Category Archives: Theology

Encountering Jesus

13 Friday Oct 2017

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When Jesus encounters our lives, it is anything but average.  It is anything but mediocre.  That doesn’t mean it’s incredible and a thrill ride either.

As with most things when it comes to Jesus, it’s different from what we expect.  It’s not all rose-colored glasses and happy, happy, joy, joy.  At least that’s my experience.

Jesus has a way of taking the established norms, sides, and structures and not fighting them directly.  Rather, Jesus has this way of not accepting the premise that they are legitimate to begin with.  And then he points us in a new direction.

The world wants you to be average and mediocre and predictable.  To play you part as a cog in a big wheel that tells you that you need more because you aren’t good enough and you don’t have what it takes.  But Jesus has a different message.

A message that says you don’t have what it takes, but God does.  Stop trying to do it yourself – you won’t make it.  No matter how hard you try on your own, you aren’t ever going to get there.  So stop.  you aren’t a rat in a cage.  You are a beloved child of God.

Why the story of Samaria matters today

11 Wednesday Oct 2017

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Last week during a bible study I lead, we talked about Acts 8:4-40.  It’s the story of Philip in Samaria.  To our modern ears, that sounds like Philip got in the car and drove down to the next city over and started preaching.  But it’s far from that.  There’s a ton of history underlying this situation – centuries of animosity and deep-seated division.

It’s this deep-seated seething that makes the parable that Jesus tells about the “good Samaritan” so shocking.  But explaining all of this takes some time.

So I’m going to offer a modern-day version of the parable so you might get the effect of what Jesus was saying.

There once was an American who traveled to the Holy Land.  He wore his American flag shirt so everyone would know he was an American.  He was traveling along and seeing all the sites in the region when he was mugged and beaten by some local thieves.  They beat him badly and left him for dead.

As he lay there, wondering if he would survive, along came a tour bus full of American tourists.  The bus driver knew that this was not a safe area that he was driving through, so he kept on going for fear of robbers jumping the bus and robbing everyone.  As they pass, the tourists snapped pictures of the poor local who benefited from American’s generosity with our clothing.

The man was distraught and was starting to give up hope when along came a pastor on a motorcycle.  He saw the man on the side of the road but kept going – he had many committee meetings to get to and had to make an important presentation about the finances of the church he served.  He reasoned that someone else would stop.  As he left, he offered a quick prayer and went on his way.

The man who was beaten lay there, dying.

A third man approached.  This man looked nothing like the people from two other groups.  He was a member of ISIS – a sworn enemy of the American.  He came across the man who was beaten badly and he was moved with compassion for him.  He took what first aid materials he had and used them on the American.  Then he lifted him up and took the man to the local emergency room and told the intake person that he would pay for the care of the man.

And Jesus asked “Which of these three was the neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?”

So, now do you get how radical Jesus’ parable was?  Do you get how unlikely it was that the Samaritans would have listened to Philip?  And yet, they did.  Amazing!

What it means to be a Christian

10 Tuesday Oct 2017

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I don’t pretend to have all the answers, especially on such a touchy topic of defining what it means to be a Christian.

I think there are a range of answers to this question.

But I also think there are some basic tenants that go into defining what it means to be a Christian.

Like this: Being a Christian means that one has identified themself as a follower of Jesus Christ.  Even that might be a bit tricky since we need to define what it means to be a follower.  In this sense, a follower is someone who is committed to a way of life and teachings of someone else.  They aren’t just a fan or have an interest in something, but have actually committed time, energy, and other resources towards the person or cause they are claiming to follow.

So, if this is true (And that’s debatable), then what would it mean to be a Christian?

I would say that it would be someone who does their best to follow the teachings and commands of Jesus.  Like the Sermon on the Mount.  Like the end of Matthew 28 which calls on Christians to go and make disciples and baptize.  Like John 6 which calls on Christians to celebrate the Lord’s Supper.  Like Matthew 25 which implores us to take care of those less fortunate like the hungry.  And many more examples throughout the bible.  Like Luke 9 in which Jesus calls on us to pick up our cross and follow him.

I don’t see how Christianity means to dedicate oneself to the path of domination and acquisition of power.  I don’t see how Christianity means advancing a partisan political party, leader, or cause.  I don’t see how Christianity is about lining up your faith beliefs with that of your political convictions and finding they match up perfectly.  But I could certainly be wrong.  I welcome people showing me how Christianity is actually about this – show me where Jesus talks about this.  Show me how Jesus wanted to advance the Empire in order to advance God’s kingdom.  I welcome those references.  I’m not going to hold my breath waiting though for those references.

 

A quick reminder

29 Friday Sep 2017

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Here’s a quick reminder for you for Friday:

You are not alone.  You are not abandoned.

Yes, God hears your pleas.

No, God isn’t ignoring you.

Sometimes the answers come in ways we don’t expect and can’t see.  And they rarely come on our time frame.  That’s because we aren’t in charge.

Now go and have a great day.  Be the best you, you can be.

In response to the Nashville Statement

28 Thursday Sep 2017

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A few weeks ago, a group of pastors issued their own statement about sexuality and called it the Nashville statement.  If you google it you will find it.

Then there were a few counter statements issued from other pastors and people who had opposing views to what was expressed in the Nashville statement.

I’m not issuing my own statement here or really commenting on the content of the statement.  Rather, I want to point out something.

When you want to gain attention, say something controversial.  The Nashville statement and the countering statements did just that.  And they received some pretty good attention, regardless of the arguments made.

But…

But, for what purpose?  By now, most people who heard about these statements have already forgotten them.  That’s the thing with saying something controversial to garner attention.  It’s cheap and doesn’t last.

Both the Nashville statement and the counter statements had their 15 minutes of fame and have already faded as fast as a Kardashian publicity stunt, a Trump tweet, or a late night comedian’s joke about politics.

Making statements is easy – especially statements that define groups of people you aren’t a part of.  You just set down, think about how you see the world and determine that you are right – and you find what you need to back it up.  It’s all very cerebral.  It’s nice and neat and orderly.  your hands don’t even get dirty as you are burying people with your brilliance.  You don’t worry about the effect or who it impacts.  They are just statements of fact, don’t you know.  Everyone should be able to see how right you are and get on board with it.  It’s obvious.

Except it’s not.  Especially when we try to apply these statements to life.  People and their lives are messy and dirty and complex.  Lives aren’t like statements.

This isn’t an argument against all statements.  My blog is a statement.  When I preach, it is a statement.  The point is to be careful when making statements.  It’s easy to classify people as wrong or bad.  It’s quite another to get to know those same people and find out what their struggle in life is.  I’m not against making statements.  I just wish we made statements that were helpful to people.

Maybe instead, we could issue a statement that wasn’t focused on being right, but rather focused more on how to improve people’s lives, or maybe reminded them of God’s grace, or maybe showed how an encounter with Jesus changed people’s lives.

But then again, that wouldn’t get so much attention, or responses would it?

But it might actually be faithful to what we profess as Christians – that we are sinners in need of redemption and that Jesus is the focus and salvation.  That it is not our actions that save us, but Jesus’ actions.  The Holy Spirit has sealed us with a promise and strengthens us to live out that promise.

The church is like…

27 Wednesday Sep 2017

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How would you answer the question – The church is like…?  I’ve heard a variety of answers for this question.  I think the answers reveal a great deal about the person and the church they are a part of.

There’s two answers that I want to highlight though today.

The church is like a family.  The church is like a community.

These sound the same, but I argue that they are two different answers that convey two different sets of ideas.  Neither one is better than the other.  But the answer to the question has consequences.

If the answer is that the church is like a family, then here are some things to consider – how big is a family?  Usually smaller than other groups of people.  Is it easy to become part of a family?  Not really – you usually have to either be born into a family or marry into one.  A family also has some very positive things – strong relationships, sticking together through thick and thin, coming through for one another in a time of crisis.

If the answer is that the church is like a community, then consider some things.  How big is a community? If depends.  It could be small or large.  In a community, it is relatively easier to join in, but also to leave.  Some strengths of community is that a community is typically made up of many different families – but it is where people come together for a common purpose.  And the amazing thing is that they come together willingly.

There are positives and negatives to both of these answers.  Which is why the right answer is probably that the church is both a family and community.  Sometimes a church leans in on its family nature more than its community nature. And other times it sways the other way.  The challenge is for the church to take the positives from both and weave them together to carry out the mission of the church.

Fairness

25 Monday Sep 2017

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Fair is overrated.

Oh the horror and shock of such a statement.  Aren’t we supposed to be for fairness?  Aren’t we supposed to push for a more fair society?  Doesn’t fairness fit in with justice, relationships, and peace?

My answer to each of these questions is no. With some exceptions for the third question.

Fairness can be defined the following way – impartial and just treatment or behavior without favoritism or discrimination.

Sounds nice on the surface right?

To help clarify this, here is a definition of “just” – based on or behaving according to what is morally right and fair.

Who wouldn’t be in favor of that right?

Well God for one.  In our Gospel lesson from this past Sunday we heard a parable from Matthew 20 in which the landlord hires people throughout the day and at the end of the day ends up paying people all the same wage – regardless of how long they worked.

If we are honest about this reading, our first complaint about it is that it’s not fair.  The people who worked the longest should be paid the most.  But the land owner doesn’t treat the laborers fairly.  He pays them what they agreed to – a day’s wage.  All of them, without exception.  It’s not based on merit or work.  It’s based on what the land owner wants to do with his money and property.  In this case, the land owner is often compared to God.

In a sense, God is not fair.  We aren’t treated with impartiality when it comes to God.  Instead we are treated in an unfair manner – but it is unfair in our favor.  Just like the last workers in the field who get paid way more than they deserve.  They were treated in an unfair manner – and they were thrilled by it.  The ones who worked in the field all day long, and received their reward complained because it seemed to them that they were treated unfairly compared to the late comers.  Yes, they were treated unfairly.  But God doesn’t deal with us fairly.  And we should all be grateful for that.  If God were to treat us fairly, we’d get what we deserve.  And since all of us are sinners, what we deserve isn’t to spend eternity in the presence of God, but separated from God.

Instead, I’m glad we don’t have a fair God.  But rather a God who treats us unfairly.

History didn’t start when you were born…

21 Thursday Sep 2017

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And it ain’t going to end when you die.

The point is that you, and I, are not the end-all, be-all of creation.  We are not the high point in creation.  By this I mean – you and I specifically.  We are mere specks in the long line of history.  At some point the chances are pretty good that who we are and what we say will be forgotten by humanity – completely.  But not by God.

I think the fear of what I just wrote being true is one of the sources for all these Rapture predictions that come out from time to time.

My friend Tim, over at Jesus Without Baggage, (An excellent blog you should be reading BTW), commented on my post yesterday about the most recent Rapture prediction by saying:

Matthew, I read this prediction elsewhere and wondered, “Why do people want to set dates like this?” And, “Why are these dates always just around the corner instead of 800 years in the future?”

Good questions!

Too many have this faulty belief that history started when they were born and it will end when they die.  Guess what – not true.  Why does this bother people though?

If one has faith and trust in God, then should it matter?  Is it a fear that we will be forgotten and our lives will have been meaningless?

The Rapture, as I have written numerous times, is really bad theology and really dangerous too when the idea is carried over to geo-politics.  It’s a theology that promotes the idea that we escape this place and so we don’t have to be stewards and that war and destruction are the means through which God will come back – a God who is really ticked off and negates what God said in Genesis about creation being good.  Yes, Sin has caused a broken relationship, but that doesn’t negate everything, and it doesn’t make it permanent, as we read in Revelation 21 and 22 where God returns, comes down to earth, renews and restores creation, and dwells with us here.  For eternity.  Not somewhere else.  Here.

 

It’s the end of the world as we know it…

20 Wednesday Sep 2017

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…and I feel fine.

There’s been (yet) another prediction that the world is going to end starting this Saturday.  Yes, another one.  Yes, it’s BS.  Yes, it’s from someone who has terrible theology – the focus is on God bringing destruction on creation.  I guess the idea of God being really angry about something or other just never dies out.

Here’s the ironic thing about these predictions – every single one of them has been wrong and will be wrong.  Yet people still listen.  Why?

Here’s something else – this prediction is unique in another way.  I don’t know if this is the first time that NASA has debunked one of these predictions or not, but they did for this one.  The guy who is making the prediction is saying something to the effect that some hidden planet will show up and cause havoc to the earth, as it is predicted in Revelation.  Yes, you can’t make this stuff up.  Actually you can, the prediction is a good example of making things up.

Regardless, am I the only one who thinks that we’re in trouble when NASA has to debunk end of the world predictions about imaginary planets showing up out of thin air?  Seriously?  Do these people even listen to themselves when they make these predictions to hear how ridiculous they sound?  Do the people who buy into the prediction actually hear what is being said?

Here’s my prediction about Saturday.  The day will come and go.  College football will be played.  Politics will continue to be divisive.  People will keep the economy going by buying stuff they want and need.  And the preach who made this faulty prediction will come up with an excuse of how he miscalculated.  And the people who bought in will adjust to a new prediction.  Oy.

Lessons in Politics – Using Theology poorly

18 Monday Sep 2017

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After reading a couple of posts over the last few days, I thought I’d add a couple a blog posts on politics.  The point here isn’t to argue for either the Republican or Democrat parties.  Frankly, I don’t have faith in either party.  Sometimes one or the other comes up with a decent idea, but that seems to be a bit rarer each day.  Am I cynical?  Maybe.  But then again, maybe I just a different expectation of what we should be receiving from our government, leaders, and politicians.

Lesson #1 – using religion to advance one’s politics usually ends up pretty poorly.

I’m referring to a specific story here.  Yes, this candidate just claimed that 9/11 was God’s punishment for the US turning away from God.  And here I thought it was because of the gays.  No, wait, clearly I’m mixing my disasters up.  The hurricanes must be because of the gays.  Their gayness has magical powers that affect the weather don’t you know.  It’s difficult to keep track of what disaster can be attributed to which group of people these days.  I wish there was an easy chart or something so I could follow along.

Here’s my comment – Really?  Seriously people?  The scary thing is that people are going to listen to this candidate and think that he knows what he’s talking about.  He doesn’t have a degree in theology – although that doesn’t matter it seems.  There are plenty of people who have a degree in theology that spout off some really terrible theology similar to Judge Moore. (cough, cough…Pat Robertson, John Hagee…cough, cough)

Can we just consider what Judge Moore has suggested – yes, actually consider it.  I think we need to for one simple reason…to show how utterly ridiculous it is and how utter unqualified he is for any office.  What is the fascination with proclaiming a ticked off God who goes on a killing spree and is perpetually pissed off and wants to destroy humanity and all of creation?  It’s like God needs anger management or something.

Here’s what I know about God – God doesn’t go around with a hit list, checking it off for all the things God is really ticked off about.

God doesn’t go around smiling every time someone (innocent) dies just because God is a vindictive SOB and has a short fuse.

God is not like certain world leaders who are known for their temper tantrums when they don’t get their way.

That’s not the God I worship anyway.

The point is that it’s really easy to take scripture and theology out of context and use it for your own political agenda – in this case to raise fear.  It’s called manipulation.  Politics thrives on fear and manipulation.  The more fear you can put on people, the more likely they are to look to someone who can do something about the fear.  In this case, Roy Moore can point to himself.

Always be wary of a politician who is using religion/theology/the Bible as a means to an end – the end being the advancement of their own power.  It’s not a good mixture and it is terrible theology.  We have enough bad theology circulating these days and enough really bad politicians.  We don’t need to mix bad theology with bad politics.