they continued to reject him.

Finally, God took the ultimate, unthinkable step: He became a man – something utterly beyond our understanding – condemning himself to death, all to redeem a people – who largely did not care. (Gospels)

And we rejected him.

We rejected him then and we reject him now. Yet He forgives us.

Only when you are forgiven by God, free from the guilt of your own acts of rejection, can you live with a life filled with unretaliated wrongs, knowing they are God’s to take care of. When we are forgiven and forgive, we begin to experience true freedom, not caring what the score is, and who offended whom.

It’s an important point to remember: God is the one who settles the issue of justice – for the offenses of others against us, and for our offenses against others.

No small thing

When God asks us to forgive another who has sinned against us, He well understands that He is making no small request of us. He understands all too well the pain and injustice of it all. He understands – though it’s hard to conceive – our sense of insignificance. After all, we are the focus of his love, and yet we are masters at ignoring him and pretending He doesn’t exist. We have thousands of years of practice at it (Genesis 3:2-6; Judges 2:10-13 (this theme is reported over and over in the book of Judges). Hosea 4:6; Romans 1:18-32; Hebrews 2:1-3).

God understands all too well, and still tells us to forgive others as He forgives us. Why? Because without forgiveness, there is only bondage, there is only unceasing pain, there is no place for healing (Matthew 6:15). Forgiveness is the first step to freedom (Revelation 1:5). Forgiveness is also a necessary step toward eternal life, which is not an unending continuation of this painful and difficult life (Revelation 21:1-7). Who wants a forever of this? No, eternal life is in intimately knowing God, and living in the glory of his presence (John 17:3).

Simply saying “I have forgiven you” doesn’t make it so…

When is forgiving not forgiving? Have you ever been approached by someone who has deeply offended you and who now lightly asks for forgiveness, and you hesitantly say, “Yeah. It’s okay.” And you blow it off, like it’s no big deal? Most of us have been there at least once, right? We are trying to avoid a painful situation and to be polite in the whole situation, and so we lie.

In truth we have not forgiven, because forgiveness means release, and just tightly smiling and saying it’s okay or it’s nothing means the hurt has been neither recognized nor released. It’s not forgiveness, it’s avoidance, trying not to deal with the real problem.

We have all done it, but when we do, we are being both unwise and unfair to ourselves and to others involved. By acting in this way, we guarantee that the relationship cannot be healed, and neither can we. What they say is not true: Time does not heal all wounds.

Yet, it may be that we have good reason to avoid the incident. It may be that, at the time, we are simply unable to go where we need to in order to work through the process. That’s understandable and entirely okay for the time being, though this is a time when a wise counselor may be helpful. It’s not okay as a regular practice or an avoidance tactic. Someone else in our life who is mature, trustworthy, and biblically grounded can help us to walk through some hard places where we can’t go alone (Galatians 6:2).

When forgiveness must be my private step

When I have been offended, forgiveness necessarily involves more than just me. But sometimes it is unwise and unfruitful – perhaps even dangerous – to go physically to the offending person. And sometimes, going might even be impossible: The offender may be long gone.
Paul writes of the fruit of the Spirit – like most of what he writes – in the context of the community of believers. We do not grow in isolation. Farmers tell us that when they plant corn, putting the plants close to each other in a sort of cluster gives a much better crop. The plants need each other for pollination. Like corn stalks, we need each other for a kind of “cross pollination.” This is especially true as we consider forgiveness. We need each other to work through the problems and challenges we face in both giving and receiving forgiveness. This cannot be over-emphasized: There are no Lone Rangers in the Kingdom of God, and those who try to make it so only condemn themselves to a small and circumscribed life.

So what do we do in those cases where we have been grievously harmed by another, but we cannot go to that person to grant forgiveness? It’s important that we truly forgive, but for any one of many reasons, we sometimes can’t do it face to face.

This is where the “each other” comes in, a place where a wise counselor is invaluable. When we cannot deal with the offender directly, it is still important that we deal with the offense, for the sake of our own freedom and wholeness. So a wise, trusted counselor or friend can stand in the place of the offender. We can explain as much as we think wise of the background, and then speak forgiveness of the offending person, but to the third party. A trusted friend can often help us by being a “proxy” for the offender.

Forgiving is a process

Forgiveness is easy in the many little slights that happen in every life as a matter of living. However, in many cases – the “biggies” where we have suffered serious trauma – forgiveness is not at all a quick, easy, event. It is, rather, a process. Not all issues of forgiveness fit into a neat, black and white, either-you’ve-forgiven-or-not kind of a picture. Some of the deep-seated pains, especially those that have gone for years unaddressed, need to be forgiven in stages. You may intentionally and sincerely forgive, and then later when the same person hurts you again, all the former pain wells up and you realize you have not fully forgiven. Or you are in another situation that has some similarities and the intensity of your emotional response to that makes you realize that you have not fully worked through letting go of your first pain. When you discover that, you need to recognize and address the pain again, acting in order to forgive at a deeper level.

There will come a moment at some point when you are in a similar situation, and you will realize that you no longer carry the strong emotion from that time you were hurt. It is at that time that you can give thanks to God for having gotten you fully past the pain. Meanwhile, He sustains you through the process.

Sometimes the layers of hurt are many and stubborn, but it is certain that their number is limited, even in the hardest of problems. The layers do not continue forever. And it is certain, too, that God walks with us through them all. Especially in the cases of huge pain, forgiving is a process that may take a lengthy amount of time before realizing full freedom. But in the end there is indeed freedom, and the end is worth the trouble.

Forgiveness is a process, and sometimes it’s one that must be undertaken slowly. If we encounter a situation in which we feel the hurt flare up from a pervious injury, we have likely gone too rapidly through the process, and have not really gotten the benefit we need. We should not be afraid of time: Forgiveness is often a struggle, and some days are better than others. One saying captures it: “Some days I whup the bear, and other days the bear whups me.”

Knowing you have fully forgiven

When you have completed the process of forgiving, you will often notice three changes in yourself (Based on Charles Stanley, The Gift of Forgiveness, p. 132-133.):

1. Your anger toward that person will disappear. Feelings of anger and resentment will be replaced by feelings of concern or empathy.

2. You will find it easier to accept offending people as they are, without needing to change them. You will have a new appreciation for the situations of others that may have caused them to act in hurtful ways.

3. Your concerns about the needs of an offending person will outweigh your concerns about self-protection. You will be able to better concentrate on him or her, rather than on your own needs.
Sometimes it takes a lot of effort over a long time to get to this place, but it is indeed a sweet place to be.

Deep forgiving in Germany
from Christian Schwartz, The 3 Colors of Love, p. 100-101.)

In 1989, The Wall came tumbling down. It had separated the two Berlins – East and West – since 1961. For decades, East Berliners seeking freedom were unable to cross to the free western part of the city. In the early days a few found ingenious ways to escape, but with each new escape – some brutally thwarted – the communist authorities strengthened the wall, eliminating the weak spots. With the fall of the communist regime, East German dictator Eric Honecker – the man responsible for building the wall 28 years earlier – was deposed. Since the state had owned all their property, Honecker and his wife were left destitute and homeless.

An East Berlin pastor, Uwe Holmer, took the Honeckers into his home and offered them hospitality. At the time when public hatred of this personification of brutality was most intense, the Holmers set an example of forgiveness.

The Holmer family had themselves been victims of communist oppression. Under the regime, children of families with church affiliations were often refused admission to the upper grades of high school, making it impossible for them to qualify for a college education. Eight of the Holmers’ ten children had been treated this way. Despite superb grades, all were refused opportunities to continue their education. Amazingly, Pastor Holmer said “yet we hold no bitterness in our hearts, because we are followers of our Lord and have forgiven.”

Was Pastor Holmer always so able to forgive? No. There was a time when he held grudges. “For years it has been the forgiveness of my Lord that has sustained me. I know that my Lord wants me to forgive others. When you’ve lived under forgiveness for a long time, it’s not so terribly hard to forgive others.” In fact his ability to forgive surprised even himself. When the Honeckers stood before him at the entrance of his house, any past grudges had vanished.

Others were not so forgiving. Pastor Holmer was severely criticized for his decision. One prominent American church leader said of the Holmer’s action, “I just don’t understand it. All Honecker deserved was to be executed.” During the two months the Honeckers lived with the Holmer family, the pastor’s home was almost constantly surrounded by angry citizens, waiting – some with great anger – to get their hands on the deposed dictator.

Despite the siege of his home, Pastor Holmer could understand these people as well. “I especially remember one man who said to me, ‘I spent 15 years in prison, I was condemned to death.’ His wife stood next to him and said, ‘You cannot imagine what I’ve been through under this regime. You should not forgive so easily.’” Holmer responded, “What you say really strikes a chord in my heart. You have suffered much more than I have, and I have not forgiven Honecker in your place. But still I ask you: Do you have any alternative to forgiving Mr. Honecker? If you don’t, the poison of bitterness…will remain in your heart and will never leave you in peace.’” The man then admitted, “You’re right, there is no other way. I want to forgive, too.’” Ulmer noted, “In the first place, my forgiveness for Mr. Honecker has nothing to do with Mr. Honecker, but with me. If I do not forgive their sins, how can I expect my Father to forgive my sins.”

Those two months helped Pastor Holmer understand Eric Honecker, less as an evil man and more a man affected by the circumstances of his life. Holmer said, “I see him as a communist who came from a working class family that had been through very hard times. For him, Christianity was identical to exploitation…so becoming a communist was a logical step… Later he was arrested by the Nazis and spent ten years in prison. Finally, he was freed by the Red Army. From his perspective, it was his comrades who had freed him.”

Yet understanding the man is not the same as sympathizing with his actions. Holmer made it clear that forgiving Honecker did not come from sympathy with the old political system. Nor did it include excusing injustices. Forgiveness is not pretending, by excusing it, that evil is harmless. Nor is it accepting what is absolutely unacceptable: being indifferent to evil.

This kind of forgiveness witnesses to the power of the Spirit. The communist party replaced Eric Honecker with Egon Krenz as the head of the state. He stated, “Once again, it is the church that teaches us a tolerance that we as Communists are not capable of.”

Be easily forgivable

I have written primarily about our need to forgive others, and that is, indeed, our focus. However, all coins have two sides, and the back side of this one is that we all, sooner or later, need to be forgiven as well as to forgive. I have touched on that earlier, and want to address it more now.

When our actions cause pain, and we go to the other person seeking forgiveness and reconciliation, we want a positive response. Everyone does. We want the freedom and reconciliation that forgiveness can bring. But that doesn’t always happen: Sometimes forgiveness is withheld.

One reason may be that the offended person simply will not let go and forgive, no matter what we do. If we come seeking forgiveness and encounter that response, there is little we can do but manifest a loving, gracious manner, and pray that God would soften the heart of the other person. And the fact is, God doesn’t hold us accountable for the actions of others. I am accountable only for myself.
But what about when I am the “other person” and I have not gone seeking forgiveness, but in fact have been confronted? What about when I am the one who has caused offense, and when the person I have hurt comes to me. What to I do? I am in no position for offer forgiveness, right? I “did the deed” in the first place. So, in fact, what I need is not to forgive but to be forgiven.

There is more than one way things can proceed from this point. What actually happens now depends on my response to the other person’s expressed hurt. What do I say, and how do I say it?

Looking at it from a little distance, we can see that when we have been hurt and muster the courage to confront someone else, telling that person of our hurt, we may get one of several responses. One is humiliation: “Give me a break. That little thing bothered you?” Another is the tit-for-tat response: ”Well, that’s nothing compared to what you did to me.” Most common is the defensive response – hurting was not my motive: “I didn’t mean to hurt you, I was just trying to…”

These responses are painful and hard to accept. They devalue our pain, and it is tempting to react with anger. They personally diminish us.

But there is a better way, of course, and it is especially important to consider this when I am the one confronted for insensitivity or even outright hurtful behavior. Rather than a response of defensiveness or denial of my actions or motives, I can accept responsibility for my actions and seek grace and forgiveness. I can make myself “easy to forgive.” This is part of a good approach for followers of Jesus: “Quick to repent and easy to forgive.” This is also part of being a mature person.

I could write much more about this subject, which is one of the most important in the life of a Jesus follower. However, my purpose here is to address forgiveness only as it pertains to living a fruitful life. And so I will look at only one more aspect of forgiveness – but a very difficult one: the hard cases.

Forgiving the one who is hardest to forgive

Think carefully about your life for a moment. Who is the one person most difficult to forgive? Spend some time on it; don’t jump to quick conclusions.

Got it? Well, let’s open the envelope then, and see who the big winner is!

It’s…oh, no! It’s…me! No, that can’t be right! I’m not like some of those other people I know! I’m not one of those who rip and tear and wound others!

But yes, it really is true: Of all the people in our life that we may need to forgive, we have the most trouble forgiving ourselves. And part of the reason we sometimes find it so very difficult to forgive others is that we have not dealt with the issue of our own forgiveness.

Here’s Christianity 101: God loves us, and He forgives us of all our sins. We acknowledge that. But do we really believe it? If we truly believe that God has forgiven us of our sins, why do we find it so difficult to forgive ourselves of those same sins?

Ray Anderson, in his book The Gospel According to Judas imagines a “what if” situation where Judas did not kill himself right after his betrayal of Jesus. In Anderson’s scenario, there was a post-resurrection encounter between Jesus and Judas. Judas, the ultimate betrayer, the one whose name has become synonymous with treachery, meets the One whose Name stands for everything opposed to what Judas did and stood for. If they met, what would Jesus say?

“Judas, come home; all is forgiven,” says Anderson.

Anderson says that what killed Judas was not that God would not forgive him. There is nothing in scripture to suggest that Judas’ betrayal was somehow inherently terminal, a sin unforgivable by God. It was…how can I say it without making it less than it was…it was “just” a sin. What killed Judas was not that God would not forgive him, but that he would not forgive himself. What killed Judas was not his guilt before God, but his shame before himself.
In consequence of any betrayal, says Anderson, there are two factors to deal with: guilt and shame. Guilt is a “legal” concept that concerns one’s transgression against another. It is simply a fact. A wrong has been committed. It can be addressed by forgiveness on the part of the offended one. As the offended party offers forgiveness, and the offending party accepts forgiveness, the way is opened for reconciliation.

Shame is different. Where guilt is primarily other-directed, shame is self-directed. The shame we hold in us cannot be resolved by forgiveness from another. Shame we hold in us can be resolved only with forgiveness of ourselves by ourselves. And this is of great importance, because unresolved shame leads to death. It is immensely destructive, perhaps more than anything else we can do to ourselves.

Anderson says:
"Removal of the penalty of sin through death upon the cross is only too often experienced as a partial atonement. Our atonement is not complete until we experience restoration of our being, and the removal of shame as well as guilt" (p. 24).

We need the full benefit of what Jesus did on the cross. We don’t need a partial atonement, one that does nothing for the most destructive part of our selves. We need to be forgiven, and to forgive: both others and ourselves. But talking about self-forgiveness and doing it are two far different matters, right? Especially in this case.

But what of times when we are ashamed of ourselves because of the accusations of others, or even because of our own self-perception? Do we forgive ourselves for shame felt because of the actions of another? Well, no. First, when we feel ashamed of ourselves – truly ashamed, not simply embarrassed – from the actions of another, we are buying someone else’s lies.

It is certainly possible for someone else to embarrass us. But the only reason we will be ashamed is if we believe the accusation made about us. Someone saying something that we believe is not true may embarrass us, it may anger us, but it will not shame us.
The difference lies in what we believe. If we believe the accusations, we will be shamed. If we do not, we will not be shamed. An here is an important principle: We will not believe about ourselves what we don’t already think is true. If someone says something about us that we believe inside to be untrue, there will be no shame. If we are genuinely experiencing shame, the only remedy is to experience the truth: the profound, amazing and passionate love of God for us. It is to see ourselves as God sees us. But that’s not always so easy, right?

It happens most readily in community. It is in the fellowship of mature, wise, like-minded followers of Jesus that issues of both guilt and shame can be addressed, and that forgiveness of others and forgiveness of ourselves can begin. And if we hope to have a life of fruitfulness, a life enjoying the work of the Holy Spirit in and through us, the issue of forgiveness must be addressed. We can there address our forgiveness of others who have hurt us, and of ourselves, who have hurt us.

Forgiveness and injustice

The question is sure to arise that as we are encouraging forgiveness of wrongdoers, are we not are at the same time encouraging acceptance of injustice? The answer is that we are not. We are indeed renouncing our own right to seek justice, but we are not saying that the injustice is okay. Rather, we are deferring to God, the ultimate judge, and releasing the matter in the knowledge that – in the end – nobody walks away from committing unjust and oppressive acts without consequences. God is still on the throne, and there is still justice. Always.

Posted by at 01:44 PM | Comments (1)

November 29, 2005

A blessing

In the Old Testament (Numbers 6:24-26) we find this wonderful blessing, which most of us have heard:

The LORD bless you and keep you;
The LORD make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.

This – probably the oldest continuously used blessing in the world – is beautiful in English, and even more so in Hebrew. In either language, there is a progression that tells us something about peace.

When God gave this blessing to Moses, He instructed that Aaron – Moses’ brother and the High Priest – and his sons say these words over the people of Israel. In this way, God said (Numbers 6:27), "…they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”

The idea that words – especially these words – carry transforming ability is a powerful idea, and as we hear and take into ourselves their import, they transform us, making us into the people of God and opening us to experience the depth of God’s blessing.

In the case of this blessing, the first line is a rather general request that God bless and keep – protect and watch over – the one to whom this blessing is spoken: “God, let your abundance of good things come on this person, and let him or her be enveloped by your loving care.” It’s a good thing, but somewhat generic and fairly impersonal.

The second line gets more personal: May God “shine his face on you” and be gracious to you. God now has the person – let’s say it’s you, since all occurrences of “you” in this blessing are singular – in the influence of the radiance of his presence – his face – which is getting closer and more personal, and where He actively showers his grace on you. This might be “God smiling on you.” The scene comes to mind from the movie Chariots of Fire, where Eric Liddell says, “When I run, I feel God’s pleasure.”

Finally, may God “lift up his countenance on you.” This seems a little strange in English, but it’s fairly straightforward: May God look at you, or turn his face toward you. The Hebrew word is simply "face" – panav – and it’s translated countenance mostly for variety from the line before: May you enter into a face-to-face relationship with Him, a place of presence and intimacy.

As we are in his immediate presence, living “before his face,” we are in a place of peace.

Here is the source of inner peace: Knowing God and seeking to live in His presence. May God smile (shine His face) on you, and may you know the peace of his presence.

Posted by at 04:34 PM | Comments (3)

November 27, 2005

The Question: A life worth living

What makes for a successful life? What is it for which we are held accountable? What does God require of us? Who of us will hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant"?

As I consider this question, I wonder, will I one day hear God say these words about me? Or, more to the immediate point, does God approve of me and my life now? Am I doing well? How do I know?

Does God expect that I work faithfully as a member of a local church? That I tell others about him? That I tithe? That I not tell off-color jokes? Or smke cigarettes? Or do none of these things make any difference?

Years ago, I read somewhere that some guy studying such matters said that in a typical church, the hardest workers were those with the most guilty consciences, or who sought most to show they really were good people. Is that really true? Are we all working off some sort of guilt trip?

I am reminded of a story of a guy who died, and upon arrival at the Pearly Gates, was asked by the Duty Angel, "How many points do you have?"

The man was puzzled, and said, "Points? I don't know anything about points. But I was a lifelong member of my church, never missed a service."

The Duty Angel said, "Well, that's good. It's worth 15 points. But you need 200 to enter heaven."

The man was dumbfounded. He never heard of this, so he said, "Well, I taught Sunday School (30 points, allowed the angel) and I was a deacon (minus 10, sighed the angel). Beyond that, I just don't know what to say. Basically, I have just trusted Jesus to save me, because I believed what He said."

"HALLELUJAH!" shouted the angel. "That's IT! That's ALL you need! There's your 200 points! Come on in!"

As I think of my life and my priorities, and my relationship with God, I like to say that God owns my heart. And in general, that's true. And yet, I am well aware that there are areas that I hang onto, unwilling to give them up.

Someone asked me, can a Christian not have Jesus as the leader of his life? Good question. I think, however, the answer is not yes or no. All of us retain some measure of control and autonomy. Most of us resist total, absolute abandonment of ourselves to God. So then the question, it seems, is at what point am I a true follower of Jesus? after all, we have all heard it: "If Jesus is not Lord of all, He is not Lord at all."

Posted by at 03:38 PM | Comments (1)

November 10, 2005

How do we "do church"? How do we lead people to love Jesus?

I recently moved to a new city (I sort of retired, or something like that), and hence needed to find a new church. I am somewhat impatient with the "traditional" evangelical American way of doing church, and so I want an alternative. My wife, having suffered through life with me for, lo, these many years, has also become somewhat jaded toward business as usual.

Without my knowledge, she looked on the website of the Willow Creek Association, and selected a church with an unusual name that seemed within a reasonable distance. Then she called them and left a message, saying, "We're new here and tomorrow we are unloading a large rental truck at this address, and if you are interested, we could use some help." She didn't tell me anything about this until the next day. I thought, right, fat chance anyone will show up to unload a truck for strangers. How naive is that?

The next day, as I was slaving away, and thinking I was far too old for this, a guy I had never seen -- with a ponytail, yet -- showed up at our new house and said he was there to help us. He was the associate pastor at the church.

Needless to say, we went to that church the next Sunday, and after looking at them closer, we have remained. I am sort of the elder statesman there, as the average age of these folks is perhaps 30ish. The oldest "elder" or pastor is probably 31.

As we have gotten to know them, we see in the leadership a passion to be something more than a typical -- though younger -- church. They want to be a "thriving" church, with real community, "exciting" worship and more than just an intellectual belief system.

But they seem to be at a loss for what to do next. Someone has said it is insanity to do more of the same and expect a different result. They don't want to appear crazy.

I am interested in responses from readers, ideas of what a leader does to move from just doing church as routine to seeing the presence of God in their midst and being a powerful spiritual force in the lives of the community.

Thoughts?

Posted by at 10:30 AM | Comments (15)