"Messy" Lives

I was reading through a familiar passage of scripture (Matthew 8) and it was one of those times where God met me in a very unique way (probably because I was intentional about slowing down to listen to God and pray. I novel idea I know...maybe I should do this more often). In Matthew 8 there are several short stories and I appreciate what God was speaking to my heart. Here is one thing that resonated with me:

In the first section, there is the story about a leprous man who approached Jesus...begging him (he fell at Jesus's knees) to cure him from his illness. Most of you know the perils of leprosy during this time so I won't labor you with all the details. However, this illness affected the individual's appearance as well as his social status. A leper was forbidden to live with the rest of society.

If you're like me, being sick is miserable...but being sick and alone is torture. I NEED someone to rub my back, assure me I won't die, etc. I cannot overstate how pathetic I am when I am sick....my wife can testify. Therefore, I cannot imagine how miserable a leper was. Even if I didn't have someone to rub my back, whisper encouraging words, etc. I would be ok knowing that in a couple days I would be back to normal. Lepers didn't have this hope...they were in a perpetual cycle of misery.

Can you begin to see why this individual fell at Jesus's feet?

The compassion that Jesus shows is remarkable and is often easily overlooked. Of course Jesus heals the man, but the manner in which he does it is lost to 21st century readers. We aren't told all the details like how long this individual had been affected by this disease, but we can assume that it was a long time considering the desperateness of the plea. Jesus, being the Rabbi that he was, could have passed right by and rebuked him because he was not doing what the Jewish custom required him to do, which is announce to those around him that he was "unclean." This would let others know they needed to avoid him, lest they too become infected with the disease.

Jesus doesn't rebuke him, he doesn't pass by him...he heals him and he does it by touching him! There's no telling how long this individual had gone without human contact. The point I find remarkable is that Jesus is not afraid to involve himself and minister to "messy" people. He doesn't separate himself from the outsiders, but openly loves and welcomes them.

This caused me to reflect on how well I am doing in this area. Am I involving myself in lives that are messy or do I avoid them at all costs? How you doing? Do you only interact with those who are "clean?" If so, how can we see the transforming power of God (like this leperous man) if we are? We can't.

I believe God is calling us (the Church, the body of Christ) to involve ourselves in lives that are unclean and messy....so that we can see lives radically transformed by the power of Jesus.

The Gospel? Part 3

Bock goes on in his book and addresses the ordinances of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. He states that the act of baptism focuses on the individual response to the gospel whereas the Lord's Supper focuses on how God formed a community through the gospel. Again the stress of Bock is to illustrate that the gospel is more than the removal of sin.

The Gospel is also about breaking down barriers...barriers that stood against us and God and barriers against each other. The good news of Jesus Christ is that God is forming a new community. The Lord's Supper and Baptism are not meant to be done in solemnity and isolation, but in a community. God is saving individuals (so there is an aspect of individualism in Christianity), but God is saving individuals so that they make up a new community that is meant to share life with him and reflect his fame and glory to the rest of the world.

The Gospel? Part 2

I apologize to my three readers for my brief absence. My family and I went off the grid to camp. In the first chapter of Bock's book he begins by asking us to see the gospel as more than merely the forgiveness of sins. It's not as though it's not true or insignificant, but he wants to illustrate that the gospel is much more than God forgiving or acquiring our sins. In fact, he argues that the forgiveness of sins is a means to something far greater, namely the restoration of a lost relationship with the living and true God.

This is in fact a major component to our Gospel. Our sins are a huge deal because it separates us from God. However, God didn't solve our sin problem in order to leave us spiritual orphans. He solved our sin problem and then gives us his Holy Spirit in order that 1.) we may have an intimate relationship with him and 2.) empower us to actually walk in a manner that is pleasing to him. Without the power of the Holy Spirit, we are actually impotent or unable to obey and know God.

I assure you, people do not seek God, obey God, know God, etc. on their own. We need God to pursue us and do something within us...and this is what the Holy Spirit does. He enters our lives and begins to transform us into what God intended us to be. Bock states it a little more eloquently when he says, "Here is the Creator God reaching down to touch a rebellious people's heart through a sacrifice that He himself brings, so that those He created may experience the life they were originally designed to live--a life in harmony with creation because it is in accord with the Creator. The gospel is not about a death but a death that leads many into life."

Therefore, forgiveness of sins is a huge deal, but the gospel isn't merely about forgiveness. The point of forgiveness is to demonstrate that there is a huge chasm or barrier that stands between God and mankind and God solved that issue through his Son and by giving us His Spirit so that we can know and obey Him.

The Gospel?

I am starting to read a book by Darrell Bock that is entitled, "Recovering the Real Lost Gospel: Reclaiming the Gospel as Good News." I'm excited to read this book because it describes how a lot of churches are have lost what the Gospel truly is....or only present part of what the Gospel entails.

Bock states the Gospel can often times be presented as a therapeutic call where God is there to help us become a better person or more prosperous. Other times the Gospel is only presented as a spiritual transaction--whereby Jesus seems to take our moral debts from us (e.g. sins). There are other presentations of the Gospel that have to deal with politics and liberation from oppression. In other words, Jesus came to deliver mankind from oppression, slavery, etc.

What is the Gospel?

Clearly, Bock believes the cross (e.g. Jesus dying for our sins and raising from the dead) is central to Christianity. In fact, he believes the cross is the hub of the Gospel. But he believes that the Gospels entails much more than just the forgiveness of sins. On what this is...stay tuned.

Who's Laughing Now?!

So, the infamous toe injury is back! I know what you're thinking...I had another whooper didn't I? Well, it might come as a surprise, but I didn't have a Whopper. So, I thought I'd do some investigating on this mysterious toe pain. My new self-diagnosis is gout. Don't roll your eyes or mock me. I know what you're thinking. A lot of great people in our human history have had gout...so why wouldn't I? If I recall from my elementary days...Mr. Benjamin Franklin had the gout. I would like to add that the great website of wikipedia also informed me that gout effects the big toe...in the exact joint that is giving me pain.

Here's the kicker...I was talking to my mother-in-law and she informed me that her father has gout and it's triggered by things he eats. Guess what's one of them?! A Whopper!!! That's right...who's laughing now?! Well, actually she didn't say a Whopper, but she did say, "red meat" and unless Burger King is false advertising (which is entirely possible) the Whopper is in the red meat camp! Once I get some good insurance (Sept 1), I'll be making my way to a doctor to confirm my online medical diagnosis.

If any of you has a mysterious medical problem, feel free to email me and I'll be sure to help you out.

The Bachelorette

I don't know how many of you watch (or are willing to admit they watch) the TV show, The Bachelorette. I have been meaning to post a comment on this show the last couple days, but have been sidetracked by our move across country. I have to say that The Bachelorette is an awful show. I wish I could say that when I say, "it's awful" that I am making a crack at all reality shows. I'm not....even though I wish I was! I'm one of those saps that can shamefully admit that I like a handful of reality shows and even some other shows that are popular amongst the ladies (i.e. Glee). I'm sure I lost a few blog readers after that comment. Who am I kidding? I only have three followers...nobody reads my blog!

Back to my main point...the Bachelorette is awful because I refuse to believe that is how we should find love or enter into a relationship. I couldn't fathom being a guy or girl that simply gives their heart away to ONE individual who goes around "test driving" a bunch of different people. There's a reason these relationships don't work...it's built on fantasy and make believe. I can see why people get frustrated with reality shows...it's not based on reality. It makes for some good drama and some great gossip, but in actuality it destroys a lot of people's hearts. God did create us to enter relationships that way. Yet how many people give their hearts away like these people?

Travel

Jen and I just made a 32+ hr. road trip across country. All I can say is, "Wow. God Bless all those truckers!" I'm not sure how they do it day in and day out. That's brutal. Now I see why most truckers aren't slim and trim. All you can do to pass your time is eat crappy food. I think the healthiest thing I ate on the trip was beef jerky.

Reflections on Mark 4:1-8

As I read through the familiar parable of the sower, it is interesting to think that we all fall into one of Jesus's soil categories. What kind of soil am I? What kind of soil are you? Am I placing myself in an environment where the maximum amount of growth can happen? That's definitely one of Jesus's point. Seeds don't grow well on hard paths, rocky places, and spots where there is shallow soil. This type of environment is not conducive for a plant to take its roots deep and become steadfast and secure.

As I was talking with a buddy it"s interesting to see that there are a great number of people who place themselves in a pretty healthy environment and yet they still remain stunted. They simply don't grow and blossom. They do not reach the zenith of God's potential. What's up with that?

I think it is fair to say that just because you are connected to a church does not mean you are becoming all that God created you to be. Connecting with a church community does not mean you are growing and experiencing life change. You might meet others who are...and you might live vicariously through them. I would say this is where most of us live. We live Christianity through others. God is not pleased with parroting Christians! Christians who mimic and use the language of other Christians. We have these types of Christians in spades. I have been one of them and it's easy for me to slip back into that type of Christianity. It's grotesque and not what God wants for us.

God longs to work in our lives, but there is an initiative and responsibility on our part. Holiness or our becoming more like Jesus does not happen by accident. It takes time and discipline. We need to pursue God in prayer and his revealed word and ask him to show himself to us and radically change us. We need to pour ourselves out and serve others. We need to live in a community that encourages these things as well.

I'm Hurt

Ok, so I woke up last night with a pretty severe pain in my big toe (I've been waking up with a lot of pain lately). I'm not going to lie, I'm befuddled as to why my toe hurts so bad. Have you gotten hurt and have no idea how it happened? If you're like me, you start to come up with some pretty bizarre ideas on how it may have happened.

As I laid in bed wondering why my toe hurt, I tried to replay the day and recall if I fell or kicked something. Quickly moving past that I had no earthy idea how I got injured, I started to wonder if I got mysteriously bit by a spider or some insect during the night. Too tired to turn on the light, I decided to wait until morning if that were the case. Morning arrived and I discovered the pain did not seem to be from a deadly insect or spider...at least there seems to be no visible signs of a bit mark. Then my mind started to play tricks on you. I went from a spider bite to...I ate a Burger King whopper before bed. Maybe the whopper did something funky to my toe. This was the first time I've had a whopper in years...a coincidence that my left big toe is throbbing? I'm not quite sure.

Finally, I came to terms that my toe pangs are mostly likely not from a whopper and I started to wonder if I had cancer of the foot. Could I be dying and this is merely the early signs of my disease? I suppose this is a possibility (although not very probable....at least I hope not). Jen said it could be arthritis. I refuse to believe I am old enough to suffer from arthritis. I'll go with the whopper before arthritis! My new diagnosis is sleep walking. Although I know of no instances of this occuring in my past (in other words I don't have any stories from Jen or from friends and family), maybe I got up during the night and kicked something. Who knows? It's a mystery.

Mark 4:1-8

As I prepare for the second part of my I.C.E (Invest, Connect, Empower) talk tomorrow, I am struck by the mysterious nature of "connection." Connecting people to one another (e.g. community) and to the Church seems to be both intentional and organic. In other words, there is no set formula on how this takes place. I fully believe we have to be strategic, but at the same time I know God is the one who has to establish and make sure they take root.

In the parable of the sower, Jesus seems to address this issue. The farmer is intentional about scattering the seed and he recognizes that there needs to be the right environment if the seed is going to grow and flourish. Yet the farmer really doesn't have any control over the process. The only control he seems to have is that he needs to put the seed in the best possible environment (e.g. a place where there is good soil).

My prayer is that I will be an individual who is intentional about cultivating an environment for my wife, children, and friends where they can connect well with others and with God. I know I am not ultimately responsible for their growth, but I feel like I am responsible about placing them in the best possible environment.