I've seriously considered changing the title of this blog. I already did so once, years ago, when I changed the title from "One Church Planter's Journey" to "One Pastor's Journey."
Can I still call myself a pastor? What happens to the calling I believe I received as a high school kid when; a) I'm divorced and b) I'm disillusioned with church.
I don't really know, honestly. I still have a lot of work to do to figure it out.
I know what I need to stop doing, though and that's referring to myself as a "divorced pastor."
I'm not sure where or if the pastoral label/identity means anything but I for sure need to stop referring to myself as a "divorced dude." Well, except for on dating sites, so the potential matches don't think I'm hiding that I'm married, as I've heard happens...
I've had two people get up in my face and challenge my use of the label "divorced pastor." One time was from the pastoral couple I mentioned in the "Shame" post, whom have both gone through a divorce themselves, though it was before they became Christ-followers and went into pastoral ministry. I was sitting at an inspection with them, a couple of weeks ago, sharing more about my own journey. Somewhere in that conversation, I referred to myself as a "divorced pastor" in a rather sheepish or even shameful way. The husband got in my face a bit (in a gentle way, of course) and stated, "Stop referring to yourself as a 'divorced pastor.' That's not the summation of who you are. God has so much more for you than that." I believe him, though I don't know what that is yet.
The other time was during a conversation with an intuitive, wise, direct and smart lady I dated for a short time. Again, somewhere in the conversation, I referred to myself as a "divorced pastor." The fact that I was called out for that twice makes me think I've done it a lot of other times but the other person simply let it slide. She also got in my face, "Donnie, that's not your story. Maybe you'll never stand behind a pulpit again (which I don't believe I ever will, at least not as a permanent role) but God still speaks through you. I can still see 'the anointing' on you (did I mention she's Pentecostal?).
She challenged me to add to my morning list of things for which I'm thankful a list of ways I've served the Kingdom. No act is too small to write down; helping a homeless guy get connected to some housing, helping with kids church on Sunday morning, the "sermon" my boss asked me to re-tell in a training meeting (a little discourse on how "perfect love casts out fear"). I've been doing that. It's a great reminder each day, both of what God has allowed me to do and when I'm starting to slack off a bit.
Coincidentally, or maybe not, both of these people who got up in my face are a part of the same church.
A lot of my identity as a "preacher" or "pastor" came from my upbringing. My dad was, admittedly, a bit disappointed that I didn't share his passion for farming. As a self-centered kid, I didn't think about how my lack of interest in farming would hurt my dad. As a dad myself, now I realize I was hurtful to him. In the middle of High School, though I sensed a call into full-time ministry. For a Miller, the next best thing to being a farmer is to be a pastor. My identity or self-esteem began to be built up around the pride my dad (and even my Grandma Miller or Grandpa Tyler) beamed on their faces every time they were in the congregation while I was preaching.
Obviously, I didn't make it in pastoral ministry. I failed at the two things the most important to my dad; church and marriage. Ironically, I think my dad and I have never been closer. I think the breaking down of these false identities has helped us to connect on a simple, yet profound, father-son level.
That pastoral identity however, was also pumped up by my home church. Whenever I was visiting, I usually did something up front, whether that was leading in prayer or actually preaching a sermon. Of course, this has stopped as I've worked myself out of a ministry position. I tried different non-traditional ministries until I eventually just turned in my credentials due to inactivity. It took me about 9 months from the divorce until I had the guts to attend my home church while visiting my family.
I shouldn't have been surprised by the response I received; grace, acceptance and a lot of hugs.
I talked with my parents' pastor after worship and told him how embarrassed I was to show my face and how hard it was to visit. He simply hugged me and said I'd always be a kid of that church and I was always welcome.
Why did I believe those lies?
When dating N, I talked with her a lot about how hard it was for me to face former congregation members after the divorce. Being Catholic herself, she didn't really understand this Protestant expectation that the pastoral family be a model of everything godly, including having a strong marriage. She kept telling me, "you don't have anything to be sorry for. You didn't owe anyone an apology or anything else."
That was hard for me to accept, though. So I've been slowly going on what I jokingly call my "apology tour." Or maybe "forgiveness tour" is a better label. Whenever I meet with former congregation members, I talk through the divorce and apologize for the pain that it likely caused them. Well, not "likely" caused them because the news of Erin and my divorce hurt a lot of people.
What I've found though, is that the hurt former congregation members or ministry partners were felling was hurt for us and not from us.
Which just goes to show that my identity is so much more than any type of ministry position. Ultimately, I'm just a kid. That's all I'll ever be. My dad's kid, yes but more importantly, a loved child of my Heavenly Father.
As I learned from Breakthrough almost three years ago, "I'm okay. I'm just a kid and that's okay."
Showing posts with label preaching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label preaching. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Grandpa Tyler's Eulogy
Last Saturday, I had the incredible privilege of eulogizing my Grandpa. I'm thankful to my aunts and uncles for giving me the opportunity and thankful to God for helping me bring together the right words. I'm also thankful to my Grandpa for being colorful and Christ-centered enough to provide the material for an interesting and edifying eulogy. Granpa was a character; a godly and loving character, but certainly a character. I'm so glad that his faith has finally become sight, but I sure do miss him. Below is a video I showed on Saturday, followed by my eulogy (at least as best as I could remember what I actually said yesterday).
http://youtu.be/cNND0Aj2iyw
http://youtu.be/cNND0Aj2iyw
"Donnie, I know what Jesus done for me." That refrain, more than any other, epitomized
the life of my Grandpa. Jo Ann liked to
tell me that Pastor Borger had told her that he'd never seen a more dramatic
conversion than that of my Grandpa. Now,
I didn't know the pre-conversion, hell-raising, rebel-rousing Glen Tyler, but I
did know the post-conversion, hell-raising, rebel-rousing Glen Tyler. And if his conversion was the most dramatic
Fred Borger had ever seen, than I can only imagine what Grandpa had been like
before giving his life to Christ.
And therein lies the tension that existed in Grandpa's life. On one hand, there was the man who had had his life dramatically changed when he gave his life to Christ in his 30's; his commitment to the church, his generosity, and his commitment to telling other people about Jesus. On the other hand was the fact that some areas of Grandpa's life remained unconverted. Now, none of us ever reach perfection in this life, but for one reason or another there were areas of Grandpa's life that seemed to remain untouched by the grace of God. I'm not sure why that was. I do know that Grandpa had a difficult life and it seems that there were some deep wounds that remained unhealed. As they always do in our relationships, those unhealed wounds negatively impacted his relationships with those closest to him.
An example of how I tried to navigate that tension in Grandpa's life was how I approached our conversations. My goal was always to keep the conversation going, to avoid any lull in the conversation. As we know, if there was any awkward silence in the conversation, Grandpa would fall back to his default topics; what is wrong with the Democrats and this week's reason for why the world was going to end next week. But if we could keep Grandpa talking about the good things, he was so pleasant to be around. I loved listening to the war stories, no matter how many times I'd heard them. And I knew the names of all the guys he's whipped in the bars (or been whipped by) but had later lead in "the sinner's prayer." I enjoyed the stories of his childhood, how he started a business or his stories of my mom's childhood. Of course, nothing was better than hearing about how he'd been dramatically saved in a Church of the Nazarene. Occasionally, however our conversation would reach a lull but on those occassions, the silence would be wonderful as Grandpa would relish the silence, just sitting next to me with that goofy smile on his face. I can remember his visits to our house, as he sat in my dad's recliner in the living room, smiling at us, happy to just be in the presence of his daughter and two of his grandkids.
You've been able to sense it in what others have said today, the fact that Grandpa fiercely loved the people in his life. We also know, and Grandpa would even admit to the fact that during the last ten years of his life he learned to better love his family. I never doubted that Grandpa loved me and that Grandpa was proud of me. It's such a privilege to be able to speak today because Grandpa loved to hear me preach. He and Jo Ann would sit on the second row and Grandpa would beam up at me, so proud to have a preacher in the family. I did notice however, that Grandpa smiled less after getting stronger hearing aids. Afterwards, Grandpa would always tell me what I should've said but he would also offer words of encouragement, extolling me to "preach that Jesus is coming back."
We all know what a great gift the last week of his life was to all of us. I'd joked with several people that had Grandpa been as relaxed and easy going throughout his life in the way he was that last week, he would've been so much easier to live with. I don't know for sure, but I wonder if Grandpa was able to relax that last week because he was finally able to relinquish control of the world to the One who truly is in control. Maybe when Grandpa realized that he would be leaving this world for good, he was finally able to realize that the King of the Universe, not Glen Tyler, really is in charge. Whatever that reason, that last week Grandpa did none of his usual preaching but rather simply went on and on about how good God has been to him while also showering love upon all of those who came to visit him. And a lot of people visited, too. I had the privilege of spending some time with him last Saturday and I saw how his face lit up whenever someone new entered the room. If Grandpa was able to love more and manipulate less that last week due to a deeper realization of God's sovereignty, then imagine how much greater that realization must be for him now, as he has actually seen first-hand the throne room of our God.
Grandpa also gave me a wonderful gift last Saturday; one final blessing. I went over to Grandpa's chair, knelt down and pretty much put my head in his lap and then started crying. Grandpa knew what I was doing, he knew I was telling him goodbye. So Grandpa put his hand on my head saying, "Donnie, let's pray." He then started with, "Lord, I pray for Donnie," then mumbling in a slightly embarassed tone " and I pray for... Dendphfgag.... names escape me right now." While he may have not been able to recall Erin and Dawson's names, I knew he was seeing their faces and I knew how much he cared for all of us.
After he prayed for me, I told Grandpa what I'd always planned to tell him the last time I would see him. Since I was never sure what time really would be the last, I'd actually told him this several other times before. Despite that fact, however I told him one more time. I said, "Grandpa, when I get to heaven, you're the first person I'm going to look up."
I certainly don't mean any offense to the other family members I hope to see in heaven again and I'm not sure why I've had that desire for so long. Maybe it's just because I liked Grandpa so much. It might be however, because of the fact that part of the reason I want to see Grandpa right when I get to heaven is that I might not have a relationship with God were it not for my Grandpa's faith. Both of my Grandparent's were first generation Christians. In the best way he knew how, Grandpa taught his family about the love of Christ. I'm so thankful that my Grandpa gave his life to Christ, that he took his family to church, that he sent my mom to church camp where she met my dad. Both of my parents taught me about God and now my wife and I get to teach our son about God. I am so thankful to my Grandpa for loving Jesus.
When I was a sophomore in High School, I wrote a short paper on the person I respected most and that person was my Grandpa. I have to say that as I've gotten older, I've actually idolized my Grandpa less. But I've also loved him even more. I mean this in every sense of the word; I am eternally grateful that he was my Grandpa.
And therein lies the tension that existed in Grandpa's life. On one hand, there was the man who had had his life dramatically changed when he gave his life to Christ in his 30's; his commitment to the church, his generosity, and his commitment to telling other people about Jesus. On the other hand was the fact that some areas of Grandpa's life remained unconverted. Now, none of us ever reach perfection in this life, but for one reason or another there were areas of Grandpa's life that seemed to remain untouched by the grace of God. I'm not sure why that was. I do know that Grandpa had a difficult life and it seems that there were some deep wounds that remained unhealed. As they always do in our relationships, those unhealed wounds negatively impacted his relationships with those closest to him.
An example of how I tried to navigate that tension in Grandpa's life was how I approached our conversations. My goal was always to keep the conversation going, to avoid any lull in the conversation. As we know, if there was any awkward silence in the conversation, Grandpa would fall back to his default topics; what is wrong with the Democrats and this week's reason for why the world was going to end next week. But if we could keep Grandpa talking about the good things, he was so pleasant to be around. I loved listening to the war stories, no matter how many times I'd heard them. And I knew the names of all the guys he's whipped in the bars (or been whipped by) but had later lead in "the sinner's prayer." I enjoyed the stories of his childhood, how he started a business or his stories of my mom's childhood. Of course, nothing was better than hearing about how he'd been dramatically saved in a Church of the Nazarene. Occasionally, however our conversation would reach a lull but on those occassions, the silence would be wonderful as Grandpa would relish the silence, just sitting next to me with that goofy smile on his face. I can remember his visits to our house, as he sat in my dad's recliner in the living room, smiling at us, happy to just be in the presence of his daughter and two of his grandkids.
You've been able to sense it in what others have said today, the fact that Grandpa fiercely loved the people in his life. We also know, and Grandpa would even admit to the fact that during the last ten years of his life he learned to better love his family. I never doubted that Grandpa loved me and that Grandpa was proud of me. It's such a privilege to be able to speak today because Grandpa loved to hear me preach. He and Jo Ann would sit on the second row and Grandpa would beam up at me, so proud to have a preacher in the family. I did notice however, that Grandpa smiled less after getting stronger hearing aids. Afterwards, Grandpa would always tell me what I should've said but he would also offer words of encouragement, extolling me to "preach that Jesus is coming back."
We all know what a great gift the last week of his life was to all of us. I'd joked with several people that had Grandpa been as relaxed and easy going throughout his life in the way he was that last week, he would've been so much easier to live with. I don't know for sure, but I wonder if Grandpa was able to relax that last week because he was finally able to relinquish control of the world to the One who truly is in control. Maybe when Grandpa realized that he would be leaving this world for good, he was finally able to realize that the King of the Universe, not Glen Tyler, really is in charge. Whatever that reason, that last week Grandpa did none of his usual preaching but rather simply went on and on about how good God has been to him while also showering love upon all of those who came to visit him. And a lot of people visited, too. I had the privilege of spending some time with him last Saturday and I saw how his face lit up whenever someone new entered the room. If Grandpa was able to love more and manipulate less that last week due to a deeper realization of God's sovereignty, then imagine how much greater that realization must be for him now, as he has actually seen first-hand the throne room of our God.
Grandpa also gave me a wonderful gift last Saturday; one final blessing. I went over to Grandpa's chair, knelt down and pretty much put my head in his lap and then started crying. Grandpa knew what I was doing, he knew I was telling him goodbye. So Grandpa put his hand on my head saying, "Donnie, let's pray." He then started with, "Lord, I pray for Donnie," then mumbling in a slightly embarassed tone " and I pray for... Dendphfgag.... names escape me right now." While he may have not been able to recall Erin and Dawson's names, I knew he was seeing their faces and I knew how much he cared for all of us.
After he prayed for me, I told Grandpa what I'd always planned to tell him the last time I would see him. Since I was never sure what time really would be the last, I'd actually told him this several other times before. Despite that fact, however I told him one more time. I said, "Grandpa, when I get to heaven, you're the first person I'm going to look up."
I certainly don't mean any offense to the other family members I hope to see in heaven again and I'm not sure why I've had that desire for so long. Maybe it's just because I liked Grandpa so much. It might be however, because of the fact that part of the reason I want to see Grandpa right when I get to heaven is that I might not have a relationship with God were it not for my Grandpa's faith. Both of my Grandparent's were first generation Christians. In the best way he knew how, Grandpa taught his family about the love of Christ. I'm so thankful that my Grandpa gave his life to Christ, that he took his family to church, that he sent my mom to church camp where she met my dad. Both of my parents taught me about God and now my wife and I get to teach our son about God. I am so thankful to my Grandpa for loving Jesus.
When I was a sophomore in High School, I wrote a short paper on the person I respected most and that person was my Grandpa. I have to say that as I've gotten older, I've actually idolized my Grandpa less. But I've also loved him even more. I mean this in every sense of the word; I am eternally grateful that he was my Grandpa.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
A Gospel Sermon
Indian Creek is currenty in a season which we've been challenging people to live as missionaries. Part of that missional challenge includes leading groups through the Tangible Kingdom Primer. I got to share during that series a couple weeks ago and here is a copy of that message.
Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away.... At least, on a
different continent in a different hemisphere - things were not going so well
for the Republic. Which was really too
bad, because things had started out so well for this fairly young nation. But since the assassination of the nation's
leader, the country had been in the throes of civil war. Years of bloody civil
war. Eventually, one man was able to
unite several armies and gain control over the Republic. Finally bringing peace back to a nation that
had been torn apart by bloodshed.
This leader turned out to be more powerful than anyone had originally imagined. He took this national Republic and turned it into a global empire - an empire that dominated the known world. Every Empire needs an Emperor - and he was that Emperor. This Empire promised perpetual peace and financial wealth. And the Empire delivered on that promise. At least to its citizens. The Empire crushed anyone crazy enough to threaten its peace, prosperity or strict obedience to law. And the Empire continued to expand its wealth and dominance by conquering more and more of its surrounding neighbors.
The Emperor crushed rebellions. Took more and more territory. Won battle after battle. And after each battle, representatives of the Emperor would run from city to city, from town to town and all the way to the far away villages - announcing the good news of the Emperor's victories. The good news was that the Emperor and his Kingdom was unmatched and undefeated.
The citizens of this Empire spoke Greek. And the greek word we often translate as good news could also be translated another way - gospel. The biblical word "gospel" actually came from the Roman Empire. To a first century Roman citizen, the news of the Emperor's conquests was "gospel" or "good news." The "gospel" of Caesar. The good news of Rome's Kingdom. Although, this wasn't such good news if you were one of the ones who were conquered. Or a non-citizen. But to learn more about that, read the book of Revelation.
Rome's "gospel" started with their "son of God, Prince of Peace" - their first Emperor - Augustus. Caesar Augustus had united Rome from its civil wars and had conquered all of Rome's enemies, making life pretty sweet for Rome's citizens. And that gospel continued, through the victories of Augustus' successors - Tiberius, Caliqula, Claudis, Nero and on and on. To a first or second century Roman, their Kingdom seemed unrivaled. It seemed like a Kingdom with no end.
Imagine then, the gall, the audacity, the stupidity even, of a small group of Jews - Jewish outcasts - who began to refer to the life of their crucified Rabbi as "gospel." They called it the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, one writer, Luke, even started his retelling of the Christian "gospel" by declaring that it was a peasant born Jew, not Caesar Augustus, who was the Son of God/ Prince of Peace/ Ruler of a Kingdom that would know no end. Feel free to break out into some Handel's Messiah right here...
This leader turned out to be more powerful than anyone had originally imagined. He took this national Republic and turned it into a global empire - an empire that dominated the known world. Every Empire needs an Emperor - and he was that Emperor. This Empire promised perpetual peace and financial wealth. And the Empire delivered on that promise. At least to its citizens. The Empire crushed anyone crazy enough to threaten its peace, prosperity or strict obedience to law. And the Empire continued to expand its wealth and dominance by conquering more and more of its surrounding neighbors.
The Emperor crushed rebellions. Took more and more territory. Won battle after battle. And after each battle, representatives of the Emperor would run from city to city, from town to town and all the way to the far away villages - announcing the good news of the Emperor's victories. The good news was that the Emperor and his Kingdom was unmatched and undefeated.
The citizens of this Empire spoke Greek. And the greek word we often translate as good news could also be translated another way - gospel. The biblical word "gospel" actually came from the Roman Empire. To a first century Roman citizen, the news of the Emperor's conquests was "gospel" or "good news." The "gospel" of Caesar. The good news of Rome's Kingdom. Although, this wasn't such good news if you were one of the ones who were conquered. Or a non-citizen. But to learn more about that, read the book of Revelation.
Rome's "gospel" started with their "son of God, Prince of Peace" - their first Emperor - Augustus. Caesar Augustus had united Rome from its civil wars and had conquered all of Rome's enemies, making life pretty sweet for Rome's citizens. And that gospel continued, through the victories of Augustus' successors - Tiberius, Caliqula, Claudis, Nero and on and on. To a first or second century Roman, their Kingdom seemed unrivaled. It seemed like a Kingdom with no end.
Imagine then, the gall, the audacity, the stupidity even, of a small group of Jews - Jewish outcasts - who began to refer to the life of their crucified Rabbi as "gospel." They called it the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, one writer, Luke, even started his retelling of the Christian "gospel" by declaring that it was a peasant born Jew, not Caesar Augustus, who was the Son of God/ Prince of Peace/ Ruler of a Kingdom that would know no end. Feel free to break out into some Handel's Messiah right here...
First century Christ-followers took the word
"gospel" from the Roman Empire and redefined it to mean "the
Kingdom of Jesus."
There's a reason Christians were thrown to the lions,
crucified and set on fire; it's because they boldly declared that Jesus was
Lord. They broke their nation's laws.
They refused to add to "Jesus is Lord" the good patriotic belief,
"Caesar is Lord."
And the gospel for which they were dying was not the watered-down, neutered version of "gospel" that has been prominent in most Evangelical churches since the revivalist movements of the 19th century. If you were to ask most American Christians to define the gospel, they would say something like this; "the gospel is the good news that Jesus died on the cross for my sins, so that if I put my faith in Christ, I can be forgiven of my sins and have eternal life with Jesus." Right? That's probably how you would define
"Gospel." That's what I had thought for most of my life. Whenever I preached and gave people the chance to make an individual decision for Jesus, I was say that I had "presented the gospel." But what I had actually done, what most of us have done, is to mistake the biblical idea of person salvation (Jesus dying for my sins) with the larger idea of Gospel. pause - think
Let me say that again. This is the part of the message where you have to be open to reconsidering strongly held opinions. Jesus dying on the cross for my sins - that's not the gospel, at least not the entire gospel. Rather, that's the plan of personal salvation. Personal salvation is one part of the larger biblical idea of Gospel. We aren't the main idea of the good news. It's so much bigger. Which is good news.
And the gospel for which they were dying was not the watered-down, neutered version of "gospel" that has been prominent in most Evangelical churches since the revivalist movements of the 19th century. If you were to ask most American Christians to define the gospel, they would say something like this; "the gospel is the good news that Jesus died on the cross for my sins, so that if I put my faith in Christ, I can be forgiven of my sins and have eternal life with Jesus." Right? That's probably how you would define
"Gospel." That's what I had thought for most of my life. Whenever I preached and gave people the chance to make an individual decision for Jesus, I was say that I had "presented the gospel." But what I had actually done, what most of us have done, is to mistake the biblical idea of person salvation (Jesus dying for my sins) with the larger idea of Gospel. pause - think
Let me say that again. This is the part of the message where you have to be open to reconsidering strongly held opinions. Jesus dying on the cross for my sins - that's not the gospel, at least not the entire gospel. Rather, that's the plan of personal salvation. Personal salvation is one part of the larger biblical idea of Gospel. We aren't the main idea of the good news. It's so much bigger. Which is good news.
The Biblical idea of gospel is almost exactly the same as
the Roman idea of Gospel. But instead of
the hero being Caesar and his Kingdom, the hero is Jesus and his Kingdom. Ever since the tragedy in the Garden of Eden,
the universe has been in a civil war of sorts, God's creation has been in
rebellion against its creator. But the
good news is that Jesus has started the process of setting everything right
again. And one day, Jesus' Kingdom will
have permanent residence in this world. God's
original intentions for his creation will eventually replace the present,
sinful reality. That process is not yet
complete, but it has started. The Gospel message is that Jesus is setting
everything right again. And anyone
connected to Jesus gets saved.
With that working understanding of the Gospel - the entire Gospel - let's look at a passage that outlines for us this story of Jesus. The passage is from 1 Corinthians 15 pass out bibles. Before any of the words of our New Testament were actually written down, Christ-followers had been telling and retelling the Gospel of Jesus. So when Paul writes this letter to the church in Corinth, he is simply writing down what Christians had been repeating to each other for decades.
1 Corinthians 15:1-7 After this part, Paul starts to go on a bit of a tangent, but the retelling of the Gospel tradition picks back up again in verse 20.
With that working understanding of the Gospel - the entire Gospel - let's look at a passage that outlines for us this story of Jesus. The passage is from 1 Corinthians 15 pass out bibles. Before any of the words of our New Testament were actually written down, Christ-followers had been telling and retelling the Gospel of Jesus. So when Paul writes this letter to the church in Corinth, he is simply writing down what Christians had been repeating to each other for decades.
1 Corinthians 15:1-7 After this part, Paul starts to go on a bit of a tangent, but the retelling of the Gospel tradition picks back up again in verse 20.
1 Corinthians
15:20-28 The bad news is that the
creation has rebelled against its creator.
The good news is that King Jesus is setting everything right again. All things are being redeemed and
renewed. Even us sinful humans.
I want to make a few observations about this passage:
The Gospel is the
completion of Israel's story Jesus
didn't show up out of nowhere. Jesus'
story is rooted in the story of Israel - the stories of our Old Testament. Day one of the Tangible Kingdom Primer talks
about God's calling of Abraham. That's
really where the story of God remaking the world began - with God calling a
people to be his representatives in the world.
God first chose to reveal himself through Abraham and his descendants.
Then through Jesus. And now - through
the church. In Romans, Paul says that we
are grafted into Israel's family tree. Ultimately,
Jesus is the completion of what God started with Abraham and the people of
Israel.
Personal salvation flows from the Gospel Jesus dying to forgive my sins is not the entire gospel story - but it is a part of the gospel story. Through Jesus, God is rescuing the entire world and that includes individuals. Through Jesus, we have been reconciled to God.
Personal salvation flows from the Gospel Jesus dying to forgive my sins is not the entire gospel story - but it is a part of the gospel story. Through Jesus, God is rescuing the entire world and that includes individuals. Through Jesus, we have been reconciled to God.
The Gospel is the
entire life of Jesus So often, we
focus only on Christmas and Good Friday, skipping everything in between and
even everything afterwards. But Jesus
did so much more than just die for our sins.
He taught, he was resurrected, he appeared after his resurrection. And one day - that day really is coming - he
will return to earth and set everything right again. Jesus isn't going to snatch us away from this
earth and then blow the whole thing up. While you might find that in the
Christian bookstore, you won't find it in Scripture. Rather, Jesus is returning to this earth and
will restore this earth. In Revelation,
the New Jerusalem comes down to earth. Culmination of the story. But we don't have to wait until the end. We get to be a part of restoring creation
right now. The Gospel story is not yet
complete, but it has started. And we get
to be a part of it.
Here's another way to summarize the gospel message:
Here's another way to summarize the gospel message:
Jesus lived, died,
was buried, was raised, was exalted and is the ruling King who is coming back
again. The Gospel is the story of Jesus
and we get to be a part of that story.
Geoff and Sherry Maddock are two people who are living out
the gospel story. About 15 years ago,
they moved into the poorest part of Lexington, KY. A part of the city that is ravaged by the
effect of sin - both personal sin and systemic sin. No grocery stores in their part of the city,
making it hard for families to find nutritional food. Just corner convenience stores full of
cigarettes, lottery tickets and junk food.
Simple things, like trees - are hard to find in their neighborhood. No parks for the kids. Things we often take for granted but are
essential for healthy living in a city.
The ascetics of the neighborhood are terrible, too. A bunch of abandoned and neglected
buildings. It's an ugly place to
live. The destruction of sin is evident
everywhere. The bad news seems to be the
dominant story.
So when Goeff and Sherry moved to this part of Lexington, their intention was simple - to live out the gospel - the entire gospel. I had the privilege of hearing them speak last week and they kept repeating one phrase over and over, "God is making all things new and everything is included." So their plan of sharing the gospel with their neighborhood did not involve knocking on doors and telling people the four spiritual laws. No, their plan to share the gospel was to start cleaning up the neighborhood. Knowing that as they changed the ascetics of the neighborhood, they would be living out God's redemptive, re-creative plan for their city. In other words - the gospel.
They started working with the corner convenience stores to get healthy food into the stores, so the kids could have more options than just cheetos. They painted buildings and fences. They helped plant trees in empty lots. Eventually got the city to let them plant an orchard that takes up several city blocks. Where there were just weeds, there are now trees from which kids can pick fruit off the branches when heading to school. Think about that. And in a lot where there used to be just a burned out building, they have now planted a community garden. People from all over the neighborhood get to contribute to and take from the garden.
One neighbor helped them grow a watermelon plant. As the watermelons ripened, Sherry began to get more and more excited about enjoying that watermelon. She didn't mind giving them away, because there was still one she was keeping for herself. Sherry was keeping her eye on one ripening watermelon. Just as she was about to go out into the garden to pick that watermelon, another neighbor who had been helping her garden came over and asked for that watermelon. Just as she was getting ready to pick it. Sherry knew she couldn't say no. But she was kicking herself for not going out to the garden just 5 minutes earlier. Sherry even let some self-pity overtake her. "I give so much to others, why couldn't I just have the one watermelon that I wanted?"
The next morning, the neighbor came by to thank her again for the watermelon. He told Sherry, I've got it sitting in my fridge cause my entire family is coming over today to enjoy that watermelon." He then told Sherry that even his two sisters, sisters he hasn't talked with in 5 years, were coming over to his house that afternoon.
That's the gospel. The recreating of this fallen world. The bringing of the Kingdom of God into sinful corners of the world. Bringing healthy food to kids who don't normally get balanced meals. Making an ugly neighborhood beautiful. Turning abandoned city lots into thriving community gardens. And helping estranged family members reconcile over a big, ripe watermelon. The gospel is that the King is fixing his universe. And we get to be a part of it.
So when Goeff and Sherry moved to this part of Lexington, their intention was simple - to live out the gospel - the entire gospel. I had the privilege of hearing them speak last week and they kept repeating one phrase over and over, "God is making all things new and everything is included." So their plan of sharing the gospel with their neighborhood did not involve knocking on doors and telling people the four spiritual laws. No, their plan to share the gospel was to start cleaning up the neighborhood. Knowing that as they changed the ascetics of the neighborhood, they would be living out God's redemptive, re-creative plan for their city. In other words - the gospel.
They started working with the corner convenience stores to get healthy food into the stores, so the kids could have more options than just cheetos. They painted buildings and fences. They helped plant trees in empty lots. Eventually got the city to let them plant an orchard that takes up several city blocks. Where there were just weeds, there are now trees from which kids can pick fruit off the branches when heading to school. Think about that. And in a lot where there used to be just a burned out building, they have now planted a community garden. People from all over the neighborhood get to contribute to and take from the garden.
One neighbor helped them grow a watermelon plant. As the watermelons ripened, Sherry began to get more and more excited about enjoying that watermelon. She didn't mind giving them away, because there was still one she was keeping for herself. Sherry was keeping her eye on one ripening watermelon. Just as she was about to go out into the garden to pick that watermelon, another neighbor who had been helping her garden came over and asked for that watermelon. Just as she was getting ready to pick it. Sherry knew she couldn't say no. But she was kicking herself for not going out to the garden just 5 minutes earlier. Sherry even let some self-pity overtake her. "I give so much to others, why couldn't I just have the one watermelon that I wanted?"
The next morning, the neighbor came by to thank her again for the watermelon. He told Sherry, I've got it sitting in my fridge cause my entire family is coming over today to enjoy that watermelon." He then told Sherry that even his two sisters, sisters he hasn't talked with in 5 years, were coming over to his house that afternoon.
That's the gospel. The recreating of this fallen world. The bringing of the Kingdom of God into sinful corners of the world. Bringing healthy food to kids who don't normally get balanced meals. Making an ugly neighborhood beautiful. Turning abandoned city lots into thriving community gardens. And helping estranged family members reconcile over a big, ripe watermelon. The gospel is that the King is fixing his universe. And we get to be a part of it.
When Geoff and Sherry's neighbors ask them questions - guess
what? They get to tell them why they're doing this. They get to tell them about the love of Jesus
and God's plan to make everything right again.
What Geoff and Sherry have done in their neighborhood is a perfect
picture of how we proclaim the gospel.
There is a quote often attributed to Saint Francis of Assisi, "Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary, use words."
The Gospel requires a response. No one will force us to join in Jesus' story of salvation. It's up to us to choose how will we respond. Part of the response to the Gospel is to choose Jesus as Savior. To allow Jesus to begin to cleanse all of the junk in our lives and to remake us into the person he created us to be. But the Gospel requires that we not only choose to make Jesus our Savior, but to also choose to make him our Lord - our Leader - the one who calls the shots in our lives. Which means that we join him in helping to restore his creation. That may mean we help clean up our neighborhood or maybe it's some other area. But we get to be a part of God's story of redemption. That's good news. That's Gospel.
The Gospel requires a response. No one will force us to join in Jesus' story of salvation. It's up to us to choose how will we respond. Part of the response to the Gospel is to choose Jesus as Savior. To allow Jesus to begin to cleanse all of the junk in our lives and to remake us into the person he created us to be. But the Gospel requires that we not only choose to make Jesus our Savior, but to also choose to make him our Lord - our Leader - the one who calls the shots in our lives. Which means that we join him in helping to restore his creation. That may mean we help clean up our neighborhood or maybe it's some other area. But we get to be a part of God's story of redemption. That's good news. That's Gospel.
As we move toward communion, I want to share a quote from
the Tangible Kingdom Primer.
A Kingdom life lived
on mission is really about living ordinary, everyday life in community, with
great gospel intentionality.
Almost every time we gather for worship, we get to
physically re-enact the Gospel. We get
to feel and taste Jesus' story of redemption.
We do this when we celebrate communion together.
1 Corinthians
11:23-26
When we choose "Gospel" we are saved. And we join Jesus in bringing salvation to the world around us, too.
When we choose "Gospel" we are saved. And we join Jesus in bringing salvation to the world around us, too.
So when you take the bread and juice this morning, let this
be an act of choosing the Gospel. Maybe you're making the choice for the first
time ever or the 700th time. But don't
take the elements without choosing to join in Jesus' story of Gospel.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
My Prayers for 2012
Now that I've pretty much recovered from a season of loss and stress, I've now entered into a season of praying, waiting and preparation. In fact, my good friend Joe Kumor even told me in a message the other day that he was excited to see the next adventure God had for me.
I recently read a book by Mark Batterson, The Circle Maker, that talked about praying circles around important people and our future. In response to that book, the three circles I've made for this year are: My family/ adoption, justice/peace and teaching/ preaching. While I was already thinking and praying about those things, this book helped me focus my efforts. Here is a bit of info on where I am now with each circle and where I hope to be by the end of 2012.
Family / Adoption I've made more an effort lately to be praying for my wife and my son. I'm also praying about where to begin our next adoption process. Dawson basically fell into our lap, so I'm guessing the next child will take some effort on our part. I have a list of some agencies we can look into, I just need to actually do it. I'm also encouraged by the fact that my employer, Farmers, has a $4,000 adoption credit.
Preaching / Teaching teaching and preaching the scriptures is a gift that God has given to me. Not being in a regular pastoral role, however means I'm not in a regular rhythm of using those gifts, but I'm working into a new rhythm. I will be preaching at IC Gardner every six weeks or so and will be starting a discipleship group for new Christians.
But how will this move ahead in the future? I've been thinking for a couple of years that I'd love to start a ministry that educates people on Jesus' nonviolent teachings and example. I've been thinking lately that it would be great to teach some college level ethics classes. So it might be time for me to pursue some sort of doctoral degree. Yesterday morning, a life-long mentor of mine, Randy Beckum, gave me some great ideas for a doctoral program.
Peace / Justice Clearly, I have a passion to help make this nation slightly less war-hungry (at least among Christians) and slightly more just. Randy Beckum also told me that my alma matter, MidAmerica Nazarene University is starting a Center for Social Justice. I'd love to work for something like that. The educational ministry mentioned above would be a part of living out this passion as would some teaching opportunities at another initiative of MNU.
In the present, however, I'm continuing to read war history and nonviolent Christian teachings and sharing those on my blog. I'm also volunteering, and trying to recruit more volunteers, for the Urban Scholastic Center in Kansas City, KS. I'll write more on that later.
So those are my "prayer circles" for 2012. If you'd like to occasionally join me in those prayers, I'd greatly appreciate it.
I recently read a book by Mark Batterson, The Circle Maker, that talked about praying circles around important people and our future. In response to that book, the three circles I've made for this year are: My family/ adoption, justice/peace and teaching/ preaching. While I was already thinking and praying about those things, this book helped me focus my efforts. Here is a bit of info on where I am now with each circle and where I hope to be by the end of 2012.
Family / Adoption I've made more an effort lately to be praying for my wife and my son. I'm also praying about where to begin our next adoption process. Dawson basically fell into our lap, so I'm guessing the next child will take some effort on our part. I have a list of some agencies we can look into, I just need to actually do it. I'm also encouraged by the fact that my employer, Farmers, has a $4,000 adoption credit.
Preaching / Teaching teaching and preaching the scriptures is a gift that God has given to me. Not being in a regular pastoral role, however means I'm not in a regular rhythm of using those gifts, but I'm working into a new rhythm. I will be preaching at IC Gardner every six weeks or so and will be starting a discipleship group for new Christians.
But how will this move ahead in the future? I've been thinking for a couple of years that I'd love to start a ministry that educates people on Jesus' nonviolent teachings and example. I've been thinking lately that it would be great to teach some college level ethics classes. So it might be time for me to pursue some sort of doctoral degree. Yesterday morning, a life-long mentor of mine, Randy Beckum, gave me some great ideas for a doctoral program.
Peace / Justice Clearly, I have a passion to help make this nation slightly less war-hungry (at least among Christians) and slightly more just. Randy Beckum also told me that my alma matter, MidAmerica Nazarene University is starting a Center for Social Justice. I'd love to work for something like that. The educational ministry mentioned above would be a part of living out this passion as would some teaching opportunities at another initiative of MNU.
In the present, however, I'm continuing to read war history and nonviolent Christian teachings and sharing those on my blog. I'm also volunteering, and trying to recruit more volunteers, for the Urban Scholastic Center in Kansas City, KS. I'll write more on that later.
So those are my "prayer circles" for 2012. If you'd like to occasionally join me in those prayers, I'd greatly appreciate it.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Dang, it feels good to be a .... Preacha'
After almost half a year away, a couple of weeks ago I finally got back into the rhythm of preaching; the reflection, study, preparation and delivery. And what better way to get back into the swing of it than with the tension, history, despair and hope of an OT prophet.
Here is my message at Indian Creek - Gardner from a few weeks ago. The passage is Isaiah 7 and the message is entitled, "The Wonder of Hope."
Also, I talk about my TFA experience in the last 1/3 of the message.
Here is my message at Indian Creek - Gardner from a few weeks ago. The passage is Isaiah 7 and the message is entitled, "The Wonder of Hope."
Also, I talk about my TFA experience in the last 1/3 of the message.
The Wonder of Hope - Gardner Campus from Indian Creek Community Church on Vimeo.
Friday, October 28, 2011
A Celebration and Reunion 96 years in the Making
Yesterday morning, I had the incredible privilege of preaching my Grandma's funeral. Grandma lived a long and godly life. She was the physical matriarch to a clan of about 100 and a spiritual matriarch to, well, a number that will be revealed in the next life.
As usually happens with funerals, this one was a great reunion. For the first time in years, all of my cousins were in the same place. And as we all recognized with a melancholy acceptance, it was probably also the last time that will ever happen. There were some great pictures taken and great pictures shared from my Grandma's long life and if I ever get access to them, I will share them.
Below is the message I shared.
If I were somehow able to talk with Grandma after the service today, she would say, “you did a great job, Tim. I mean… Dean. No, Eric. Danny. No, Donnie.” Even though she couldn’t get my name right, there were some things she always got right for me. When I was little, whenever I sat in a pew with her, usually right around there, she always had saltine crackers for me and a blue motorcycle. Sometimes they were a bit stale from being in her purse for a long time, but she always had them for me. When I got older, she saved the Sunday comics for me. She always had a stack for me to read. And from the time I was little, up till the last couple of years, if Grandma knew I was coming over she always made me mashed potatoes and gravy and had a peanut butter cookie with a Hershey kiss in the center.
She was there when I preached my first sermon. Dad said she cried through the whole thing. It was pretty bad. She endured one Ft. Madison football game and several Denmark Elementary Christmas concerts. We hadn’t been married long when my wife, Erin got in a wreck and totaled the car. A few days later, Grandma sent me a letter. In addition to the usual update on the weather and Uncle Henry’s activity in the garden, was a check for $100. Dad about fell over from shock when I told him. “Your Grandma is tighter than bark on a tree.” Grandma just wrote, “I felt like I should send this to you.”
All of those things, especially the cookie, were ways Grandma let me know she loved me. We could all tell stories of the ways she let us know she loved each one of us. Knowing that, think of how big her heart must’ve been – to be able to share so much love with so many of us. No wonder she couldn’t remember my name. I was one of a jillion. A group of kids. Bunch of Grandkids. Platoon of great and great-great grandkids. And for good measure, add the stepkids, step grandkids and step great-grandkids. Oh yea, two husbands that she loved. And we loved her back. Especially both husbands. Those who visited Mildred at the Hospice House know of all the loving ways Henry took care of her. Patting her arm, holding her hand. Being with her till 3 AM. Henry, we offer you our deepest sympathy. Grandma had such a big heart. A huge love. An incredible legacy.
Legacy is one of the two words we could use today, in our celebration of Mildred’s life. Is there a much better word than legacy? All 5 of her children-in-laws are still married to her children. Think of all the different things her grandchildren have done. All the different ways we have served God, other people, our families. I couldn’t remember the exact year of all my cousin’s weddings. But my best estimates are that we have collectively been married for 225 years. Those 225 years of marriage have produced a lot of great grandchildren. Mostly from the Ortons.
There is a passage of scripture that thoroughly summarizes Mildred’s life and her legacy. She lived this out. Proverbs 31:10-31. Vs 28 – we could all rise and call Mildred blessed
Grandma ran a tight ship. The hard-working farm wife and mother. Took care of Roy. While helping on the farm. While taking care of her other kids. While cooking for the farm-hands, paid and unpaid. She was a multi-tasker way before that term was in use.
Her kids remember her working in the basement, sorting and casing eggs, doing laundry and praying all at the same time. She would share at church that the time in the basement was her opportunity to talk with God. Pray for her kids. Grandma wanted other people to know God’s love.
One day she was talking with me about the church I was pastoring at the time. She asked, “are people being saved?” When I told her yes, she smiled and tears welled up in her eyes. In that tearful smile, I could see years of prayer. Layers and layers of love for her family. And an incredible desire to help other people know the love of Jesus. Grandma didn’t have to talk a lot about a God-honoring life. She just lived it. For decades. It was her legacy.
It’s her relationship with God that brings about the other word that is appropriate for today. It’s the word “reunion.” When Grandma was in the hospice house, she went back and forth between the present and the past. During visits with her, eventually she would have a moment in which she looked at you and really knew you. You could see the recognition in her eyes. “You are my son. You are my granddaughter.” Recognizing her living legacy.
At other times she would ask, “Who is taking care of Roy? Grandma knew that Danny was too young to take care of Roy. But when she was told that Jesus is taking care of Roy, she was calmed.
Mildred would also say, “I want to see Levi.”
On Monday morning, for the first time in decades, she got to see Roy. She got to hug Levi. And the past Grandma had been slipping into actually became her present reality. Her present reality right now.
But it wasn’t the only reunion Mildred had on Monday morning. She also got to see, face-to-face, the Savior that she and Levi first met years ago. Years ago, when Levi and Mildred were living down the lane in the house at the other place, Levi’s brother Wes invited them to a Sunday night service at this church. They attended several Sunday nights. Even attended a revival. One Sunday morning, when they got to the end of the lane, Levi and Mildred asked their kids whether they should turn right to their usual church on Sunday morning or left to the church of the Nazarene. The kids stated, “left.”
And here at the Fort Madison Church of the Nazarene, my Grandma and Grandpa came to know Jesus Christ in a personal way. They came to know for themselves, in a real and life-transforming way, these two verses. John 3:16 and 1 John 1:9
Levi and Mildred came to know that it isn’t just about living a decent life and attending a good church. But that the life God wants for us, created us for, involves a turning. A 180 turn from a life that is going in our own direction, to a life that is lived in God’s direction. A life in which sin and self-centeredness are exchanged for a life dedicated to the pursuit of God. What the Apostle Paul called being a “new creation” in Christ Jesus.
Grandma and Grandpa made that decision to live for Jesus, in this church, years and years ago. And then they lived it out – the rest of their lives.
In the gospel of Matthew, there is a record of a parable Jesus told to his followers. The story of a rich man, a venture-capitalist, who entrusted some of his money to various servants and then left for a long journey. When the rich man got back, he called a meeting with his servants to find out what they’d done with the money he’d loaned them. One servant wimped out, just buried the bag of silver. No return on the money. This rich man was not happy. But the other two servants were able to give their boss more bags of silver than they had originally been given. They were faithful with what their boss had given them. The boss responded by saying, Matthew 25:23.
Imagine Mildred standing before Jesus on Monday morning. Surrounded, in heaven and on earth, by people who came to know Jesus because of missionaries Mildred supported. Or Vacation Bible Schools she helped with. Or kids and grandkids she prayed for. And imagine, because we can know it happened, Jesus saying to Grandma Matthew 25:23
And imagine Mildred, her son, the father of her children, and her sister all celebrating before the throne of God in their now perfect and eternal bodies. No dementia. No heart problems. No mental handicap. Healthy. Whole. Beyond the curse of death. Forever.
Last Monday, Mildred and Henry celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary. After everyone else left, my mom and Aunt Karen were taking care of Grandma. Grandma asked mom, “will I get better in this life?” To which my mom answered, “no.” Mom then asked whether Grandma was ready to see Jesus. She just answered, “yes.” Then fell asleep.
The next Monday, Grandma fell asleep for the final time in this life. The day that Mildred went home to be with Jesus, Uncle Pete summed it up pretty well. He said, “Now, we can celebrate.”
And that’s exactly what we get to do today. We get to celebrate a reunion. We get to celebrate a legacy. A legacy that will bring about more heavenly reunions, when someday we get to stand in the same place Grandma is standing right now.
As usually happens with funerals, this one was a great reunion. For the first time in years, all of my cousins were in the same place. And as we all recognized with a melancholy acceptance, it was probably also the last time that will ever happen. There were some great pictures taken and great pictures shared from my Grandma's long life and if I ever get access to them, I will share them.
Below is the message I shared.
If I were somehow able to talk with Grandma after the service today, she would say, “you did a great job, Tim. I mean… Dean. No, Eric. Danny. No, Donnie.” Even though she couldn’t get my name right, there were some things she always got right for me. When I was little, whenever I sat in a pew with her, usually right around there, she always had saltine crackers for me and a blue motorcycle. Sometimes they were a bit stale from being in her purse for a long time, but she always had them for me. When I got older, she saved the Sunday comics for me. She always had a stack for me to read. And from the time I was little, up till the last couple of years, if Grandma knew I was coming over she always made me mashed potatoes and gravy and had a peanut butter cookie with a Hershey kiss in the center.
She was there when I preached my first sermon. Dad said she cried through the whole thing. It was pretty bad. She endured one Ft. Madison football game and several Denmark Elementary Christmas concerts. We hadn’t been married long when my wife, Erin got in a wreck and totaled the car. A few days later, Grandma sent me a letter. In addition to the usual update on the weather and Uncle Henry’s activity in the garden, was a check for $100. Dad about fell over from shock when I told him. “Your Grandma is tighter than bark on a tree.” Grandma just wrote, “I felt like I should send this to you.”
All of those things, especially the cookie, were ways Grandma let me know she loved me. We could all tell stories of the ways she let us know she loved each one of us. Knowing that, think of how big her heart must’ve been – to be able to share so much love with so many of us. No wonder she couldn’t remember my name. I was one of a jillion. A group of kids. Bunch of Grandkids. Platoon of great and great-great grandkids. And for good measure, add the stepkids, step grandkids and step great-grandkids. Oh yea, two husbands that she loved. And we loved her back. Especially both husbands. Those who visited Mildred at the Hospice House know of all the loving ways Henry took care of her. Patting her arm, holding her hand. Being with her till 3 AM. Henry, we offer you our deepest sympathy. Grandma had such a big heart. A huge love. An incredible legacy.
Legacy is one of the two words we could use today, in our celebration of Mildred’s life. Is there a much better word than legacy? All 5 of her children-in-laws are still married to her children. Think of all the different things her grandchildren have done. All the different ways we have served God, other people, our families. I couldn’t remember the exact year of all my cousin’s weddings. But my best estimates are that we have collectively been married for 225 years. Those 225 years of marriage have produced a lot of great grandchildren. Mostly from the Ortons.
There is a passage of scripture that thoroughly summarizes Mildred’s life and her legacy. She lived this out. Proverbs 31:10-31. Vs 28 – we could all rise and call Mildred blessed
Grandma ran a tight ship. The hard-working farm wife and mother. Took care of Roy. While helping on the farm. While taking care of her other kids. While cooking for the farm-hands, paid and unpaid. She was a multi-tasker way before that term was in use.
Her kids remember her working in the basement, sorting and casing eggs, doing laundry and praying all at the same time. She would share at church that the time in the basement was her opportunity to talk with God. Pray for her kids. Grandma wanted other people to know God’s love.
One day she was talking with me about the church I was pastoring at the time. She asked, “are people being saved?” When I told her yes, she smiled and tears welled up in her eyes. In that tearful smile, I could see years of prayer. Layers and layers of love for her family. And an incredible desire to help other people know the love of Jesus. Grandma didn’t have to talk a lot about a God-honoring life. She just lived it. For decades. It was her legacy.
It’s her relationship with God that brings about the other word that is appropriate for today. It’s the word “reunion.” When Grandma was in the hospice house, she went back and forth between the present and the past. During visits with her, eventually she would have a moment in which she looked at you and really knew you. You could see the recognition in her eyes. “You are my son. You are my granddaughter.” Recognizing her living legacy.
At other times she would ask, “Who is taking care of Roy? Grandma knew that Danny was too young to take care of Roy. But when she was told that Jesus is taking care of Roy, she was calmed.
Mildred would also say, “I want to see Levi.”
On Monday morning, for the first time in decades, she got to see Roy. She got to hug Levi. And the past Grandma had been slipping into actually became her present reality. Her present reality right now.
But it wasn’t the only reunion Mildred had on Monday morning. She also got to see, face-to-face, the Savior that she and Levi first met years ago. Years ago, when Levi and Mildred were living down the lane in the house at the other place, Levi’s brother Wes invited them to a Sunday night service at this church. They attended several Sunday nights. Even attended a revival. One Sunday morning, when they got to the end of the lane, Levi and Mildred asked their kids whether they should turn right to their usual church on Sunday morning or left to the church of the Nazarene. The kids stated, “left.”
And here at the Fort Madison Church of the Nazarene, my Grandma and Grandpa came to know Jesus Christ in a personal way. They came to know for themselves, in a real and life-transforming way, these two verses. John 3:16 and 1 John 1:9
Levi and Mildred came to know that it isn’t just about living a decent life and attending a good church. But that the life God wants for us, created us for, involves a turning. A 180 turn from a life that is going in our own direction, to a life that is lived in God’s direction. A life in which sin and self-centeredness are exchanged for a life dedicated to the pursuit of God. What the Apostle Paul called being a “new creation” in Christ Jesus.
Grandma and Grandpa made that decision to live for Jesus, in this church, years and years ago. And then they lived it out – the rest of their lives.
In the gospel of Matthew, there is a record of a parable Jesus told to his followers. The story of a rich man, a venture-capitalist, who entrusted some of his money to various servants and then left for a long journey. When the rich man got back, he called a meeting with his servants to find out what they’d done with the money he’d loaned them. One servant wimped out, just buried the bag of silver. No return on the money. This rich man was not happy. But the other two servants were able to give their boss more bags of silver than they had originally been given. They were faithful with what their boss had given them. The boss responded by saying, Matthew 25:23.
Imagine Mildred standing before Jesus on Monday morning. Surrounded, in heaven and on earth, by people who came to know Jesus because of missionaries Mildred supported. Or Vacation Bible Schools she helped with. Or kids and grandkids she prayed for. And imagine, because we can know it happened, Jesus saying to Grandma Matthew 25:23
And imagine Mildred, her son, the father of her children, and her sister all celebrating before the throne of God in their now perfect and eternal bodies. No dementia. No heart problems. No mental handicap. Healthy. Whole. Beyond the curse of death. Forever.
Last Monday, Mildred and Henry celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary. After everyone else left, my mom and Aunt Karen were taking care of Grandma. Grandma asked mom, “will I get better in this life?” To which my mom answered, “no.” Mom then asked whether Grandma was ready to see Jesus. She just answered, “yes.” Then fell asleep.
The next Monday, Grandma fell asleep for the final time in this life. The day that Mildred went home to be with Jesus, Uncle Pete summed it up pretty well. He said, “Now, we can celebrate.”
And that’s exactly what we get to do today. We get to celebrate a reunion. We get to celebrate a legacy. A legacy that will bring about more heavenly reunions, when someday we get to stand in the same place Grandma is standing right now.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
The Whole Gospel - another article
In a follow-up to this blog post, I wanted to share an article written by a former NTS classmate of mine, Tim Suttle. You can get Tim's new book, here.
You can read the article here, but I'll post the text of the article below.
Evangelical Christians are committed to something called the gospel. It's central to everything we do. The word gospel itself means "good news," and this good news is all about how Jesus came into this dark and broken world to make a way back to God. Over the past few centuries the evangelical version of the gospel has changed and is now something quite different than ever before. The gospel has become overly individualized and reduced to a way of managing the guilt of our own personal sins. This abridged gospel typically goes something like this: If you admit you are sinful, admit Jesus is God, believe he died for your sins, and ask him into your heart, then you will go to heaven when you die. Although this is preached in most evangelical churches, this gospel is actually not all that faithful to our scriptures or church history. Worst of all, it holds few if any moral or ethical implications for our lives.
Here's the problem as clearly as I can state it. For the past few centuries, individualistic conceptions of the gospel have championed some truly good things, chief among them being the conviction that human beings have the capacity to relate to God -- we can know God and relate to God personally. But an over-emphasis on personal faith has distorted the gospel. The good news has been reduced to a message about how to get into heaven when you die. Individualism has truncated our gospel, and left us blind to the obvious social message of Jesus.
The gospel has a personal dimension which is about how each person relates to God -- and this is a critical piece. It also has a corporate dimension which is about how humanity as a whole relates to God and to each other -- and this is a critical piece as well. The personal and corporate dimensions of the gospel must be held together. In American evangelicalism we have the personal covered, but we are lacking in our corporate understanding of the good news. That we are so lacking, I believe, robs the gospel of its impact on our society because the nexus of the personal and corporate is where all the power lies.
The iconic preacher Billy Graham is a representative of the personal gospel. When he preached, Graham would talk about personal sin -- the brokenness that lives inside all of us keeping us from knowing God and experiencing peace. Graham preached about how Jesus wanted to heal each one of us personally and lead us into a better way of life. Graham preached the gospel of personal salvation night after night to packed houses. And the people would sing the gospel hymn "Just As I Am" over and over.
The equally iconic Martin Luther King Jr. is a representative of the social gospel. When he preached, King would talk about social sin -- the brokenness that lives inside our social systems, keeping us from knowing God and experiencing peace and justice. King would invite people to embrace the kind of faith in Jesus Christ which would fundamentally change our approach to one another. King said Jesus wanted to heal not only each person, but our culture as well. He taught that Jesus wanted to lead us into a better way of life not only as individuals, but as a society. King preached the gospel of social salvation night after night to packed houses. And the people would sing the gospel hymn "We Shall Overcome," over and over.
Billy Graham and Martin Luther King Jr. were both evangelical Christians. They both preached a gospel which was incomplete without the other. Graham's message needs King's message and vice versa. The two messages are inexorably linked like two sides of the same coin. If the gospel doesn't include both the personal and corporate dimension of the Christian faith, then it is something very less that the true gospel -- and it will never change the world. Jesus taught that love toward our fellow human beings -- even our enemies -- is the path to God. This is not some ancillary teaching which can be tacked onto the gospel. This is the gospel he preached. You cannot love God if you do not love your neighbor (1 Jn. 4). This is how we see God. This is how we are blessed. This is how we inherit the earth. As evangelicals we need to recognize God's desire is actually not for a bunch of individuals who have been saved, but for a new community -- a new humanity. From a Christian perspective we will never experience this unless we begin to embrace the corporate nature of the gospel.
You can read the article here, but I'll post the text of the article below.
Evangelical Christians are committed to something called the gospel. It's central to everything we do. The word gospel itself means "good news," and this good news is all about how Jesus came into this dark and broken world to make a way back to God. Over the past few centuries the evangelical version of the gospel has changed and is now something quite different than ever before. The gospel has become overly individualized and reduced to a way of managing the guilt of our own personal sins. This abridged gospel typically goes something like this: If you admit you are sinful, admit Jesus is God, believe he died for your sins, and ask him into your heart, then you will go to heaven when you die. Although this is preached in most evangelical churches, this gospel is actually not all that faithful to our scriptures or church history. Worst of all, it holds few if any moral or ethical implications for our lives.
Here's the problem as clearly as I can state it. For the past few centuries, individualistic conceptions of the gospel have championed some truly good things, chief among them being the conviction that human beings have the capacity to relate to God -- we can know God and relate to God personally. But an over-emphasis on personal faith has distorted the gospel. The good news has been reduced to a message about how to get into heaven when you die. Individualism has truncated our gospel, and left us blind to the obvious social message of Jesus.
The gospel has a personal dimension which is about how each person relates to God -- and this is a critical piece. It also has a corporate dimension which is about how humanity as a whole relates to God and to each other -- and this is a critical piece as well. The personal and corporate dimensions of the gospel must be held together. In American evangelicalism we have the personal covered, but we are lacking in our corporate understanding of the good news. That we are so lacking, I believe, robs the gospel of its impact on our society because the nexus of the personal and corporate is where all the power lies.
The iconic preacher Billy Graham is a representative of the personal gospel. When he preached, Graham would talk about personal sin -- the brokenness that lives inside all of us keeping us from knowing God and experiencing peace. Graham preached about how Jesus wanted to heal each one of us personally and lead us into a better way of life. Graham preached the gospel of personal salvation night after night to packed houses. And the people would sing the gospel hymn "Just As I Am" over and over.
The equally iconic Martin Luther King Jr. is a representative of the social gospel. When he preached, King would talk about social sin -- the brokenness that lives inside our social systems, keeping us from knowing God and experiencing peace and justice. King would invite people to embrace the kind of faith in Jesus Christ which would fundamentally change our approach to one another. King said Jesus wanted to heal not only each person, but our culture as well. He taught that Jesus wanted to lead us into a better way of life not only as individuals, but as a society. King preached the gospel of social salvation night after night to packed houses. And the people would sing the gospel hymn "We Shall Overcome," over and over.
Billy Graham and Martin Luther King Jr. were both evangelical Christians. They both preached a gospel which was incomplete without the other. Graham's message needs King's message and vice versa. The two messages are inexorably linked like two sides of the same coin. If the gospel doesn't include both the personal and corporate dimension of the Christian faith, then it is something very less that the true gospel -- and it will never change the world. Jesus taught that love toward our fellow human beings -- even our enemies -- is the path to God. This is not some ancillary teaching which can be tacked onto the gospel. This is the gospel he preached. You cannot love God if you do not love your neighbor (1 Jn. 4). This is how we see God. This is how we are blessed. This is how we inherit the earth. As evangelicals we need to recognize God's desire is actually not for a bunch of individuals who have been saved, but for a new community -- a new humanity. From a Christian perspective we will never experience this unless we begin to embrace the corporate nature of the gospel.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
My Return to Madison Elementary
Two Saturday nights ago, I was relaxing in my living room, thinking about how nice it was going to be to take my wife to dinner in the Power and Light District, then to KC Symphony and to then to get in a nice jog before worship the next morning. Until my good friend, Russ Koelzer, who is the founding pastor of LifeStream Christian Church here in Gardner, called me to see if I could fill in for his sick self the next morning. Since Russ is such a good friend, I was glad to help him out. So I preceded to spend some time that afternoon and the next morning reworking a sermon I'd preached a couple years ago for Trinity Family during Epiphany. The sermon was from Matthew's account of the calling of Peter, Andrew, James and John, the main idea being that Jesus calls and uses the unchosen and unqualified to change the world. It was a powerful message then and I think it made some connections that Sunday, too. As I was about ready to walk in front of the congregation, I thought of how I'd preached that sermon and many others from that same spot in the Madison Elementary Commons. It was a bit of a nostalgic moment for me.
While the content was powerful (mostly because of the research I'd done and a story I told) my delivery wasn't too great, I went WAY too fast. My hyper-speed was likely due to three reasons: 1) I tried to cram too much info into one sermon, as I'd added stuff to the original message 2) I hadn't preached for awhile and was a bit rusty and 3) I was a bit nervous speaking to a group of people I didn't really know. But even though my delivery wasn't too smooth, it was great to be able to preach again.
The ability and calling to preach was one of the things that caused me to be hesitant about leaving traditional pastoral ministry. But after wrestling with and praying about it for long time, I felt God's assurance that he would give me the right opportunities to faithfully live out that particular part of the calling he'd placed on my life. Basically, I had to come to a place of trusting God with the whole preaching thing. And I guess that last Sunday is just one example of future opportunities to use and give the gift of preaching.
While the content was powerful (mostly because of the research I'd done and a story I told) my delivery wasn't too great, I went WAY too fast. My hyper-speed was likely due to three reasons: 1) I tried to cram too much info into one sermon, as I'd added stuff to the original message 2) I hadn't preached for awhile and was a bit rusty and 3) I was a bit nervous speaking to a group of people I didn't really know. But even though my delivery wasn't too smooth, it was great to be able to preach again.
The ability and calling to preach was one of the things that caused me to be hesitant about leaving traditional pastoral ministry. But after wrestling with and praying about it for long time, I felt God's assurance that he would give me the right opportunities to faithfully live out that particular part of the calling he'd placed on my life. Basically, I had to come to a place of trusting God with the whole preaching thing. And I guess that last Sunday is just one example of future opportunities to use and give the gift of preaching.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
All of the Gospel
If you grew up in an evangelical church, like I did, you often heard the phrase, "I presented the gospel." What the person meant in saying that is, "I explained to the person that Jesus died for their sins on the cross and that if they repented of those sins and gave their life to Jesus, they would be forgiven and spend eternity with Jesus in heaven."
"I presented the gospel."
And that is Gospel. At least part of the gospel.
Before I go on, I need to define the word gospel. It comes from a Greek word that means "good news." It was originally a military / empire term. Representatives of the Roman government would go from town to town across the empire, proclaiming the good news of the current Roman Emperor's victory over their enemy. A preacher would preach the gospel of Julius Caesar.
As they often did, the early church borrowed from the culture around them to explain the message of Jesus. Jesus' life, death and resurrection was given the title gospel - good news of Jesus' victory over all that opposes God. Gospel means Jesus has conquered sin, death, hell, the devil, the grave - you name it.
So for evangelicals to proclaim the gospel of Jesus' victory over our personal sin and physical death, they are proclaiming gospel. Most evangelicals however, don't believe that we can be set free from sin in this life - that we must keep sinning until the next life. Wesleyan evangelicals however, proclaim a gospel of Jesus' victory over sin in this life. Often Wesleyan churches call this the full gospel.
But when our proclamation of gospel is only about the defeating of personal sin and our own resurrection, we're not proclaiming the entire gospel. In a nutshell, evangelicalism got caught up in the individualism of the American culture, reducing it's gospel proclamation to having my own sins forgiven and getting my own butt out of hell.
But sin is more than personal and Jesus' gospel is a story of victory over more than personal sin and our personal grave. It's also about victory over systemic sin, institutionalized injustice and evil. The type of sinful oppression often called out by the Old Testament prophets. They type of systemic sin that keeps the privileged wealthy and the underprivileged poor.
And a biblical view of heaven is not just about the next life. In fact, when the word "heaven" is used in the gospels, it isn't referring to the next life at all - it's referring to life right now, on this earth, in our present life. Not the "sweet bye and bye" nor the future glory to which we'll all "fly away." The word "heaven" was referring to the reign of God. Jesus came to establish that reign. Not in the distant future, but right now.
There is a day coming, Jesus and the Old Testament prophets called it The Day of the Lord when Heaven will have complete reign. Evil will come to an end and all of God's desires for this world will become a reality. Pastor John in Revelation 21 gives us a picture of Jerusalem coming down and the creation of a new heaven and a new earth.
But our role as followers of Jesus is to proclaim the gospel - right now. To work to help people realize that God's will for the world can start becoming a reality now. That all the powers of sin that both mess up our lives and destroy entire groups of people were defeated on the cross and can be overcome by those living out gospel.
And while this gospel is about the reality that we can be set free from personal sin and that we have a resurrection to which we can look forward. Another huge part of the gospel is that the poor no longer have to stay poor. That God's will for this world is that the powerful and privileged care for the weak and voiceless. Gospel says that all of God's creation can be taken care of in this life. Jesus' victory on the cross has set us free from the need to be concerned only with ourselves, to keep our wealth to ourselves and to continue to prop up an unjust system that guarantees that that haves continue to be the haves on the backs of the have-nots. Gospel says that there don't have to be any more haves and have nots. Through a Holy Spirit empowered, Resurrection reality - the haves make room for the have nots.
The gospel is good news for the poor. For the outsiders. For the have nots.
And that victory over systemic sin is just as much gospel as the forgiveness of personal sin.
But don't take my word for it, listen to Jesus' first public speech in the gospel of Luke, the 4th chapter.
14 Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit's power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region.15 He taught regularly in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.
16 When he came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures.17 The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written:
18 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon me,
for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released,
that the blind will see,
that the oppressed will be set free,
19 and that the time of the LORD's favor has come.*"
20 He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently.21 Then he began to speak to them. "The Scripture you've just heard has been fulfilled this very day!"
But the haves didn't like this talk of the have nots having equal access to God and to justice, so they tried to do to Jesus what they did to the Prophets centuries before - kill him. And the heaven that Jesus came to establish has continued to be pushed back and rejected by those who felt threatened by the upside-down nature of the Kingdom of God. Those who had the most to lose didn't feel comfortable knowing that the gospel of Jesus was good news for the poor.
This summer, I'll begin my training to help bring in a little more heaven (through the education that will help them succeed) to some have not children deeply loved by Jesus but spurned by a sinful system.
And even in moving from a pulpit to a blackboard, I'll still be living out the calling I was given as a 15 year old kid. A calling to preach the gospel, especially to those who have never heard it.
And for a little more reading, check out this post http://www.redletterchristians.org/10-more-reasons-the-gospel-thats-good-news-for-the-poor-is-good-news-for-the-rich/
"I presented the gospel."
And that is Gospel. At least part of the gospel.
Before I go on, I need to define the word gospel. It comes from a Greek word that means "good news." It was originally a military / empire term. Representatives of the Roman government would go from town to town across the empire, proclaiming the good news of the current Roman Emperor's victory over their enemy. A preacher would preach the gospel of Julius Caesar.
As they often did, the early church borrowed from the culture around them to explain the message of Jesus. Jesus' life, death and resurrection was given the title gospel - good news of Jesus' victory over all that opposes God. Gospel means Jesus has conquered sin, death, hell, the devil, the grave - you name it.
So for evangelicals to proclaim the gospel of Jesus' victory over our personal sin and physical death, they are proclaiming gospel. Most evangelicals however, don't believe that we can be set free from sin in this life - that we must keep sinning until the next life. Wesleyan evangelicals however, proclaim a gospel of Jesus' victory over sin in this life. Often Wesleyan churches call this the full gospel.
But when our proclamation of gospel is only about the defeating of personal sin and our own resurrection, we're not proclaiming the entire gospel. In a nutshell, evangelicalism got caught up in the individualism of the American culture, reducing it's gospel proclamation to having my own sins forgiven and getting my own butt out of hell.
But sin is more than personal and Jesus' gospel is a story of victory over more than personal sin and our personal grave. It's also about victory over systemic sin, institutionalized injustice and evil. The type of sinful oppression often called out by the Old Testament prophets. They type of systemic sin that keeps the privileged wealthy and the underprivileged poor.
And a biblical view of heaven is not just about the next life. In fact, when the word "heaven" is used in the gospels, it isn't referring to the next life at all - it's referring to life right now, on this earth, in our present life. Not the "sweet bye and bye" nor the future glory to which we'll all "fly away." The word "heaven" was referring to the reign of God. Jesus came to establish that reign. Not in the distant future, but right now.
There is a day coming, Jesus and the Old Testament prophets called it The Day of the Lord when Heaven will have complete reign. Evil will come to an end and all of God's desires for this world will become a reality. Pastor John in Revelation 21 gives us a picture of Jerusalem coming down and the creation of a new heaven and a new earth.
But our role as followers of Jesus is to proclaim the gospel - right now. To work to help people realize that God's will for the world can start becoming a reality now. That all the powers of sin that both mess up our lives and destroy entire groups of people were defeated on the cross and can be overcome by those living out gospel.
And while this gospel is about the reality that we can be set free from personal sin and that we have a resurrection to which we can look forward. Another huge part of the gospel is that the poor no longer have to stay poor. That God's will for this world is that the powerful and privileged care for the weak and voiceless. Gospel says that all of God's creation can be taken care of in this life. Jesus' victory on the cross has set us free from the need to be concerned only with ourselves, to keep our wealth to ourselves and to continue to prop up an unjust system that guarantees that that haves continue to be the haves on the backs of the have-nots. Gospel says that there don't have to be any more haves and have nots. Through a Holy Spirit empowered, Resurrection reality - the haves make room for the have nots.
The gospel is good news for the poor. For the outsiders. For the have nots.
And that victory over systemic sin is just as much gospel as the forgiveness of personal sin.
But don't take my word for it, listen to Jesus' first public speech in the gospel of Luke, the 4th chapter.
14 Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit's power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region.15 He taught regularly in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.
16 When he came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures.17 The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written:
18 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon me,
for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released,
that the blind will see,
that the oppressed will be set free,
19 and that the time of the LORD's favor has come.*"
20 He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently.21 Then he began to speak to them. "The Scripture you've just heard has been fulfilled this very day!"
But the haves didn't like this talk of the have nots having equal access to God and to justice, so they tried to do to Jesus what they did to the Prophets centuries before - kill him. And the heaven that Jesus came to establish has continued to be pushed back and rejected by those who felt threatened by the upside-down nature of the Kingdom of God. Those who had the most to lose didn't feel comfortable knowing that the gospel of Jesus was good news for the poor.
This summer, I'll begin my training to help bring in a little more heaven (through the education that will help them succeed) to some have not children deeply loved by Jesus but spurned by a sinful system.
And even in moving from a pulpit to a blackboard, I'll still be living out the calling I was given as a 15 year old kid. A calling to preach the gospel, especially to those who have never heard it.
And for a little more reading, check out this post http://www.redletterchristians.org/10-more-reasons-the-gospel-thats-good-news-for-the-poor-is-good-news-for-the-rich/
Sunday, April 3, 2011
My Last Sermon at TFC
This is my final message. I want to start with a video we used to show as we travelled around the area, gathering support for our new church.
I still get kind of pumped watching this video. But that line, “Gardner shows no signs of slowing down” is a bit embarrassing now. I didn’t know it would all slow down. I didn’t know that from the time we shot that video until the time we launched TFC, three other churches would open in town. You know what, I’m glad I didn’t know about the challenges. If so, I might’ve wimped out. But with a church composed of myself, my wife and Jeremy, Tonya and Mason Pride, we bought a house and moved to Gardner, KNOWING this new church was going to help people find a new relationship with Jesus.
I’ve learned to let a lot of this go, but for a long time I was really caught up in numbers, specifically the number of people in worship. I’d beat myself up over it, honestly. When one day, while hanging out at my parents over Christmas I remember asking God (again) why we didn’t have more people in our church. It’s only happened a few times in my life, but that was one of the few times God has answered with an almost-audible voice, “Donnie, I promised you you’d reach unchurched people in Gardner. And you are. I didn’t however, promise you how many.” So I started counting up the people who called TFC home who hadn’t been in a church before, and I realized, “yep,” God had come through on his promise. In a little bit, those of you who have come to faith in Christ at TFC will have a chance to share your story.
In addition to that video, whenever I’d speak at other churches I’d also preach from Luke 15. Luke 15 is all about Jesus searching out people who were lost. Luke 15:1-7
I want to share a couple observations. Some things I learned when I first preached from this passage, 7 years ago. And what I’ve learned during the almost 7 years of leading this church.
The love of Jesus is costly A lot of us have an extra-biblical view of what is happening here. We have this picture of the shepherd, at the end of the day, leading his sheep into the safety of the sheep pen. We see the shepherd counting each sheep as it comes through the gate, “96, 97, 98, 99…” Until the shepherd realizes that one of his precious sheep is missing. So the shepherd wisely locks the other 99 in the pen and then bravely goes out to find the lost sheep. It’s a great image. An image of the love of Jesus that warms us. The only problem is that that image, isn’t in this passage.
I’m not sure where we get that image. In my case, I think it was some songs we’d sing in church. Or maybe because my dad was a farmer and we actually had sheep. Maybe some pictures I saw in a children’s bible. But wherever that idea came from, it’s not in the passage. Vs 4 Jesus is asking a rhetorical question. Of course you don’t leave the 99 in the wilderness just to find one. In farming, it’s just a reality that you’re going to lose the occasional animal. Animals wander off, die giving birth or die from some sickness. It’s just a cost of doing business. But what you don’t do as a farmer is risk the entire herd on the off chance that you might rescue that one lost sheep. While the shepherd is off looking for that one lost sheep, a lot of bad stuff could happen to the other 99. A wolf could attack some. Another shepherd could steal a few. They could walk off a cliff. Sheep are herd animals. If one walked off the cliff, the other 98 would follow. I’m not exaggerating. Sheep are dumb. I don’t know this for sure, but that might be why Jesus compares us to sheep. We all do some pretty dumb stuff.
But that’s not the point of this parable. The point is that the Good Shepherd risks the safety of the other 99 on the off chance that he just might find that one lost sheep. In a bit, we’re going to celebrate communion. It’s a meal that reminds us that we are people of the cross. And nowhere do we get a better picture of how much Jesus’ love cost him than when we look at the cross.
But as people of the cross, we are to be living out that same costly love. GS risked the other 99. So we have to ask ourselves, what is it costing me to share the love of Jesus with other people? Are we risking anything? If it isn’t costing you anything, you’re probably not sharing the love of Jesus. You may be sharing a worldly kind of love – a love toward those who we like or who are kind to us. You may be being nice, polite, friendly, a good neighbor. And those are all great. But unless what you’re doing for other people in the name of Jesus is actually costing you something – it’s not Christ-like love.
Loving people the way Jesus loved costs us our time. Changing our schedule so we can be around people who need the love of Jesus. Loving people the way Jesus loved will cost you some money. We see it all throughout the NT, that one of the most Christ-like ways we love other people is by sharing our money with them. And if we’re not sharing our money, the love of Jesus isn’t in us. Money becomes an idol that replaces Jesus.
And if we’re loving people the way Jesus loved them, it’s going to cost us our reputation. At least among good, upright religious folks. People who are so busy looking down on others, they can’t see their own sin. As our church has gone into strip clubs and gay bars, engaging people in the same way Jesus did in the gospels, some people couldn’t handle it. In various different ways, myself and our church has felt the backlash on that. But you know what? It was worth it. In every single way, it was worth it. No pricetag for Sharon’s commitment to Christ. Or for the people who show up at Andy’s every Thursday night to study the scriptures and encounter the life-transforming love of Jesus. Billy Graham once said, It’s the Holy Spirit’s job to convict, God’s job to forgive and our job to love. But leaving the comfort of the 99 to go after that one that is lost – it’s costly. Building relationships with outsiders – costly.
The love of Jesus is scandalous vs 1-2 The titles “tax collectors” and “sinners” is almost cliché for us. We’ve heard it so many times, we’ve forgotten the scandal. We think, “of course Jesus loved the tax collectors.” But who are the tax collectors of today?
I remember a line from another sermon I was preaching before this church launched, “If Jesus were here today, he’d be hanging out downtown at the gay bars. Showing God’s love to those rejected by the religious community.”
I knew this in my head. But what I didn’t know was that one night, there would be a baby shower in strip club, that as we were given gift after gift, the manager of that club, with tears running down his face, would tell us “no one has ever loved us the way you’ve loved us.” And when the head bouncer warned me, “Donnie, don’t turn around, that girl didn’t follow our request to put on more clothes,” I knew I was taking a risk similar to the risk Jesus took.
Neither did I know at the time I delivered that sermon, that one night I’d be singing karaoke at one of those downtown establishments. But the time that our people spent in that bar would eventually result in people coming to faith in Christ. Whatever that cost our church – it was worth it.
The love of Jesus is scandalous. Even more so when we realize that it meant for Jesus to share a meal with “sinners.” Eating with someone wasn’t just a way to hang out. It was a theological statement, a statement about God. Whenever a rabbi, like Jesus, ate with someone, he was saying, “God loves you and accepts you. There is a place for you in his kingdom.” Exactly why we see this response – vs 2
And you know how Jesus responded to those self-righteous religious leaders? These religious leaders could quote the entire bible. They knew God didn’t accept those people. But here is Jesus – God-in-the-flesh, eating with these “notorious sinners”, therefore declaring, “God accepts you.”
You know what seems like a bigger scandal, at least to me. Jesus ate with the religious leaders, too.
“God loves and accepts you, too.” Jesus’ love is scandalous.
Jesus responded differently to different groups. To the religious people who believed they had it all figured out, looked great on the outside and thought they should tell others how to live. He got in their face, challenging their fake-ness, telling them to stop ordering others around and to focus on getting clean on the inside.
But to the non-religious, the ones whose weren’t faking it, who were clearly messed up. With them, Jesus took a more gentle approach. Assuring them of God’s love and acceptance and then letting the love of God serve as the motivation for change.
Jesus knew what he was doing. In the gospels, we see the religious and non-religious, Pharisees and sinners both choosing to leave their sin and follow Jesus. We also know that a lot of people turned away and some religious zealots eventually got him crucified.
We also see in Jesus’ example that hanging out with people and assuring them of God’s unwavering love is not a condoning of sinful behavior. And getting in the face of religious leaders is not necessarily a condemnation of sincere intentions, even though the judgmentalism was clearly misguided. Rather, Jesus pushed past the bad behavior, past the sinful judgmentalism – all the way to the heart. If the heart could just meet the scandalous love of God, the behavior would take care of itself. We don’t need the addictions of sin when we’re getting our acceptance from God. We don’t need to condemn others when we’re getting our value from God’s love for us.
Churches are great at loving the people who think like us, act like us, believe like us, vote like us, look like us cheer for our sports teams – whatever. Which is why most churches are culturally homogeneous. As author Ann Lamott said, You can safely assume you’ve created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people that you do. Unfortunately, a lot of churches are great at creating an “us vs. them” mentality. “God is for us and against them.” But you can know that the love of Jesus is transforming a church when people of different cultures and opinions can live together in community within the same church. Jesus’ love destroys the “us vs. them” mentality. We’re all in this together. We’re all broken and in desperate needs of God’s powerful love.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from the years of leading this great church, it’s that unless we’re being shocked by its scandalous nature, we don’t really understand the love of Jesus.
I still get kind of pumped watching this video. But that line, “Gardner shows no signs of slowing down” is a bit embarrassing now. I didn’t know it would all slow down. I didn’t know that from the time we shot that video until the time we launched TFC, three other churches would open in town. You know what, I’m glad I didn’t know about the challenges. If so, I might’ve wimped out. But with a church composed of myself, my wife and Jeremy, Tonya and Mason Pride, we bought a house and moved to Gardner, KNOWING this new church was going to help people find a new relationship with Jesus.
I’ve learned to let a lot of this go, but for a long time I was really caught up in numbers, specifically the number of people in worship. I’d beat myself up over it, honestly. When one day, while hanging out at my parents over Christmas I remember asking God (again) why we didn’t have more people in our church. It’s only happened a few times in my life, but that was one of the few times God has answered with an almost-audible voice, “Donnie, I promised you you’d reach unchurched people in Gardner. And you are. I didn’t however, promise you how many.” So I started counting up the people who called TFC home who hadn’t been in a church before, and I realized, “yep,” God had come through on his promise. In a little bit, those of you who have come to faith in Christ at TFC will have a chance to share your story.
In addition to that video, whenever I’d speak at other churches I’d also preach from Luke 15. Luke 15 is all about Jesus searching out people who were lost. Luke 15:1-7
I want to share a couple observations. Some things I learned when I first preached from this passage, 7 years ago. And what I’ve learned during the almost 7 years of leading this church.
The love of Jesus is costly A lot of us have an extra-biblical view of what is happening here. We have this picture of the shepherd, at the end of the day, leading his sheep into the safety of the sheep pen. We see the shepherd counting each sheep as it comes through the gate, “96, 97, 98, 99…” Until the shepherd realizes that one of his precious sheep is missing. So the shepherd wisely locks the other 99 in the pen and then bravely goes out to find the lost sheep. It’s a great image. An image of the love of Jesus that warms us. The only problem is that that image, isn’t in this passage.
I’m not sure where we get that image. In my case, I think it was some songs we’d sing in church. Or maybe because my dad was a farmer and we actually had sheep. Maybe some pictures I saw in a children’s bible. But wherever that idea came from, it’s not in the passage. Vs 4 Jesus is asking a rhetorical question. Of course you don’t leave the 99 in the wilderness just to find one. In farming, it’s just a reality that you’re going to lose the occasional animal. Animals wander off, die giving birth or die from some sickness. It’s just a cost of doing business. But what you don’t do as a farmer is risk the entire herd on the off chance that you might rescue that one lost sheep. While the shepherd is off looking for that one lost sheep, a lot of bad stuff could happen to the other 99. A wolf could attack some. Another shepherd could steal a few. They could walk off a cliff. Sheep are herd animals. If one walked off the cliff, the other 98 would follow. I’m not exaggerating. Sheep are dumb. I don’t know this for sure, but that might be why Jesus compares us to sheep. We all do some pretty dumb stuff.
But that’s not the point of this parable. The point is that the Good Shepherd risks the safety of the other 99 on the off chance that he just might find that one lost sheep. In a bit, we’re going to celebrate communion. It’s a meal that reminds us that we are people of the cross. And nowhere do we get a better picture of how much Jesus’ love cost him than when we look at the cross.
But as people of the cross, we are to be living out that same costly love. GS risked the other 99. So we have to ask ourselves, what is it costing me to share the love of Jesus with other people? Are we risking anything? If it isn’t costing you anything, you’re probably not sharing the love of Jesus. You may be sharing a worldly kind of love – a love toward those who we like or who are kind to us. You may be being nice, polite, friendly, a good neighbor. And those are all great. But unless what you’re doing for other people in the name of Jesus is actually costing you something – it’s not Christ-like love.
Loving people the way Jesus loved costs us our time. Changing our schedule so we can be around people who need the love of Jesus. Loving people the way Jesus loved will cost you some money. We see it all throughout the NT, that one of the most Christ-like ways we love other people is by sharing our money with them. And if we’re not sharing our money, the love of Jesus isn’t in us. Money becomes an idol that replaces Jesus.
And if we’re loving people the way Jesus loved them, it’s going to cost us our reputation. At least among good, upright religious folks. People who are so busy looking down on others, they can’t see their own sin. As our church has gone into strip clubs and gay bars, engaging people in the same way Jesus did in the gospels, some people couldn’t handle it. In various different ways, myself and our church has felt the backlash on that. But you know what? It was worth it. In every single way, it was worth it. No pricetag for Sharon’s commitment to Christ. Or for the people who show up at Andy’s every Thursday night to study the scriptures and encounter the life-transforming love of Jesus. Billy Graham once said, It’s the Holy Spirit’s job to convict, God’s job to forgive and our job to love. But leaving the comfort of the 99 to go after that one that is lost – it’s costly. Building relationships with outsiders – costly.
The love of Jesus is scandalous vs 1-2 The titles “tax collectors” and “sinners” is almost cliché for us. We’ve heard it so many times, we’ve forgotten the scandal. We think, “of course Jesus loved the tax collectors.” But who are the tax collectors of today?
I remember a line from another sermon I was preaching before this church launched, “If Jesus were here today, he’d be hanging out downtown at the gay bars. Showing God’s love to those rejected by the religious community.”
I knew this in my head. But what I didn’t know was that one night, there would be a baby shower in strip club, that as we were given gift after gift, the manager of that club, with tears running down his face, would tell us “no one has ever loved us the way you’ve loved us.” And when the head bouncer warned me, “Donnie, don’t turn around, that girl didn’t follow our request to put on more clothes,” I knew I was taking a risk similar to the risk Jesus took.
Neither did I know at the time I delivered that sermon, that one night I’d be singing karaoke at one of those downtown establishments. But the time that our people spent in that bar would eventually result in people coming to faith in Christ. Whatever that cost our church – it was worth it.
The love of Jesus is scandalous. Even more so when we realize that it meant for Jesus to share a meal with “sinners.” Eating with someone wasn’t just a way to hang out. It was a theological statement, a statement about God. Whenever a rabbi, like Jesus, ate with someone, he was saying, “God loves you and accepts you. There is a place for you in his kingdom.” Exactly why we see this response – vs 2
And you know how Jesus responded to those self-righteous religious leaders? These religious leaders could quote the entire bible. They knew God didn’t accept those people. But here is Jesus – God-in-the-flesh, eating with these “notorious sinners”, therefore declaring, “God accepts you.”
You know what seems like a bigger scandal, at least to me. Jesus ate with the religious leaders, too.
“God loves and accepts you, too.” Jesus’ love is scandalous.
Jesus responded differently to different groups. To the religious people who believed they had it all figured out, looked great on the outside and thought they should tell others how to live. He got in their face, challenging their fake-ness, telling them to stop ordering others around and to focus on getting clean on the inside.
But to the non-religious, the ones whose weren’t faking it, who were clearly messed up. With them, Jesus took a more gentle approach. Assuring them of God’s love and acceptance and then letting the love of God serve as the motivation for change.
Jesus knew what he was doing. In the gospels, we see the religious and non-religious, Pharisees and sinners both choosing to leave their sin and follow Jesus. We also know that a lot of people turned away and some religious zealots eventually got him crucified.
We also see in Jesus’ example that hanging out with people and assuring them of God’s unwavering love is not a condoning of sinful behavior. And getting in the face of religious leaders is not necessarily a condemnation of sincere intentions, even though the judgmentalism was clearly misguided. Rather, Jesus pushed past the bad behavior, past the sinful judgmentalism – all the way to the heart. If the heart could just meet the scandalous love of God, the behavior would take care of itself. We don’t need the addictions of sin when we’re getting our acceptance from God. We don’t need to condemn others when we’re getting our value from God’s love for us.
Churches are great at loving the people who think like us, act like us, believe like us, vote like us, look like us cheer for our sports teams – whatever. Which is why most churches are culturally homogeneous. As author Ann Lamott said, You can safely assume you’ve created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people that you do. Unfortunately, a lot of churches are great at creating an “us vs. them” mentality. “God is for us and against them.” But you can know that the love of Jesus is transforming a church when people of different cultures and opinions can live together in community within the same church. Jesus’ love destroys the “us vs. them” mentality. We’re all in this together. We’re all broken and in desperate needs of God’s powerful love.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from the years of leading this great church, it’s that unless we’re being shocked by its scandalous nature, we don’t really understand the love of Jesus.
Monday, December 27, 2010
Paul the Pacifist (?)
In the somewhat near future, I'll be leading the congregation through a study of Romans. I've started the long process of preparing however, and at the advice of the NT professor at Nazarene Theological Seminary, I'm starting my study with Reading Paul.
An early section discusses Paul's conversion. Paul was converted from the mission of violently eliminating and protecting purity of doctrine and commitment to God (by killing those wayward Jews who worshipped a cursed man, Jesus) to proclaiming the inclusive and life-changing Kingdom and gospel of Jesus through means that were nonviolent to his enemies but resulted in violence to himself. Paul had "the combination of zealous religiosity and violence that is something with which we are all too familiar today." But after Paul's conversion, he "abandoned his former, violent zeal for a zeal for the Lord defined by accepting rather than inflicting suffering."
Author Micheal Gorman goes on to pen this gem of a section:
"It is easy to think of Paul as a preacher or pastor, even as an example. It is more difficult for us to see him as a critic of empire or a peacemaker, much less a pacifist. Yet the turn to nonviolence is at the very heart of Paul's conversion, and his gospel. Paul's pacifism, as we will see further in chapter 11, was rooted in his gospel's proclamation of how God in Christ had treated enemies and insurgents against the divine order with reconciling, suffering love (Romans 3:9-26; 5:6-11; 2 Corinthians 5:18-19). This nonviolent divine love was then manifested in Paul's own practice of absorbing violence without retaliation (1 Corinthians 4:10-14) and communicated to his churches as the only appropriate lifestyle for those converted by and to the love of God (1 Thessalonians 5:15; Romans 12:9-21). We do not hear the whole gospel according to Paul - or perhaps we do not hear it at all- if we do not hear this essential dimension. Nonviolence is not negotiable for Paul the convert and apostle.
"In Paul's day, Jewish zealous nationalism that focused on Israel's internal purity was not the only temptation to violence. That nationalistic zeal was also directed outwardly, toward an oppressive, violent regime - the imperial power of Rome. Paul would become a critic (at least an implicit one) of that form of violence, too - violence in the name of justice, peace, and security. Based on a misinterpretation of Romans 13:1-7, Paul is often portrayed as a political conservative who supported Rome, and perhaps all forms of political authority, even tyranny. However, like Jesus, he was a critic of imperial values such as domination and of imperial claims like diving status for emperors and divine blessing on the empire's ambitions. Paul mocked the Roman claim of providing pax et securitas (1 Thessalonians 5:3), offered an alternative form of divine justice, and proclaimed as Lord a criminal crucified by a Roman power - rather than Roman power incarnate (the emperor). A politics of subversion, not intentional but as an inevitable consequence of the gospel, is central to Paul and to those who read his letters as Scripture. In that sense, Paul was a good, prophetic Jew."
It seems that the parts of the North American church who have been swept along by the idolatrous tide of nationalism and put their faith in the myth of redemptive violence rather than the crucified-but-now-risen Lamb desperately need to rediscover the Paul of Scripture.
An early section discusses Paul's conversion. Paul was converted from the mission of violently eliminating and protecting purity of doctrine and commitment to God (by killing those wayward Jews who worshipped a cursed man, Jesus) to proclaiming the inclusive and life-changing Kingdom and gospel of Jesus through means that were nonviolent to his enemies but resulted in violence to himself. Paul had "the combination of zealous religiosity and violence that is something with which we are all too familiar today." But after Paul's conversion, he "abandoned his former, violent zeal for a zeal for the Lord defined by accepting rather than inflicting suffering."
Author Micheal Gorman goes on to pen this gem of a section:
"It is easy to think of Paul as a preacher or pastor, even as an example. It is more difficult for us to see him as a critic of empire or a peacemaker, much less a pacifist. Yet the turn to nonviolence is at the very heart of Paul's conversion, and his gospel. Paul's pacifism, as we will see further in chapter 11, was rooted in his gospel's proclamation of how God in Christ had treated enemies and insurgents against the divine order with reconciling, suffering love (Romans 3:9-26; 5:6-11; 2 Corinthians 5:18-19). This nonviolent divine love was then manifested in Paul's own practice of absorbing violence without retaliation (1 Corinthians 4:10-14) and communicated to his churches as the only appropriate lifestyle for those converted by and to the love of God (1 Thessalonians 5:15; Romans 12:9-21). We do not hear the whole gospel according to Paul - or perhaps we do not hear it at all- if we do not hear this essential dimension. Nonviolence is not negotiable for Paul the convert and apostle.
"In Paul's day, Jewish zealous nationalism that focused on Israel's internal purity was not the only temptation to violence. That nationalistic zeal was also directed outwardly, toward an oppressive, violent regime - the imperial power of Rome. Paul would become a critic (at least an implicit one) of that form of violence, too - violence in the name of justice, peace, and security. Based on a misinterpretation of Romans 13:1-7, Paul is often portrayed as a political conservative who supported Rome, and perhaps all forms of political authority, even tyranny. However, like Jesus, he was a critic of imperial values such as domination and of imperial claims like diving status for emperors and divine blessing on the empire's ambitions. Paul mocked the Roman claim of providing pax et securitas (1 Thessalonians 5:3), offered an alternative form of divine justice, and proclaimed as Lord a criminal crucified by a Roman power - rather than Roman power incarnate (the emperor). A politics of subversion, not intentional but as an inevitable consequence of the gospel, is central to Paul and to those who read his letters as Scripture. In that sense, Paul was a good, prophetic Jew."
It seems that the parts of the North American church who have been swept along by the idolatrous tide of nationalism and put their faith in the myth of redemptive violence rather than the crucified-but-now-risen Lamb desperately need to rediscover the Paul of Scripture.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Real Freedom
This is a message from our DS, Dr. Jeren Rowell.
“REAL FREEDOM” - TITUS 2:11-14
IS IT JUST ME, OR DO YOU NOTICE THAT PEOPLE THESE DAYS SEEM TO BE ESPECIALLY ON EDGE? THESE ARE TOUGH DAYS. PEOPLE ARE STRESSED OUT, BUT I REALLY THINK IT’S A LOT DEEPER THAN ANY PARTICULAR CURRENT ISSUE.
I KNOW THERE’S THE ECONOMY, BUT MOST OF US HAVE BEEN HERE BEFORE. I KNOW THERE’S LOTS OF POLITICAL TENSION, BUT EVEN THAT HAS A FAMILIAR RING TO IT. IT’S DEEPER, ISN’T IT?
THERE JUST SEEMS TO BE A SENSE OF UTTER DISORIENTATION THAT IS COMING OUT IN BEHAVIOR THAT STRIKES ME AS SHOCKING, EVEN IN THIS INCREASINGLY PAGAN CULTURE.
YOU’VE SEEN THE VIDEO OF THESE TOWN HALL MEETINGS AND THE ANGER, THE YELLING, THE NAME CALLING, THE CARELESS WORDS BEING FLUNG ABOUT WITHOUT REGARD FOR WHAT OR WHOM THEY TEAR APART.
I WISH I COULD SAY I’VE NOT SEEN IT IN THE CHURCH. I’VE HAD A FEW “TOWN HALL MEETINGS” IN CHURCHES OVER THE PAST FOUR YEARS AND A COUPLE OF TIMES I’VE BEEN FAIRLY TARRED AND FEATHERED BY GOD’S PEOPLE!
NOW I KNOW THESE ISSUES ARE AS OLD AS HUMANITY, BUT IT SEEMS TO BE SOMETHING OF THE CONTEXT INTO WHICH PAUL IS SPEAKING AS HE REMINDS THIS YOUNG PASTOR OF THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL IN A REBELIOUS WORLD.
PAUL IS TALKING TO TITUS ABOUT THE HEART OF WHAT I WANT TO SUGGEST THAT YOU AND I NEED TO BE REMEMBERING IN THESE DIFFICULT AND DISORIENTING DAYS OF OURS.
IT’S ABOUT “HOW WE SHOULD LIVE IN THIS EVIL WORLD” (VERSE 12). NOT ONLY ARE WE BEING CALLED TO LIVE DISTINCTIVE LIVES IN THIS BROKEN AND ANGRY WORLD OF OURS, THIS TEXT IS ASSURING US THAT IN CHRIST IT’S ACTUALLY POSSIBLE TO DO SO!
LISTEN TO WHAT WE ARE BEING CALLED TO [READ V. 12]
OR AS PAUL SAYS TO THE PHILIPPIAN CHURCH, WE NEED TO USE THE GRACE THAT HAS BEEN GIVEN “SO THAT YOU MAY BECOME BLAMELESS AND PURE, CHILDREN OF GOD WITHOUT FAULT IN A CROOKED AND DEPRAVED GENERATION.”
“BLAMELESS AND PURE?” REALLY? IN THIS KIND OF WORLD? IS THAT REALLY POSSIBLE?
WELL, LET ME JUST ASK YOU A DIRECT QUESTION RIGHT HERE AT THE START: HOW ARE YOU DOING WITH LIVING A GODLY LIFE IN THIS SIN MARRED WORLD OF OURS?
I’LL TELL YOU WHAT I GENERALLY BELIEVE ABOUT THAT BASED ON MY CONSTANT INTERACTION WITH CHURCH LEADERS – I’M NOT SURE WE ARE DOING ALL THAT WELL.
SEEMS TO ME THERE IS OFTEN A HUGE DISCONNECT BETWEEN WHAT WE SAY AND SING WHEN WE’RE HERE, AND HOW IT ACTUALLY SHOWS UP IN OUR DAILY LIVES, ESPECIALLY WHEN NO ONE ELSE IS LOOKING.
YET IT’S NOT JUST THAT THE CULTURE HAS GROWN INCREASINGLY PAGAN. IT’S THAT WE, GOD’S PEOPLE, ARE NOT RECEIVING EVERYTHING THAT GOD IN CHRIST HAS PROVIDED FOR US. WE’RE SELLING THE GOSPEL WAY SHORT.
YOU KNOW THE LINE THAT SAYS, “CHRISTIANS AREN’T PERFECT, JUST FORGIVEN.” THERE’S A MEASURE OF TRUTH THERE, BUT THAT IDEA DOESN’T COME ANYWHERE NEAR WHAT GOD ACTUALLY WANTS TO DO FOR US.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT GOD WANTS TO DO FOR YOU? LOOK AGAIN AT VERSE 14 [READ]
DO YOU BELIEVE THAT? DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE THAT THERE IS ENOUGH POWER IN WHAT JESUS DID FOR US IN THE CROSS AND RESURRECTION ACTUALLY TO FREE US FROM EVERY SIN?
LET ME TELL YOU WHY THIS TEXT HAS BECOME SO MEANINFUL TO ME ACROSS THE PAST YEAR.
[IN ORLANDO: GOD SPOKE TO ME]
[SIMPLE FOCUS ON DRAWING CLOSER BRINGS HIS WORD ALIVE IN A FRESH WAY]
COULD IT BE THAT THERE IS REALLY A WAY TO LIVE SO CLOSE TO JESUS THAT SIN IS RENDERED POWERLESS IN MY LIFE?
THE LANGUAGE THAT IS MOST COMMON AMONG CHRISTIANS THESE DAYS IS ABOUT THE MERCY AND GRACE AND FORGIVENESS OF GOD. THANKS BE TO GOD FOR MERCY AND GRACE! BUT YOU REALIZE, DON’T YOU, THAT’S NOT THE WHOLE STORY?
THE WHOLE OF THE STORY IS NOT ONLY THAT JESUS DIED TO FORGIVE US OF OUR SINS – JESUS DIED TO FREE US FROM SIN.
JESUS DIED, ROSE AND ASCENDED TO THE RIGHT HAND OF THE FATHER SO THAT THE SPIRIT COULD COME AND TAKE UP RESIDENCE IN THE HEART OF THE BELIEVER.
BUT THE SPIRIT’S PRESENCE CONTINUES TO DRAW US CLOSER AND CLOSER TO JESUS UNTIL WE REALIZE THAT OUR NEED FOR GOD’S GRACE GOES EVEN DEEPER THAN THE FORGIVNESS OF SINS – WE NEED JESUS TO CLEANSE AND PURIFY OUR HEARTS –
TO STRAIGHTEN THE BENT TOWARD SELF AND EMPOWER US EVERY DAY ACTUALLY TO LIVE THESE CHRIST QUALITIES THAT WE READ HERE IN VERSE 12: “SELF-CONTROL, RIGHT CONDUCT, DEVOTION TO GOD.”
[THOSE WORDS TAKE ME BACK TO GALATIANS 5:22]
[CHURCH LEADERS EVALUATE: LOWEST SCORE]
GOD WANTS THESE CHRIST QUALITIES TO BE FULLY FORMED IN HIS PEOPLE SO THAT WE KNOW HOW TO THRIVE IN THE MIDST OF A BROKEN WORLD. AND IN ORDER TO SHAPE THAT CHRIST CHARACTER IN US, JESUS, PAUL SAYS, “GAVE HIS LIFE TO FREE US FROM EVERY KIND OF SIN.”
LOVED ONES, THIS IS THE FULL GOSPEL. AND THIS IS THE ANSWER FOR LIVING A VICTORIOUS, FREE, AND HAPPY LIFE IN THE MIDST OF DYSFUNCTIONAL, ANGRY WORLD LIKE OURS.
DON’T DISMISS THIS UNDER THE THINKING THAT NOBODY IS PERFECT. THAT’S NOT TRUE. JESUS IS PERFECT. AND GOD’S WORD IS UNMISTAKABLE THAT GOD DESIRES TO REPLICATE THE PERFECT LOVE OF CHRIST IN US.
NOW DON’T TRY AND MAKE THIS SAY SOMETHING IT’S NOT SAYING. THE MESSAGE HERE IS NOT THAT SIN IS NO LONGER A POSSIBILITY IN THE LIFE OF A BELIEVER. THAT’S WHY CHRISTIAN DISCIPLINE CONTINUES TO BE IMPORTANT.
WHAT PAUL IS REMINDING TITUS TO TEACH IS THAT WHEN WE BECOME GOD’S CHILDREN, WE NOW HAVE REAL POWER OVER THE ENSLAVING POWER OF SIN. FOR THE FIRST TIME, WE HAVE A REAL CHOICE.
WE HAVE, THROUGH GRACE, THE POWER TO CHOOSE NOT TO SIN. FRIENDS, IF WE DON’T BELIEVE THIS AND ACT UPON IT THEN WE HAVE NO GOSPEL. WE HAVE NO GOOD NEWS.
IF WE REALLY THINK THAT THE BEST WE CAN EVER DO IS STRUGGLE THROUGH LIFE WITH OUR SIN, THEN WE HAVE A WEAK JESUS AND GOD’S GRACE IS NO GRACE AT ALL.
JUST AS JESUS CRIED, “IT IS FINISHED” FROM THE CROSS, SO WE WHO ARE UNITED BY FAITH TO HIM IN HIS DEATH CAN NOW ALSO CRY “IT IS FINISHED” – THE TYRANNY OF SIN IS OVER. NO LONGER ARE WE AT THE MERCY OF SIN.
YOU KNOW WE LOVE TO TALK ABOUT GOD’S LOVE. OF COURSE, GOD LOVES YOU FAR MORE THAN YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE. BUT HIS LOVE IS NOT CARELESS AND HIS LOVE IS NOT WEAK.
HIS LOVE FOR YOU IS SO COMPLETE THAT HE PROVIDED A WAY TO BE CHANGED. HE PROVIDED A WAY TO BE FREE FROM SIN AND TO LIVE A HOLY LIFE. NOT A FLAWLESS LIFE, BUT A LIFE THAT IS NO LONGER BEAT UP CONTINUALLY BY SIN.
THIS IS THE CORE MESSAGE THAT WE HAVE TO PROCLAIM TO A WORLD THAT IS FEARFUL AND DESPERATE FOR SOME GOOD NEWS.
AND WHAT THE SPIRIT SEEMS TO BE PRESSING INTO MY HEART THROUGH THIS TEXT IS THAT WE CANNOT REALLY PROCLAIM THIS MESSAGE UNLESS AND UNTIL WE ARE EXPERIENCING ITS REALITY IN OUR OWN LIVES.
THAT’S MY MESSAGE TODAY – IT’S JUST THAT SIMPLE.
IN THIS INCREASINGLY DANGEROUS WORLD LET’S BE CAREFUL THAT WE DO NOT DIMINISH THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL. LET’S GIVE OURSELVES IN A FRESH WAY TO DRAWING UP CLOSER TO JESUS, GOING DEEPER IN THE HOLY LIFE OF LOVE MADE PERFECT.
SO LET ME ASK YOU A SIMPLE, POINTED QUESTION THIS MORNING. CAN YOU SHARE IN THIS TESTIMONY TODAY IN YOUR LIFE? THERE IS A DECISION TO BE MADE.
THE GIFT OF ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION THAT IS OFFERED TO BELIEVERS IS NOT SOMETHING YOU GROW INTO BY ACCIDENT – THERE IS A DECISION TO BE MADE. IT’S A DECISION TO SURRENDER YOUR WHOLE LIFE TO JESUS AND TO RECEIVE THE PURIFYING WORK OF THE SPIRIT.
IT’S BY FAITH – TAKING GOD AT HIS WORD THAT JESUS “GAVE HIS LIFE IN ORDER TO FREE US FROM EVERY KIND OF SIN, TO CLEANSE US, AND TO MAKE US HIS VERY OWN PEOPLE, TOTALLY COMMITTED TO DOING WHAT IS RIGHT.”
BUT THIS GRACE IS ALSO NOT JUST A ONE-TIME DEAL. THIS GRACE IS AVAILABLE ON A MOMENT BY MOMENT BASIS IN THE TRIALS AND TEMPTATIONS OF WORLD LIKE OURS.
SO WHEN YOU ARE FACED WITH THE TEMPTATION TO TRUST THE MATERIAL THINGS OF THIS WORLD MORE THAN GOD, THERE IS GRACE TO FIND FREEDOM FROM THAT TEMPTATION.
WHEN YOU ARE TEMPTED TO USE YOUR BODY IN A WAY THAT HARMS YOU AND DISHONORS GOD, THERE IS GRACE TO FIND FREEDOM FROM THAT TEMPTATION.
WHEN YOU ARE TEMPTED TO HOLD A GRUDGE AGAINST ONE WHO HAS HURT YOU, WHEN YOU ARE TEMPTED TO REACT IN REVENGE TOWARD ONE WHO HAS MISTREATED YOU – THERE IS GRACE TO FIND FREEDOM FROM THAT TEMPTATION.
HAVE YOU COME TO THE PLACE IN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD OF FINALLY SURRENDERING FULL CONTROL TO HIM? IF SO, THEN YOU CAN KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO LIVE IN THE POWER OF HIS GRACE.
JESUS DID NOT DIE JUST TO FORGIVE, AND FORGIVE AND FORGIVE CONTINUOUS SINNING. BY HIS GRACE HE WILL ALWAYS FORGIVE, BUT JESUS DIED AND ROSE AGAIN TO CHANGE OUR LIVES!
“REAL FREEDOM” - TITUS 2:11-14
IS IT JUST ME, OR DO YOU NOTICE THAT PEOPLE THESE DAYS SEEM TO BE ESPECIALLY ON EDGE? THESE ARE TOUGH DAYS. PEOPLE ARE STRESSED OUT, BUT I REALLY THINK IT’S A LOT DEEPER THAN ANY PARTICULAR CURRENT ISSUE.
I KNOW THERE’S THE ECONOMY, BUT MOST OF US HAVE BEEN HERE BEFORE. I KNOW THERE’S LOTS OF POLITICAL TENSION, BUT EVEN THAT HAS A FAMILIAR RING TO IT. IT’S DEEPER, ISN’T IT?
THERE JUST SEEMS TO BE A SENSE OF UTTER DISORIENTATION THAT IS COMING OUT IN BEHAVIOR THAT STRIKES ME AS SHOCKING, EVEN IN THIS INCREASINGLY PAGAN CULTURE.
YOU’VE SEEN THE VIDEO OF THESE TOWN HALL MEETINGS AND THE ANGER, THE YELLING, THE NAME CALLING, THE CARELESS WORDS BEING FLUNG ABOUT WITHOUT REGARD FOR WHAT OR WHOM THEY TEAR APART.
I WISH I COULD SAY I’VE NOT SEEN IT IN THE CHURCH. I’VE HAD A FEW “TOWN HALL MEETINGS” IN CHURCHES OVER THE PAST FOUR YEARS AND A COUPLE OF TIMES I’VE BEEN FAIRLY TARRED AND FEATHERED BY GOD’S PEOPLE!
NOW I KNOW THESE ISSUES ARE AS OLD AS HUMANITY, BUT IT SEEMS TO BE SOMETHING OF THE CONTEXT INTO WHICH PAUL IS SPEAKING AS HE REMINDS THIS YOUNG PASTOR OF THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL IN A REBELIOUS WORLD.
PAUL IS TALKING TO TITUS ABOUT THE HEART OF WHAT I WANT TO SUGGEST THAT YOU AND I NEED TO BE REMEMBERING IN THESE DIFFICULT AND DISORIENTING DAYS OF OURS.
IT’S ABOUT “HOW WE SHOULD LIVE IN THIS EVIL WORLD” (VERSE 12). NOT ONLY ARE WE BEING CALLED TO LIVE DISTINCTIVE LIVES IN THIS BROKEN AND ANGRY WORLD OF OURS, THIS TEXT IS ASSURING US THAT IN CHRIST IT’S ACTUALLY POSSIBLE TO DO SO!
LISTEN TO WHAT WE ARE BEING CALLED TO [READ V. 12]
OR AS PAUL SAYS TO THE PHILIPPIAN CHURCH, WE NEED TO USE THE GRACE THAT HAS BEEN GIVEN “SO THAT YOU MAY BECOME BLAMELESS AND PURE, CHILDREN OF GOD WITHOUT FAULT IN A CROOKED AND DEPRAVED GENERATION.”
“BLAMELESS AND PURE?” REALLY? IN THIS KIND OF WORLD? IS THAT REALLY POSSIBLE?
WELL, LET ME JUST ASK YOU A DIRECT QUESTION RIGHT HERE AT THE START: HOW ARE YOU DOING WITH LIVING A GODLY LIFE IN THIS SIN MARRED WORLD OF OURS?
I’LL TELL YOU WHAT I GENERALLY BELIEVE ABOUT THAT BASED ON MY CONSTANT INTERACTION WITH CHURCH LEADERS – I’M NOT SURE WE ARE DOING ALL THAT WELL.
SEEMS TO ME THERE IS OFTEN A HUGE DISCONNECT BETWEEN WHAT WE SAY AND SING WHEN WE’RE HERE, AND HOW IT ACTUALLY SHOWS UP IN OUR DAILY LIVES, ESPECIALLY WHEN NO ONE ELSE IS LOOKING.
YET IT’S NOT JUST THAT THE CULTURE HAS GROWN INCREASINGLY PAGAN. IT’S THAT WE, GOD’S PEOPLE, ARE NOT RECEIVING EVERYTHING THAT GOD IN CHRIST HAS PROVIDED FOR US. WE’RE SELLING THE GOSPEL WAY SHORT.
YOU KNOW THE LINE THAT SAYS, “CHRISTIANS AREN’T PERFECT, JUST FORGIVEN.” THERE’S A MEASURE OF TRUTH THERE, BUT THAT IDEA DOESN’T COME ANYWHERE NEAR WHAT GOD ACTUALLY WANTS TO DO FOR US.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT GOD WANTS TO DO FOR YOU? LOOK AGAIN AT VERSE 14 [READ]
DO YOU BELIEVE THAT? DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE THAT THERE IS ENOUGH POWER IN WHAT JESUS DID FOR US IN THE CROSS AND RESURRECTION ACTUALLY TO FREE US FROM EVERY SIN?
LET ME TELL YOU WHY THIS TEXT HAS BECOME SO MEANINFUL TO ME ACROSS THE PAST YEAR.
[IN ORLANDO: GOD SPOKE TO ME]
[SIMPLE FOCUS ON DRAWING CLOSER BRINGS HIS WORD ALIVE IN A FRESH WAY]
COULD IT BE THAT THERE IS REALLY A WAY TO LIVE SO CLOSE TO JESUS THAT SIN IS RENDERED POWERLESS IN MY LIFE?
THE LANGUAGE THAT IS MOST COMMON AMONG CHRISTIANS THESE DAYS IS ABOUT THE MERCY AND GRACE AND FORGIVENESS OF GOD. THANKS BE TO GOD FOR MERCY AND GRACE! BUT YOU REALIZE, DON’T YOU, THAT’S NOT THE WHOLE STORY?
THE WHOLE OF THE STORY IS NOT ONLY THAT JESUS DIED TO FORGIVE US OF OUR SINS – JESUS DIED TO FREE US FROM SIN.
JESUS DIED, ROSE AND ASCENDED TO THE RIGHT HAND OF THE FATHER SO THAT THE SPIRIT COULD COME AND TAKE UP RESIDENCE IN THE HEART OF THE BELIEVER.
BUT THE SPIRIT’S PRESENCE CONTINUES TO DRAW US CLOSER AND CLOSER TO JESUS UNTIL WE REALIZE THAT OUR NEED FOR GOD’S GRACE GOES EVEN DEEPER THAN THE FORGIVNESS OF SINS – WE NEED JESUS TO CLEANSE AND PURIFY OUR HEARTS –
TO STRAIGHTEN THE BENT TOWARD SELF AND EMPOWER US EVERY DAY ACTUALLY TO LIVE THESE CHRIST QUALITIES THAT WE READ HERE IN VERSE 12: “SELF-CONTROL, RIGHT CONDUCT, DEVOTION TO GOD.”
[THOSE WORDS TAKE ME BACK TO GALATIANS 5:22]
[CHURCH LEADERS EVALUATE: LOWEST SCORE]
GOD WANTS THESE CHRIST QUALITIES TO BE FULLY FORMED IN HIS PEOPLE SO THAT WE KNOW HOW TO THRIVE IN THE MIDST OF A BROKEN WORLD. AND IN ORDER TO SHAPE THAT CHRIST CHARACTER IN US, JESUS, PAUL SAYS, “GAVE HIS LIFE TO FREE US FROM EVERY KIND OF SIN.”
LOVED ONES, THIS IS THE FULL GOSPEL. AND THIS IS THE ANSWER FOR LIVING A VICTORIOUS, FREE, AND HAPPY LIFE IN THE MIDST OF DYSFUNCTIONAL, ANGRY WORLD LIKE OURS.
DON’T DISMISS THIS UNDER THE THINKING THAT NOBODY IS PERFECT. THAT’S NOT TRUE. JESUS IS PERFECT. AND GOD’S WORD IS UNMISTAKABLE THAT GOD DESIRES TO REPLICATE THE PERFECT LOVE OF CHRIST IN US.
NOW DON’T TRY AND MAKE THIS SAY SOMETHING IT’S NOT SAYING. THE MESSAGE HERE IS NOT THAT SIN IS NO LONGER A POSSIBILITY IN THE LIFE OF A BELIEVER. THAT’S WHY CHRISTIAN DISCIPLINE CONTINUES TO BE IMPORTANT.
WHAT PAUL IS REMINDING TITUS TO TEACH IS THAT WHEN WE BECOME GOD’S CHILDREN, WE NOW HAVE REAL POWER OVER THE ENSLAVING POWER OF SIN. FOR THE FIRST TIME, WE HAVE A REAL CHOICE.
WE HAVE, THROUGH GRACE, THE POWER TO CHOOSE NOT TO SIN. FRIENDS, IF WE DON’T BELIEVE THIS AND ACT UPON IT THEN WE HAVE NO GOSPEL. WE HAVE NO GOOD NEWS.
IF WE REALLY THINK THAT THE BEST WE CAN EVER DO IS STRUGGLE THROUGH LIFE WITH OUR SIN, THEN WE HAVE A WEAK JESUS AND GOD’S GRACE IS NO GRACE AT ALL.
JUST AS JESUS CRIED, “IT IS FINISHED” FROM THE CROSS, SO WE WHO ARE UNITED BY FAITH TO HIM IN HIS DEATH CAN NOW ALSO CRY “IT IS FINISHED” – THE TYRANNY OF SIN IS OVER. NO LONGER ARE WE AT THE MERCY OF SIN.
YOU KNOW WE LOVE TO TALK ABOUT GOD’S LOVE. OF COURSE, GOD LOVES YOU FAR MORE THAN YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE. BUT HIS LOVE IS NOT CARELESS AND HIS LOVE IS NOT WEAK.
HIS LOVE FOR YOU IS SO COMPLETE THAT HE PROVIDED A WAY TO BE CHANGED. HE PROVIDED A WAY TO BE FREE FROM SIN AND TO LIVE A HOLY LIFE. NOT A FLAWLESS LIFE, BUT A LIFE THAT IS NO LONGER BEAT UP CONTINUALLY BY SIN.
THIS IS THE CORE MESSAGE THAT WE HAVE TO PROCLAIM TO A WORLD THAT IS FEARFUL AND DESPERATE FOR SOME GOOD NEWS.
AND WHAT THE SPIRIT SEEMS TO BE PRESSING INTO MY HEART THROUGH THIS TEXT IS THAT WE CANNOT REALLY PROCLAIM THIS MESSAGE UNLESS AND UNTIL WE ARE EXPERIENCING ITS REALITY IN OUR OWN LIVES.
THAT’S MY MESSAGE TODAY – IT’S JUST THAT SIMPLE.
IN THIS INCREASINGLY DANGEROUS WORLD LET’S BE CAREFUL THAT WE DO NOT DIMINISH THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL. LET’S GIVE OURSELVES IN A FRESH WAY TO DRAWING UP CLOSER TO JESUS, GOING DEEPER IN THE HOLY LIFE OF LOVE MADE PERFECT.
SO LET ME ASK YOU A SIMPLE, POINTED QUESTION THIS MORNING. CAN YOU SHARE IN THIS TESTIMONY TODAY IN YOUR LIFE? THERE IS A DECISION TO BE MADE.
THE GIFT OF ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION THAT IS OFFERED TO BELIEVERS IS NOT SOMETHING YOU GROW INTO BY ACCIDENT – THERE IS A DECISION TO BE MADE. IT’S A DECISION TO SURRENDER YOUR WHOLE LIFE TO JESUS AND TO RECEIVE THE PURIFYING WORK OF THE SPIRIT.
IT’S BY FAITH – TAKING GOD AT HIS WORD THAT JESUS “GAVE HIS LIFE IN ORDER TO FREE US FROM EVERY KIND OF SIN, TO CLEANSE US, AND TO MAKE US HIS VERY OWN PEOPLE, TOTALLY COMMITTED TO DOING WHAT IS RIGHT.”
BUT THIS GRACE IS ALSO NOT JUST A ONE-TIME DEAL. THIS GRACE IS AVAILABLE ON A MOMENT BY MOMENT BASIS IN THE TRIALS AND TEMPTATIONS OF WORLD LIKE OURS.
SO WHEN YOU ARE FACED WITH THE TEMPTATION TO TRUST THE MATERIAL THINGS OF THIS WORLD MORE THAN GOD, THERE IS GRACE TO FIND FREEDOM FROM THAT TEMPTATION.
WHEN YOU ARE TEMPTED TO USE YOUR BODY IN A WAY THAT HARMS YOU AND DISHONORS GOD, THERE IS GRACE TO FIND FREEDOM FROM THAT TEMPTATION.
WHEN YOU ARE TEMPTED TO HOLD A GRUDGE AGAINST ONE WHO HAS HURT YOU, WHEN YOU ARE TEMPTED TO REACT IN REVENGE TOWARD ONE WHO HAS MISTREATED YOU – THERE IS GRACE TO FIND FREEDOM FROM THAT TEMPTATION.
HAVE YOU COME TO THE PLACE IN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD OF FINALLY SURRENDERING FULL CONTROL TO HIM? IF SO, THEN YOU CAN KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO LIVE IN THE POWER OF HIS GRACE.
JESUS DID NOT DIE JUST TO FORGIVE, AND FORGIVE AND FORGIVE CONTINUOUS SINNING. BY HIS GRACE HE WILL ALWAYS FORGIVE, BUT JESUS DIED AND ROSE AGAIN TO CHANGE OUR LIVES!
Monday, October 18, 2010
Blessing Sunday
I'm a little late on posting this, but on Sunday, Oct. 10th we had a "blessing Sunday." One week before, however, I challenged everyone to bless three people during the week, making sure one of those people didn't deserve the blessing, then share those blessing stories the next Sunday. I also gave the biblical foundation for this role of blessing others. Most of our time that Sunday morning was spent in small groups, sharing our blessing stories. It was a very powerful time. That afternoon, our Advisory Council shared some ideas on how we could make the sharing of blessing stories a regular part of our time together. The main idea was that we'd make the question "how were you a blessing to someone during the past week" a regular part of our discussion time.
I'll post an excerpt from my message on Oct. 3rd below, but I want to share some reasons for why we're focusing on blessing others.
First of all, I'm trying to deconstruct the attractional idea of church that most of us hold onto. I keep telling our people that church is not a place to which they go, it's a people we are. Church isn't Sunday AM at 10:30 at PRMS, it's a 24-7 lifestyle. We can't go to church anymore than someone can go to the Miller family. The Miller family can have regular get-togethers that we attend but we're always the Miller family whether we're together or not. The same is true of church. By sharing what has happened during the previous week, I'm hoping we get a clearer picture of church as a lifestyle, not a place or organization.
Secondly, I'm trying to help us continue to become more others-focused. As I shared in that message and have been reading lately, the church exists to bless the world. And in blessing the world, we reveal God's heart for the world to the world we're blessing. We don't exist for ourselves but for the world's sake. In his book, Missional Renaissance, Reggie McNeal challenges churches to forgo their evangelism strategy (a strategy most people aren't following anyway) and instead adopt a blessing strategy. As my DS was sharing with me over lunch yesterday, we've reduced evangelism to the sharing of a few verses and trying to get people to pray a certain prayer. A more holistic / New Testament view of evangelism is better communicated through this idea of a blessing strategy. People don't get excited about a pre-packaged evangelism sales-pitch, but they do, as one lady shared last Sunday, get fired up about the chance to bless people. Of course, in the midst of this blessing a New Testament form of evangelism is blooming in full.
Here's the excerpt from my sermon on Oct. 3rd:
To share some biblical ideas on church, I want us to go to the very beginning of church. Very beginning, Genesis 12. This is the where we meet Abraham and Sarah, although at this point, they’re still named Abram and Sarai. If you had a Mount Rushmore of bible dudes, Abraham would be on it. Anyone who grew up in church remember the song, “Father Abraham?” Many sons… Well, he really did have many sons. Anyone of Arabian or Jewish descent can trace their lineage back to Abraham. And if you think about it, that’s pretty incredible. Because at the time of the passage we’re about to read, Abraham was 75, Sarah was 65 and they had NO KIDS! A great biblical theme is that God’s a fan of the underdog. He chooses people who don’t have a prayer, so to speak and uses them to accomplish great things. It’s to make sure God gets the credit, not them. By the time Abraham and Sarah had a child together, Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90. I hope when I’m 100…
God’s plan was that he would take the offspring of Abraham and Sarah and turn them into his body. This nation of Israel would be the people of God, God’s body on earth. The people through whom God would share his character with the rest of the world. Genesis 12:1-9 To summarize a pretty long story, eventually the role of “people of God” was changed from the nation of Israel to the church. We became the new Israel. The apostle Paul explained it this way, Romans 11:17
We may not be Abraham’s physical descendants but we’ve been adopted into God’s family and we’re now Abraham’s spiritual descendants. The church lives out this role of being God’s body in this world. With this understanding that we’ve been grafted into the lineage of Abraham, I want to look back at God’s initial promise and calling to Abraham in Genesis 12. One verse in particular, God blessed Abraham so that Abraham could be the father of a great nation. That nation was brought into existence, why? So they could bless the whole rest of the world. The people of God exist to be a blessing. We are here to bless others. But we so often miss that. Somehow we make it about us. Whether it’s to get more people at the show or to make a bigger name for ourselves or to have a more comfortable life. In so many different ways, we’ve come to think we’ve been blessed for our own sake. But this is really nothing new. Eventually, the descendants of Israel became more focused on holding onto the promised land than their primary role of blessing the world. The land of Canaan was given to them so as to be their base from which they could bless the world. But their focus got turned inward. And the people of God still give into the temptation to make it about us.
All that I’ve just shared is to lead to this one point – or this one challenge. My challenge to you this week is that you will be a blessing to three people this week. Find a way to bless three people this week in specific ways. And, don’t miss this, make sure that at least one of them doesn’t deserve it.
Of course, none of us deserve God’s blessing. But he does it anyway. You see it all throughout scripture, God blesses everyone – not because they deserve it – but because that’s just what he likes to do. The good news of the gospel is that we all get the undeserved blessings of God. We’ve been blessed to be a blessing. Now just to make sure we’re clear. What’s your responsibility this week? Bless three people, including one who doesn’t deserve it. Next Sunday, we’re going to devote most of our time together to sharing stories of how God has blessed other people through our lives. Next Sunday is “Blessing story Sunday.” If you don’t have any stories, it will be a really short time together. But I’m pretty sure we’ll have some great stories to share.
I'll post an excerpt from my message on Oct. 3rd below, but I want to share some reasons for why we're focusing on blessing others.
First of all, I'm trying to deconstruct the attractional idea of church that most of us hold onto. I keep telling our people that church is not a place to which they go, it's a people we are. Church isn't Sunday AM at 10:30 at PRMS, it's a 24-7 lifestyle. We can't go to church anymore than someone can go to the Miller family. The Miller family can have regular get-togethers that we attend but we're always the Miller family whether we're together or not. The same is true of church. By sharing what has happened during the previous week, I'm hoping we get a clearer picture of church as a lifestyle, not a place or organization.
Secondly, I'm trying to help us continue to become more others-focused. As I shared in that message and have been reading lately, the church exists to bless the world. And in blessing the world, we reveal God's heart for the world to the world we're blessing. We don't exist for ourselves but for the world's sake. In his book, Missional Renaissance, Reggie McNeal challenges churches to forgo their evangelism strategy (a strategy most people aren't following anyway) and instead adopt a blessing strategy. As my DS was sharing with me over lunch yesterday, we've reduced evangelism to the sharing of a few verses and trying to get people to pray a certain prayer. A more holistic / New Testament view of evangelism is better communicated through this idea of a blessing strategy. People don't get excited about a pre-packaged evangelism sales-pitch, but they do, as one lady shared last Sunday, get fired up about the chance to bless people. Of course, in the midst of this blessing a New Testament form of evangelism is blooming in full.
Here's the excerpt from my sermon on Oct. 3rd:
To share some biblical ideas on church, I want us to go to the very beginning of church. Very beginning, Genesis 12. This is the where we meet Abraham and Sarah, although at this point, they’re still named Abram and Sarai. If you had a Mount Rushmore of bible dudes, Abraham would be on it. Anyone who grew up in church remember the song, “Father Abraham?” Many sons… Well, he really did have many sons. Anyone of Arabian or Jewish descent can trace their lineage back to Abraham. And if you think about it, that’s pretty incredible. Because at the time of the passage we’re about to read, Abraham was 75, Sarah was 65 and they had NO KIDS! A great biblical theme is that God’s a fan of the underdog. He chooses people who don’t have a prayer, so to speak and uses them to accomplish great things. It’s to make sure God gets the credit, not them. By the time Abraham and Sarah had a child together, Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90. I hope when I’m 100…
God’s plan was that he would take the offspring of Abraham and Sarah and turn them into his body. This nation of Israel would be the people of God, God’s body on earth. The people through whom God would share his character with the rest of the world. Genesis 12:1-9 To summarize a pretty long story, eventually the role of “people of God” was changed from the nation of Israel to the church. We became the new Israel. The apostle Paul explained it this way, Romans 11:17
We may not be Abraham’s physical descendants but we’ve been adopted into God’s family and we’re now Abraham’s spiritual descendants. The church lives out this role of being God’s body in this world. With this understanding that we’ve been grafted into the lineage of Abraham, I want to look back at God’s initial promise and calling to Abraham in Genesis 12. One verse in particular, God blessed Abraham so that Abraham could be the father of a great nation. That nation was brought into existence, why? So they could bless the whole rest of the world. The people of God exist to be a blessing. We are here to bless others. But we so often miss that. Somehow we make it about us. Whether it’s to get more people at the show or to make a bigger name for ourselves or to have a more comfortable life. In so many different ways, we’ve come to think we’ve been blessed for our own sake. But this is really nothing new. Eventually, the descendants of Israel became more focused on holding onto the promised land than their primary role of blessing the world. The land of Canaan was given to them so as to be their base from which they could bless the world. But their focus got turned inward. And the people of God still give into the temptation to make it about us.
All that I’ve just shared is to lead to this one point – or this one challenge. My challenge to you this week is that you will be a blessing to three people this week. Find a way to bless three people this week in specific ways. And, don’t miss this, make sure that at least one of them doesn’t deserve it.
Of course, none of us deserve God’s blessing. But he does it anyway. You see it all throughout scripture, God blesses everyone – not because they deserve it – but because that’s just what he likes to do. The good news of the gospel is that we all get the undeserved blessings of God. We’ve been blessed to be a blessing. Now just to make sure we’re clear. What’s your responsibility this week? Bless three people, including one who doesn’t deserve it. Next Sunday, we’re going to devote most of our time together to sharing stories of how God has blessed other people through our lives. Next Sunday is “Blessing story Sunday.” If you don’t have any stories, it will be a really short time together. But I’m pretty sure we’ll have some great stories to share.
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