Quote du jour

Thanks to Gary Collier and his comments on Philo in a gathering earlier today. Philo, a first century Alexandrian Jew had a lot to say about Scripture, culture, and the pursuit of the blessed life. Check out these quotes:

"For when God is with us all we do is worthy of praise; all that is done without Him merits blame."

"But if you leave yourself forever unschooled and untaught, you will be eternally enslaved to hard mistresses, vain fancies, lusts, pleasures, promptings to wrongdoing, follies, and false opinions."

"But God is no salesman, hawking his goods in the market, but a free giver of all things, pouring forth eternal fountains of free bounties, and seeking no return."

Well said!

Jesus' Call

A quote from the theologian James McClendon: Speaking of Jesus’ vision . . . “Of course it did not work. The enemies plotted; the disciples doubted; the women were afraid. The invitation to be a part of the collective Truly Human One, when extended to all disciples at Caesarea Philippi, enclosed an invitation for them to share the cross. Jesus saw it coming and warned them; compulsively, they asked instead about the Age to Come. Had they had their way, there would have been no cross; had he had his there would have been thirteen. They declined the honor. One betrayed him; one denied him; all fled (Mark 14.50). He was executed with some other enemies of the powers that be—he alone on a cross where all were to have borne witness. Christ was in their place—by the Baptist vision, it was our place. He was buried then, one for all. God was dead.”

McClendon goes on to say that Jesus’ work was validated by the resurrection. “God’s rule, by the way of the cross, prevailed.”

What I am wondering today is whether the way of the cross—a path of nonviolence, self-denial, and a radically different vision of forgiveness, love, and reconciliation—will be heard. The cross continues to be a stumbling block to all—Christians and non-Christians. To non-Christians it is an bizarre symbol of outdated notions of sacrifice. To Christians it becomes a security blanket to assuage guilt so I can go on living like I want (Jesus paid it all, so I don’t have to!).

To earnest disciples the cross becomes emblematic of a way of life. God launched a new world order with the coming of Jesus. That new world order is bound up in binding up the forces of evil through selfless love, demonstrating the availability and rightness of God, and putting into play a way of human transformation.

More later.

Basketball

Well, it happened. Oklahoma State is going to the final four and my son, William, beat me in a game of one-on-one yesterday afternoon. All things are possible and some things, like getting beat by your 15 year old son are mixed with both the bitter and the sweet. I don't like getting waxed on a court and it is a sure sign of William's growth that he was able to do so.

Maybe coaching him how to do a neat little reverse on a drive to the lane backfired?

Or just maybe he is growing up. Either way, I'm proud!

Broken Ground

Blue, corrupted, longings malfunctioned;
Fading dreams, cloudy skies, uncertain times.
When every action taken
Is full of second guessing and misconstruction.

Is God at work in this rocky field
Where malignant thorns choke and hard granite cut yield?

Yet in the stories of broken persons my heart still hopes;
I sense the first furtive movement of germinated seed

God is alive and his presence observed
Rings true with the historical witness;
God is afoot and in surprising ways
The kingdom of his choosing comes.
--cer

Quote du jour

The purpose of the gospel. . . . " it's great object is to reunite man to God in a holy spiritual fellowship, which is never to be, for one moment, interrupted. It proposes, not to make men moral merely, but 'spiritual;' not to curb merely the excesses of animal passion, but to 'renew the spirit of the man;' not to prune the exuberent growth of some branches of an evil tree, but 'to make the tree good, and his fruit good.' --Robert Richardson

God is not content with anything less than the new creation! (2 Corinthians 5.16ff)

Out of Focus

He had to be pushing 80. Thin and gaunt, he sat at the table next to our booth. Picking at his food he was talking to the manager. "Yes sir, my eyes still can't focus well," he said. "Maybe you just need to sit right there until you can see better," came the reply of the manager.

It wasn't long until my lunch partner, Kendra and I, had the story as well. Seems that he had just come from the eye doctor who had just dilated his eyes. Everything was out of focus. Lonely and weary, we learned more. His wife had passed away one week ago. He said he had cried so much that something had happened with his cornea.

How he had come to make it to Red Lobster was a bit of a wonder. But no one there was about to let him go. About the time our meal came, the waitress helped him over into the bar where he could sit. Sit and wait for his eyes to adjust.

Kendra and I went to our meal, but agreed that as soon as we were finished we would take the man home if he wanted to go.

So a half hour later I slipped into the bar where the old man sat on a stool at one end. Smoking a cigarette and drinking iced tea he looked relatively content as he interacted with the bartender and a few of the customers. I nodded to the bartender and then asked if we would like a ride home.

He said that he was okay, that he would wait. The bartender smiled and said he was doing fine.

“Thanks for asking,” he said as I turned to leave.

Ministry in a bar, real needs in a restaurant. Jesus-followers, are we awake to the work of God around us?

Coffee

What a great thing friendship is. How seldom do we find it! I grow increasingly impressed with a Bible study group that I meet with every Thursday morning (at 6:30am –ugh!). Five guys sharing our study of Scripture; five guys sharing bits and pieces of their lives.

Of course, we still keep up some walls between us—how we tend to want to cover up our little insecurities and fears from each other. But we are talking about the walls. And we are learning together some of what it means to be wrestling in prayer on each other’s behalf (Col 4.12) like Epaphras.

Now. . . . if I can just get one of them to pick up my tab at the restaurant!

The controversy over Mel Gibson's film, The Passion of the Christ, continues to capture attention. The latest in absurdities is that Christians shouldn't watch it because it portrays the idea that Jesus bore our sins to the cross. (Note: the previous sentence says exactly what I meant it to say.) The argument is that such a bloody and inhumane death can not be heart of the Christian message.

Rather, the focus ought to be on the inspiring and love-conveying teachings of Jesus.

Of course, this line of thinking is really about what we call the doctrine of the atonement and has little to do with Gibson's film. Was Jesus death necessary? Did Jesus die for our sins? I don't know an answer about the necessity of Jesus' death; God could have chosen to do a lot of things I suppose. But it is clear that earliest Christians understood Jesus death as the way in which God brought about our redemption and subsequent new life.

Just because humans are more sophisticated in the twentieth century doesn't mean we are any smarter? Just because we can make movies doesn't change the historical and philosophical realities addressed by Jesus' death and resurrection.

Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Hill Ahead: Use Lower Gears

The practice of faith challenges me nearly every day. The desire to follow a path that honors God's preferable future for me seems to always hit an intersection with another road. That other road functions as an escape, an alternative route. It is a route that promises to take me to some other dream, some other fantasy that beckons.

The way of faith usually looks a little rough and uncertain. The alternative route appears refined and smooth.

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received blessing" (Hebrews 11.1-2).

Taking the way of faith means following God's future not one of my own making. I don't know why I would ever think that my route would better then His route. Maybe its because my route and my detours make the inaccurate assumption that I won't have to change, whereas, the way of faith almost always necessitates kicking into 4-wheel drive. God never seems content to leave me alone; rather, he always has a little more for me to learn.

Really, when all is said and done I would rather be slugging it out in the mud with hope, than cruising in the fast lane with nothing but my own fantasies on the CD player.

Old Dead Guys

Richard Baxter who wrote in the 1600's was just a so-so clergyman and statesman for the church. However, he was an excellent pastor to a congregation in the town of Kidderminster. When he first arrived there in this small town of perhaps 2000 people hardly anyone went to church. Within a few years everyone in town was going to church. Baxter comments that as he would walk down the streets of town one could hear families singing devotions about their tables.

How did he do this?

Well, in his book, The Reformed Pastor, his first word to ministers was that they must first learn to exercise leadership and care over their own lives before that attempted to do so for another person. Interesting thought. . . . Baxter is suggesting that leadership does not begin with external forces, but with the tough internal discipline.

Pretty good stuff for an old dead guy.

Thermometer or Thermostat

In the days of the early church, the people of God were 'not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; [they] were a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. Whereever the early Christians entered a town the power structure got disturbed and immediately sought to convict them for being 'disturbers of the peace' and 'outside agitators.' --Marin Luther King

I used this quote in yesterday's message. My question for Westlake is which one will we be. What will time tell?

Do you have a church?

Lee Camp's new book, Mere Discipleship is a challenging read. In it he tells the story of Clarence Jordan who formed the interracial community that came to be known as Koinonia Farm in the 1950's. When the good folks in Georgia began to learn about white folk and black folk worshipping together all kinds of opposition occurred. Vandalism, shootings, cross-burning, Klan rallys, and much more threatened the life of the community.

Clarence approached his brother Robert for legal help and protection. Here is the dialogue between the two brothers:

"Clarence, I can't do that. You know my political aspirations. Why, if I represented you, I might lose my ob, my house, everything I've got."

"We might lose everything too, Bob."

"It's different for you."

"Why is it different? I remember, it seems to me, that you and I joined the church the same Sunday as boys. I expect when we came forward the preacher asked me about the same question he did you. He asked me, 'Do you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior?' And I said, 'Yes.' What did you say?"

"I follow Jesus, Clarence, up to a point."

"Could that point by any chance be--the cross?"

"That's right. I follow him to the cross, but not on the cross. I'm not getting myself crucified."

"Then I don't believe you're a disciple. You're an admirer of Jesus, but not a disciple of his. I think you ought to go back to the church you belong to, and tell them you're an admirer not a disciple."

"Well now, if everyone who felt like I do did that, we wouldn't have a church, would we?"

"The question," Clarence said, "is, Do you have a church?"


How do we define church? That is a fundamental question. The answer given on this one question will impact everything else.

Which is it?

Evangelism and worship. Apologetics and spiritual formation. Teaching and preaching. Seeds of faith and faith that flowers.

In the days following the opening of The Passion, several conversations have centered on whether the movie was evangelistic (one group is claiming that it is the greatest evangelism tool in 2000 years! Really??) or was rather a devotional experience--a place for encountering the presence of God.

What do I think? I think that pidgeon holes work well on my old desk at home, but they are really lousy for defining matters of faith. I do believe that the movie rejoices in telling the story of Jesus' passion. Can the gospel be good news to a non-believer? Yes, if she is able to hear the good news. The particular struggle of the movie is whether good news will be heard to one who is largely uninformed about this Jesus.

Of course, that me wonder about how well I am doing in informing people about a man who was willing to take on the task of dealing with the sins of the world. Sounds like serious evangelism to me or is that Christian living?

Here we go again.

Down with Flu

When 3 out of 4 kids are down with the flu, life begins to look a little differently at home. Vickie was up most of the night with the patients and so I slipped away from the office at noon to bring in a load of Gatorade, 7-Up and juice. So far I've been fortunate. I sent Vickie to take a well-deserved nap saying that I would be on duty. However, my services have not been needed.

Well, Lauren did cry out a while ago, but I think she was dreaming. After settling her into her nest on the family room couch I found myself thinking how quickly they grow up.

Talking about being torn--I'm excited when I see signs of maturity and adulthood and I'm sad when I see signs of maturity and adulthood.