A recent conversation brought up the idea that Christians live with the tension between grace which they cannot provide and divine law over which they they have no control. Grace has no meaning without the presence of law to define right and wrong. Neither can law provide a perspective of hope without the presence of grace, the idea of a second chance. Christians must live with this tension because of the need to but who continue to fail to keep the demands of the law and must live with a dependency upon grace.
In the secular world there is a parallel concern between personal freedom and government control. A free society must be defined by the freedom exercised by its citizenry. Its freedom is maintained, however, by the control its government is able to provide. A free citizenry is under the constant tension of deciding how much control it can give its government to maintain the freedom demanded by its citizenry.
How much control will we as Christians give our Creator-God in determining the lifestyle we his creation will follow? How much freedom must we demand in order to be able to respond to our Creator-God as independent thinking individuals? Surely the answers to these questions bring in the awesome concerns of the sovereignty of God, the freedom of man, the consequences of actions, and the inherent power of anyone to decide them.
Though we may struggle with these questions for a lifetime, each day we must make decisions based upon our limited understanding of their interplay. We are limited by our inability to comprehend the infinity that describes the God we say we worship and to whom we are called to give obedience. We are limited by our own mortality and the sinfulness that we have placed upon it. We must make decisions each day based upon an inability to understand the "omni's" of the God we follow and our own limitations as imperfect creatures. It is in this tension that we are forced to deal with issues related to human freedom and divine sovereignty.
In our republic we make laws to protect our freedoms. We seek to play the role of both creator and creature. We seek to create that under which we will require ourselves to live. We govern ourselves. We control ourselves. We control the extent of our freedoms. We freely assert our self-control. In the process we try to determine what will be the guiding principle that determines the laws we make to control our freedoms.
We reject the idea of a theocracy. In doing so we join the ancient Israelites who said they would have a king as did all the other nations around them. They rejected a Divine ruler who spoke through his judges and prophets (I Samuel 8). In doing so we join the crowds led by the Jewish rulers who boldly told Pontius Pilate they had no king but Caesar (John 19) in the midst of their demand that Jesus be crucified.
Rejecting a theocracy, however, is not the same as rejecting a moral basis for law. The matter only focuses upon what moral system we will choose. In the political realm that system will be determined by our grasp of the tension between law and freedom. For the Christian seeking to live in a fallen world, it will be the understanding of the relationship between law and grace.
If our Creator declares laws based upon his nature, then those who claim servanthood before him are obligated to follow those laws. When failure comes, consequences follow and with that grace may also be found. When a nation passes laws based upon its understanding of an orderly and desirable society, then its citizenry are called upon to follow those laws or face the consequences and find at the same time that a second chance might be offered. In neither of these situations, however, is the law abrogated, but it may mediated.
Whether theocracy or otherwise, laws exist to guide a society. Those laws must be based upon an underlying system that defines right and wrong. Who determines that system will reveal who is the ruling body for that society. In our republic there are checks and balances. With God there are no checks and balances. There is only his nature and the consequences of our actions based upon obedience and disobedience - and also that thing called grace.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Four Big Words
A phrase that has come from days gone by is "the power behind the throne". The meaning is revealed as we consider that the one who sits on the throne may have the titular authority but does not or cannot exercise the power to accomplish his will. The king may be said to have the authority to run his kingdom, but if there is a second personality who makes the actual decisions and sees to it that they are carried out, then the true power is out of sight or "behind the throne.
Power and authority are not always in the same hands. Likewise responsibility and accountability at times are left to fend for themselves in the process of accomplishing tasks especially if they are separated from the first two concepts. We may all have experienced at one time the frustration that arises when we are given the responsibility to accomplish a task only to be denied the authority and power to guide it to completion.
Authority without power is a mockery. Power without authority often becomes self-centered and cruel. Power without accountability is synonymous to a dictatorship. Responsibility without power is frustration. Responsibility without accountability will often result in nothing accomplished.
Relationships and social designs are perhaps often, even always, defined by how these four words interplay. As soon as two individuals meet, these four words take on a role in the relationship. Cain asked if he was expected to be his brother's keeper. He had already exercised the power to kill him even though he had not been given the authority to do so. Now he was asking if he was responsible for his brother and would be expected to be accountable for whatever had happened to him.
The Model Prayer of Jesus leads one to see a recognition that power and authority belong first and foremost to the heavenly Father. The self-focused requests point to an acknowledgement that daily needs must be met by the hands of the Father. At the same time we are responsible for and will be held accountable for the way we are willing to forgive those who have sinned against us.
The individual's use of power must be controlled by the understanding that all power ultimately resides in the hands of God. He has that power by virtue of his nature, who he is, and with that power comes the authority to use it. The power and authority that individuals seek to exercise are by permission only and will come under the divine judgment as he holds us responsible for what he has placed in our hands and will hold us accountable for their use.
Our freedom as individuals in general and as Christians in particular must be seen in this light. We are free to act but our freedom both in the present and in eternity is limited by the nature of God and we will be held accountable for digression from that nature. We can use our freedom to live and make decisions being guided by that nature or we can use our freedom to live contrary to it. Having the power to do either does not remove the fact that we are responsible for our actions and will be held accountable.
Therefore it is of critical importance that we understand the nature of God, his own power and authority, and the grounds by which he will hold his creation responsible for its actions. We will be held accountable. Making up our own sets of rules will never change God and his plan for his creation. He will declare the last judgment.
Power and authority are not always in the same hands. Likewise responsibility and accountability at times are left to fend for themselves in the process of accomplishing tasks especially if they are separated from the first two concepts. We may all have experienced at one time the frustration that arises when we are given the responsibility to accomplish a task only to be denied the authority and power to guide it to completion.
Authority without power is a mockery. Power without authority often becomes self-centered and cruel. Power without accountability is synonymous to a dictatorship. Responsibility without power is frustration. Responsibility without accountability will often result in nothing accomplished.
Relationships and social designs are perhaps often, even always, defined by how these four words interplay. As soon as two individuals meet, these four words take on a role in the relationship. Cain asked if he was expected to be his brother's keeper. He had already exercised the power to kill him even though he had not been given the authority to do so. Now he was asking if he was responsible for his brother and would be expected to be accountable for whatever had happened to him.
The Model Prayer of Jesus leads one to see a recognition that power and authority belong first and foremost to the heavenly Father. The self-focused requests point to an acknowledgement that daily needs must be met by the hands of the Father. At the same time we are responsible for and will be held accountable for the way we are willing to forgive those who have sinned against us.
The individual's use of power must be controlled by the understanding that all power ultimately resides in the hands of God. He has that power by virtue of his nature, who he is, and with that power comes the authority to use it. The power and authority that individuals seek to exercise are by permission only and will come under the divine judgment as he holds us responsible for what he has placed in our hands and will hold us accountable for their use.
Our freedom as individuals in general and as Christians in particular must be seen in this light. We are free to act but our freedom both in the present and in eternity is limited by the nature of God and we will be held accountable for digression from that nature. We can use our freedom to live and make decisions being guided by that nature or we can use our freedom to live contrary to it. Having the power to do either does not remove the fact that we are responsible for our actions and will be held accountable.
Therefore it is of critical importance that we understand the nature of God, his own power and authority, and the grounds by which he will hold his creation responsible for its actions. We will be held accountable. Making up our own sets of rules will never change God and his plan for his creation. He will declare the last judgment.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Bigger Than You and Me
Every Christian, not just your church pastor and other leaders, needs to ask this question of themselves on a regular basis, How big is the Kingdom I'm serving. The answer will say something about a person's ministry vision, perspective on resources, ultimate goals, and the level of dependency upon God. We sometimes say that a person's world extends no further than their personal needs. I dream of a Christian's arena of service being a lot bigger than that.
As individuals, as churches, and as associations and conventions we are often tempted by the desire to be in control of our world. Such control brings safety, security, and an enhanced sense of personal worth. There is nothing wrong with such qualities in our lives or institutions. The problem is what we determine will be the source of those qualities.
Way back when, a couple of people stood in front of a tree and decided that the world would be no bigger than what they could control. God said if that's your choice, so be it. Your world is out there. Go make the best of it if you are determined to go it alone. We've been paying the price ever since.
God calls us to see our world as being a lot bigger than ourselves. Then he calls us to see that we still can find safety, security, and personal value even if we are not in charge. We find it not in ourselves but in him. Failing to do that causes us to wander in the world trying to provide all this for ourselves and failing every time.
How big is the world of a Christian? It must be as big as the Kingdom of God. Who's in charge of that Kingdom? It is not we, folks. Our struggle lies in the fact that we must find what we want while acknowledging that it is God who is in control. When we maintain a perspective that gives the Kingdom of God the priority in all things, then we put God and his priorities where they are supposed to be, front and center, the focus of everything.
Keeping the Kingdom of God in its proper priority position forces the individual to see himself/herself as a servant, a citizen, a child before God the Creator. As such the dominant qualities in the individual become love for God and others, humility, a willingness to sacrifice self, a willingness to show honor to others above self, a desire to exalt others, a desire to serve others and see them reach their full potential, and a life-controlling desire to give all glory and praise to God.
A church that maintains a Kingdom of God perspective will see itself as a community nurturing its members to become salt, light, and leaven in the world for the glory of God. Such a church will encourage its members to discover, develop, and use their spiritual gifts to grow more Christlike and impact their world for the glory of God. This Kingdom-focused community seeks to multiply itself beyond its fields by sending forth its members not as members of its own family but as members of the Kingdom of God. Such a local family of God will never hold for itself what it knows will serve the greater needs of the Kingdom of which it is only a part.
Associations and conventions are not mandated by scripture. They exist out of the recognized need to accomplish more than what one congregation can accomplish alone. As such they exist first for the Kingdom of God and then to assist their members in carrying out their calling as members of the Kingdom of God. Resources should be used to help their members be the greatest possible members and contributors of the Kingdom. Vision should be maintained as a focus upon the Kingdom of God. Growth must be focused upon the Kingdom and not upon the organization. Sacrifice is just as much a part of the life of an association and a convention as it is for the local church and the individual Christian.
The Kingdom of God is bigger than any convention, association, local church, pastor, or individual Christian. Each of these must order their existence with that in mind. God is in control and must be the focus of all actions and the recipient of all glory. Anything less puts us all back in front of that tree and making the wrong decision.
As individuals, as churches, and as associations and conventions we are often tempted by the desire to be in control of our world. Such control brings safety, security, and an enhanced sense of personal worth. There is nothing wrong with such qualities in our lives or institutions. The problem is what we determine will be the source of those qualities.
Way back when, a couple of people stood in front of a tree and decided that the world would be no bigger than what they could control. God said if that's your choice, so be it. Your world is out there. Go make the best of it if you are determined to go it alone. We've been paying the price ever since.
God calls us to see our world as being a lot bigger than ourselves. Then he calls us to see that we still can find safety, security, and personal value even if we are not in charge. We find it not in ourselves but in him. Failing to do that causes us to wander in the world trying to provide all this for ourselves and failing every time.
How big is the world of a Christian? It must be as big as the Kingdom of God. Who's in charge of that Kingdom? It is not we, folks. Our struggle lies in the fact that we must find what we want while acknowledging that it is God who is in control. When we maintain a perspective that gives the Kingdom of God the priority in all things, then we put God and his priorities where they are supposed to be, front and center, the focus of everything.
Keeping the Kingdom of God in its proper priority position forces the individual to see himself/herself as a servant, a citizen, a child before God the Creator. As such the dominant qualities in the individual become love for God and others, humility, a willingness to sacrifice self, a willingness to show honor to others above self, a desire to exalt others, a desire to serve others and see them reach their full potential, and a life-controlling desire to give all glory and praise to God.
A church that maintains a Kingdom of God perspective will see itself as a community nurturing its members to become salt, light, and leaven in the world for the glory of God. Such a church will encourage its members to discover, develop, and use their spiritual gifts to grow more Christlike and impact their world for the glory of God. This Kingdom-focused community seeks to multiply itself beyond its fields by sending forth its members not as members of its own family but as members of the Kingdom of God. Such a local family of God will never hold for itself what it knows will serve the greater needs of the Kingdom of which it is only a part.
Associations and conventions are not mandated by scripture. They exist out of the recognized need to accomplish more than what one congregation can accomplish alone. As such they exist first for the Kingdom of God and then to assist their members in carrying out their calling as members of the Kingdom of God. Resources should be used to help their members be the greatest possible members and contributors of the Kingdom. Vision should be maintained as a focus upon the Kingdom of God. Growth must be focused upon the Kingdom and not upon the organization. Sacrifice is just as much a part of the life of an association and a convention as it is for the local church and the individual Christian.
The Kingdom of God is bigger than any convention, association, local church, pastor, or individual Christian. Each of these must order their existence with that in mind. God is in control and must be the focus of all actions and the recipient of all glory. Anything less puts us all back in front of that tree and making the wrong decision.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
February 29 - Confronting the Unusual
From the distant past I remember an episode of the Howdy Doody Show in which the Indian princess Winter Spring Summer Fall had a birthday. It was only her fourth, yet she was a teenager. The entire show was centered on trying to figure how this situation could be. The mystery kept little folks like myself glued to the television while the search went on to find the answer.
The program reinforced the fact in young scholars that leap year and with it the date February 29 only comes once every four years. It is an unusual day caused by the irregular calendar we are forced to maintain. It throws off our sequence of days in the month. It keeps years from looking just alike. The unusual causes us to adjust our schedules, and for some people even their birthdays.
The unusual in our lives gives us both reason to celebrate and reason to feel dread. Routine can become so comfortable. It provides stability and assurance of reasonable expectation. When the unusual comes into our lives, we are forced to adjust, react, or intentionally ignore, all of which disrupts our routine.
Yet it is the possibility of the unusual, the uncommon, that can make tomorrow a thing to be anticipated or feared, rather than not considered at all. Tomorrow will not be like today. It will not be like yesterday. Our world will change. We will be a day older. What could have been accomplished today but wasn't will have disappeared into the past and be beyond our reach forever. We plan most often because we want something different to happen. Maybe we can describe what we want. Maybe we are trying only to create the context for something unexpected to happen. Whatever the case may be, we want the different, the uncommon, the unexpected, the routine disruptor to occur. We find the uncommon, the unusual satisfying our dissatisfaction.
This same motivation should be visible in the lifestyle of the Christian and the local church. Routine does not get the job done. Living the life of the world does not please God. We need the disruption that causes us to reevaluate what we are doing, why we are doing it, and how we are doing it. We need the uncommon, the unusual to shake us out of our complacency and satisfaction with the common and mundane.
A February 29th in the life of a Christian might be an opportunity to provide shelter for a homeless individual or family, to provide food for someone who is hungry, or to sacrifice something of value for someone who will never tell us they are grateful. A February 29th might be deciding to live a simpler lifestyle and give away what we have saved, focusing upon enriching the spirit instead of the bank account, or adopting the role of servant instead of master.
A February 29th for a congregation might be changing from a local church perspective to a Kingdom perspective. The unusual occurrence might involve focusing prayer more upon the unsaved than upon the physically unhealthy. A February 29th could lead to a congregation making a priority of every member being a minister rather than looking to the paid or ordained staff to carry on the work of the Body of Christ.
On our calendar the unusual comes around every four years. In the life of the Christian attuned to the voice and work of the Holy Spirit, the uncommon is there to be discovered every day. One tradition of February 29th is to offer a woman a chance to propose marriage to the man of her choice instead of waiting for him to take the initiative. A woman needs only to be bold enough to take that step. A February 29th can offer us bold, new opportunities.
The Holy Spirit does not wait for four years to offer such an occasion. He calls us to open our eyes and look around us. He calls us to see the hungry being fed with two fish and five loaves of bread. He calls us to see the hurting being made whole. He calls us to see the condemned being offered forgiveness and hope. The unusual is waiting for us to join in the experience and risk a different tomorrow.
The program reinforced the fact in young scholars that leap year and with it the date February 29 only comes once every four years. It is an unusual day caused by the irregular calendar we are forced to maintain. It throws off our sequence of days in the month. It keeps years from looking just alike. The unusual causes us to adjust our schedules, and for some people even their birthdays.
The unusual in our lives gives us both reason to celebrate and reason to feel dread. Routine can become so comfortable. It provides stability and assurance of reasonable expectation. When the unusual comes into our lives, we are forced to adjust, react, or intentionally ignore, all of which disrupts our routine.
Yet it is the possibility of the unusual, the uncommon, that can make tomorrow a thing to be anticipated or feared, rather than not considered at all. Tomorrow will not be like today. It will not be like yesterday. Our world will change. We will be a day older. What could have been accomplished today but wasn't will have disappeared into the past and be beyond our reach forever. We plan most often because we want something different to happen. Maybe we can describe what we want. Maybe we are trying only to create the context for something unexpected to happen. Whatever the case may be, we want the different, the uncommon, the unexpected, the routine disruptor to occur. We find the uncommon, the unusual satisfying our dissatisfaction.
This same motivation should be visible in the lifestyle of the Christian and the local church. Routine does not get the job done. Living the life of the world does not please God. We need the disruption that causes us to reevaluate what we are doing, why we are doing it, and how we are doing it. We need the uncommon, the unusual to shake us out of our complacency and satisfaction with the common and mundane.
A February 29th in the life of a Christian might be an opportunity to provide shelter for a homeless individual or family, to provide food for someone who is hungry, or to sacrifice something of value for someone who will never tell us they are grateful. A February 29th might be deciding to live a simpler lifestyle and give away what we have saved, focusing upon enriching the spirit instead of the bank account, or adopting the role of servant instead of master.
A February 29th for a congregation might be changing from a local church perspective to a Kingdom perspective. The unusual occurrence might involve focusing prayer more upon the unsaved than upon the physically unhealthy. A February 29th could lead to a congregation making a priority of every member being a minister rather than looking to the paid or ordained staff to carry on the work of the Body of Christ.
On our calendar the unusual comes around every four years. In the life of the Christian attuned to the voice and work of the Holy Spirit, the uncommon is there to be discovered every day. One tradition of February 29th is to offer a woman a chance to propose marriage to the man of her choice instead of waiting for him to take the initiative. A woman needs only to be bold enough to take that step. A February 29th can offer us bold, new opportunities.
The Holy Spirit does not wait for four years to offer such an occasion. He calls us to open our eyes and look around us. He calls us to see the hungry being fed with two fish and five loaves of bread. He calls us to see the hurting being made whole. He calls us to see the condemned being offered forgiveness and hope. The unusual is waiting for us to join in the experience and risk a different tomorrow.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Thoughts on Ash Wednesday
A long church tradition is to use the season of Lent as a time of personal evaluation and repentance in preparation for celebrating Holy Week and Resurrection Sunday. Sacrifices for the six weeks of Lent have included types of food, a variety of social or entertainment activities, or ways of spending money. I'd like to suggest a new category for personal sacrifice, actions that we should not be doing now and should not restart after Lent is over.
Being the imperfect beings we are, this list could be quite extensive. The benefits of giving up something that should not be restarted can include improved health, improved relationships, and improved spiritual development all of which will put us in a better position to honor God each day. If you plan to sacrifice something for Lent anyway, why not make it something that will be good for you to avoid the rest of your life?
Such a practice is good not only for the individual but also for a church. The individual looks to Jesus Christ for an example and says that is what I ought to be. What do I need to give up to become more like him? The local church looks at the churches in the Book of Acts in the Bible and God's plan for the Bride of Christ and sees them in action in ways that most honor God. The same question applies. What can the local church stop doing that will allow it to fit into God's plan for his family?
Anyone can make their own list of negatives that need to be dropped for Lent and rejected for a lifetime. Here a few of my suggestions for consideration:
Being the imperfect beings we are, this list could be quite extensive. The benefits of giving up something that should not be restarted can include improved health, improved relationships, and improved spiritual development all of which will put us in a better position to honor God each day. If you plan to sacrifice something for Lent anyway, why not make it something that will be good for you to avoid the rest of your life?
Such a practice is good not only for the individual but also for a church. The individual looks to Jesus Christ for an example and says that is what I ought to be. What do I need to give up to become more like him? The local church looks at the churches in the Book of Acts in the Bible and God's plan for the Bride of Christ and sees them in action in ways that most honor God. The same question applies. What can the local church stop doing that will allow it to fit into God's plan for his family?
Anyone can make their own list of negatives that need to be dropped for Lent and rejected for a lifetime. Here a few of my suggestions for consideration:
- Talking before thinking
- Looking for someone else to blame
- Looking for someone else to do your work
- Accusing before seeking to understand
- Seeing other people as objects to be used for personal gain
- Acting with personal benefit always as a priority
- Making decisions based on immediate gratification
- Refusing the servant role
- Demanding your rights regardless of consequences
- Living as if decisions related to personal health and the environment have no impact on a relationship with God, society, or future generations
- Making excuses for lack of action supporting the Kingdom of God
- Criticizing other Christian groups/churches without seeking understanding
- Comparing self to other churches
- Accepting a maintenance mentality
- Deciding that the condition of church facilities is not worthy of spiritual concern
- Deciding that the condition of church facilities is the most important spiritual concern
- Allowing the most outspoken person to be the most influential person
- Allowing the oldest or largest or wealthiest family to set the direction for the church
- Deciding that the condition of the physical world is God's concern, not the church's
- Deciding that the church has no place in determining the moral condition of society
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Even the New Has Some Old
Jesus uses a parable in which he tells of a householder who takes the old and the new out of his treasure chest. He shares this brief story in the context of teaching his disciples the importance of being trained for service in the Kingdom of God. Such wisdom as shown by the householder is not for religious leaders only, but for all who would serve the Kingdom in a God-honoring way, individuals, churches, and larger organizations alike.
We all have a past. Describe it in any way you wish, you still have a past. Some or most you may have forgotten or tried to forget, but you still have a past. Parts of your past may be remembered better by others than your self, but you still have a past. Your past may be dominated by your own initiated actions, or it may be the result of your response to the actions of others toward you. Either way you have a past.
The same can be said of a local church. As soon as someone has a dream of starting a local body of believers, a past has been formed. It will only grow with time, being filled with a wide variety of events and experiences. Conventions both large and small pass through the same dynamic. A past is created that cannot be altered or removed. It is locked in the pages of history.
The past or history of an individual or church cannot be ignored. Denying it will not change its truth. The past of an individual or church is always there lingering just at the edge of the present exerting its influence, whispering in a small voice about what has been and what might have been. It contains both jewels and cinders, both gold and pot metal. They all reside in our past influencing how our decisions in the present will determine our future.
Jesus pointed out that a wise servant of the Kingdom will look at everything in the past and decide what is valuable for the present and what is not. The wise servant will see how the old and valuable compliments or merges with the new and valuable to create something more valuable yet. That which is of little or no value will be placed aside for its value may not be in the present but may well reveal itself in the future.
Our Creator-God did not stop his process of creation in the first couple of chapters of Genesis. Through his prophets he spoke often of doing something new, something the people would not expect. In Jesus something occurred that was so new that few people recognized what had happened. In the birth of the Church (Acts 2), a living creation came into existence that could not have been anticipated except through the deepest insights of faith.
In all these there had been earlier signs that something wonderful was to happen. God was working with what was, introducing something new, and bringing forth a radical creation that revealed his glory and power in a way as never before. Something old combined with something new brings forth the awesome moment.
A new vision of the future can never be separated from the past out of which it springs. It is grounded in a response to what has been and an initiation of action toward what could be. God calls the individual to learn the agony and the glory of the cross. God calls the church to testify to the faith of its founders and then speak in a new language that its contemporary world will understand. That church will bring the old out of its past and meld it into the glory of the present and offer a testimony that will speak clearly of the timeless glory and love of God.
Is your church using both the treasures of the past and creations of the present? Can our conventions be said to be bringing the best out of the past, combining it with the best of the present, and through that produce a witness in our world that offers hope to all regardless of whether it is received or rejected?
The Kingdom scribe understands how God has spoken in the past, hears how he is speaking in the present, and is at work to make sure that the word of God is heard and understood now and into the future. God calls all of us to be careful but also to be bold as we search through the treasures of our past to develop the witness that is needed for the future.
We all have a past. Describe it in any way you wish, you still have a past. Some or most you may have forgotten or tried to forget, but you still have a past. Parts of your past may be remembered better by others than your self, but you still have a past. Your past may be dominated by your own initiated actions, or it may be the result of your response to the actions of others toward you. Either way you have a past.
The same can be said of a local church. As soon as someone has a dream of starting a local body of believers, a past has been formed. It will only grow with time, being filled with a wide variety of events and experiences. Conventions both large and small pass through the same dynamic. A past is created that cannot be altered or removed. It is locked in the pages of history.
The past or history of an individual or church cannot be ignored. Denying it will not change its truth. The past of an individual or church is always there lingering just at the edge of the present exerting its influence, whispering in a small voice about what has been and what might have been. It contains both jewels and cinders, both gold and pot metal. They all reside in our past influencing how our decisions in the present will determine our future.
Jesus pointed out that a wise servant of the Kingdom will look at everything in the past and decide what is valuable for the present and what is not. The wise servant will see how the old and valuable compliments or merges with the new and valuable to create something more valuable yet. That which is of little or no value will be placed aside for its value may not be in the present but may well reveal itself in the future.
Our Creator-God did not stop his process of creation in the first couple of chapters of Genesis. Through his prophets he spoke often of doing something new, something the people would not expect. In Jesus something occurred that was so new that few people recognized what had happened. In the birth of the Church (Acts 2), a living creation came into existence that could not have been anticipated except through the deepest insights of faith.
In all these there had been earlier signs that something wonderful was to happen. God was working with what was, introducing something new, and bringing forth a radical creation that revealed his glory and power in a way as never before. Something old combined with something new brings forth the awesome moment.
A new vision of the future can never be separated from the past out of which it springs. It is grounded in a response to what has been and an initiation of action toward what could be. God calls the individual to learn the agony and the glory of the cross. God calls the church to testify to the faith of its founders and then speak in a new language that its contemporary world will understand. That church will bring the old out of its past and meld it into the glory of the present and offer a testimony that will speak clearly of the timeless glory and love of God.
Is your church using both the treasures of the past and creations of the present? Can our conventions be said to be bringing the best out of the past, combining it with the best of the present, and through that produce a witness in our world that offers hope to all regardless of whether it is received or rejected?
The Kingdom scribe understands how God has spoken in the past, hears how he is speaking in the present, and is at work to make sure that the word of God is heard and understood now and into the future. God calls all of us to be careful but also to be bold as we search through the treasures of our past to develop the witness that is needed for the future.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Faith in a Future
Recently I attended a special service at a local church. The congregation placed a time capsule in the ground near the corner of the their church property one hundred years after they were founded. Over 60 individual family packets plus items representing the church as a whole were included. The date the capsule is to be opened is January, 2112.
A proverb of our day is recorded this way, "Every seed sown is a prayer of faith for tomorrow." In my own remarks on that day, I noted that as one who was raised on a farm and was now standing among farmers, no one ever planted seed and expected to gather the harvest in one day. Time had to pass and work had to be done to insure there was a chance for reaping a mature crop.
Along with all that work there was also a measure of hope that things would go well with the elements that were out of the farmer's hands, primarily the weather. He could prepare the soil, plant the seeds at the proper time, plow out the weeds, and make sure the harvesters were ready when the time came. Yet the growth itself was out of his hands as surely was the weather.
So it was for the faith of this congregation as they lowered that time capsule into the ground. They performed this symbolic act in faith that a congregation would gather one day a hundred years in the future and raise that box in the midst of a worship celebration. That future congregation would celebrate 200 years of faithful work in the name of the Lord. Part of their celebration would be to give thanks for the people who served the Lord in faithfulness a hundred years earlier and made their own present a possibility.
For that generation to be there to open the capsule, however, like the farmer planting the seed, work must be done between now and the time of the harvest. The current generation must be faithful in its spiritual growth and ministries. It must be faithful to teach its children and the generation that follows the proper path in following their Savior. This generation must teach by word and example. This generation must teach the next generation to do the same.
The work of farming does not stop because the seed is in the ground. The hoe and the plow must be put to use. The crop must be protected from straying animals. Pests and weeds must be controlled. The workers must be ready when the time comes to bring in the harvest.
So it is with each one of our congregations. We must create healthy and fertile climates in our spiritual families that will nurture the seeds we plant. We must know what seed we are planting and then be diligent to plant when the time is right. We must recognize what is not of the spirit of Christ and eliminate it from the family of God. At the same time we must recognize that we cannot reach sinners if we send them all away. As Jesus noted, you must be careful how you pull up the weeds lest you destroy the grain (Matthew 13:24-30).
We must teach our people to bring in the harvest, to be prepared to share the gospel and lead someone to the Good Shepherd, the Prince of Peace. We must teach them to have compassionate hearts, sensitive souls, and minds that are submitted to the Holy Spirit. We must teach them to teach those who will follow after them so those will teach others in generations yet to come.
How sad it would be that the time capsule so carefully covered by faithful hands should one day be uncovered by a bulldozer clearing ground for a new building unrelated to a worshiping congregation because that church no longer existed. How sad it would be if one generation chose not to do the work of cultivation and so the crop died in the field bearing no fruit. How sad that the fruit of a congregation's faith disappeared leaving nothing but a note in a history book.
It doesn't have to be that way. The harvest could be thirty, sixty, or a hundred fold. It takes work, it takes commitment, and it takes faithfulness. We are all leaving a time capsule in the lives we touch. Who will find them, and when opened will they be more than an odd curiosity?
A proverb of our day is recorded this way, "Every seed sown is a prayer of faith for tomorrow." In my own remarks on that day, I noted that as one who was raised on a farm and was now standing among farmers, no one ever planted seed and expected to gather the harvest in one day. Time had to pass and work had to be done to insure there was a chance for reaping a mature crop.
Along with all that work there was also a measure of hope that things would go well with the elements that were out of the farmer's hands, primarily the weather. He could prepare the soil, plant the seeds at the proper time, plow out the weeds, and make sure the harvesters were ready when the time came. Yet the growth itself was out of his hands as surely was the weather.
So it was for the faith of this congregation as they lowered that time capsule into the ground. They performed this symbolic act in faith that a congregation would gather one day a hundred years in the future and raise that box in the midst of a worship celebration. That future congregation would celebrate 200 years of faithful work in the name of the Lord. Part of their celebration would be to give thanks for the people who served the Lord in faithfulness a hundred years earlier and made their own present a possibility.
For that generation to be there to open the capsule, however, like the farmer planting the seed, work must be done between now and the time of the harvest. The current generation must be faithful in its spiritual growth and ministries. It must be faithful to teach its children and the generation that follows the proper path in following their Savior. This generation must teach by word and example. This generation must teach the next generation to do the same.
The work of farming does not stop because the seed is in the ground. The hoe and the plow must be put to use. The crop must be protected from straying animals. Pests and weeds must be controlled. The workers must be ready when the time comes to bring in the harvest.
So it is with each one of our congregations. We must create healthy and fertile climates in our spiritual families that will nurture the seeds we plant. We must know what seed we are planting and then be diligent to plant when the time is right. We must recognize what is not of the spirit of Christ and eliminate it from the family of God. At the same time we must recognize that we cannot reach sinners if we send them all away. As Jesus noted, you must be careful how you pull up the weeds lest you destroy the grain (Matthew 13:24-30).
We must teach our people to bring in the harvest, to be prepared to share the gospel and lead someone to the Good Shepherd, the Prince of Peace. We must teach them to have compassionate hearts, sensitive souls, and minds that are submitted to the Holy Spirit. We must teach them to teach those who will follow after them so those will teach others in generations yet to come.
How sad it would be that the time capsule so carefully covered by faithful hands should one day be uncovered by a bulldozer clearing ground for a new building unrelated to a worshiping congregation because that church no longer existed. How sad it would be if one generation chose not to do the work of cultivation and so the crop died in the field bearing no fruit. How sad that the fruit of a congregation's faith disappeared leaving nothing but a note in a history book.
It doesn't have to be that way. The harvest could be thirty, sixty, or a hundred fold. It takes work, it takes commitment, and it takes faithfulness. We are all leaving a time capsule in the lives we touch. Who will find them, and when opened will they be more than an odd curiosity?
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