An Observation on Prophets

Biblical prophets are first acquainted with their own evil before they can say “Thus saith the Lord.” In our day, some prophets like the ego trip of “thus saith the Lord” without first saying, “Woe is me. I am undone! For I am a man of unclean lips and I speak to a people of unclean lips” ~Isaiah. We must first be fully acquainted and willing to face our own evil before being able to humbly submit to God whereby we may be given a confidence in the Spirit to speak His truth.

Forgiving and Forgetting

Hebrews 10:15-18:

"And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying,

 'This is the covenant that I will make with them
after those days, says the Lord:
I will put my laws upon their heart,
and on their mind I will write them,' (Jeremiah 31:33)

   He then says,

 'And their sins and their lawless deeds
I will remember no more.' (Jer. 31:34)

 Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin."

Too many times we contrast forgiving and forgetting, do we not, as if God exhorts us to forgive while not expecting us to forget. I find it blessedly intriguing that His own model of forgiveness is not such.

Limiting Speech

I am a talker. I actually have a small level of what I would go so far as to call anxiety when I fear not getting out of my mouth the finished product of what is in my head in conversation. But it hit me today that there are crucial moments, such as when a surgeon yells out a life-saving instruction, when a military leader says "go" or "fire," or when a parent yells "STOP!" to a child walking obliviously into the trajectory of an oncoming vehicle. In fact, there are crucial hours, a whole series of moments such as an entire surgery or the hours Houston spends communicating to astronauts during a crisis oriented shuttle mission. During these crucial moments brave people give up sleep, emotional impulses, and instinctive preferences in order to keep going in a life-saving or even world-changing way.

But this is not my normal daily experience. Many times throughout my day I desire to operate beyond limitations - some natural and some that should be self-imposed - in order to waste energy and words on what is not a crucial moment.

The Missionary Power of Prayer

I read a quote on Twitter the other night by E. Stanley Jones (1884–1973), the great 20th century Methodist missionary to India. It read as follows:

@E_StanleyJones "Prayer is commission. Out of the quietness with God, power is generated that turns the spiritual machinery of the world."


As a missionary of the gospel of Jesus, Jones had a clear understanding that the activity of God in the world flowed out the nature of God being in mission to save the world. Thus, the life of the child of God and disciple of Jesus is to flow out of union with this missionary God. So, as Jones states, prayer becomes commission. Communing with God leads to being commissioned by God. As we dwell in the presence of God seeking His heart, His mind, and His will, we end up encountering the One who is redeeming us and those around us and relentlessly pursuing the lost sheep (Matthew 18:12-14). And out of this quiet dwelling in God and with God, we yield ourselves to the power of His Spirit to move through and among us in such a way that "the spiritual machinery of the world" is turned. Hallelujah! Prayer leads to action - both by God and ourselves.


I am challenged by the words of this missionary saint that we have but one thing to do in order to shake the spiritual realm with the power of the divine Creator and Savior of the world - pray. And out of this seemingly passive action, all other actions of eternal consequence find their purpose and motivation.


Let us pray.

What do you think of Paul?

I just finished reading the book of Acts while following along in The Grand Sweep: Daily Response Book, written by Ellsworth Kalas. Kalas says, "Some people love the apostle Paul and some dislike him intensely, but everyone agrees he is a key figure in the Christian faith" (p.183). I have to admit, five years ago, even as a Christian who affirmed the Bible as God's Word that is authoritative and the primary source of theological truth, I was in Kalas's second category.

I did not like Paul. It seemed like everyone at my Southern Baptist college was obsessed with him, and I just didn't get it. It wasn't that I didn't think his writing was true. But when I read the stories of his life and his letters I could never feel completely comfortable with the tone. It seemed I must not understand his time, context, and the acceptable "posture" of the way he spoke and wrote. He seemed arrogant. He seemed proud. He seemed adamant about things that seemed to me more about personal preference (such as the conviction that one should avoid marriage if possible).

I just finished reading the book of Acts, not for the first time. And I can honestly say that, now, Paul is one of the figures in Christian history I admire most. His testimony, his conviction, his focus on the mission of God revealed in Christ, and the character traits he evidenced through his life and ministry strengthen my faith and challenge me to a life of more purity, fervor, passion, and commitment. He is a disciple of Jesus who I think I can sometimes misread or under-appreciate.

What are some things you admire about Paul? What are some things that turn you off or rub you the wrong way as you read about his life in Acts and his own letters in the New Testament? Please feel free to comment on this post and offer your response.

Pluralism illustrated... What Oreos and North American religion have in common

In North America, religious conversation seems to be getting more relaxed in a way that would seem like good news for Christians. We are allowed to talk about Christianity more with people in how it relates to religious belief systems on the whole without seeming like a threat. And more people seem to be saying to devoted followers of Christ that they too admire the person of Jesus and even have faith in Him. The problem that is increasingly occurring to me is that as I engage in conversation with people about "how this Jesus guy fits into the mix of things," that's exactly what it becomes for many people - a mix. Jesus is no longer an Oreo among cookies...among which there is no comparison.

There just isn't any other cookie that could be mistaken for an Oreo. An Oreo is still a cookie; it has the properties of a cookie and can be defined as a cookie by its characteristics. But the Oreo used to stand out. (In fact, it is still claiming to be Milk's favorite.) But if the cookie aisle were to continue on the trajectory it is on, it would eventually become the Oreo aisle. The variety of this one beloved kind of cookie is exploding! And all the sudden, the parameters for what defines an Oreo are being held loosely, they are expanding, some are falling away completely to add more variety for the consumer's customization, pallet, and personal preference. Let us have as many versions of one thing as we possibly can so that we can all live in "peace" and be "ok" as we satisfy our own egocentric view of what the best Oreo should be as if it wasn't Oreo that originally defined itself. [Peace is not, it seems, being unmistakably sure of the identity of the Oreo and knowing confidently whether one wants an Oreo or not.] This is pluralism. And when it comes to cookies, I'm not saying this is bad. I would be a hypocrite to say so, in fact. But this is telling of how our cultural mindset is changing. And it is good to be aware of as Christians engage in religious dialogue (in the broad sense...or "cookie" level) with others.

P.S. If there was only one other variety of Oreo besides the original, I would want it to be Double Stuff. This is a spiritual parallel in itself.

Closing Note: As I begin to blog again (hopefully more regularly and fruitfully for a change), I am not seeking to make definitive statements in hopes of impressing people or conform readers to my way of thinking as if Abingdon can't wait to get a hold of my ideas and print them in mass. Now that I am a pastor of a church, I recognize why newsletter articles were actually once very valuable to people and are to some still. This blog will go beyond that. My hopes are that I can say things that trigger thoughts perhaps someone has not had as they walk the road of their Christian faith and that I can begin conversations that others can pick up and offer reflections that help further growth. So feel free to offer a different perspective, a corrective, questions, or comments of any kind.

Grace and peace,
Jonathan

Noah's Lemon Face

"Sacred Profanity": Judges 6:25-27

I preached this sermon this morning for Dr. Kalas's "Theology and Practice of Preaching" class. It was a joy and a privilege.

One sacred morning some villagers awoke and came out to see up on the hill their place of worship torn down. A different kind of altar was set up. On it was roasted bull. They realized that the wood used to burn the sacrificed bull was one of their idols, an Asherah pole. One of their own had bucked the acceptable vices of culture to follow the instructions of a forgotten God. The rebel, Gideon, was the son of a tribal leader. He claimed his family was the least of the tribe of Manasseh, and he was the youngest of his father’s house. But the night before, God had called him "valiant warrior." And in Judges 6, God used him for a valiant purpose - to make the profane into something sacred. When the villagers saw the abomination on the hillside, they did not see eradication; they saw transformation. The difference may seem subtle, but their idolatry had not vanished. It had been converted into something else. Something profane had been made something sacred.

A brief story will illustrate the difference. Matt is an unusual pastor who meets potential church members by playing bar trivia in…you guessed it…a bar. He has lunch with Jeff almost every week, because Jeff is a “seeker,” someone who is searching for “something”…that can only be found in the Person of Jesus and His redeeming love. Jeff is in his mid-twenties and grew up in the church but quit going when he was about 15. Matt often opens conversation by asking, “What kind of questions about faith do you have?” Jeff usually talks about common things. But recently he asked Matt, “How do you know when it's time to let God in your life." Taken aback, Matt said, “What do you mean?" Jeff replied, “You know, I'm just afraid that if there's a time to let God in, I've missed it. I’m just afraid that now I have too many addictions and too much stuff in my life that I could never get all my stuff straight and let God in." Matt said, “Jeff, you don't have to do that." Then, Matt continued to explain how God enters into our brokenness, desiring to transform our infirmities and deliver us from our bondages.

Jeff illustrates an important problem. Many people who have grown up in the church are under the impression that they have to eradicate profanity, filth, from their life (AS IF THEY COULD ON THEIR OWN) before God will come near them, because “God is holy and can’t be in the presence of sin.” But this is not the picture painted by Judges 6. Gideon’s altar is beside the rubble that was once an altar to Baal. And it did not disappear from the story! It is the profanity after which and into which God's grace and mercy breaks in. The bull sacrificed to God was burned using an Asherah pole. The profane had been redeemed for a sacred purpose.

You might be thinking that this is a nice little sermon for people like Jeff, lost souls whose lives are filthy and out of control. We, on the other hand, are mostly people who walk with Jesus and perhaps have done so for quite some time. But the fact is Israel was God’s chosen people. Lest we think too highly of our sanctification, we remember our depravity. For, like Israel, the people of God, we feel that we too are “prone to wander…prone to leave the God [we] love.” Our lives, too, may reflect some profanity, maybe obvious, maybe subtle. So, I ask, what altars exist to other gods in our village, in our homes, in our closets, on our computers, or hidden deep in the remotest parts of the heart…perhaps even erected right beside an altar to the Lord? What profanity is God desiring to make sacred? And will you let Him? Will you pray,

“Come thou Fount of every blessing

Tune our hearts to praise Thy name

Turn our idols into altars

Making sacred what was profane”?

The Heart of God in Christ

I love having a blog, but unfortunately I find that I often don't feel like a have much to say. Preaching is one thing (finding an inspiring combination of "Scripture" and "idea"), but I haven't quite figured out how to keep the blogwheel turning. Consequently I have two major blog problems - 1) I don't post often, and when I do 2) the post is long. This post is a two-fold victory. I just posted a week ago, and this post is just short food for thought :). I hope it enriches you even in a minuscule way.


Two verses occurred to me simultaneously the other night as I was praying and I put them together to draw a conclusion I had never thought of. Now, right off hand I know that methods like these are how heresies are born but go with me for a few moments and hear out the conclusion. Then, feel free to leave tirades of appalled horror in the comment section.


Scripture tells us that "out of the mouth the heart speaks." I am aware that this is a proverb, a truth by which we humans are to live wisely. But I believe this also sheds amazing light on God's act of speaking creation into being. He created/spoke from His own heart. (Now, if that's not flattering!) Scripture also tells us that Jesus Christ is "the Word [Which] became flesh and dwelt among us." Jesus is the "Word" of God. While human reason is limited and corrupted, it seems one could conclude from these two witnesses of Scripture that Jesus, in a sense, is God's heart made flesh (or at least the content of God's heart). He is the incarnate Son of God by Whose life of words and acts we can witness the substance of God's own heart.


So, you want to know the heart of God? Look at the Person of Jesus Christ.


Out of God's heart He SPOKE all things into being. And Jesus is not just something God spoke among all the other spoken things. He is the very Word of God Himself.

"Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place..."

Yesterday I read the daily reading in My Utmost for His Highest, a daily devotional classic by Oswald Chambers. Oswald included one snippet of a verse that really got my gears turning. The conclusion I came to in just a few seconds of reflection is the subject of this post - coming away with Jesus versus going out with Him in ministry.

One might say that the theme verse of invitation for the Christian believer is Matthew 28:16-20, what has come to be known as the Great Commission: "Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." This is an out-of-comfort-zone type of passage. When I read it I think of a lifelong response to Jesus as He says, "Let's get to work." I take a deep breath, I roll up my sleeves, and I prepare to be active, exhausted, and uncomfortable as I seek to do what Christ has commissioned me to do as His follower.

Now, of course, there is great joy, peace, and such that come from a life devoted to living in God and fulfilling His soul-satisfying work. But here's the truth: I am not one to be most energized by the passage above. I prefer the words of Mark 6:31: "Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, 'Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.'" When I read this I respond, "Great! When do we get to leave? This is wonderful! How long do we get to stay with you by ourselves resting in the quiet place?" I am thankful to God that as I learn what it means to follow Him, He is also teaching me about myself and how He made me.


The pair of these verses challenges me on several different levels. First, I notice that Mark 6:31 is not a commission. Jesus does not beckon or send His followers to rest. The first passage is the commission. So, the challenge is that the Christian life isn't about just resting in Jesus, but about ministering to God's lost and broken world as we live in Him. A second observation follows this up - Mark 6:31 is an invitation Jesus gives His disciples after they have worn themselves out in Kingdom ministry. In Mark 6 leading up to this verse, Jesus had sent the disciples out to stay in people's houses, preach repentance, cast out demons, and cure the sick. And as the verse says, they didn't even have time to eat! They were busy and they were fully involved in Kingdom work. So Jesus' invitation to come away with Him and rest is a reward that comes after the fulfillment of His commission, His sending. It's a "filling up" after the demanding "drain" of outpouring ministry.


It's easy for me today to read this verse and think, 'Well that's nice for the disciples. They walked with Jesus, didn't they? So they get to hang out with Him at the end of a long day of ministry.' Some might have this thought and conclude that we are now to interpret this commission and invitation as life and death. We live doing ministry and serving Jesus and when we're done with our labor we get to die and go rest with Him. I don't think this is accurate. In fact I think it's fatally draining! I know from experience I can't last a day serving Jesus if I am not also daily walking with Him, spending time alone with Him in "the quiet place," and resting in Him. As followers of Christ we are both servant of God and child of God. As a child of God / follower of Christ (NOT just as a future pastor!) I am called to the uncomfortable, demanding, and draining task of participating in God's Kingdom work. He is redeeming this world and He uses His church to bring people back into relationship with Him by living out and proclaiming the good news of Jesus and what He is actively doing in the world. But as I dedicate myself to this work I am reminded of the importance of getting away with God alone. Even Jesus Christ had to do this, getting away alone with His heavenly Father (Mt 14:22-23, Lk 5:16, etc.). We have the opportunity to spend time alone resting with Jesus and the Father in the Holy Spirit daily in the secret place. Daily time in prayer, daily time in God's Word, daily time receiving His love and giving our love back to Him. This is the simple and classic, but biblically necessary gift that so many saints who have gone before have urged as devotional practice. We as Jesus' followers have the gift of "coming with Him by ourselves to a quiet place and getting some rest."