Just a reminder to all of us.. it keeps the tune of "Amazing Grace" on the tip of my tongue.
Is the Gospel of Jesus Christ for you?
Read and See.
Who is the good news of the gospel for?
The good news of the gospel is not for the super-spiritual.
It is not for academicians who would imprison Jesus in the ivory tower of hyper-exegesis.
It is not for noisy, feel-good folks who manipulate Christianity into a naked appeal to emotion.
It is not for hooded mystics who want magic in their religion.
It is not for Alleluia Christians who live only on the mountaintop and have never visited the valley of desloation.
It is not for the fearless or tearless.
It is not for red-hot zealots who boast with the righ young home-owner of the gospels: "All these commandments I have kept from my youth."
It is not for the complacent, hoisting over their shoulder a tote-bag of honors, diplomas, and good works actually believing they have it made.
It is not for legalists who would rather surrender control of their souls to rules than run the risk of living in union with Jesus.
Who is the good news of the gospel for?
It is for the sorely who are still shifting the heavy suitcase from one hand to the other.
It is for those in survival mode.
It is for the wobbly and weak-kneed to know they don't have it all together.
It is for inconsistent, unsteady disciples whose cheese is falling off their cracker.
It is for poor, weak, sinful men and women with hereditary faults and limited talents.
It is for earthen vessels who shuffle along on feet of clay.
It is for the bent and the bruised who feel that their lives are a great disappointment to God.
It is for smart people who know they are stupid and honest disciples who admit they are scoundrels.
It is for spiritual whores.
It is for people like us if we realize that the our weakness and brokenness that we can feel are only a faint scent of the nauseating offense of our sin to God.
(adapted from Brennan Manning's "The Ragamuffin Gospel")
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled."Jesus Christ c.31 A.D.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Monday, March 26, 2007
Get Lost & Then Get Found, Or Swallowed in the Sea
I watched the coolest TV show last night. It's the Planet Earth series on the Discovery Channel. The episode I watched was filmed deep down, on the ocean floor. I was amazed by the High Definition pictures of the Dumbo Octopus and the trickery of the bottom-dwelling Monk Fish. I was awed by the darkness far below the surface of the ocean. Honestly, it was a little frightening, and I was just sitting on the couch. Of course, my thought was, "What would it be like to be there without any equipment? Just to be there." It's a hypothetical question. I'd die long before I could get there; and i wouldn't see anything if I could get there.
And yet, that is where we are. Bear with me. Imagine you are at the bottom of the sea with the monk fish, humongous crabs, and eels. What would be required for you to live? Assuming your lungs were already full of air, you'd have a few minutes (unless you're David Blaine). Then your lungs would fill with the frigid water and it would be lights out. Simply by your presence in that place, you are required to do something you are absolutely unable to do in order to live. Sound familiar?
We are in a similar situation here on dry land. As a matter of fact, our plight is much worse. We don't even have a few minutes. Simply our existance in the world of a holy God, requires something of us which we are absolutely incapable of doing. What is that thing? Being like him. We don't have the spiritual gills to pull it off. To tell people or to believe anything else is an awful lie. Can I be saved by my good deeds? You would be better off to believe you could survive underwater by only breathing a little water at time. Perhaps there is no need to be saved at all. Maybe I create my own destiny and reality as the secret would have me believe. Tell that to a drowning man. I'll bet he doesn't believe you.
The drowning man is more fortunate, though, because at least he understands his plight. At least the drowning man knows that if he doesn't get to the surface his life will end. The secret tells me to believe that I am God, and that I make the rules and the outcomes. A serpent whispered a very similar secret to a very nice naked couple once. God has asked of you the exact thing that you will never be able to accomplish. Do you realize this? That's actually the point. It's only when you realize that you are completely dependent upon the God of the universe to rip you out of the ocean of your sin and revive your dead heart that you'd even want the sort of Paradise he's preparing for you, anyway.
My friends, whether you are a believer in Christ or on the outskirts, wondering what it's all about, you need to be reminded that the secret is no secret at all. It is as clear in this gorgeous spring weather, and in the incredible ocean floor as it is in the pages of your Bible. You are not alone. You are in a world that was created for you and that Creator demands that you be like him and be like his world, which is GOOD. Unless you cry out to Christ to save you, this world will be as deadly as the pits of some undersea canyon for you. He wants you to understand that he is your sufficiency, your necessity for life. Beg him for eyes to see this reality. Ask him to save you from this grave.
Believer, run to this good news that he did IT ALL that you would be rescued out of death! Run to this truth that his grace really is sufficient for the pain, loneliness, emptiness, and monotony of life. We run to entertainment, food and drink, sex and relationships and it all becomes more and more empty. After a while, I need more and more of it just to feel normal. But he has saved you. He is saving you. He is perfecting you. Find joy in that fact! Do not forget that you were dead. Do not forget that you were at the bottom of a great ocean, crushed by its weight; the icy chill of sin filling your lungs. Do not forget that he did this. The more we think upon this truth, the more we will find ourselves in tears of joy; striving for holiness and desiring his will. Think on it. Meditate on it. Never forget. This is the good news that saves lives, that God himself came and died and rose for you if you will only believe.
And yet, that is where we are. Bear with me. Imagine you are at the bottom of the sea with the monk fish, humongous crabs, and eels. What would be required for you to live? Assuming your lungs were already full of air, you'd have a few minutes (unless you're David Blaine). Then your lungs would fill with the frigid water and it would be lights out. Simply by your presence in that place, you are required to do something you are absolutely unable to do in order to live. Sound familiar?
We are in a similar situation here on dry land. As a matter of fact, our plight is much worse. We don't even have a few minutes. Simply our existance in the world of a holy God, requires something of us which we are absolutely incapable of doing. What is that thing? Being like him. We don't have the spiritual gills to pull it off. To tell people or to believe anything else is an awful lie. Can I be saved by my good deeds? You would be better off to believe you could survive underwater by only breathing a little water at time. Perhaps there is no need to be saved at all. Maybe I create my own destiny and reality as the secret would have me believe. Tell that to a drowning man. I'll bet he doesn't believe you.
The drowning man is more fortunate, though, because at least he understands his plight. At least the drowning man knows that if he doesn't get to the surface his life will end. The secret tells me to believe that I am God, and that I make the rules and the outcomes. A serpent whispered a very similar secret to a very nice naked couple once. God has asked of you the exact thing that you will never be able to accomplish. Do you realize this? That's actually the point. It's only when you realize that you are completely dependent upon the God of the universe to rip you out of the ocean of your sin and revive your dead heart that you'd even want the sort of Paradise he's preparing for you, anyway.
My friends, whether you are a believer in Christ or on the outskirts, wondering what it's all about, you need to be reminded that the secret is no secret at all. It is as clear in this gorgeous spring weather, and in the incredible ocean floor as it is in the pages of your Bible. You are not alone. You are in a world that was created for you and that Creator demands that you be like him and be like his world, which is GOOD. Unless you cry out to Christ to save you, this world will be as deadly as the pits of some undersea canyon for you. He wants you to understand that he is your sufficiency, your necessity for life. Beg him for eyes to see this reality. Ask him to save you from this grave.
Believer, run to this good news that he did IT ALL that you would be rescued out of death! Run to this truth that his grace really is sufficient for the pain, loneliness, emptiness, and monotony of life. We run to entertainment, food and drink, sex and relationships and it all becomes more and more empty. After a while, I need more and more of it just to feel normal. But he has saved you. He is saving you. He is perfecting you. Find joy in that fact! Do not forget that you were dead. Do not forget that you were at the bottom of a great ocean, crushed by its weight; the icy chill of sin filling your lungs. Do not forget that he did this. The more we think upon this truth, the more we will find ourselves in tears of joy; striving for holiness and desiring his will. Think on it. Meditate on it. Never forget. This is the good news that saves lives, that God himself came and died and rose for you if you will only believe.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
the quest for community
I just got on-line banking. I know, you must be thinking 'you are just now getting on-line banking?? where have you been? you paelentalogical, archaic fossil.. I bet you still listen to cassette tapes!' (and you'd be right).
Anyway, as I've been enjoying the thrills of tracking exactly where it is that Chrissy has been abusing our debit card, I've actually found myself somewhat mourning the fact that I no longer need to interact with human beings to meet my banking needs. I've had to say goodbye to my favorite teller at my preferred Bank of America branch.
On-line banking has given me convenience, but has cost me relationship.
The same is true for so many other aspects of our society. I pay-at-the pump when I buy gas, happily circumventing the gas station attendent. I buy most of my stuff on-line saving me the hassle of being around people at the mall.
I use the self check-out line at the grocery store. I read other blogs to get the opinions of those I'm interested in hearing from. Heck, I even buy gift cards for gifts these days... see, now I don't even need to bother knowing you well enough to find out what you really like and don't like, do it yourself!!
Maybe I'm going overboard here, but the on-line happy, entertainment-addicted, consumption-oriented, full-throttle paced suburbanite culture that I'm part of seems to be steadily losing its ability to enjoy meaningful relationships and community, and yet is, at the same time, starving for it.
I myself often feel that I have more contacts than real relationships and have more appointments than shared experiences with dear friends. What gives? How do we bridge this gap?
A couple of thoughts... which are by no means comprehensive..
1.) Know why we long for community:
Because of creation. We long for community because we were created by a community (check out the pronoun usage in Gen. 1.26). A Father, Son, and Holy Spirit created you.. a 'we' created a 'you' and you are not complete until you find other 'yous'.
2.) Know why we struggle with community:
In addition to the obvious cultural shifts and struggles I wrote about above, there is also the inclination within our hearts to cover up, cover over, and to hide our true selves from others. This is a hangover from the fall of mankind into sin. When sin entered the world, the first responce of Adam and Eve was to cover themselves.. (see Gen. 3). We are no different. We fear being found out and exposed and rejected as unlovely.
3.) Know where freedom is found:
In the Gospel we learn that God made a way for us to experience both reconcillation and restored relationship with Him as well as the possiblity of true community with other Christians in the church. The way of the world is to live by the 'pecking order' (a barnyard term expressing the relational patterns of chickens!). We tend to build our identities around what we have, how we look, how smart we are, who we know, or some combination of the above. This neatly puts us into cliques, social strata, clubs, and castes. It divides us. The cross does away with the assumptions that this system is founded upon. It exposes all of mankind as hopelessly lost in and of themselves and offers hope if you come to it with nothing but your need.
Well, what do we do with all of this?
I long for the gathering to be a community.. imperfect and messy as it is.
A place to belong.
A place to process your story in relative safety.
A place to wrestle with the pressing questions of life without feeling like you're being indoctrinated.
A place to find love, friendship and truth.
That can only happen when we hate our own sin worse than we hate everyone else's,
when we make a commitment to belong and to serve, not to just be entertained,
when we ask God for the grace to see the same potential in others that He was able to see in us.
will you join me in this journey?
Anyway, as I've been enjoying the thrills of tracking exactly where it is that Chrissy has been abusing our debit card, I've actually found myself somewhat mourning the fact that I no longer need to interact with human beings to meet my banking needs. I've had to say goodbye to my favorite teller at my preferred Bank of America branch.
On-line banking has given me convenience, but has cost me relationship.
The same is true for so many other aspects of our society. I pay-at-the pump when I buy gas, happily circumventing the gas station attendent. I buy most of my stuff on-line saving me the hassle of being around people at the mall.
I use the self check-out line at the grocery store. I read other blogs to get the opinions of those I'm interested in hearing from. Heck, I even buy gift cards for gifts these days... see, now I don't even need to bother knowing you well enough to find out what you really like and don't like, do it yourself!!
Maybe I'm going overboard here, but the on-line happy, entertainment-addicted, consumption-oriented, full-throttle paced suburbanite culture that I'm part of seems to be steadily losing its ability to enjoy meaningful relationships and community, and yet is, at the same time, starving for it.
I myself often feel that I have more contacts than real relationships and have more appointments than shared experiences with dear friends. What gives? How do we bridge this gap?
A couple of thoughts... which are by no means comprehensive..
1.) Know why we long for community:
Because of creation. We long for community because we were created by a community (check out the pronoun usage in Gen. 1.26). A Father, Son, and Holy Spirit created you.. a 'we' created a 'you' and you are not complete until you find other 'yous'.
2.) Know why we struggle with community:
In addition to the obvious cultural shifts and struggles I wrote about above, there is also the inclination within our hearts to cover up, cover over, and to hide our true selves from others. This is a hangover from the fall of mankind into sin. When sin entered the world, the first responce of Adam and Eve was to cover themselves.. (see Gen. 3). We are no different. We fear being found out and exposed and rejected as unlovely.
3.) Know where freedom is found:
In the Gospel we learn that God made a way for us to experience both reconcillation and restored relationship with Him as well as the possiblity of true community with other Christians in the church. The way of the world is to live by the 'pecking order' (a barnyard term expressing the relational patterns of chickens!). We tend to build our identities around what we have, how we look, how smart we are, who we know, or some combination of the above. This neatly puts us into cliques, social strata, clubs, and castes. It divides us. The cross does away with the assumptions that this system is founded upon. It exposes all of mankind as hopelessly lost in and of themselves and offers hope if you come to it with nothing but your need.
Well, what do we do with all of this?
I long for the gathering to be a community.. imperfect and messy as it is.
A place to belong.
A place to process your story in relative safety.
A place to wrestle with the pressing questions of life without feeling like you're being indoctrinated.
A place to find love, friendship and truth.
That can only happen when we hate our own sin worse than we hate everyone else's,
when we make a commitment to belong and to serve, not to just be entertained,
when we ask God for the grace to see the same potential in others that He was able to see in us.
will you join me in this journey?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)