You know I have been continually grabbed by the univeral nature of Yahweh. Many times I have commented here on this blog about the universal nature of the Church. It is not just the whites, african-american, asian, male, female, pretty, average, lame, intelligent, thin, or husky. Its all peoples, all tribes, every nation, and every type of person. Its the drunk, the lawyer, the samaritan, the policeman, its everyone. The Church of Jesus Christ is SO BIG!
I came around to this observation yet again in Jonah.
Here you have Jonah commanded by God to speak to the foreign superpower Assyria and its great city Nineveh. Jonah is asked to head into the heart of the large superpower working its way down to Israel conquering, deporting, relocating families and peoples to distant lands. Assyria may have been at the doorstep of Israel as Jonah receives the command to preach to the land about their wickedness.
Stop here.
God wants Jonah to preach to a foreign nation that has up to this point been bent on destroying nations and exiling them. God cares about this city, these foreigners in the midst of their great sin. Wow, does that stir you like it does me? Isn't this where God meets us? In the middle of our brokenness, He comes. He cares. He loves. Isn't that what makes it so hard to fathom God that he loves broken people like us?
God tells Jonah after Nineveh repents, "Should I not be concerned about that great city" (NIV, Jonah 4:10)
Lets open up this context a little more:
Jonah is an Israelite.
Israelites were given a Covenant, a promise from Yahweh.
Jonah was in the Covenant Community.
Nineveh was not in the Covenant Community.
In our time, the gentiles, that means me and anyone else not Jewish were not in the Covenant Community. God here early on is foreshadowing what He wanted to do for ALL people. God has something bigger in mind than just Israel, He has the entire world that He wants to have a relationship with in mind.
Does this sound familiar? Remember what God had John write in Revelation:
Revelation 5:9 And they sang a new song: "You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.
And so here we are. Every nationality, male/female, short/tall, overweight/skinny, smart/slow, or funny/boring. All of us will be singing a new song. This is the BIG, Universal Church of Christ. No denominations, no doctrinal issues. No minor differences or petty problems. One people under One God.
Can we live like that? Or do we see color, abnormality, petty personal issues, disagreements, wrong choices, and evil people. How do you see the world? How do you see your brother and sister, your fellow human? After all, there is only one race, the human race.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Hand of God
Like a great photographer framing his shot,
God is interested in the smallest of details.
Moment after moment of time may pass,
To us they fly over in stealth unnoticed.
Moments like letters in the hand of God.
Letters forming Words,
Words forming Sentences,
Sentences framing a beautiful story!
Small pieces seemingly random,
when combined a puzzle quite intricate.
Have you ever stepped back and seen the hand of God?
Working.
Shaping.
Creating.
All around you?
Have you ever been caught in the glorious moment?
No longer lost in the mystery of the pieces
or the letters and what comes next,
But stepping back and seeing the bigger picture.....
No longer me and I and this and that and I need or I want or I wish this or that and what if and why that or oh me and oh my.....But oh, You.
You.
Why didn't I see it? The Hand of God.
God is interested in the smallest of details.
Moment after moment of time may pass,
To us they fly over in stealth unnoticed.
Moments like letters in the hand of God.
Letters forming Words,
Words forming Sentences,
Sentences framing a beautiful story!
Small pieces seemingly random,
when combined a puzzle quite intricate.
Have you ever stepped back and seen the hand of God?
Working.
Shaping.
Creating.
All around you?
Have you ever been caught in the glorious moment?
No longer lost in the mystery of the pieces
or the letters and what comes next,
But stepping back and seeing the bigger picture.....
No longer me and I and this and that and I need or I want or I wish this or that and what if and why that or oh me and oh my.....But oh, You.
You.
Why didn't I see it? The Hand of God.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Keeper of the spring
The following is an inspiring story about the need of daily meetings with God and the resulting purity of life that results through the power of the Holy Spirit. This story is an excerpt from Stephen Macchia's Becoming a Healthy Church: 10 Traits of a Vital Ministry:
The Keeper of the Spring was a quiet forest dweller who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slopes of the Alps. The old gentleman had been hired many years ago by a young Town Council to clear away the debris from the pools of water up in the mountain crevices that fed the lovely spring flowing through their town. With faithful, silent regularity,he patrolled the hills, removed the leaves and branches, and wiped away the silt that would otherwise choke and contaminate the fresh flow of water.
I find within myself the same need to rehire the Keeper of my soul every day. Sometimes it may seem like everything is functioning perfectly and I can be tempted to think that meeting with God today is unnecessary. What I find from this experience is that what comes out of my life begins to stink. Only by allowing the Holy Spirit to cleanse me and keep me will what comes out of my life be a wellspring of life to others. It is not dependent upon my own industry, willpower, and gifts, but rather it depends on the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Keeper of the Spring was a quiet forest dweller who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slopes of the Alps. The old gentleman had been hired many years ago by a young Town Council to clear away the debris from the pools of water up in the mountain crevices that fed the lovely spring flowing through their town. With faithful, silent regularity,he patrolled the hills, removed the leaves and branches, and wiped away the silt that would otherwise choke and contaminate the fresh flow of water.
By and by, the village became a popular attraction for vacationers. Graceful swans floated along the crystal clear spring, the mill wheels of various businesses located near the water turned day and night, farmlands were naturally irrigated, and the view from restaurants was picturesque beyond description.
Years passed. One evening the Town Council met for its semi-annual meeting. As they reviewed the budget, one man's eye caught the salary figure being paid the obscure Keeper of the Spring. Said the Keeper of the Purse, "Who is this old man? Why do we keep him on year after year? No one ever sees him. For all we know the strange ranger of the hills is doing us no good. He isn't necessary any longer!" By unanimous vote, they dispensed with the old man's services.
For several weeks nothing changed. By early autumn, the trees began to shed their leaves. Small branches snapped off and fell into the pools, hindering the rushing flow of sparkling water. One afternoon someone noticed a slight yellowish-brown tint in the spring. A couple of days later the water was much darker. Within another week, a slimy film covered sections of the water along the banks and a foul odor was soon detected. The mill wheels moved slower, some finally ground to a halt. Swans left as did the tourists. Clammy fingers of disease and sickness reached deeply into the village.
Quickly, the embarrassed Council called a special meeting. Realizing their gross error in judgment, they hired back the old Keeper of the Spring . ..and within a few weeks the veritable river of life began to clear up. The wheels started to turn, and new life returned to the hamlet in the Alps once again.
The end.I find within myself the same need to rehire the Keeper of my soul every day. Sometimes it may seem like everything is functioning perfectly and I can be tempted to think that meeting with God today is unnecessary. What I find from this experience is that what comes out of my life begins to stink. Only by allowing the Holy Spirit to cleanse me and keep me will what comes out of my life be a wellspring of life to others. It is not dependent upon my own industry, willpower, and gifts, but rather it depends on the power of the Holy Spirit.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Don't Be a Pharisee!
What did Jesus have against the religious leaders of his day? Why did He always say, don't be like the hypocrites?
First of all, a hypocrite says one thing, but does another.
The Pharisees/Jewish religious leaders were claiming spiritual life, but they did not have it.
Jesus turned it all inside out. The Pharisees were posing for men, having long prayers for their own image and self-righteousness, they fasted and wanted everyone to know how super-spiritual they were, but Jesus, Jesus said they were missing it. They did not have what they acted as if they did. They missed it.
For Jesus, the Gospel, the Word of God, is not a thing just to be memorized. It is not just head knowledge and a bunch of rules. That is death. That leads to being a hypocrite. It leads to hypocrisy because the Word of God comes in a active relationship with God. It is possible to know all about God and God's Son, but do nothing with Him. That is being a Pharisee.
We are called to deep, intimate relationship with Creator of all that is. Who loved us so much He sent his Son to embrace the heights of agony under the full wrath of God. God's Son took it all. He came in love.
It is possible to "know" so much, but the Gospel, The Word of God is meant to be "experienced." If you never experience the Word of God, never obey it, never step out in faith to follow something that doesn't make sense to you, THEN you will never experience God! Christianity is an experiential faith not just intellectual.
Don't be a Pharisee.......
First of all, a hypocrite says one thing, but does another.
The Pharisees/Jewish religious leaders were claiming spiritual life, but they did not have it.
Jesus turned it all inside out. The Pharisees were posing for men, having long prayers for their own image and self-righteousness, they fasted and wanted everyone to know how super-spiritual they were, but Jesus, Jesus said they were missing it. They did not have what they acted as if they did. They missed it.
For Jesus, the Gospel, the Word of God, is not a thing just to be memorized. It is not just head knowledge and a bunch of rules. That is death. That leads to being a hypocrite. It leads to hypocrisy because the Word of God comes in a active relationship with God. It is possible to know all about God and God's Son, but do nothing with Him. That is being a Pharisee.
We are called to deep, intimate relationship with Creator of all that is. Who loved us so much He sent his Son to embrace the heights of agony under the full wrath of God. God's Son took it all. He came in love.
It is possible to "know" so much, but the Gospel, The Word of God is meant to be "experienced." If you never experience the Word of God, never obey it, never step out in faith to follow something that doesn't make sense to you, THEN you will never experience God! Christianity is an experiential faith not just intellectual.
Don't be a Pharisee.......
Saturday, February 28, 2009
For the Skeptic: A Narrative
There were these people who thought that everything that was, could be seen.
One saw all these green pieces of paper that seemed to provide the means to obtain luxurious things. These things look as if they meant something. Somehow the people there with all the stuff seemed to be happy.
One looked around and noticed a fierce competition. Everyone seemed to be jockeying for position and trying to "out do" everyone else, especially when it came to the opposite sex. So, this person naturally realized from witnessing this that what they needed was to plug into this mess and compete for love.
One only looked only at himself. He decided the only answer was to fulfill his every desire.
The last one of these guys the others all thought was crazy. He kept telling them about things unseen, telling them about things that existed that the eye nor the mind could fully grasp. He had this notion that there was something deeper. He could not help but gaze in awe at the order of everything. Everything seemed to be in some kind of harmony that he himself found lacking inside his soul. All of the created order around him seemed to buzz, blossom, cycle through patterns and seasons. He saw the colors and the artistry about everything. He watched in wonder at the death in Winter and resurrection of Spring. He learned of a code named DNA embedded in the minute levels of human composition that contained some blueprint the men had told him, some plan or code. Obviously, there was some order and intelligence at work in his very being.
Meanwhile, his friends only saw a flower. They saw only shiny rocks in the sky. Only random probability that the code in DNA formed itself together and made a human, only accidental. But the last one person we are talking about, he saw something different. He saw wonders and beauty. He saw meaning and purpose. He felt intertwined in the plan and not really random or accidental at all. There was always something just beyond his ability to put into words, something on the tip of his tongue, something faint and rather fuzzy, that he just couldn't seem to explain to his friends.
Then everything went far deeper for him.
All of a sudden he started believing in some from of moral structure. He began to believe in some unseen system of right and wrong. Something within his own soul seemed to echo this idea in his heart. From where and when did this come? How did it get there? Was it an accident too? Or was it part of the plan, was it part of the story? Not only did he find some strange notion of right and wrong but of virtues. Mysterious qualities about his fellow men that he admired as noble, just, and true. They were in direct opposition to liars, cheaters, murderers, and no good scum buckets. What made a man good and one bad?
His friends told him he was odd. Why should you follow things you cannot see? They told him, "There is no truth, no code, no purpose, no plan, no nothing, you just make it up for yourself man!" His friends said, look at me, I just do want I want, when I want. There is no code. You just live it up man! Look, its just a big party and everybody wants to have a little fun. Look, go buy that house you've been wanting, settle down with that gal you've been chasing, and make a little money, then everything will be just fine, you'll be happy just like us. Just step on up into our program, we'll have you trained and hit the ground running then you'll be just like us, stressed out, overweight, on anti-depressants, and oh yeah not worrying about any stupid things that you can't see, because obviously if all of us can't see it and we don't live by it, then it just can't be.
So, having heard this advice the young man went away disappointed. Their words were empty. There was no life in them. But the unseen kept at him. He just could not leave it alone. Deep in his heart, he knew, he believed there was more. One night he cried out, he was desperate for an answer. He set out looking for answers.
It was not long and his questions started being answered. He met others who had experienced this same understanding that there was more in life than what they had seen and that there was a disharmony within their bodies against the harmony of nature all around. Then, there was one who came and solved the riddle. He explained that they were indeed from another place and that is why they do not belong. He, himself, claimed that he was from this place and had seen it and he told them all about it. He said he had the answers and all those that wished to follow could, but it would require them to leave their old life behind. So, having reasoned that they could not live in a lie any longer and realizing this was their one shot to live the life they had sensed in the deep recesses of their souls was possible, they followed.
What they found was that there was more to life than what they had seen. As they walked together, more and more things made sense. The man that lead them shared more about his homeland. In this place, there were no struggles, no striving, no competition, no misery, no pain, no sickness, no disease, and all the tears were wiped and cared for. In this place, honesty, truth, justice, mercy, and love reign. Love itself is said to dwell in its center as a tree giving off life to all who come near to eat of its fruit. No more disharmony in his soul, and things here answer the fuzzy ideas that just couldn't be expressed in the "seen" world. Here was the answer. They had been made for so much more, that is why they never felt at home. Parts and pieces from this place had been planted within all the travellers from birth, actually, all their friends they left behind had them too, but it seems a rather hard and strange thing to do, that is to believe in something that cannot be seen.
One saw all these green pieces of paper that seemed to provide the means to obtain luxurious things. These things look as if they meant something. Somehow the people there with all the stuff seemed to be happy.
One looked around and noticed a fierce competition. Everyone seemed to be jockeying for position and trying to "out do" everyone else, especially when it came to the opposite sex. So, this person naturally realized from witnessing this that what they needed was to plug into this mess and compete for love.
One only looked only at himself. He decided the only answer was to fulfill his every desire.
The last one of these guys the others all thought was crazy. He kept telling them about things unseen, telling them about things that existed that the eye nor the mind could fully grasp. He had this notion that there was something deeper. He could not help but gaze in awe at the order of everything. Everything seemed to be in some kind of harmony that he himself found lacking inside his soul. All of the created order around him seemed to buzz, blossom, cycle through patterns and seasons. He saw the colors and the artistry about everything. He watched in wonder at the death in Winter and resurrection of Spring. He learned of a code named DNA embedded in the minute levels of human composition that contained some blueprint the men had told him, some plan or code. Obviously, there was some order and intelligence at work in his very being.
Meanwhile, his friends only saw a flower. They saw only shiny rocks in the sky. Only random probability that the code in DNA formed itself together and made a human, only accidental. But the last one person we are talking about, he saw something different. He saw wonders and beauty. He saw meaning and purpose. He felt intertwined in the plan and not really random or accidental at all. There was always something just beyond his ability to put into words, something on the tip of his tongue, something faint and rather fuzzy, that he just couldn't seem to explain to his friends.
Then everything went far deeper for him.
All of a sudden he started believing in some from of moral structure. He began to believe in some unseen system of right and wrong. Something within his own soul seemed to echo this idea in his heart. From where and when did this come? How did it get there? Was it an accident too? Or was it part of the plan, was it part of the story? Not only did he find some strange notion of right and wrong but of virtues. Mysterious qualities about his fellow men that he admired as noble, just, and true. They were in direct opposition to liars, cheaters, murderers, and no good scum buckets. What made a man good and one bad?
His friends told him he was odd. Why should you follow things you cannot see? They told him, "There is no truth, no code, no purpose, no plan, no nothing, you just make it up for yourself man!" His friends said, look at me, I just do want I want, when I want. There is no code. You just live it up man! Look, its just a big party and everybody wants to have a little fun. Look, go buy that house you've been wanting, settle down with that gal you've been chasing, and make a little money, then everything will be just fine, you'll be happy just like us. Just step on up into our program, we'll have you trained and hit the ground running then you'll be just like us, stressed out, overweight, on anti-depressants, and oh yeah not worrying about any stupid things that you can't see, because obviously if all of us can't see it and we don't live by it, then it just can't be.
So, having heard this advice the young man went away disappointed. Their words were empty. There was no life in them. But the unseen kept at him. He just could not leave it alone. Deep in his heart, he knew, he believed there was more. One night he cried out, he was desperate for an answer. He set out looking for answers.
It was not long and his questions started being answered. He met others who had experienced this same understanding that there was more in life than what they had seen and that there was a disharmony within their bodies against the harmony of nature all around. Then, there was one who came and solved the riddle. He explained that they were indeed from another place and that is why they do not belong. He, himself, claimed that he was from this place and had seen it and he told them all about it. He said he had the answers and all those that wished to follow could, but it would require them to leave their old life behind. So, having reasoned that they could not live in a lie any longer and realizing this was their one shot to live the life they had sensed in the deep recesses of their souls was possible, they followed.
What they found was that there was more to life than what they had seen. As they walked together, more and more things made sense. The man that lead them shared more about his homeland. In this place, there were no struggles, no striving, no competition, no misery, no pain, no sickness, no disease, and all the tears were wiped and cared for. In this place, honesty, truth, justice, mercy, and love reign. Love itself is said to dwell in its center as a tree giving off life to all who come near to eat of its fruit. No more disharmony in his soul, and things here answer the fuzzy ideas that just couldn't be expressed in the "seen" world. Here was the answer. They had been made for so much more, that is why they never felt at home. Parts and pieces from this place had been planted within all the travellers from birth, actually, all their friends they left behind had them too, but it seems a rather hard and strange thing to do, that is to believe in something that cannot be seen.
Monday, February 16, 2009
The Sermon on the Mount
King Jesus steps up on the platform for his inaugural address. As the leader of this Holy Nation, he begins, his proclamations about His kingdom, about life in it. He illustrates what His subjects can expect from His leadership. By His word, His subjects come to know Him. His speech is captured in the Scripture from Matt. 5:1-7:27. He announces to Christianity, this is life in my kingdom, this is what my people look like, act like, and who they are. He addresses the law and turns it inside out. He takes the external and makes it internal. His words cut to the heart. It is not a show, it is an inward reality. It is not just love for family, but love for enemies. It is not stockpiling wealth on earth, it is treasure in heaven. It is not unrealistic, it is by His grace. It is not a secret, but announced aloud. It is not without cost, it will require your life. It is not on display, but the Father in heaven sees what is done. It is not self-righteousness, but it is a righteousness that surpasses that of the Pharisees. It surpases that of the Pharisees, because there is one who fulfilled it all. This speech is about the life of one who did it all! He was all of it. He was the surpassing righteousness of the Phraisees. He was truly the author and perfecter of the Law. He embodied the Law. He was at such a level no self-righteous prude could touch. He was the thought that created the Law, He was the heart for the reason of the law. Here He stands speaking aloud to all these men. Speaking of things, we can not understand. Speaking of things we can not achieve. He knows it. He hopes it. Because He is more than able to carry us through it. He will put us on His back and carry us. Only He can take up all the sin, all the failure, all the sickness, all the struggle, all the death and lift it all up and take it upon Himself. Here our leader speaks. Here our leader shows us how to love thine enemy. He bears it all for us who sin against Him. For His enemies, He choses to die. He dies, but He rises again! Death has no power over Him!
This is our leader. His word gives us insight into who He is. His Word here for the world to see. Gazing into this Sermon on the Mount, his followers can catch a vision of Him they serve. Within our clouded minds light seems to pierce through the darkness of our misunderstanding. Our Savior lives and He speaks now as He did then, we have His Word in which to revel. So He speaks to them on the Mount as He does to us all about. Our call is the same as theirs. Those followers, the same as us. Our leader shares His will. He is a mighty Leader, a Divine Warrior, and he announces His wishes for us to carry. He takes our hand and acts as our guide to assist us by His power. Only looking to Him. Only under His wing. Only as He instructs. Only as He guides. Only as He carries us on toward that place He has prepared.
Oh, that I might loose myself in His gaze. That I might be done with all the struggle of flesh that is weak and only look to Him who Saved me. How might I let this gaze linger, a little longer? How do I hold on to it, without it rushing away? What might prolong it? Before the world hurries it away......
This is our leader. His word gives us insight into who He is. His Word here for the world to see. Gazing into this Sermon on the Mount, his followers can catch a vision of Him they serve. Within our clouded minds light seems to pierce through the darkness of our misunderstanding. Our Savior lives and He speaks now as He did then, we have His Word in which to revel. So He speaks to them on the Mount as He does to us all about. Our call is the same as theirs. Those followers, the same as us. Our leader shares His will. He is a mighty Leader, a Divine Warrior, and he announces His wishes for us to carry. He takes our hand and acts as our guide to assist us by His power. Only looking to Him. Only under His wing. Only as He instructs. Only as He guides. Only as He carries us on toward that place He has prepared.
Oh, that I might loose myself in His gaze. That I might be done with all the struggle of flesh that is weak and only look to Him who Saved me. How might I let this gaze linger, a little longer? How do I hold on to it, without it rushing away? What might prolong it? Before the world hurries it away......
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