The Literal Linus

Last year I watched the Peanuts Christmas special for the first time since being a kid. I had little interest, but my daughter was finally old enough to care, so we watched it together. The show is about Charlie Brown's struggle to get the "true meaning of Christmas." All his friends argue for the hoopla, and it really gets him stressed and depressed. When Charlie's frustration reaches its peak, Linus stands up to tell everyone the "true meaning of Christmas". He quotes from Luke 2.

I jumped out of my chair and pumped my fists in the air. "YES!" I loved it. Thank you Charles Schultz, and thank God for you.

Awesome, but I'd like to take you a slightly different direction. Let's go with the technically true meaning of "Christmas":

The results of Messiah.

Christos is Greek for Messiah, the one God promised to send to save Israel and the world. Mas is a suffix that we see in other words like charisma, diploma, enigma, and Alabama (okay, not that last one). The suffix means "the results of" or "in relation to".

So, everything that results form Jesus is, technically speaking, the true meaning of Christmas.

I no longer stand condemned. Merry Christmas! I am connected to the loving family of God. Merry Christmas! I am a part of ushering in the Kingdom of God to redeem the world. Merry Christmas!

As I think this through, one of the "Christmas-es" (the results of his coming) is this ornate over-the-top festival at the end of December. If the church did not pump this hol(y)day up as the birth of Jesus, it would have never become this big.

Along with a lot of silliness associated with Christmas is the beauty of gift-giving and family fellowship and giving to charity. All over the world people feel the merry results of his coming.

Okay, since this is really about the results of Jesus, what ought to be the defining features of how we celebrate Christmas?

Ann Gnass

 Today is the funeral of Ann Gnass. Her life, as I knew it, was marked by generosity. I could not recount all of the gifts she has given me and my family. The same could be said by most people in our church. Even now there are a bunch of Christmas gift bags in my office that are to be distributed to children of the church. Those kids are going to have to wait to thank her directly.

Also there are thousands of poor and homeless people in this area, Detroit, Appalachia and elsewhere who have been touched by the grace of God as she administered it. See you later, you will be missed in the mean time.

Just a thought...

A lot of people get upset that Jesus has to share a spotlight with Santa Claus this time of year, however, can you name a time of year when he has more spotlight? You can't turn on the radio without hearing songs about him or go to the store without seeing many artistic recreations of his birth. You might say Easter, but Easter does not take the nation's attention for a month and a half the way Christmas does. My point is, I'm shocked and elated at how much spotlight Jesus draws this time of year. Just a thought...

What are you doing here?

With the celebration of Jesus coming already upon us, I thought it would be good to ask him "Why have you come?"

I have not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. (Matt 5:17)
I have not come to bring peace tot he earth. (Matt 10:34)
I have not come to be served. (Matt 10:28)
I have not come to judge the world. (John 12:47)
I have not come to call the righteous. (Matt 9:13)

I came so that my sheep may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10)
I came to seek and to save that which was lost. (Luke 19:10)
I came to be a light for those in darkness. (John 12:46)
I came to save the world. (John 12:47)
I came for judgment, that the blind will see and those who see will be blind. (John 9:39)
I came to do God’s will, bringing eternal life to those who look to me. (John 6:38)
I came to preach. (Mark 1:38)
I came to bring a sword and fire, turning families against one another. (Matt 10:34, Luke 12:49)
I came to fulfill the Law and Prophets. (Matt 5:17)
I came to serve. (Matt 20:28)
I came for THE hour. (John 12:47)
I came to ransom my life for yours. (Matt 20:28)
I came to be king. (John 18:37)

I hope I didn't miss any.

Innocence

This is my favorite picture. In this moment, they both seem perfect.

However, I have been taught that biblically, the term perfect refers more to completeness or full maturity than it does to sinlessness (thought that would be part of the the completeness). If that's true, and I believe that it is, is it true that babies are perfect?

We often say that they are. They have not yet soiled themselves with lewd thoughts and hurtful behavior. But if perfection is completeness or full maturity, then babies are about as as imperfect as they come. They have long way to go to get to perfection. This is obvious in the physical, emotional and mental aspect, but they certainly have a long way to go spiritually as well.

If perfection or completeness is defined by the pure and selfless love of Jesus, as I contend it should be, then again babies probably have longest to go. As much as I adore my children and many, many other children, I have to concede that they are selfish. I love my ten month old son with all my heart, but I admit that for the thousands of tears that he has already shed, not one have been for anyone but him. I very much doubt that he has any concept of how his mom or dad feel or what they're going through. Of course, I would never hold that against him. I don't expect anything different. I don't expect the same level of perfection (maturity) from him as I would an adult.

These are some things that have been running through my head that have been altering how I approach spiritual growth. Jesus asks us to be perfect. If it were just about sinlessness, I could point to the cross and declare, "Done!" But it's about full maturity too (which is also a gift of grace by the constant work of the Holy Spirit, but requires me to be in concert with him).

It changes my approach to parenting too. I must be equally concerned with teaching them to love selflessly as I am about enforcing my list of "Thou shalt not's".

And it alters the way I view many other things. For instance, the excuse "I was born this way" loses all steam when we realize we were born as imperfect as possible.

What do you think?

A Happy Anniversary

Yesterday was the fifth anniversary of our wedding. We spent the day celebrating one of the finest blessings the good Lord has ever given. One of my surprises for her included carving this pumpkin. Cindie put together one of our wedding pictures with our vows. It was awesome.

Selecting an Audience

When I read Rick Warren's "Purpose-Driven Church", one of the things that made me squirm was the picture of Saddleback Sam. Warren was talking about how his church had determined to define in detail who their audience was. For them it was a male, young urban professional. They wrapped up everything they knew about this demographic into one symbolic and fictional character they called Saddleback Sam. They even have a picture of this prototypical guy in the book
(The picture above is not the same picture, though it is close).

This made me very uneasy. I think it stemmed from the misunderstanding that this is the only type of person they were open to or interested in reaching. I've since learned that is not the case, but he is their primary target.

I'm not trying to proof-text, but it does seem that Paul and Barnabas had a primary target. Acts 13:5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. Often they started with a focus on those who already understood who YHWH was. Perhaps it had to do with some lingering questions about the Gentiles place in all of this. Perhaps the Jews were just typically more receptive... I don't know.

However, the Holy Spirit redirected them and sent them to testify before the Roman Proconsul Sergius Paulus.

I think, then it comes to this: Using worldy marketing methods, such as defining your audience, are not necessarily bad. But we should not hold so devoutly to them when the Spirit leads in other directions. Where there is revelation obey. Where there is no revelation, use wisdom.

incorrigible

Acts 12:24 But the word of God continued to increase and spread.

Despite the persecution that drove every Christian except for the Apostles from Jerusalem, despite the arrest and execution of James so of Zebedee, despite Simon Peter's imprisonment, despite the need to go underground, the word of God continued to increase and spread.

We have a heritage and a history of being unstoppable, unflappable, insuppressible, and unrelenting.

Erwin McManus has commented that people ask him, "What is it today that keeps the church from realizing her full potential?"

His response: "Nothing!" Jesus has said that not even the Gates of Hell will be able to overcome it. (Matthew 16:18)

Sure there are trials and tests. But the same things which can serve as friction to slow us down can serve as traction to speed us up.

So, what will slow us? Budget? The lack of resources can make us more dependent on God... Definitely a good thing.

A corrupt culture? It just gives the lost more that they desire freedom from.

independent isolationistic culture? Just makes people hungrier for community.

Only internal things like fear, doubt and apathy can keep us from seeing our full potential, No external circumstances can stop the body of Christ.

But the church...

When Herod put James, one of the Apostles, to death with the sword, his approval ratings went through the roof. So, he went out and got Peter.

But the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

He was guarded by four squads of four soldiers. One prisoner guarder by 16 soldiers.

But the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

Peter slept between two soldiers, bound in chains, with guards standing at the entrance.

But the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

Acts 12:5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

Peter seemed destined to the same ending as his old fishing buddy.

But the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

That's where the story turns. The events of history turned on that one event. The church earnestly prayed and everything changed. What follows in Acts 12:6-11 is quite possibly the motivation behind the song, "God Will Make a Way". An angel comes. The chains fall off. Gates open. Houdini would be jealous.

Oh, that we could tag this phrase to the end of today's plights.

The sex trade was thriving in Eastern Europe, but the church was earnestly praying to God.
The world closed their eyes to what was happening in Darfur, but the church was earnestly praying to God.

The destruction wrought by Katrina brought chaos and lawlessness to New Orleans, but the church was earnestly praying to God.

Egypt outlawed evangelism under penalty of death, but the church was earnestly praying to God.

Can you imagine?

The First, But Not The Last

Acts 11:26-30
The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.
During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) The disciples, each according to his ability, decided to provide help for the brothers living in Judea. This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.

These folks would make Barnabas, Saul and the folks at Antioch proud. I think they'd say, "Yeah, that's what it means to be called Christ-ian." That the Acts church continued.

Here are two links that I feel very comfortable recommending as places through which you can do an Antioch-type thing:

IDES
(more to come)

Growing

When I was a junior one of my friends told me that he had some struggles believing that God makes a difference in people's lives, but observing me had been a real boost in his faith that God still works in people's lives. I do not say this to boast. He was spot on to remind me how incredibly pompous I had been in the past. He was not saying that I had become something special, merely something better than I had been. It was sop encouraging to have someone notice the difference.

A week and a half ago 'Frank' asked me to describe how I had changed over the past five years. I wanted to respond quickly, but have struggled to put my finger on what is different. I could say 'I've grown' or 'I've matured', but these things are too vague to be of any value.

I have noticed recently some changes that are not particularly good. I used to be much more outgoing. The school environment played a big part in that. Now, I don't spend near as much time with people outside my family as I used to. I'm becoming more(even too)introverted.


Other things that I would have hoped five years ago would have changed by now have not. I'm still a walking time-management nightmare.

But what good changes have taken place? I've learned to share... My time, my responsibilities, decision-making. The love of the Christ's church has moved from my mind to my hands and then into my heart. I've gone from naive to cynical to trusting (a track I'll probably continue to make laps on).

I've learned that I need to check my ego at the door every day. I've learned not to lionize or envy other pastors. I've learned to embrace reality over fantasy. It's really much better. I learned to cherish older people.


I say all this to bring glory to Jesus Christ who shapes me guides me , transforms me, and recreates me into something a bit more like himself.

Sleeping With the Fishes

Sunday afternoon, Cindie and I were waking Hannah from her afternoon nap when we noticed Dorothy, her fish was lay still on the glass marbles that line the bottom of the fish bowl.

We brought Hannah downstairs while we did a quick brainstorm. What do we do? Swap in a new fish and hope she doesn't know the difference, or introduce her to one of life's most painful truths?

We chose truth. Cindie told her that Dorothy was dead. We were not sure she would even know what that meant. She said she wanted to see. So we went back upstairs with her. When she saw dead Dorothy, she began to sob. "I don't want Dorothy to be dead."

And at that I began to cry over $1.29 Meijer-purchased Beta that has always brought me more pain than pleasure.

Numerphobia

This past week, while sorting through the mail at church, I came across an envelope with a hand-written address but no return address. I opened the envelope, and the only thing in it was a "Mega Millions" lottery ticket. The date for the drawing was before the post mark on the envelope. Therefore, I reasoned that the person who sent this had already discovered what it was worth and decided to give it in secret.

Not long ago I was talking to someone and the conversation came up about what we would do if we suddenly had a fortune. This person told me that they would give millions to the church. The conversation made me a touch uncomfortable. First, it seems unhealthy to fantasize about such situations.

Secondly the reality of what likely would happen to the church if we suddenly had millions of dollars scares me. The differing agendas would create intensified conflict. It would be a very difficult test of our unity and character. That kind of money can make people go mad.

So as I checked the numbers on the Mega Millions website, I didn't know whether to be disappointed or relieved that the ticket was not a winner.

Mostly, I was just confused. Why did someone send us a losing lottery ticket?

5 years

In April of 2000, I walked into the lower level of the church building with my then-girlfriend-now-wife Cindie.

"You're late." The observation was Gene's, an elder who had formerly been "in the ministry" himself.

In retrospect, I wonder what I must have looked like. A twenty-two year-old college senior, walking in twenty minutes late, with his girlfriend and without a clue. I credit those guys with great courage, though they probably had very little idea what they were getting themselves into.

Insanely, Cindie and I seemed to have many more reservations about trying to lead people two, three, and four times our age into spiritual maturity. We were terrified. There were many long talks and arguments and fights and tears that went into this decision. But when all was said and done, we knew that this is where God wanted us to be.

Of the fifty-some people that voted, there were five who voted 'no'.

Since that time, one word has defined the way this church me, and my family: grace. I have been instructed, corrected, encouraged and supported by the eldership. We have not had to sweat much about money. We have been cared for like family.

Mark Christian once told me that if you play your cards right, the honeymoon period between minister and church can last for decades. The honeymoon has lasted for five years now, but I credit them more than I credit anything I have done.

Acts 2

Acts 2:42-47 They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

It's more than a little odd to me that so many differing visions for what the church should be have been based off this one text. A2 is a conference put on by the good folks at Willow Creek. They see their ministry as a fulfillment of the Acts 2 passage. So do house churches. So does the church at which I serve.

I guess it just hits us in different ways. Maybe that's God's intention. I am encouraged and inspired by the many different ways I am seeing this vision fleshed out. What do you think the fulfillment of that passage would look like.

Not a Soaker-Oriented Church

A couple of summers ago, a buddy of mine from high school asked me to return to Algonac and conduct his wedding. The wedding was held at the smallest church building I've ever seen. The church there was "Soaker-Oriented". They had little regard for redeeming a broken world. They just came on Sunday's and soaked in the beautiful traditions. It was about them. Guests might be begrudgingly welcome so long as they make no attempt rock the boat. As small as my hometown is, I didn't even know that this church existed until I did this wedding.

As I talked to some of the people belonging to that church, I found that their doors were about to close. Understandably, this was very painful for them. But the way they were dealing with this pain was inexcusable.

"We have all decided that we are not going to another church for at least a year." As one old lady told me this, my blood began to boil. How dare they withhold their resources from the kingdom!? With such a self-centered mindset, it's no wonder their doors closed. Perhaps it was better that their disease be quarantined from the rest of the Church.

This was not an Acts 29 church. They were not a continuation of the practices and attitudes of the Church in Acts.

Acts 11:19-21
Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews. Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

As a result of persecution, these folks not only had to close the church doors in Jerusalem, they had to leave town. But they did not run off to sit and sulk about what was lost. They became missionaries. Average members became founded churches wherever they went. And they did this despite (or perhaps due to) losing the leadership of the Apostles (8:1).

They understood the Commission is not just for clergy. It was the responsibility of every person who called Jesus "Lord". Far from being Soakers, they were Seekers as Jesus defined the term in Matthew 6:33

Hard to hear from atop a soap box

When I first was studying the reaction of the Jewish Christians to the conversion of the of Gentiles (10:44- 11:18) I was disappointed. How could they have bee so narrow-minded. Had not Jesus made it abundantly clear that the gospel should be spread to all nations?

The more I thought about it, though, the more impressed I was. The change that had just been introduced to them was seismic, and yet all they required was a simple explanation for their grumbling to turn to praise. This shows an incredible openness to change. They simply needed to see how this was God-directed.

Perhaps God's people today are not as stubborn as we like to think. Perhaps they simply need a clear, theo-centric explanation of the need/reason for change.

What would have happened if Peter stormed off in a self-righteous huff? "How dare they question me? I'm an Apostle, capital A! I'm the Rock! Do they suppose to know Jesus better than I?" Would their grumbling have ever turned to praise over the Gentile mission?

Sometimes the problem is not the audience or the message but the messenger. It's hard to hear from atop a soap box. We would do well to be as humble and patient as Peter. See how God will use a simple explanation to turn grumbling to praise.

Next to Godliness

Leviticus 11:44-47 "I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves about on the ground. 45 I am the LORD who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.
46 "'These are the regulations concerning animals, birds, every living thing that moves in the water and every creature that moves about on the ground. 47 You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.'"

The event of Peter's vision (10:9 and following)is monumental. I'm not confident I understand what is happening. But I will give my best shot. Here's my take so far:

1. These animals really had been unclean. Read Leviticus 11. Someone who loved the LORD would have had no part with them. 2. God is not telling Peter that it is okay to eat what is unclean. He is not giving permission to do wrong. The voice said, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." 3. It's not that God has flip-flopped. He has not changed his mind as much as he has changed the animal. These animals which had been unclean were now clean. Another product of the cross, perhaps.

Why would God purify the pig?* The only plausible reason I can think of (and the one spelled out with Peter's imminent involvement with the house of Cornelius) is that it frees his people to the unclean without being infected. I guess it is because he loves people that much.


*Why would God purify a pig? I meant this as a literal question. But taken figuratively, it is the mystery of the cross.

(And the picture came from lutheranwomen.ca)

Where You Are

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6)

In a place untouched by Christian mission work, God was already preparing the harvest. The uncircumcised Gentile, Cornelius, and his household (his family and servants) had already learned enough about God to desire to please him. Acts 10:2 "He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly."

It does remind me of that line from the Sermon on the mount. They hungered for righteousness, and now that the Kingdom had arrived, they could finally have it.

It also reminds me, in a way like Robinson Crusoe, that God is at work everywhere. The King is the better part of the Kingdom. He moves with and without his people following. My part (as Henry Blackabee taught so well) is to pay attention to where he is working and join in.

We need to be humble enough with people to remember that very rarely are we really introducing someone to God. Their experience with us is likely not their first experience with the Kingdom. You are probably not "the only Jesus they will ever see." You will probably not have to take someone from the starting line to the finish line all by yourself. Simply do your (Spirit-empowered) best to do you part to feed those who hunger.

In time of terror

I included this prayer back in the beginning of June. I found it in "A Ragamuffin Prayer", a compilation of prayers and writings about prayer by Jimmy Abegg, member of the Ragamuffin Band. It seems all the more appropriate today considering what happened in London yesterday.

In 1989, Northern Ireland was hit by terrorists. 29 people in small island died. Steve Stockman was asked to give a prayer on BBC radio less than a week afterward. This is what he prayed:

Lord, we come to the end of another week
Except that it hasn't been just another week
It has been the worst week of our lives
And even worse for some
Lord, help us to be honest, vulnerable, and somehow hopeful in the reflection of our feelings.

Lord, we have been shocked
Shocked by how one tiny second can tear our lives apart
Shocked by how far humanity can fall
Shocked by how callous and painful our actions can be, how low we can stoop.

Lord, we are grieving
Grieving for the loss of lives with so much love and energy still to give
Grieving for the man and woman and child we will never be able to hold again
Grieving that our history is so sad and twisted.

Lord, we are confused
Confused at why this should happen
Confused about how this should happen to the innocent
confused about where You and faith enter into these events.

Lord, we are angry
Angry at why we allowed our family and friends to go shopping
Angry at how evil people could rip our world asunder
Angry that You allowed it to happen.

Lord, we are seeking
Seeking some kind of feeble consolation in the midst of our deluge of tears
Seeking some kind of hope that good might come from evil
Seeking your Spirit, whom Jesus called a Comforter, to whisper into our maddening silence.

Lord, we are squinting for faith
Faith that the majority might have some kind of say in the future
Faith that love will end our hate, good will end our evil, and grace will touch our broken hearts
Faith in a God who is as angry as we are and who is reaching out his hand to us.

Lord, we are remembering
Remembering those who today can no longer be shocked, grieve, be angry, be confused, seek or squint for faith
Remembering that You watched as Your Son, covered in blood, die at the futile whim of injustice
Remembering that His death is the only thing we can grope after in the dark of a week like this.

Lord, we have planted our loved ones deep in the bloody earth of Ireland this week
We have watered them with our tears
Lord, may You allow them to be seeds of love that will grow into our peace.
Lord, remember us.

Amen."

Louise

Today we celebrate the funeral of Louise Bailey. At 91, you would have sworn she was indestructible. She had more strength and energy than most the women half her age. She used that strength and energy to serve. She only joined our church maybe two years ago, but quickly found herself at home in the church kitchen. My strongest memories of her will be of when we packed the clothes bags for Master Provisions. She helped with that long before she ever became a member of our church. For those who have done it, you know what hard work that is. I could go on and on with her generosity, the way she loved my children, the way she cared for the other widows in the church, the way she always smiled, or her positive attitude toward change. Suffice it say, her death leaves us with a void. We will miss her.

Heaven though has gained a good worker. And I wonder, if she seemed strong and indestructible here, what will she be like on the other side?
(1 Corinthians 15:42,54-57)

Not too apologetic

I've never been that into apologetics. Apologetics being the reason-based arguments for the defense of or proof of the Christian faith. It seems to me that there is a lot of "bad science" involved. Well-intentioned believers become convinced that the world will come to Jesus if they simply have a chance to lay out the air-tight case for Christianity. They become so eager to do this that they start throwing around unproven (if not unlikely) theories for things like the flood. "I heard somewhere" sorts of information gets passed quickly and widely as fact.

It's not as though there hasn't been any credible work, but every bit of "bad science" seems to take us back further than good science is capable of bringing us forward. And it's not as if evolutionists are never guilty of the same thing, but that is none of my concern.

The whole idea of having an air-tight argument does not jive with me. Attempts to defend the faith often turn into intellectual jabs that do more to harm the faith than Darwin ever could have (I think of decals which have the ICTHUS eating a Darwin fish). Well-formed defenses (non-argumentative) can aide in removing some doubt, bt ultimately, Christ must be taken on faith.

But I over-react. Apologetics are, in my opinion, so dominated by quips and slogans that I tend to avoid any association with it. That's not a good stand. That's not the one Saul/Paul took. Acts 9:20 "At once [Saul] began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21 All those who heard him were astonished and asked, "Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?" 22 Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ.

What proofs can we offer?

Edwin "Fast Eddie" Keel passed away this week. 94 and half years lived unto the Lord. He told me that he would have liked to have been a preacher, but a speech impediment prevented him from pursuing it. God knew what he was doing with Eddie. As a lay-leader, he was instrumental in the planting of three area churches (Meadowbrook, Elizabeth Lake and Tri-County). He also served as an elder for many years, but the main role for which I will remember him is as deal closer. When Cindie and I were trying to decipher whether or not this was where God was leading, the then 89 and half year old man came over and talked to us 22 year-olds. We had plenty of doubts. However, his words of encouragement, tender and true, clamped down on us like a steel trap. We knew there was no getting out of this. His steady and persistant encouragement over the last five years at the church together with his constant prayer on my behalf have given my weak knees strength to stand. I am so glad to have known him, and I will miss him. 

Smelling the Flowers

My three year-old daughter repeated one request the whole evening. "Let's go smell the flowers."


My wife would take her over to where the flowers were, and Hannah would sniff away. But if you watched her closely you cold see her peaking out of the corner of her eye at the lady who was laying in the box.

I wonder about what she thinks. I worry about what she thinks. In my vocation, there will be many funerals and visitations to attend. I'm concerned about how my kids will handle it.

This was not someone she knew, really. But at the end of the week there will be a funeral for Eddie Keel, a 94 year-old man I will be writing on later, that she will certainly recognize.

I'd like to shelter her from this. She is extremely compassionate, and I worry about how this will shape her.

Add to this that many of the people closest to her are senior members of the church. How do I prepare her for the day when one of her Pa Pa's die?

Morning Star Response

I got a question about a post I did last November or December on the "Morning Star". It's from a fellow named Dustin (who I do not know). Dustin said...

Sorry to be posting here, but I wasn't sure if you'd see it if I posted to the post I read. I have a question about your morning star post. What was Jesus saying when he referred to himself as the bright morning star in revelation 22:16? Is this the same kind of phrasing that was used in Isaiah to describe the king? I realize one is greek and one is hebrew but...yeah...Was Jesus a megalomaniac by his own definition, or does he mean he is a guiding light or something?



The term "Bright Morning Star" seems to refer to a new hope... the dawning of a new day. It was a perfect fit for Jesus was indeed the new hope (Luke 4:26-21). But why does he use the term which has been used to mock an evil king? Perhaps, it is to say, "I am what he claimed to be", the same much of the imagery of Revelation is borrowed from current Roman royalty to say "I am who they claim to be". They claim to be the Son of God, I am. He claimed to be the morning star, I am the Bright Morning Star.

I'm not sure what you meant by megalomaniac. This is the primary definition given by dictionary.com: A psychopathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence.

Jesus believed himself God, but his assertions were not delusional fantasies. Hope that is the answer that you were looking for.

Jesus

John 17:1 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. 6 "I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. 7 Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. 8 For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. 9 I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. 11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name-the name you gave me-so that they may be one as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

13 "I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. 20 "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: 23 I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 "Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25 "Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them."

Prayers of pain

Paul says in Philippians 4 that when we present our requests to God by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, that the peace of God which is beyond figuring out, will stand in guard of our hearts and minds.

But praying through pain is never easy. Today, I did a graveside service in a part of the cemetery where tombstones were shaped like Mickey Mouse. The casket was not carried by a team of men, but by a young mother.

In moments like these I always find myself praying to God to give me the words to pray, asking to know what to ask for.

In 1989, Northern Israel was hit by terrorists. 29 people in small island died. Steve Stockman was asked to give a prayer on BBC radio less than a week afterward. This is what he prayed:

Lord, we come to the end of another week
Except that it hasn't been just another week
It has been the worst week of our lives
And even worse for some
Lord, help us to be honest, vulnerable, and somehow hopeful in the reflection of our feelings.

Lord, we have been shocked
Shocked by how one tiny second can tear our lives apart
Shocked by how far humanity can fall
Shocked by how callous and painful our actions can be, how low we can stoop.

Lord, we are grieving
Grieving for the loss of lives with so much love and energy still to give
Grieving for the man and woman and child we will never be able to hold again
Grieving that our history is so sad and twisted.

Lord, we are confused
Confused at why this should happen
Confused about how this should happen to the innocent
confused about where You and faith enter into these events.

Lord, we are angry
Angry at why we allowed our family and friends to go shopping
Angry at how evil people could rip our world asunder
Angry that You allowed it to happen.

Lord, we are seeking
Seeking some kind of feeble consolation in the midst of our deluge of tears
Seeking some kind of hope that good might come from evil
Seeking your Spirit, whom Jesus called a Comforter, to whisper into our maddening silence.

Lord, we are squinting for faith
Faith that the majority might have some kind of say in the future
Faith that love will end our hate, good will end our evil, and grace will touch our broken hearts
Faith in a God who is as angry as we are and who is reaching out his hand to us.

Lord, we are remembering
Remembering those who today can no longer be shocked, grieve, be angry, be confused, seek or squint for faith
Remembering that You watched as Your Son, covered in blood, die at the futile whim of injustice
Remembering that His death is the only thing we can grope after in the dark of a week like this.

Lord, we have planted our loved ones deep in the bloody earth of Ireland this week
We have watered them with our tears
Lord, may You allow them to be seeds of love that will grow into our peace.
Lord, remember us.

Amen.

A "Change-Me" Prayer

I think a real mark of Christian maturity is when we stop praying "Change-my-circumstance" prayers and start praying "change-me" prayers.

Here is a great example:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon,
where there is doubt, faith,
where there is despair, hope,
where there is darkness, light,
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I might not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. (St. Francis Assisi)

Praying the will of God

Jesus instructs us to pray that God's "will be done on earth as it is in heaven." And in dark Gethsamane he modeled that sort of prayer: "Not my will, but yours..."

I want to pray for God's will, but it's difficult. I often am unclear on what his will is. Do I pray for healing or comfort while dying? When a brother wonders off in disobedience, do I ask that God would spare them harm, or do whatever it takes? Other clear examples escape me. But I found the following prayer by Thomas Merton to be helpful:

My LORD God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone. (found in "Thoughts in Solitude")

What to pray for

I don't always know what to pray. Sometimes I pray the same prayers so often that I am hardly think aout them as I pray. I know that this is not what God desires from my prayer life, but sometimes it's difficult to know what to pray for. When I begin to get in a rut like that, I like to do what Daniel did. He let Scripture lead his parayer"

Daniel 9:1 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes... I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. 3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.

Daniel had been exiled to Baylon along with all the other leaders in Jerusalem as a punishment against God's people. Jerusalem itself, lay in shambles. Daniel was reading Jeremiah. He found a prophecy that said this banishment from Jerusalem would only last 70 years. It was almost 70 years when he read it. What follows is one of Scripture's most beautiful prayers.



"O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands, 5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
DA 9:7 "Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame--the men of Judah and people of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. 8 O LORD, we and our kings, our princes and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you. 9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10 we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.
"Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. 12 You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing upon us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. 14 The LORD did not hesitate to bring the disaster upon us, for the LORD our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.
DA 9:15 "Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 O Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our fathers have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.
DA 9:17 "Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name."

Try to start some prayers by reading God's word. See where the conversation leads.

God to the rescue

2 Samuel 22:2-3
The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation.
He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior-
from violent men you save me.


There are nine terms here (two different terms for rock) which all speak of God's rescuing abilities. Some more modern terms might be guard dog, Mama bear, defense attorney, 401k, anti-lock breaks and power steering, miracle drug, big brother, helmet, safety belt, jaws of life, military, Constitution and Bill of Rights, union rep, firefighter, deadbolt, Onstar, firewall... I'm sure you can think of others.

In doing such brainstorming, we might reveal that we have placed our trust in some of these things rather than God. But the point of the Psalm is the GOD is (fill in your trustworthy protection metaphor).

Let's pray that we would learn to trust him above all, and that he would give us opportunity to display that trust.

my girl turned 3 this week 

my boy 

Daddy can feed me! 

Daddy can dress me too! 

Hannah in Algonac 

Show the blind man

In Acts 9, Saul sees the light... and then he sees nothing for days. His head must have been spinning. He thought he was defending the true faith, now he finds out he had actually been persecuting it. What irony, a blinding vision allowed him to see. And the man most hellbent on stopping the church becomes the one man (other than Jesus) most responsible for its worldwide success.

Males me wonder if there could be a modern-day equivalent out there. Think of the person most hellbent to stop the church in our day... The president of the ACLU? Marilyn Manson? Osama Bin Laden? Think of the impact such a person could have if Jesus met them and turned their life around!

My favorite part of this section though, is the Lord's message to Ananias: "I will show him how much he must suffer for my name." I will show the blind man what life with me will be like. Yet, instead of complaining of the new assignment of suffering, he would often boast about it. (Phil 3:7-14) Man, I long to see some Big-Time repentance like that in my day!

The Order of the Sheep

After the accounts of Stephen (a man of great power who laid down his life) and Simon (a man of power whose lust for more power brought condemnation upon himself) comes the account of the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:26-40).

A little digging shows that this "baptism passage" says a whole lot about power. The Ethiopian was a servant to the Queen. She ruled for her son, the King, because Ethiopian kings thought themselves to be the sons of the Sun (god). That, they believed, made them much too divine for the business of governing. So the Eunuch was familiar with a son of a god who was so powerful (divine) that he was useless.

Add to that, he himself was a high-ranking official, but being a eunuch may have felt too emascualted to feel powerful. I won't over-analyze here, but the tension between being a powerful man and an emasculated man is too much to ignore.

He is reading Isaiah, perhaps because it contains the good news for eunuchs (Isaiah 56:4, 5... is there a word play in there?). He was reading this from Isaiah 53:

"He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb is silent before the shearers, so he opened not his mouth; 33 in his humiliation, justice was denied him; and who can express the wickedness of the people of his generation? For his life is taken from the earth."


Philip explains to him that this "sheep to the slaughter" was the Messiah, Son of the True God. What a contrast from the son of a god he had already known. Apparently, such a powerful man acting in such a selfless way was very attractive to the Ethopian. He decides to surrender his life to the Lamb in the waters of baptism, which is itself a pouring out of power.

Why does a book about the church's beginnings have so much about the pursuit of power in it? I have an opinion. When surrounded by sheep, the temptation to "power up" and take charge (with all the emotional highs and the status that go with that) is very real and very dangerous. To be right, we, the sheep, must follow the First Sheep, Jesus. He did not pursue his own power, but poured out his power for the good of others. That's what Stepehen was doing. That's what Simon did not get. That is what won the heart of an emasculated Ethiopian powerhouse.

power and servanthood

Acts 8:5-24


What a huge contrast between Stephen and Simon. One with true power did not seek more power even when his life was on the line. The other saught power whatever the cost.


Peter, was none too thrilled with Simon's heart. The self-seeking nature of his request was diametrically opposed to the heart of Christianity.


I liked this photo because it shows someone like Stephen who had power butthe heart of the student.


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Last week, I tried to write something about my brother, Jason. He died three years ago. I didn't/couldn't finish it. Maybe soemday.

Persecution

8:1-4

Did God cause the persecution to get the church "off its backside" and on with the plan (1:8)? Or did God take the opportunity created by evil and use it expand the church?

Frankly, we are not given the answer. Either way, we see God is in control and the church is an unstoppable force. (Matthew 16:18).

At this point in the book, we need to ask, "What can stop a church from succeeding?" The church started in extraordinary circumstances, the Sanhedrin has tried to stop it a couple of times, inside problems threatened it (Ananias and the Grecian widow problem), and now murderers threaten it; but each threat only makes it stronger.

Nothing can stop Christ's church. There are rough spots, but they can be used either as friction to slow us or as traction to speed us up.

Achan and Ananias revisited

Ray Vanderlaan said that Achan was not punished just for stealing. Lots of people steal. You could even say that all of us steal in one way or another. The reason he was so severely punished was because his actions radically contrasted and threatened the community that God was trying to establish. He was not just disobedient, he was only thinking of himself.

As Achan's New Testament counterpart, the same could be said for Ananias. This would help explain God's severity toard Ananias and Saphira. Their deeds struck at the heart of this new community that God had established.

Look for posts on power as we move into Acts 8.

The death of a homeless man

Every other week, a group of our people from the church go down to Detroit to hand out meals to the homeless. They are led by my friend, Dave Thomas. I asked him to share about a recent experience they had down there.

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While much of the world mourned the death of Pope John Paul II, a homeless man layed on a loading dock in an alley, he was deceased. His cold lifeless body lay bundled up underneath a pile of blankets as though he had just went to sleep. Here he is, somebody's son or brother, someone’s husband or father and here he lays in an alley dead and his family may never know what happened to him.

We last saw him alive 2 weeks ago. He would always wake up to interact with us. He would always send us back to the van for another blanket or a pair of socks or another meal; he could devour one meal before you could get back to him with another. Maybe sending us back to the van for some other item was his way of keeping us there just a little longer.

But tonight he didn’t rise up to talk to us when we brought him a tray of food. I watched from the van as Ed and Terry tried to wake him up. The Holy Spirit had my eyes fixed on his lack of movement. After an unsuccessful attempt to wake him up the guys set his food down next to him and came back to the van. Several times I tried to drive away but the Holy Spirit stopped me. My eyes were fixed on the bundle of blankets where he laid. I couldn’t just drive away. Ed finally said “What ever the Holy Spirit is telling you to do you had better do it”. I immediately got out of the van to try to wake him up again. Ed came with me. We took a second tray of food knowing he would want more then one. I called him a few times to wake him and when he still didn’t move I kicked his foot to wake him. When I did the blanket came up and off his foot and a smell rose up, bad enough to tell us he was either very sick or he was no longer with us. Inside I wanted to pull the blanket off his head to see if he was ok but I was afraid of what I might see. We called 911 and said a prayer but deep down inside I think we knew he was gone.

How sad it must be to die cold and alone. Perhaps afraid, knowing that death was immanent. No one there that you can call to get help for that crushing pain in your chest or fever that seems to burn you alive. How horrible that no one was there to help him in his time of greatest need. But nevertheless it was his time and no one could stop that. He was probably one of a thousand homeless in a thousand different places across America that lay dead in some obscured place. This is probably the end that will come to most homeless people, to die cold and alone in an alley or an abandoned building somewhere unless God grants them the grace to come off the street and out of this life style. Seeing their life and their end, it is all the more important that we Christians do all that we can to make their life a little better without judgment of how they got there. Jesus said “What you do for the least of these my brothers you have done it unto me”. I think it was appropriate that we the chosen of God found this man at the unction of the Holy Spirit. It was as though God Himself picked him up out of the alley and delivered him to have a proper burial until the Day of Judgment.

Although homeless, nameless and an apparent nobody, this man was of the utmost importance to all Christians. In his death he was more important then the Pope himself. Why? Because the Pope was a dignitary and in this he represented the dignitaries of the world. He was a Catholic and represented all the Catholics of the world. But this mans death represented all the unsaved people of the world, not that he was not saved, I don’t know, but that he died cold and alone and in a dark and lonely place. The Bible says of the unsaved that they too are dead in their trespass and sins and I tell you that the stench of their sins as putrefying flesh rise before the nostrils of God continually. But we are the Called of God, a people chosen by God. You are the light of the world and the light on a hill cannot be hid. Through you the world shall not walk in darkness. You are the salt of the earth and those whom you touch with the gospel of Christ shall not see death. Without you the world is a graveyard full of dead men’s bones and with you the world has the light of life. Jesus said “All power is given unto me”. As he gave us the authority to make disciples.

You only are the caretakers of this world, you only have the bread of life in one hand and the word of life in the other and both are life giving only when we give them out.

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Thanks Dave.

A hero of faith

The following was written by my friend, Jeff McGuire. He is an Ohio State, Nascar, and Country music fan. Other than that he is a really guy, and I really appreciate what he has to say.

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Acts 6:5 - 7:60. Stephen

When you think of the great men of Christianity who comes to mind??? the disciples, Paul maybe Abraham or Moses? Stephen is probably not one of the first people to come to mind. But what a man he was, he is truly one of the pillars of Christianity. He is only mentioned in the book of acts and scarcely more than a chapter there.

How do you want to be remembered? What is the first thing that comes to peoples minds when they are asked to describe you? Would they describe you by profession, looks, family, wealth, maybe personality?

The first thing that came to Luke’s mind when he described Stephen was that Stephen is “a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 6:5) How wonderful. I only hope that I am remembered in the same light. The problem is that my desire to be remembered as such is fueled by my sinful nature. The next thing we learn about Stephen is in Acts 6:8, here we learn that he is “a man full of God’s grace and power”. What more could one aspire to be than a man full of faith, The Holy Spirit, grace and God’s power. In these two verses we learn enough about Stephen to know that he is truly one of the great men of the Bible. There is so much more, Stephen emulates Jesus in his very being.

Members of the synagogue argued with Stephen but could not compete with his wisdom, which came from the spirit. This angered them so much that they brought forth false charges against him and brought him before the Sanhedrin. When his accusers presented their false charges, Stephen’s face was like an Angel. Although he knew that this trial could lead to his death he was totally at peace. Most would be trembling with a mix of emotions ranging from fear to rage to hatred towards the accusers but Stephen quietly waited his turn to speak. Then he proceeded to walk them through the scriptures from Abraham to Jesus. Stephen was bold enough to throw out some accusations of his own. He accused them of resisting the Holy Spirit, killing the prophets, and of betraying and murdering the righteous one of God! The Sanhedrin was mortified they gnashed their teeth and covered their ears as they seized Stephen to stone him. Stephen with face like an Angel looked up and said "look, I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." Then he prayed that God would forgive them and asked Jesus to receive his spirit.

I pray that I would handle that kind of situation with such dignity and grace, giving all glory to God. Stephen is a role model for us all.

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Thanks Jeff, Good insight.

I thought this one was too cute not to publish. That's our Eli bunny. Man, is he going to me for this some day.  

Can anyone make sense of this?

Matthew 27:51-53: ...The earth shook and the rocks split. 52 The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

Why? I'd like your thoughts on this one.

many hats for many heads

Luke 6:1-6

The first church-split is avoided, and the church becomes much stronger, because of the wisdom of the Apostles.

There's lot of things they didn't do (i.e. point fingers, dismiss the compalints as silly, try harder to pass out food more fairly). What they did do is look to the rest of the church for the solution. In doing this they passed on authority and power to seven more leaders. They gave up the food-distributor hat to focus on the prayer and word (teaching?) hat. Wearing many hats requires a big head, somehting they could not afford to have. Dispensing jobs (and with them authority and control) to the rest of the body of Christ requires humility. And it breeds health.

Are you trying to do too much? Perhaps it's time to empower some helpers. Surrender the hats.

Worth Reading

I wanted to encourage you to look at two sites that have been exceptional as of late.

The first is: Ranticles

He is a very good writer and always has lots of interesting images to go along with his writing. But his posts for Lent have been his best. Instead of writing his own stuff he has just posted Scripture (and a few other quotes) with very telling photos. He has linked some Scriptures together in a very insightful way. See "6teen" and "8teen" especially.

I'm also excited about followtherabbi.com

It's filled with interesting Bible background stuff.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

After being flogged and further threatened...

Acts 5:41 The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. (NIV)

Their excitement comes from being able to walk the path of Jesus. Being a disciple of Jesus means becoming like him. But it's not a buffet-style commitment. "I'll take the purity but leave the sorts of people he hung out with. I'll take the boldness to take on the money-changers and leave the boldness to stand with the woman caught in adultery. I'll take the eternal glory and leave the cross." You cannot do that. There is only one Jesus and we must accept (i.e. try to emulate) him fully.

I think it is really cool. Not only is he the shepherd of his sheep. But he himself exemplified what kind of sheep we are to be (1 Corinthians 5:6-8)

Something worth listening to

There is a Preacher out in Grand Rapids, MI named Rob Bell. His teaching has been very inspiring to me recently. He gives a lot of background information that makes the Scripture come alive. He has caused me to rethink the way I view discipleship. Here is a link to his churches website:
http://www.mhbcmi.org/listen/index.php

You can dowload his sermons for free in MP3 and other formats. I would especially recommend his sermons of the "salvation of my stuff". If you have a fast enough connection, you can watch a video of his sermon of discipleship at this link:
http://www.willowcreek.com/servicebuilder/servicepages/service.asp?servid=156

I hope you are as encouraged as I am.

The credibility of the church

Acts 5:26 At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them.

You would think that being the captain of the Temple Guard would buy you some credibility. You would think that the Jews would fall in line with the High Priest and the Sanhedrin. Yet the Temple guard did not assume such things.

There was apparently quite a bit of support on the side of the apostles even among the non-believers. They had earned the credibility. They had done this by a) not doing anything immoral or foolish to embarrass the church b) speaking boldly about what they had witnessed c) performing acts of kindness (see verses 15 and 16) and d) producing real results that could not be done without God (see verses 15 and 16 again).

How is your church's credibility in the community? Would those who are not even associated with your church take up for your church because of the obvious good that is being done? Could those four things above be said about you and your church?

Mmmm.... Colonnade

I was just looking at Acts 5:12-16 and 1 thing became really clear to me. The way Luke uses the term "believers" is a lot different than the way we usually use the term believers.

Modern definition of believers- those who have mentally (and probably verbally) acknowledged that Jesus died on the cross so that we could be declared innocent by God and go to heaven.

Luke's definition of believers- people who are willing to make huge risks that non-believers never would. People who are so sold-out to the fellowship of the kingdom that they would risk their lives to be a part of it.

So, some questions: Would someone who did not believe ever live the same lifestyle that you do? Why or why not?

Can you say you believe something if you "never put your money where you mouth is"?

No shakin' it

"With his wife's full knowledge, he kept back part of the money for himself..." (Acts 5:2)

For this Sapphira dies? What was she supposed to do. rat out her husband? This is a tough question. It's not easy for me to swallow punishment of Ananias, so to say that Sappira, who seemed to play the role of silent by-stander, is so culpable... it's difficult.

It speaks loudly of our responsibility to keep each other honest, especially within a marriage relationship. We don't walk with Christ in isolation. Our actions affect others. Others actions affect us. Just ask Achan's family.

Think of Sapphira the next time you are tempted to look the other way.

Achan it

Ananias was a sort of new Achan. You remember him. When Israel marched and shouted the walls of Jericho down, they were told to destroy everything. But Achan liked what he saw too much. He took a robe, some silver and some gold. He hid them under his tent... where he could really enjoy them.

Both stories come in the midst of a time of great idealism, a time when things could hardly be better. Israel in Achan's day and the church in Ananias' day were both moving together in perfect faith.

Both times we have these feel-good stories interrupted by a harsh punch to the gut. Achan and his wife and kids must have stones throne at them until they die. Ananias and his wife are killed by the hand of God through the voice of Peter. How jarring.

Why is God so stern? Why must all these people die?

From this I learn that obeying God is serious. I learn that he is bigger and more complex than we assumed. He is not just a big cuddly Abba. I learn what a big deal pardon is in my life.

Both times, it seems, these public accounts serve as a reminder to a newborn faith community that God is not one to be fooled with.

I suppose we should take this opportunity to check under our tents.

Fakin' it

Apparently, they were there. They were in the congregation the day Joe brought in the money he got from selling his estate. They experienced the revitalizing encouragement that such a sacrifice brought to the whole church. They were there when the Apostles slapped him on the back saying, “Good Ole Joe. Always knows how to brighten things up. We’ll call you ‘Mr. Encouragement’.”

Perhaps they were there and were enticed by the aura of honor. Perhaps they thought of Joe the way many of us think about martyrs, “I would have done the same thing, given the opportunity.” Perhaps they even let such boasts be heard, so when their piece of property sold, there was a heavy bit of expectation. Perhaps everyone was waiting with baited breath for them to deliver on their claim. But that was a lot of money.

“No one said we HAVE to give it all. So what if Joseph did? Good for him! We’ll give most of it. Keep just a little for a rainy day. It’s still a very considerable sacrifice.”

Well, you should have seen the looks on people’s faces when he brought in all that money. “Good Ole Ananias! He came through on his boasts! God is gracious!” He felt good. He felt appreciated. As well he should have. That was a lot of money. “Another Joseph!” someone shouted. “Looks as if Encouragement bore twins.” He very much understood the insinuations. They think this is the full price. "Minor details.” He figured.

“Is this the full price you received from that piece of property?” Peter asked him. He was going to tell the truth. Why wouldn’t he? There is nothing wrong with an eighty-five per cent tithe. Some serious needs will be met with this gift. The poor will eat. The naked will be clothed. Why wouldn’t he tell the truth? It’s not like he is stealing. It was his property. The price he received was his money to do with as he liked. Why would he lie?

He turned around to see a small crowd now gathering behind him, beaming with enthusiasm and clamoring to hear his response. Even Joseph was in the crowd. “Is this the full price you received from that piece of property?” Ahh… what difference does that make!? Don’t let these people down. Tell them what they want to hear. These are God’s precious people. Don’t discourage them with details. Stop hesitating. They’ll be suspicious. Answer!

“Yes…” he said as he fell to the ground.

Joseph was sincere. His gift encouraged the church. Ananias was insincere. His gift brought great fear to the church. The difference between being real and putting on a show was life and death.

(I might post on the account of Ananias and Sapphira more than once. There is a lot to be said about his very troubling story.)

new look

The reason that I have a new look is mostly that my wife has started a blog and wanted to use the polka dots. I thought it would be lame if our blogs had the same template, so I changed it. Her blog is intended to be a place to share pictures and family news for her siblings. Right now it has a bunch of pictures of my family, mostly featuring our new addtion. You can check it out here:

I've got several things that I want to write about including a look at Acts 5. Stay tuned.

Needing some Nabas

Acts 4:36-37

36 Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means Son of Encouragement), 37 sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles' feet.
(from New International Version)

Joseph got the nickname Bar (son of) Nabas (encouragment) one could assume, because he was such an encouragement. So, what did he do that was so encouraging? what can we learn about encouraging others from? He becomes a major player in Acts, and almost every time he is mentioned is doing something encouraging. But let us focus on his introduction here.

The term "encouragement" means to instill courage into someone, courage to face the day, stnad up under trials, resist temptation, whatever. The main we try to encourage people is with our words. But that is probably the least effective way.

I presume the reason the Apostles called Joseph "Mr. Encouragement" is that he found a more dynamic and effective way to encourage. He sold himself out to the cause of Christ, the church. by his actions he communicated to the Apostles and everyone else in the church "This thing is real. It is worth sacrificing all we have for. I'm committed in love to everyone here." Actions spoke so much louder than words would have. Such sacrificial actions helped strengthen the church to stand up under the persecution it would soon face.

If you desire to be an encouragement to someone, stnad with them. Show them with your actions that you are dedicated to them. If you want to give your church the courage it needs to face whatever may come, be the first to throw yourself in whole-heartedly. Set a precident of sacrifice.

With all that we are up against, encouragement needs more than one son.

This painting is Aertsen's "The Adoration of the Shepherds" There are several things I find amusing about this painting. I don't know if you can tell, but Mary is wearing a cross necklace. But the big question is why is that cow staring at me? Does he know something?