CRN.Info and Analysis

I went out to eat with my wife this evening and when the food was done we ended up at the Half-Price Bookstore–which is like a cigarette after s**. Oh,

While at the Half-Price Bookstore, I picked up a brand spanking new hard cover copy of the ESV–the latest rage among the neo-Reformed. It sure is pretty.–inside and out; I love it.

Seems there is a lot of conversation lately about the proper use of words and what words we are allowed to use when we speak or preach. Some preachers have been taking a real hit from some who think their words are too, uh, vulgar. I have already blogged about this just a bit; some of you have commented.

Lately, I have been reading the Prophet Ezekiel. I thought you might also enjoy this chapter of Ezekiel, 23,  that I read tonight because it speaks to our time, our day, our culture, and our church. I have left the footnotes intact for your benefit.

Oholah and Oholibah

¹The word of the LORD came to me: ^2(A) “Son of man, there were^(B) two women, the daughters of one mother. ^3(C) They played the whore in Egypt;^(D) they played the whore in their youth; there their breasts were pressed and their virgin bosoms^[a] handled. ⁴Oholah was the name of the elder and Oholibah the name of her sister.^(E) They became mine, and they^(F) bore sons and daughters. As for their names, Oholah is^(G) Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.

⁵“Oholah played the whore^(H) while she was mine, and^(I) she lusted after her lovers^(J) the Assyrians, warriors ⁶clothed in purple,^(K) governors and commanders,^(L) all of them desirable young men,^(M) horsemen riding on horses. ⁷She bestowed her whoring upon them, the choicest men of Assyria all of them, and she defiled herself with all the idols of everyone after whom she lusted. ⁸She did not give up her whoring^(N) that she had begun in Egypt; for in her youth men had lain with her and handled her virgin bosom and poured out their whoring lust upon her. ⁹Therefore^(O) I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the Assyrians, after whom she lusted. ^10(P) These uncovered her nakedness;^(Q) they seized her sons and her daughters; and as for her, they killed her with the sword; and she became^(R) a byword among women,^(S) when judgment had been executed on her.

^11(T) “Her sister Oholibah saw this, and she became^(U) more corrupt than her sister^[b] in her lust and in her whoring, which was worse than that of her sister. ¹²She lusted after the Assyrians, governors and commanders, warriors clothed in full armor, horsemen riding on horses,^(V) all of them desirable young men. ¹³And I saw that she was defiled; they both took the same way. ¹⁴But she carried her whoring further. She saw men^(W) portrayed on the wall, the^(X) images of^(Y) the Chaldeans portrayed in vermilion, ¹⁵wearing belts on their waists, with flowing turbans on their heads, all of them having the appearance of officers, a likeness of Babylonians whose native land was Chaldea. ¹⁶When she saw them, she lusted after them and^(Z) sent messengers to them^(AA) in Chaldea. ¹⁷And the Babylonians came to her^(AB) into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoring lust. And after she was defiled by them,^(AC) she turned from them in disgust. ¹⁸When she carried on her whoring so openly and flaunted her nakedness, I turned in disgust from her, as I had turned in disgust from her sister. ¹⁹Yet she increased her whoring,^(AD) remembering the days of her youth, when she played the whore in the land of Egypt ²⁰and lusted after her paramours there, whose members were like those of donkeys, and whose issue was like that of horses. ²¹Thus you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when the Egyptians handled your bosom and pressed^[c] your young breasts.”

²²Therefore, O Oholibah, thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I will stir up against you your lovers^(AE) from whom you turned in disgust,^(AF) and I will bring them against you from every side: ²³the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans,^(AG) Pekod and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them,^(AH) desirable young men, governors and commanders all of them, officers and men of renown, all of them riding on horses. ²⁴And they shall come against you from the north^[d] with chariots and wagons and a host of peoples.^(AI) They shall set themselves against you on every side with buckler, shield, and helmet; and^(AJ) I will commit the judgment to them, and^(AK) they shall judge you according to their judgments. ²⁵And I will direct my jealousy against you,^(AL) that they may deal with you in fury. They shall cut off your nose and your ears, and your survivors shall fall by the sword.^(AM) They shall seize your sons and your daughters, and your survivors shall be devoured by fire. ^26(AN) They shall also strip you of your clothes and take away your beautiful jewels. ^27(AO) Thus I will put an end to your lewdness and^(AP) your whoring begun in the land of Egypt, so that you shall not lift up your eyes to them or remember Egypt anymore.

²⁸“For thus says the Lord GOD:^(AQ) Behold, I will deliver you into the hands of those whom you hate,^(AR) into the hands of those from whom you turned in disgust, ²⁹and^(AS) they shall deal with you in hatred and take away all the fruit of your labor^(AT) and leave you naked and bare, and^(AU) the nakedness of your whoring shall be uncovered. Your lewdness and your whoring ³⁰have brought this upon you, because^(AV) you played the whore with the nations and defiled yourself with their idols. ³¹You have gone the way of your sister;^(AW) therefore I will give^(AX) her cup into your hand. ³²Thus says the Lord GOD:

“You shall drink your sister’s cup
that is deep and large;
you shall be laughed at and held in derision,
for it contains much;
³³you will be filled with^(AY) drunkenness and sorrow.^(AZ) A cup of horror and desolation,
the cup of your sister Samaria;
^34(BA) you shall drink it and drain it out,
and gnaw its shards,
and tear your breasts;

for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD. ³⁵Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because^(BB) you have forgotten me and^(BC) cast me behind your back, you yourself^(BD) must bear the consequences of your lewdness and whoring.”

³⁶The LORD said to me:^(BE) “Son of man,^(BF) will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Declare to them their abominations. ³⁷For^(BG) they have committed adultery,^(BH) and blood is on their hands. With their idols they have committed adultery, and they have even^(BI) offered up^[e] to them for food the children whom they had borne to me. ³⁸Moreover, this they have done to me:^(BJ) they have defiled my sanctuary on the same day and^(BK) profaned my Sabbaths. ³⁹For when^(BL) they had slaughtered their children in sacrifice to their idols, on the same day^(BM) they came into my sanctuary to profane it. And behold,^(BN) this is what they did in my house. ⁴⁰They even sent for men to come from afar,^(BO) to whom a messenger was sent; and behold, they came. For them you bathed yourself,^(BP) painted your eyes,^(BQ) and adorned yourself with ornaments. ⁴¹You sat on^(BR) a stately couch, with a table spread before it^(BS) on which you had placed my incense and^(BT) my oil. ⁴²The^(BU) sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and with men of the common sort, drunkards^[f] were brought from the wilderness; and they put^(BV) bracelets on the hands of the women, and^(BW) beautiful crowns on their heads.

⁴³“Then I said of her who was worn out by adultery, Now they will continue to use her for a whore, even her!^{[g] 44}For they have gone in to her, as men go in to a prostitute. Thus they went in to Oholah and to Oholibah, lewd women! ⁴⁵But righteous men^(BX) shall pass judgment on them with the sentence of adulteresses, and with the sentence of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands.”

⁴⁶For thus says the Lord GOD:^(BY) “Bring up a vast host against them, and make them^(BZ) an object of terror and^(CA) a plunder. ^47(CB) And the host shall stone them and cut them down with their swords.^(CC) They shall kill their sons and their daughters, and^(CD) burn up their houses. ^48(CE) Thus will I put an end to lewdness in the land, that all women may take warning and not commit lewdness as you have done. ⁴⁹And they shall return your lewdness upon you, and^(CF) you shall bear the penalty for your sinful idolatry, and^(CG) you shall know that I am the Lord GOD.”

[Disclaimer or something like it. I realize that such blog posts as the one you are about to read are fraught with danger. Being transparent and honest about our struggles in a public forum exposes one to many dangers. I'm willing to take that risk in this post because I'm convinced that most of you who visit here love me enough to bear with my periodic confessions of weakness without judging me too harshly. Grace and Peace.]

Little League and the Christian Pilgrimage

I am coaching little league this year. We have played 15 games, had two games rained out, and have three remaining on the calendar. My team was an expansion team. Last season, we had enough boys sign up to fill out two rosters of about 12 boys per team. This year, we had so many sign up to play that we filled out three rosters of 12 each. My team consists mostly of first year players, well, first year at this level which is Junior Boys Division One or 13-14 year-olds.

One of the teams in our community had, I believe, 9 returning players and the other team had 7. I have 12 boys, all first year 13 year olds. I love those boys. Managing a little league team is mostly about managing personalities (of the parents too!) and managing the numbers such as pitch count and innings played. At the Junior’s level, play becomes far more competitive. The standings mean something, the score counts, and individual play counts for tournament consideration.

I went into the season, despite what I knew, with a cautious optimism. I hate losing and I thought perhaps if I rubbed enough of that enthusiasm off on my team that they would play harder and faster. I thought, seriously, we could compete-even with the big boys. Through the first 8 games or so I was actually right. We were 5-3. The first game we played was on the road and we crushed them: 17-4. We were, all of us, in a great mood. Love abounded in the dugout that night.

After our eighth game, however, baseball became a chore. We have lost 7 straight games. We have been run-ruled 5 times and we have lost two games in the bottom of the seventh inning after tying or leading in the top of the seventh inning. Currently, in case you cannot add, we are 5-10. I love my team.

During the stretch of 7 consecutive losses things have been rather tough. We lost one player for the last 5 games to a vacation. We lost another young man when he ended up in the hospital because his hemoglobin dropped way below safe levels and needed transfusions and a bone marrow biopsy. Our latest blow was when our starting first baseman broke his finger. We only carry a roster of 12 boys; 3 are out. Things are tough all over for our team. I’m sure these three would rather be playing ball. I love these boys.

A big part of managing a little league baseball team is in managing personalities and egos. Some kids are ‘better’ than others; some are not. Some kids think they ‘deserve’ to play more than others; others are happy to be on a team. Some kids’ parents think their children’s, well, let’s just say their kids never make an error or throw the ball in the dirt or strike out with the bases loaded; most do not. Some kids are natural born pessimists (and have inherited it honestly); many have no idea what it means to quit until the umpire says ‘you’re out!’ or the sun goes down or the last inning is played or the last ball is lost over the fence. I love those kids.

I love those kids who have no quit in them, who play hard regardless of how poorly ‘we’ play. I love those kids who keep on laughing even when we are crushed by a lopsided score. I love those kids who keep on going up to bat after striking out 20 straight times. I love those kids who still think we can win even when the opposing coach has his players stealing home despite the fact that he is already winning by 8 runs. I love those boys who hustle off the field because ‘it’s our turn to bat!’ I love those boys who turn their hats inside out and believe, even though batters 7, 8, and 9 are coming up and we need 9 runs in order not to be run-ruled, that we have a shot at the win. I love those who get really angry with me when they have to sit because I need to get other players fielding time (per little league rules). I love those boys, pitchers, who want the ball when we are playing the toughest team in the league. I love those boys who hate losing even though that is all that seems to happen. I love those boys who hustle out a foul ball and don’t stop running until blue says, “Foul!” I love those boys who, after a crushing defeat, still have the nerve to run up to their teammates after the game and tackle them in the grass. I love those boys.

I love those boys who know what it means to win and never take it for granted because those are the boys who never quit. They never stop running, catching, throwing, and hitting. Nor do they stop smiling, laughing, and loving. They pick up their teammates when they’re down. They show up at the next game with a clean uniform, a glove, a smile, and a ‘where do you need me to play tonight, coach?’ I love those boys.

These are the ones who continue to believe we can win even when all external indicators point in exactly the opposition direction.

It is terribly difficult to want to show up for three more games when all outward appearances seem to be dictating that we will end our season, at best, 6-12 or 6-14 if we make up two rain-outs. It’s difficult to show up for three more games when you know you are going to be stuck in the outfield for 21-35 more innings. Baseball will break your heart, said A. Bart Giamatti. And even though I’m no fan of the late Giamatti (he banned Pete Rose from baseball), I agree with him 100%. It’s hard to find passion in something that continues to beat you down, game after game, inning after inning, pitch after pitch. How I love those boys who find a way to keep going back on that field that continues to break their hearts; those boys who continue working on their game and making every play even when the team is losing.

It’s terribly difficult to want to coach when there are some around who don’t think it even worth the effort. It’s terribly difficult to love those who are natural born pessimists, but as a manager I am called to do so anyhow. It’s easy to coach the lovable, the excitable, the manageable, the hard-worker, the player; the winners. It’s terribly difficult to coach the perpetually negative; the losers. Anyone would want to coach Derek Jeter; not too many would want to coach Barry Bonds.

And it’s like that in our pilgrimage too. It’s easy to love the lovable. Not so easy to love the unlovable.

I can love those folks who crank out an enthusiastic ‘Great sermon Pastor!’ all day long. It is much harder to love those who show up but never uncross their arms or wipe the scowl off their face or sing a song or even say hello or are more interested in where to go for lunch than they are about the call to put feet to faith.

I have to be honest: I’m not there yet. I am a complete failure in that regard. I know I should. I know the Spirit enables me. I know they need to be loved. But Oh, God it is so difficult. It is so hard to love those who know better and act worse. It’s terribly difficult to love those who show up at board meetings but won’t show up for worship. It’s hard to love those who do not love you. Seriously. It is beyond imagination hard.

Love is such a strange thing. If I love those contrary people…am I not giving up my rights? Am I not allowing my ego to be destroyed? What about my pride? I happen to know for a fact that I am right. Oh God this twisting inside me is killing me. I want so badly for God to do what is right and yet the only thing that seems to be making progress is the weakness that is pushing me closer and closer to the edge of a breakdown.

I keep telling God, “God, why won’t you do what is right?” And all I keep hearing him say in response is, “Why are you not loving my people? Those people, yes, those people.” “I am unworthy-how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth” (Job 40:4). Or, maybe it’s, “I am unwilling-why should I? I clench my teeth and harden my heart.”

Jesus could have said anything else to us; frankly I wish he had. He could have given us any other command or any other idea or any other teaching or any other way of demonstration. But he didn’t. He didn’t. He didn’t. The one he gave is the one that is killing me, killing us, killing the church because it is the one that is daily refused, especially here in the blog world, to be practiced.

“Love one another.”

He didn’t tell us to discriminate or separate the church into groups of sheep and goats and only love the lovely.

“Love one another.”

Die to your life; kill your pride. Love those he loved. Love those he died for. Feed his sheep. Lord, do you know what you are asking?

“Love one another.”

Lord, isn’t there some other way for me to show you that I love you? Can’t I memorize a book of the Bible instead? Isn’t a clanging cymbal a nice thing at times?

“Love one another.”

Lord, I can’t. They have hurt me. It’s a matter of principle. What about truth? What about right? Lord why do you seem to care more about their feelings than mine?

“Love one another.”

Lord, you are killing me. I’m dying here. I can’t breathe. I have no strength to do what you are asking.

“Love one another.”

Lord, they don’t. They make no effort. They don’t even care if I love them. They are sinning.

“Love one another.”

Lord, have mercy. Isn’t there some other way? How about if I serve poor people? Or give my body to save a dying person? How about if I preach a sermon in Greek? How about if I explain in great detail your Scriptures and defend truth?

“Love one another.”

“Love one another.”

______________________

See you at the field, thursday evening. I’ll be there. Managing. Coaching. Loving…all my boys.

Reflections on Pentecost Sunday, May 31, 2009

“Faith has to do with marrying Invisible and Visible. When we engage in an act of faith we give up control, we give up sensory (sight, hearing, etc.) confirmation of reality; we give up insisting on head knowledge as our primary means of orientation in life. The positive way to say this is that when we engage in an act of faith we choose to deal with a living God whom we trust to know what he is doing, we choose a way of life in which bodily senses and physical matter are understood as inseparable and organic to vast interiorities (soul) and immense beyonds (heaven), and we choose to no longer operate strictly on the basis of hard-earned knowledge, glorious as it is, but over a lifetime to embrace the mystery that ‘must dazzle gradually/Or every man go blind.’ (Eugene Peterson, The Jesus Way, 44; the quote at the end is from Emily Dickenson, The Complete Poems.)

I preached from Ezekiel 37 this morning but only the first 14 verses. The Lord takes Ezekiel for a walk through a valley, a plain—maybe the plain of Meggido—and shows him the remains of what had probably been a battle. The dead, likely of the losing army, had been left on the battle field. Their bodies over time had decayed and been picked clean by the animals and birds. All that was left was bones. A valley of dry, very dry bones. And as Ezekiel retells the events of that day, he recalled that the Lord had showed him all around the valley that day after setting him down in the very middle of that pile of bones. Listen to Ezekiel recall the day’s events.

The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “O Sovereign LORD, you alone know.”

Ezekiel was shown a valley of desolation, a plain of hopelessness, the valley of the shadow of death. There was nothing there but death, dead, dry bones and that is all that Ezekiel saw. Ezekiel was far too literal; he hadn’t yet developed the eyes of faith, eyes that see what eyes cannot see. The Lord showed Ezekiel everything there was to see: A vast, endless, sea of dead, dry, very dry bones. From a purely human point of view, the question the Lord asked Ezekiel was unfair and I believe that Ezekiel’s answer betrays that: “Lord, you alone know.”

This was, I believe, Ezekiel’s way of giving a perfectly orthodox theological answer without being committed to faith: “You alone know Lord.” Yes. The Lord knows. I think it was Ezekiel’s way of saying something like, “Lord, you can do anything, but I seriously doubt that this valley of dry, very dry bones can or will live. You alone know, Lord; yes, I agree. But this is a valley of dry bones. That’s all I see. There’s no hope for this valley of dry bones. And yet, Lord, I will obey; I will speak.”

The thing is, that’s not what the Lord saw. Later we learn what the Lord saw. Listen to what the Lord told the prophet.

Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, `Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off. Therefore prophesy and say to them: `This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.’ “

That’s the difference between God’s view of things and our view of things. God sees the things that we do not, or cannot. God sees life where there is death; hope where there is hopelessness; the House of Israel where there is only a valley of dry bones. God sees things that we cannot. You might say that God has a sort of faith that we do not. I might say I want that sort of faith.

Maybe Ezekiel wasn’t quite ready to give up control; maybe I’m not. He knew what he saw: A valley of dry, very dry bones. Maybe he wasn’t ready to give up sensory control or his insistence upon a purely intellectual, visual, orientation to life. It’s not easy to live in that sort of, from a human point of view, randomness. We like control. We like knowing, seeing, hearing. We do not like things being out of the ordinary; we like routine. Faith is a way of living that says, if I may, ‘to hell with routine; to hell with what I know, see, hear; to hell with control.’ I know that sounds almost like anarchy, but I assure you it is actually the sort of life (the only sort of life) that can say, “Yes Lord I will take my son, my only son, whom I love, and sacrifice him on a distant mountain even though I don’t see the sense of it;” or “Yes Lord I will prophesy to a valley of dead, dry bones even though I don’t think anything will happen when I do;” or “Yes, Lord, continue believing in you even though there are people who want to kill me for doing so;” or, “Yes, Lord, I will dance and become even more undignified even though people will mock me, people from within my own family; or, “Yes, Lord, I will go to the world with your hope even though they will reject me and crucify me.”

That kind of faith is the kind of faith that defines the people of Christ. And it is also the kind of faith that we are asked to exercise in every situation. The hardest times to exercise such faith are the times when we happen to think that such faith isn’t actually necessary. “Oh, it’s a small decision. I can make it on my own. God doesn’t care what sort of toaster I buy. All I need here is common sense and Sunday’s ads.” But that is not faith. Faith is that extraordinary trust, small and often indiscernible, even when things seem simple and uncomplicated. It might be easy to display a herculean sort of faith during times of great stress and pressure and attack, but I think it is most important to practice such faith when things are at their easiest and least complicated. It shows that we don’t trust ourselves at all; that we need guidance in all ways.

If we don’t practice such faith then, do you think we will practice such faith when life is up in arms and the enemy is crowding us, desiring more space in our lives, when things are really, really hard? If I won’t have the faith required to preach faithfully to a captive audience (let’s face it, a valley of dry bones is a rather captive audience; they’re not going anywhere; they can’t do anything but ‘listen’), then how will I faithfully preach to a living body of Christ? (Maybe it says something about Ezekiel that the Lord entrusted him to preach to a valley of dry bones first before he asked him to preach to the ‘whole house of Israel’.) It’s a small thing to preach to dry bones; it’s quite another thing to preach to the Living Body of Christ. I notice Ezekiel did preach to the bones; we are not told that he preached this particular message to the ‘whole house of Israel’ (See vss 7, 10, 12-14.)

I know I am mixing up all these words: Faith, faithfulness, God’s ‘faith’, my faith. What I’m getting at though is that perhaps faith is the letting go of what we know and see and hear and the living of life that comes from knowing, seeing and hearing and instead living a life that is oriented around what God sees, hears, and knows. I mean think about it, what’s better? Preaching to what we see, that is, a valley of dry bones or preaching to what God sees, the whole house of Israel? But until we have the sort of eyes that see what God sees, the whole house of Israel, our efforts, our preaching, our faith—indeed, our very lives–will be full of frustration and futility.

We live by faith, not sight. But it’s that kind of faith; God’s kind of faith. So Ezekiel prophesied.

And there was a noise, a rattling sound.

Most of us are, at various times, susceptible to using rhetoric that is inflammatory, illogical, careless, rude, or divisive.  This waywardness of the tongue (or typing, as it were) is often found in the presence of impatience, hastiness, defensiveness, passion, anger, pain, and a variety of other (often negative) thoughts, feelings and emotions.  Sometimes, however, it can simply be a failure in communication.  I had a college professor who would tell us that some questions are unanswerable because the question is faulty.  “Do you still beat your wife?” is a yes or no question that I personally cannot answer with a yes or a no because I have never beaten my wife.  We are sometimes prone to asking questions and making statements like this as well.  We like things to be either/or.

I have been somewhat surprised at the conversations that have been taking place on CRN.Info over the past couple of days.  The norm around here has been typical of many relationships in our lives, which involve 4 ways in which we respond to what others around us say: 1) we agree with them, 2) we ignore them, 3) we get upset with them, but agree to disagree, or 4) we fight it out.  Each response has its place; but sometimes I forget the value of the fourth one (fighting it out) when done in grace, respect, and forgiveness because it is so often done out of a heart and mind clouded by the previously mentioned attitutdes.  When we are willing and committed to fight it out (not fight for the sake of fighting) in the community of God, our hearts and minds, our very selves are challenged and stretched to grow.

What we say and how we say it can direct a conversation, but it can also redeem a conversation.  My desire has been to avoid asking questions (and making statements) that are fueled by ignorance, faulty thinking, and/or strong emotions.  This has led me of late to talk a lot less (often about even important matters).  But I suppose that if those things never came out, we’d all be agreeing with and ignoring each other.  Healthy, functional relationships rely on the ability to disagree and even argue, knowing that when all is said and done, we’re all growing to become like Christ.  Hopefully I can begin to listen all the time, and speak up when it matters.

(so as not to have to pay royalties to Jerry for calling it the “Thought for the Day”)  

Osawld Chambers on discipleship:

Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you . . . — Luke 10:20

Worldliness is not the trap that most endangers us as Christian workers; nor is it sin. The trap we fall into is extravagantly desiring spiritual success; that is, success measured by, and patterned after, the form set by this religious age in which we now live. Never seek after anything other than the approval of God, and always be willing to go “outside the camp, bearing His reproach” (Hebrews 13:13). In Luke 10:20, Jesus told the disciples not to rejoice in successful service, and yet this seems to be the one thing in which most of us do rejoice. We have a commercialized view— we count how many souls have been saved and sanctified, we thank God, and then we think everything is all right. Yet our work only begins where God’s grace has laid the foundation. Our work is not to save souls, but to disciple them. Salvation and sanctification are the work of God’s sovereign grace, and our work as His disciples is to disciple others’ lives until they are totally yielded to God. One life totally devoted to God is of more value to Him than one hundred lives which have been simply awakened by His Spirit. As workers for God, we must reproduce our own kind spiritually, and those lives will be God’s testimony to us as His workers. God brings us up to a standard of life through His grace, and we are responsible for reproducing that same standard in others.

Unless the worker lives a life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3), he is apt to become an irritating dictator to others, instead of an active, living disciple. Many of us are dictators, dictating our desires to individuals and to groups. But Jesus never dictates to us in that way. Whenever our Lord talked about discipleship, He always prefaced His words with an “if,” never with the forceful or dogmatic statement— “You must.” Discipleship carries with it an option.

Introduction

“The difference between the kingdoms of the world and the kingdom of God lies exactly in this, that the kingdom of God comes through the death and resurrection of his Son, not through naked displays of brute force or wealth.” (N.T. Wright, Surprised By Hope, 245)

And if this is true, and it must be, then the church too comes through the death and resurrection of His Son and not through naked power plays or displays of brute force or the collection of massive amounts of wealth. We are created as one people in him, and through him, and by him.

We have a sense of what this means but only a glimmer because we haven’t yet succeeded. We still think that the power we work with in the church is the same as the conventional power of the world. We think whoever yells the loudest, whoever makes the most noise, whoever has the biggest coffers—we think they are the ones who will get things done and be the leaders. We think they are the ones necessarily blessed, the ones in whom the Kingdom surely is.

But all he gave us is death, burial, and resurrection. That is what we are armed with in this world. These are what define us: Defeat (death); Disdain (burial); Dominion (resurrection). And yet this is what we have; this is who we are.

In this post, the writers of CRN.info offer you personal reflections on one of the resurrection stories of Jesus found in John’s Gospel. Be blessed in His grace and His resurrection.
————————————

A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

(John 20:26-29)

————————————

Brendt

It’s been said many times before that “doubting” Thomas gets a bad rap, and it’s been noted that Jesus did not condemn him, but met him where he was.

But what occurred to me the other day was that Scripture does not tell us that Thomas put his “finger into the print of the nails” or put his “hand into [Jesus'] side”. I don’t think that was just because John was running out of parchment, and he figured that he’d better abbreviate the story, but rather that John didn’t write about what didn’t happen.

So Thomas did not need to fulfill the acts that he had earlier declared necessary for him to believe. Instead, he immediately recognized Jesus for Who He was, and not just some dude from Nazareth, but his Lord and his God.

So why did Thomas recognize Him thusly? Might it be that when Jesus said “because you have seen Me”, He wasn’t simply talking about an experience of Thomas’ optic nerves? Might it be that only his Lord and his God would meet him where he was? Might it be that only his Lord and his God would display such an attitude? Might it be that only his Lord and his God, while acknowledging that it would have been better for Thomas to believe without seeing, still gave him the opportunity to see, and did not make a blanket rejection of him because of a moment of weakness?

Thomas is not the only one to whom Jesus reveals Himself in order to help someone believe.  Such is the graciousness of our Lord and our God.

————————————

Chris L.

As I consider Thomas (and others like him, I suspect), I wonder how often my words, thoughts and actions belie a hidden belief that Jesus is still on the cross and that the tomb is not empty. How often do I emphasize the cross, my fallenness and Jesus’ sacrifice, forgetting that he rose again, and that his resurrection is a call to live?

Yes, the cross was absolutely necessary. Yes, Jesus’ death paid the ransom to Satan - replacing his rightful accusations against us - and left us sinless before God. But Jesus’ death would have been a true defeat had the tomb remained empty.

Are we like Thomas when we keep Jesus on the cross and live as if he’s still in the grave - waiting around for things to improve once we die? Do we miss the call to live life more abundantly? Do we miss what Jesus taught because we get caught up in who he is? Do we miss that he freed us from seeing God’s instruction, His Torah, as a set of minimum rules to be kept, instead giving us the ability to live by the aims of God’s Torah - to love God with our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbors as ourselves?

Are we like Thomas’ predecessors - OUR predecessors, recognizing that God brought us out of Egypt - but refusing to enter the Promised Land. Refusing to enter out of fear, and doubt - not allowing ourselves to go beyond awe and respect for God to experience the boundless love He has for His children?

We, like sheep, have all gone astray. But the Good Shepherd lives and breathes and cares for us. Let us eat from the pastures He provides. Let us drink from the waters of shalom to which He brings us. Let us fear no lasting harm when He leads us through the valley of the shadow of death. Let us eat confidently when we eat at the banquet table He has presented us, in the presence of our enemies. Let us praise Him, honor Him and LIVE for Him in His house - both now and into eternity.

Let us believe in the open and empty tomb, and the life that it brings.

Shalom
————————————

Eugene

When I meditated on John 20:26-27 today, I experienced peace… Peace not because of what I believe but peace because of what Jesus did in spite of Thomas’ unbelief and what He does in spite of mine. Jesus did not tell Thomas “Depart from me you evil unbelieving excuse for a human being”. No, He met Thomas where he was – in his state of doubt. That is the Christ that has been revealed to us – the One who comes to the aid of the helpless. We see this character trait of God from the very beginning of creation. When Adam and Eve sinned He reached out to them; when Israel was enslaved in Egypt unable to help themselves He came to the rescue; when David sinned God sent a prophet so that David might have the chance to repent; when we were still without strength Christ died for the ungodly (Rom 5:6); when one sheep wanders off He leaves the ninety nine; when Thomas doubted Jesus said reach here…

This gives me peace for no longer do I have to believe the right things, doctrines, algebraic systematic theology in order to be right with God. It is no longer dependent on my understanding or lack thereof. Whenever I’m in doubt I can just call out: “My Lord and my God.” He is the one who saves, He is the one restores and my soul is safe in His hands. Like Thomas’ faith grew through relationship with Christ my faith in Him will grow as I get to know Him better. Though my faith has grown I am no more saved today than I was yesterday, and would I stumble and fall in my faith I will not be less saved then than I am now.

————————————

Jerry

I am getting ready to make some major changes in my life. These changes will not be easy and, to be sure, I am not a little terrified. Stepping out into the world, such as it is, and doing ministry in a whole new way is, at my age, a daunting prospect.

I was at a prayer meeting a couple of weeks ago. Several of my friends and peers and fellow ministers from area churches were there. I confessed to these men that I was embarrassed that I was such a failure at ministry. I don’t have the gift of church growth and it seems that my personality is not suited to the sort of politics that are necessary to keep a local church thriving. (See Confessions of a Frustrated (Christian) Preacher, 1 & 2)

I confessed to the men gathered that I was embarrassed that I was such a failure at ministry, that I was ashamed that despite all my work and prayers and faithful preaching, I could not seem to get any church to grow. Nearly 10 years at my current location—and for what? That’s when one of the preachers touched me on the shoulder and reminded me that my identity as a human, as a Christian, is not determined by failure or by other people’s opinion of me and my failure. He reminded me that the only opinion that matters is Jesus’ and Jesus says, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

So as it is, I may never have to hide behind locked doors. I may never have the sort of doubts Thomas had. I may never stick my finger in His side. This side of eternity, I may never see Him. I may never be Thomas or in the exact same situation Thomas and the others found themselves in that day when Jesus stood among them. I will never grow a big church. I will never be the lead pastor of a thriving congregation with a huge budget and my own youtube channel and blog read by millions. But one thing I will always be is Blessed. Because Jesus said so.

Think of that: The mouth of the Savior of the World, the Mouth of the Resurrected Lord, the Mouth of the Crucified King has pronounced me, us, you, Blessed! We are blessed! We are not defined by our defeat and failure, but by our belief. Those who believe, they are Blessed!

Imagine that! Jesus Christ, resurrected, says that we are blessed! Blessed!

Charis & Pax

————————————

Christian

It is still interesting to me how many different ways we can respond to a short passage of scripture.  This is as true for one person as they grow in Christ and discover new insights and new connections to their own faith, as it is for a small group of people sharing a reading together.  In our responses we may connect what we know and think, how we feel, who we interact with, and where we are at in life.

Passages like these are of particular interest because there are so many questions that we don’t have the answers to such as “Why wasn’t Thomas with the other disciples the first time Jesus appeared?”  We also make assumptions because we haven’t asked enough questions (or at least enough of the right questions).  We call him “Doubting Thomas” even though he wasn’t the only one who doubted.  We talk about having faith even though we can’t see and touch.  But this story isn’t included because Thomas didn’t believe, it is included because he witnessed the resurrected Jesus and did believe.

It is in this moment with Thomas that John presents the climax of everything we read about Jesus.  Immediately after this passage in John 20:30-31 we are told,

Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

For all our learning, knowledge, insight, reflection, emotions, words, actions, hurts, bad choices, and even sins, we come before the resurrected Jesus believing that He is the Christ, the Son of God… and in His name we have life.

————————————

Live Blessed! Be the Bride! And may all glory be to Christ Jesus both now and forever. Amen.

Following on the heels of Tim Challies, Michael ‘iMonk’ Spencer has truly outdone himself with a beautiful metaphor that I wish I could just steal and claim as my own.  Weed eaters.

Spencer writes:

There’s nothing quite as empowering to a middle school boy as to be given a weed-eater of his very own. Armed with the machine, safety glasses and an orientation, they come marching across the campus taking on weeds and untrimmed grass like Sherman’s march to the sea.

If there was ever any tentativeness in these weed-eating workers, it all vanishes when they get their first taste of the power of the weed-eater. With a squeeze of the trigger, the power to eliminate weeds replaces the fear of what might happen in using such a dangerous device. Lazy middle school boys are transformed into the scourge of weeds and untidy lawns everywhere.

As I read the article, I can remember my own days as a freshman at a Christian college, incredulous that there could even be a Young Democrats chapter at a Christian college.  What an oxymoron, right?  And the zeal with which I argued and debated friends and rivals, alike, on the evils of alcohol - because teatotalling is right next to godliness.  And the folks who believed in anything other than literal 6-day, young earth creationism?  Make way, you godless heathens, wolves in sheep’s clothing!

There is, unfortunately, a not so charming side effect of this transformation. In the ensuing attack on weeds and sidewalk scruffiness of all kinds, most of the other flora and fauna of the campus is put at some risk from overenthusiastic weed warriors.

So in addition to a tidy campus and well attended faculty and staff lawns, there are frequent attacks on flower beds, gardens and much loved decorative hedges and bushes. Small fences are no obstacle to a boy convinced that some stray sprig of wayward grass is attempting to survive the Day of the Weed-eater.

Flowers and other decorative plants are at real risk when the power of a gang of boys go out into the neighborhood to do good. They are armed and dangerous. The neighborhood will be improved.

Zealousness is not at issue, which I believe sometimes I (and other writers at CRN.Info) am mistaken to be against.  We are called to have zeal for the Lord and to do His work with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength.  Where that becomes a problem is when we start assuming the place of God, in judging the hearts of others, or the Holy Spirit, in convicting them.  We may effectively ‘whack some weeds’, but who knows how many beneficial plants we damage in the process.

Spencer acknowledges this dark side of ‘zeal’ -

So as I get older, I see many of my zealous brothers and sisters armed with the Bible, heading out into the church to do what they believe is a good work of killing weeds.

The results are predictably predictable.

Be less enthralled with your ability to trim the grass brothers, friends. Be less certain that you are qualified to tell the difference between a weed and a flower that has yet to bloom. Learn to use your power equipment carefully. You can do a lot of damage. All does not depend on you cutting down every unknown and out of place plant. You are not saving us from the arrival of the jungle.

And this is where I often find myself.  Reminded of Jesus’ admonition to serve and to love his bride - even the parts I may not personally like.  In a place of a concerned steward protecting gardens and flower beds from undiscerning, yet possibly well-intentioned youths, armed with their shiny new weed-eaters.

iMonk concludes:

It was the Pharisees that Jesus criticized for their weed-eater mentality. They were obsessed with separation. They were tithing their spices. They were experts in staying on the case until the weeds were revealed.

Jesus wants us to be gardeners, but we do have to deal with weeds. Did any gardener ever say “Let the weeds grow” except for Jesus?

Some of us have set our sights (sites) on being full-time weed eaters and we’re having a very good time. The body of Christ needs a few. But only a few. And be careful, please. Very careful.

And I would wholeheartedly agree.  This is why we support true, professional discernment ministries like Reasons to Believe, Christian Research Institute, and Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.  While we recognize that these ministries may not always agree with one another, nor always we with them, they are managed by Christians who understand that there’s a place for weed eaters, and there’s a place for more careful trimming.

How easy is it to stand on moral high ground and shout insults to those not doing as well as us? How easy is it to use the truth of the Bible as a battle axe against those who do not conform to our standards? Until… we catch a glimpse of ourselves in that mirror…

We decided to have an “experience service” this year with Easter with an altered version of the Stations of the Cross. One of the stations consists of a cross with a mirror next to it. The idea is to see yourself as one of the criminals crucified next to Jesus. As we were setting it up yesterday I stood in front of it with my dirty work clothes and it hit me… I am that criminal… dirty in sin… not worthy to be called a Christian (little Christ). The fact that Jesus wants me… that is just Amazing Grace!

Jesus wants you too…

An excerpted from a message by Matt Chandler at DG’s pastors conference. I found it here.

From “Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus” (p. 170):

Later rabbis also preached about sin by comparing small sins to greater ones.  Listen to what they say about gossip:

“To which is gossip more similar, robbery or murder?”

“Murder, because robbers can always give back what they’ve stolen, but gossips can never repair the damage they’ve done.”

To them, humiliating someone publicly was also like murder, because “the pain of humiliation is more bitter than death.”  The rabbis called such sin “whitening of the face” because when a person’s face pales with shame, it’s as if a pallor of death has overtaken him or her.  “Therefore,” they said, “one should rather fling himself into a fiery furnace than humiliate someone in public.”

Such comments remind us of Jesus’ striking exhortations to cut off your hand or pluck out your eye should they cause you to sin (also in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:29-30).  The rabbis knew the great damage that even tiny sins can do.  A little bit of gossip can ruin a reputation.  One sharp retort can ignite a war.  The goal of their exaggerations was to impress upon their listeners the dire consequences of sin.  Jesus, too, was urging his listeners to avoid evil at all costs.  His strong warnings express his anguish at the destruction that ensues when we do not resist temptation at the very beginning.

During Lent, I have been preaching about Christian unity in my church (mostly from 1 Corinthians, although this week is from Ephesians 4). We have also read a book called Together Again by Bob Russell and Rick Atchley. It is a short book, but a good book that seeks to help, in part, heal the ginormous rift that existed in so-called Restoration Movement churches. At the root of our division has been the issue of instrumental music; no small rift I assure you. I believe it took an enormous amount of courage for these two preachers of the Gospel, from opposites sides of the proverbial keyboard, to write this book and I have benefited greatly from their wisdom.

But I think there can be a wider application of their work in the broader, wider body of Christ. Here, then, is how they conclude their work:

Often the reason we struggle to accept those who disagree with us is that we are hesitant to accept the radical implications of God’s grace. It is difficult to set aside our pride and admit it is by grace we are saved, not by moral or theological perfection. ‘Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God’ (wrote Paul in Romans 15:7).

We are saved by Christ, not correctness. If that’s true, then we can accept someone whose doctrine isn’t perfectly aligned with ours. Someone said, ‘If we spent more time at the cross of Jesus, we would spend less time being cross with each other!’ Let’s accept that a man doesn’t have to be my twin brother. Let’s admit that none of us has achieved doctrinal perfection, and let’s be thankful that we’re saved by grace.

[...]

We can’t manufacture unity. We can’t transform people’s lives. We can’t save the world. But Jesus Christ can. If we will just lift him up, if we will just speak the truth with a humble, loving spirit, he will draw all men to himself and we will be one in him. (121-122, 123)

So this is yet another word on the grace of God. (I’m trying to find 100,000 ways to say we are saved by grace. I’m up to about 20-25.) I stand amazed at the grace and power of God to bring us together as one people in Christ. Let us all work together to see the church, the greater church, brought together under the headship and banner of Christ, united together in the bond of peace, transformed by the grace of God, and growing and building ourselves up, together, in love.

Be blessed in him. Praise be to God for his indescribable gift.