I thought it was appropriate to title this post marking time, since I have obviously not marked any time on this blog since March. I chalk that up to grandchildren, the short but glorious summer in Vermont, and life in general. But as the changing of seasons approaches once more, I thought I should get on with it and start writing again since, in a way, these words will one day be the only legacy I leave behind.
Several questions continue to plague me for answers...Why do we go to church, or said another way, Why do we even need church? And while there have been many answers given that have some validity, I think ultimately the answer is somehow related to the historic church concept of marking time. It is not surprising that our lives as well as history revolves in cycles. At creation God set planets and stars in the heavens to mark times and seasons. Even the creation of light placed two distinct periods of time into every day. And when He gave the law on Sinai, He built into the ten commandments one that required observance of a sabbath, one day in seven, observed in holiness because of the work of God Himself. To that He later added the sabbatic year, one year in every seven years for the land to rest, the jubilee year, one year in every seven of sevens of years for the release of debt, and the seven holy convocations for the nation (as the scripture calls them the times appointed by the Lord).
And the purpose of those times was to remember the works of God's deliverance and providence, and to become partakers in those graces, to make them present in the moment (we might say renew covenant with Him). We are no longer under the Jewish laws, but old habits (or divine principles) die hard and so the Church marks time in its own way, ordering its year and celebrations around the two great anchor feasts of Christmastide and Eastertide. And that's why our church year begins in December with Advent and not on the civil New Year's Day. That's why the cycle of readings contained in the lectionary has remained so important to me and to the church. We need that annual remembrance and covenant renewal in the grace and work of God. Just as Moses commanded the entire law to be read in the hearing of the Israel when their gathered for their convocations, so too we need to hear the whole story again and again to keep it fresh, to make it ours, to give it to our children. I tend to be crotchety this way; don't recite to me Paul's theology and doctrine, just tell me the old, old story of Jesus and His love. It's only the latter that truly renews the covenant of grace in my heart and soul.
One last thought about marking time and going to church. The New Testament states the principle of the tithe just as well as the Old Testament did when in Romans 11:16 it declares that if the first fruit is holy, then the entire batch is holy. I think that gives a perfect reason for observing Sabbath, for going to church. If we dedicate the first day of our week to God and His purposes and participate in the way in which our conscience guides us, then the offering of that tithe or first fruit makes the balance of our week consecrated, set apart also to God and His purposes. We need to do that, because in the midst of business or school or home, our weeks sometimes seem far from God and His influence. But that is the power of the tithe, even if we do not feel it, even if we are not aware of it, the transaction has been made, the offering has been given, and God will remain faithful to do His part in every moment of time. I go to church to dedicate my week to the God I serve and to His purposes, I may not always fully succeed throughout the week, the I am confident that failure would only results without that first good beginning.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Monday, March 17, 2014
The Professional Christians
I recently had a good exchange with my pastor over a new on-line service that he is experimenting with. In a nutshell, a church can subscribe to this website that makes popular teaching and teachers available to the congregation on video. Need a how-to on evangelism? Let Bill Hybels tell you how to do it, complete with handy illustrations that you can sketch on a napkin. Need some help on your marriage? The Family Life staff will be glad to give you more than you want. Planning a VBS? Why don't you invite Max Lucado into the room to tell your stories for you. Feeling the need to follow Jesus more fervently? Francis Chan has just what you need. Ready to start small groups in your church? Well there's two dozen people who will tell you the secret for success.
The core of my comments to the pastor had to do with the fact that we are starting to turn our churches over to the professionals, the experts, and even to the Christian celebrities. Why listen to your pastor when you can listen to Chuck Swindoll or John MacArthur or Alistair Begg, or R.C. Sproul? My concern with the professionals is that their materials, however sound and good they may be, are productions with everything just right, edits and final proofs buffed clean, and study notes appended at the end. Somehow I just never get the warm and fuzzies when a video is speaking or preaching to me as I get when I hear a pastor who knows me for who I am preach a heart-felt sermon face to face and force me to confront the grace of God. It may not be perfect, it may not always be dynamic, the church pews are certainly not as comfortable as my easy chair, but it is the order and method that Jesus ordained for His Church to be instructed in all godliness and holiness. The church, above all, is local first. It is a body, not a corporation. It is in the local church that we see the face of God and handle the word of life. And that fellowship cannot be packaged and marketed.
Two other quick thoughts on this. The first is about the marketing that always accompanies such productions. These materials are billed as just what you need to help you in your walk with Jesus. But why can't Jesus help us in our walk with Him? Why can't we take Him at His word and seek how it applies to our life situations? Why can't the brothers and sisters that are on the same spiritual pilgrimage as us in our congregations help us in our walk with Him? Sometimes I think we are just to quick to reach for the all inclusive package rather than put the sweat equity into developing something ourselves that may not be as slick but that does meets the exact needs of our church, It's sort of the concept of not trying to buy the latest square peg no matter how well it's packaged and how much it promises to do, and then try and jam it forcefully into our round hole congregation.
The second thought is this. Over dependence on the experts, the professionals, will ultimately cripple our ability to develop our congregational members in their giftings. Why raise up dedicated, trained Christian educators who develop their own materials to grab the hearts of the next generation? Just grab the latest eye-candy for kids and put it up on the screen. We are too quick to avoid the struggle to bring forth our own materials that convey the truth of God for the particular people of God of which we are a part. We use other materials because they are glossy, they are efficient, they are less work and more convenient. But as I said earlier, one size does not fit all.
For the time being I reserve my final judgment for two reasons. First, I have been known to be completely out in left field when everyone else is in the dugout, but second, and more important, I trust my pastor's judgment in this time and I am content to see how this all plays out and whether it leaves our church stronger for its presence or just less-equipped to handle the word of God for ourselves.
The core of my comments to the pastor had to do with the fact that we are starting to turn our churches over to the professionals, the experts, and even to the Christian celebrities. Why listen to your pastor when you can listen to Chuck Swindoll or John MacArthur or Alistair Begg, or R.C. Sproul? My concern with the professionals is that their materials, however sound and good they may be, are productions with everything just right, edits and final proofs buffed clean, and study notes appended at the end. Somehow I just never get the warm and fuzzies when a video is speaking or preaching to me as I get when I hear a pastor who knows me for who I am preach a heart-felt sermon face to face and force me to confront the grace of God. It may not be perfect, it may not always be dynamic, the church pews are certainly not as comfortable as my easy chair, but it is the order and method that Jesus ordained for His Church to be instructed in all godliness and holiness. The church, above all, is local first. It is a body, not a corporation. It is in the local church that we see the face of God and handle the word of life. And that fellowship cannot be packaged and marketed.
Two other quick thoughts on this. The first is about the marketing that always accompanies such productions. These materials are billed as just what you need to help you in your walk with Jesus. But why can't Jesus help us in our walk with Him? Why can't we take Him at His word and seek how it applies to our life situations? Why can't the brothers and sisters that are on the same spiritual pilgrimage as us in our congregations help us in our walk with Him? Sometimes I think we are just to quick to reach for the all inclusive package rather than put the sweat equity into developing something ourselves that may not be as slick but that does meets the exact needs of our church, It's sort of the concept of not trying to buy the latest square peg no matter how well it's packaged and how much it promises to do, and then try and jam it forcefully into our round hole congregation.
The second thought is this. Over dependence on the experts, the professionals, will ultimately cripple our ability to develop our congregational members in their giftings. Why raise up dedicated, trained Christian educators who develop their own materials to grab the hearts of the next generation? Just grab the latest eye-candy for kids and put it up on the screen. We are too quick to avoid the struggle to bring forth our own materials that convey the truth of God for the particular people of God of which we are a part. We use other materials because they are glossy, they are efficient, they are less work and more convenient. But as I said earlier, one size does not fit all.
For the time being I reserve my final judgment for two reasons. First, I have been known to be completely out in left field when everyone else is in the dugout, but second, and more important, I trust my pastor's judgment in this time and I am content to see how this all plays out and whether it leaves our church stronger for its presence or just less-equipped to handle the word of God for ourselves.
The Spirit of God is Upon Me
They say that the Eastern Orthodox Church prides itself on having not substantively changed since the fourth and fifth centuries in which the great creeds were hammered out and doctrines laid fast line upon line. When confronted with challenge, they appeal to the primitive faith. To that I want to say, "And how's that working out for you?" People change, society changes, culture changes, history changes, our own stories change, and yet we expect the faith to be delivered once to the saints and to stand the test of time. But I think when we demands this, we confuse foundational truth with dogma, God Himself, with our understanding of God. By their very nature some things must never change, can never change; but also by their very nature, some things must continuously change.
Now I am not a big fan of innovation, I do not wear the label of "enthusiast" very well. And I am well aware of the opposite side of the spectrum within the church that wants to throw out everything that smacks of tradition and bring everything up to date with the contemporary. I once likened the two extremes in this way.
The traditionalists are like petrified logs. They have the appearance of life, they have the stuff of life etched into their form and shape, but they are, as we say, cast in concrete. They will never change, but they do not live. The enthusiasts are like inflated balloons that will soar upwards if you let them go, but they lack substance. They are, as we say, a membrane stretched thin over a lot of hot air. So how do we find the balance between our churches turning into relics under glass on the one hand, and a whirling dervish of change for the sake of change on the other hand?
Good question. I wish I had a good answer. But as I was thinking on this all I did have a picture form in my mind that comes from two scriptural passage. The first is John 3:8, "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." And the second is Hebrews 6:19 "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain." My feeling is that it is time to cast off into the deep for a catch, to raise the sail and let the wind of the Spirit drive us before Him. And if, or when, we enter those waters where it is apparent that shoals are present or that the way is uncertain for a time, then drop anchor and hold fast in the sanctuary of God until the time comes to move on. We must not become so set in our ways that we become an idol of stone rather than the temple of the living God, and we must not be so quick to throw out our history and tradition for the sake of relevance that we lose all sense of our mooring in the Kingdom.
Now I am not a big fan of innovation, I do not wear the label of "enthusiast" very well. And I am well aware of the opposite side of the spectrum within the church that wants to throw out everything that smacks of tradition and bring everything up to date with the contemporary. I once likened the two extremes in this way.
The traditionalists are like petrified logs. They have the appearance of life, they have the stuff of life etched into their form and shape, but they are, as we say, cast in concrete. They will never change, but they do not live. The enthusiasts are like inflated balloons that will soar upwards if you let them go, but they lack substance. They are, as we say, a membrane stretched thin over a lot of hot air. So how do we find the balance between our churches turning into relics under glass on the one hand, and a whirling dervish of change for the sake of change on the other hand?
Good question. I wish I had a good answer. But as I was thinking on this all I did have a picture form in my mind that comes from two scriptural passage. The first is John 3:8, "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." And the second is Hebrews 6:19 "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain." My feeling is that it is time to cast off into the deep for a catch, to raise the sail and let the wind of the Spirit drive us before Him. And if, or when, we enter those waters where it is apparent that shoals are present or that the way is uncertain for a time, then drop anchor and hold fast in the sanctuary of God until the time comes to move on. We must not become so set in our ways that we become an idol of stone rather than the temple of the living God, and we must not be so quick to throw out our history and tradition for the sake of relevance that we lose all sense of our mooring in the Kingdom.
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
More of Jesus
For some reason or another, I feel it necessary to state one more time that theology is not satisfying. Every time I hear one more New Testament scholar quoted, or hear one more dissertation from a biblical language expert about the nuances and meaning of a conjunction in a particular passage, I come away empty. For instance, Romans is 16 chapters long, how can you write a two volume commentary on a letter to a church? And yet that and much more has been done. It seems to me theology falls into the same trap that any "ology" falls into, publish or perish. I mean, how many commentaries have been written by respected "experts" on the book of Romans. If you have one or two insightful, faithful works, why do you need fifty or a hundred?
It goes back to something my wife has said to me dozens of times and that has informed my perspective and preaching in my latter years, "Just tell me about Jesus." Don't lecture me on Paul's use of particular words in his letters, or talk about overarching concepts like justification or election, bring me face to face with Jesus, and then do it again, and again, and again. It never get's old, and it satisfies my soul like nothing else can. You can constrain me ultimately by your arguments and proof texts by wearing me down to the point where I no longer care and give in, but you can't change my heart with arguments, only with Jesus. Enough said!
It goes back to something my wife has said to me dozens of times and that has informed my perspective and preaching in my latter years, "Just tell me about Jesus." Don't lecture me on Paul's use of particular words in his letters, or talk about overarching concepts like justification or election, bring me face to face with Jesus, and then do it again, and again, and again. It never get's old, and it satisfies my soul like nothing else can. You can constrain me ultimately by your arguments and proof texts by wearing me down to the point where I no longer care and give in, but you can't change my heart with arguments, only with Jesus. Enough said!
God and Man at Table are Sat Down
The Christmas story tends to make me think about things that I am content to not even consider during most of the year. As I once again struggled to comprehend the word incarnation, my thoughts turned back to our whole conception of God, how we come to know of Him, and ultimately how we come to know Him. And the scripture very matter of factly declares that in the face of Jesus we behold the face of God. Actually it says something more like He is the very image of the unseen God, something I am sure would delight the Greek church fathers, but I prefer to personalize it a little more. Not that this helps me any further in my understanding, but somehow it is reassuring at a deeper level. So here are two random thoughts that somehow were generated as part of this ongoing consideration.
First, the church has always referred to the humbling (actually humiliation) of Christ, what Paul refers to as emptying Himself of His glory and descending to the lowest part of creation, and the exaltation of Christ, being glorified and exalted at the right hand of the Father. And it occurred to me that while many people are humbled (or humiliated) by circumstances, or behavior, or poor choices, or life reversals, Jesus voluntarily gave Himself into humility, and only one who is totally self-assured, who has no doubts about who He is or what God requires of Him in the moment, can do that so completely. And here's the mystery, that humiliation was not to bring Christ low, but to allow Him to fill all in all, leaving nothing untouched and everything charged with potential, awaiting only that day when He delivers up the Kingdom to His Father.
Second, as Christians we bemoan the fact that the world makes gods in their own image and likeness rather than the other way around. Paul again says that they exchange the glory of the living God for a false form. But I wonder if sometimes we (i.e. the church) also do not do the same thing. Oh, I am aware that theology claims to draw its conception of God solely from what is revealed in the scripture, and all of the creeds and confessions and catechisms can tack on a proof text or two to back up their statements, but sometimes I wonder if we still do not push the limits of what is revealed and rely too much instead on underlying philosophical suppositions that we have inherited somewhere along the way and don't even realize as being there.
For instance, we state that God is perfect, but to me that seems more of our idea rather than His. It is something we expect our God to be and we only speak of Him in superlatives such as immortal, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, and so on. But that is the problem with theology, it is still something we do because of our bent to classify and dissect and integrate again. But it always comes back to the point that God must be thus and such because, in our minds, He could not be God unless He was that way. I came to this point indirectly as I moved from Christmas to the question as to why I exist. A perfect being is all sufficient, He has no needs and therefore angels and man and creation as a whole are unnecessary, and yet here we are. And I know theologians have asked the same question because they have written volumes to explain it and it always seems to come down to some form of we exist because God desires to display His glory. And it was just at that point that I said to myself, is this not a form of pride? Now as humans, we consider pride a sin, it is self seeking. But that is exactly what God displaying His glory does, it lifts Him up, exalts Him, demands our attention and worship. It is pride, but perfect pride, if there be such a thing. And when I get to thinking things like that I conclude that I don't, and probably most other people don't know God as surely as we think we know Him. And I'm fine with that. It just took Christmas to remind me once again of something that St. Augustine once said. It goes more or less like this, my words about You are so much less than my thoughts about You, but You are ever so much more than my thoughts.
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
They'll Know We Are Christians By [You Fill in the Blank]
One of the closing songs we sang a few weeks ago at church was the classic "They'll Know We Are Christians". The song is certainly biblical in its message and context, remains contemporary in any age of the church, and has not suffered the same notoriety associated with other oldies such as Kumbaya. And we know the way the song goes, paraphrasing as it does from John 13:35...the world (they) will know that we are truly followers of Jesus by our love.
Sadly, however true and biblically sound the song may be, I found myself thinking as we sang it that the practical reality of our witness in the world has been badly tarnished and the words seemed empty to me. It is no longer true that the world knows that we proclaim to be followers of Jesus by the demonstration of our love. They know we are "Christians" by our judgment, by our enforced isolation in our little enclaves, by our separation from the culture around us, by our dogmatic lecturing on a handful of issues, and by our legislative initiatives. I always heard that it was very difficult to get a Christian to explain what they were for, but that they were never at a loss to explain what they were against.
How did we ever stray that far from the new commandment given by Jesus Himself as He faced the ultimate giving of Himself in love for the world He had created and now intended to deliver from futility and darkness? The theme of love is scattered throughout the writings of the Apostle John. Besides the recording of Jesus's words in his gospel, John writes " We know that we have passed from death to life because we love..." (I John 3:14; "Beloved let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God..." (I John 4:7); "Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another..." (I John 4:20); and "Now I plead with you...not as though I wrote a new commandment to you but one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another..." (II John 5). You get the picture.
Church tradition speaks of John in his latter years, and consistently indicate that he was a broken record, always exhorting his audience, "My little children, love one another." When pressed as to why he preached the same sermon over and over, it is recorded in that tradition that he replied, "Because it is the commandment of the Lord, and if we can attain only this one thing, it will be enough." Perhaps in this Christmas season we need to be reminded that the entire message of the season is one, ongoing demonstration of the love of God towards the world He created, and then perhaps we can lay aside not just the sin that so easily besets us, but the prejudice and the doctrinal arguments and the righteous judgments that most easily beset us, and then let us run the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who exhorted us above all to love.
Sadly, however true and biblically sound the song may be, I found myself thinking as we sang it that the practical reality of our witness in the world has been badly tarnished and the words seemed empty to me. It is no longer true that the world knows that we proclaim to be followers of Jesus by the demonstration of our love. They know we are "Christians" by our judgment, by our enforced isolation in our little enclaves, by our separation from the culture around us, by our dogmatic lecturing on a handful of issues, and by our legislative initiatives. I always heard that it was very difficult to get a Christian to explain what they were for, but that they were never at a loss to explain what they were against.
How did we ever stray that far from the new commandment given by Jesus Himself as He faced the ultimate giving of Himself in love for the world He had created and now intended to deliver from futility and darkness? The theme of love is scattered throughout the writings of the Apostle John. Besides the recording of Jesus's words in his gospel, John writes " We know that we have passed from death to life because we love..." (I John 3:14; "Beloved let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God..." (I John 4:7); "Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another..." (I John 4:20); and "Now I plead with you...not as though I wrote a new commandment to you but one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another..." (II John 5). You get the picture.
Church tradition speaks of John in his latter years, and consistently indicate that he was a broken record, always exhorting his audience, "My little children, love one another." When pressed as to why he preached the same sermon over and over, it is recorded in that tradition that he replied, "Because it is the commandment of the Lord, and if we can attain only this one thing, it will be enough." Perhaps in this Christmas season we need to be reminded that the entire message of the season is one, ongoing demonstration of the love of God towards the world He created, and then perhaps we can lay aside not just the sin that so easily besets us, but the prejudice and the doctrinal arguments and the righteous judgments that most easily beset us, and then let us run the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who exhorted us above all to love.
Monday, December 9, 2013
The Turn of the Cycle, First Sunday of Advent
Once again the cycle turns and I find myself at the beginning. And as I sat in church on the First Sunday of Advent I recognized that the Jews, and then the Christians, had it right when they formed their calendars. There was always what I would call a secular calendar marking time based on days and cycles and seasons, and there was a second calendar, a sacred calendar, marking time based on the presence and action of God in the work of deliverance and reconciliation. Despite this dual marking or remembrance of time, we tend to order our lives by the secular calendar with seasons bracketed by holidays, vacations, deadlines, paychecks, appointments, retirement, and dozens of other mile markers. And that calendar, the secular one, tends to be so filled up that it's easy to forget the sacred, the spiritual ordering of our minds, hearts, and souls that should somehow be more real and meaningful. The world moves on, year after year, but even as it does God is still at work, still present. And it should be the sacred calendar that brings us back to the underlying reality of what is true and right in our lives.
That is why I begin each year by buying a new calendar book, one that is formatted to fit the secular year from January 1 to December 31, one that has all of the pre-printed reminders of things the publishers feel we ought to be aware of. Some are useless; for instance, why give me four years of important dates reminding me that New Year's Day is on January 1 each year. Some are bizarre; who did lobby to get Administrative Professionals Day started and put on the calendar? And a few are useful; for instance, knowing when Canada Day was would have prevented me from visiting the Canadian side of Niagara Falls on that day with all of the other thousands of Canadians. But what I do with this new calendar is immediately pencil in the liturgical calendar for the year, placing the dates and seasons that have to do with God's work within our world, and, by extension, God's work within my life. Thus it is I find myself back at the beginning of the old, old story with a full four weeks until the end of the secular year. And it is my hope that I receive the story fresh and new as it begins its retelling, and that I find my own life once again woven into its context and storyline.
That is why I begin each year by buying a new calendar book, one that is formatted to fit the secular year from January 1 to December 31, one that has all of the pre-printed reminders of things the publishers feel we ought to be aware of. Some are useless; for instance, why give me four years of important dates reminding me that New Year's Day is on January 1 each year. Some are bizarre; who did lobby to get Administrative Professionals Day started and put on the calendar? And a few are useful; for instance, knowing when Canada Day was would have prevented me from visiting the Canadian side of Niagara Falls on that day with all of the other thousands of Canadians. But what I do with this new calendar is immediately pencil in the liturgical calendar for the year, placing the dates and seasons that have to do with God's work within our world, and, by extension, God's work within my life. Thus it is I find myself back at the beginning of the old, old story with a full four weeks until the end of the secular year. And it is my hope that I receive the story fresh and new as it begins its retelling, and that I find my own life once again woven into its context and storyline.
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