Church and State

The temptation to advance the kingdom of God by means of governmental clout is powerful but deadly. It has been attempted by the people of God at various times throughout history with disastrous results for the church.

One writer describes the problem this way: “Whenever Christians have gotten what so many American evangelicals today are trying to get—namely, the power to enforce their righteous will on others—it eventually harms the church as well as the culture. The lesson of history, a lesson the Devil has known all along, is this: The best way to defeat the kingdom of God is to empower the church to rule the kingdom of the world—for then it becomes the kingdom of the world! The best way to get people to lay down the cross is to hand them the sword! The kingdom of God is not about coercive “power over,” but influential “power under.” Its essence is found in the power to transform lives from the inside out through love and service. When kingdom-of-God citizens aspire to acquire Caesar’s authority to accomplish “the good,” we sell our kingdom birthright for a bowl of worldly porridge (Gen 25). To the extent that we pick up the sword, we put down the cross. When our goal as kingdom people becomes centered on effectively running a better version of the kingdom of the world, we compromise our calling to be faithful to the kingdom of God” (Greg Boyd, “The Problem With Mixing Church & Government,” renew.org).

When will we learn?  We won’t change our nation or culture by having the power to force kingdom principles upon others.  As Jesus reminded his followers: “...all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword” (Matthew 26:52). Hearts cannot be truly changed at the point of a sword or by the stroke of a legislative pen.  Jesus’ kingdom, which is not of this world (John 18:36), should not be advanced by the ways of this world.  Church and state make a dangerous mix and the church always loses.

God loves you!

Mike

Memorial Signs

On a recent road trip, Derek and I passed through the junction of state highways 46 and 41, which is east of Paso Robles in San Luis Obispo County.  This particular junction is just like so many others in the state except for one thing: a sign marking the spot as the “James Dean Memorial Junction.”  It turns out to be the very spot where the 24 year old actor lost his life in a car accident on September 30, 1955.  A memorial is something designed to honor the memory of a person or event.  It could be a statue, a monument, or a special day.  They can bring memories of happy or sad events.  In this case, it is a solitary road sign on desolate stretch of highway, commemorating the tragic death of a young man.

Speaking of memorials brings to mind another one in another place and another time. Jesus had come to Jerusalem for what would be the final time in his earthly ministry.  While he was visiting in the home of Simon the leper, an unnamed woman enters and anoints his head with some very expensive perfume.  The disciples of Jesus react indignantly, accusing the woman of being wasteful.  But Jesus, who was always quick to defend those that others abused, praised her for her extravagant gift.  “Why do you bother the woman? For she has done a good deed to me. For you always have the poor with you; but you do not always have me.  For when she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her” (Matthew 26:10-13).

As our lives intersect with the world around us, how will you and I be remembered?  What will be spoken of in memory of us as people reflect on our words and actions?  We have an opportunity to write our “memorial sign.”  What will it say?

God loves you!

Mike

Boasting In Weakness

“If I have to boast, I will boast of what pertains to my weakness” (2 Corinthians 11:30).
Paul’s statement to the believers in Corinth sounds so counter-intuitive, doesn’t it?  I don’t recall ever hearing of a bragging match over weaknesses.  On the other hand, I’ve heard of (or participated in) far too many of the other type. “I’m smarter, stronger, richer, faster, better looking, taller, thinner, holier, or ________ than you!”  That’s the kind of boasting to which we are accustomed.  It starts on the playground in elementary school and continues on through adulthood.  We come to enjoy the one-upmanship; we enjoy feeling superior to others even if we probably wouldn’t admit it.  Advertisers feed on the discontent that bragging matches cultivate.  “I need those shoes to make me run faster.”  “I need that makeup to make me better looking.”  “I need that house or car to help me keep up with the neighbors.” Boasting matches over our strengths tend to feed our sense of inadequacy and fuel the fires of unholy competition.
How can we learn to boast in our weaknesses? Perhaps it happens best when we, like Paul, have all of our perceived areas of strength stripped away from us.  Saul of Tarsus was proud of his heritage, his learning, and his position in Judaism.  But after encountering the Risen Lord on the road to Damascus, the trajectory of Paul the apostle’s life drastically changed.  What he once perceived as strengths had now become liabilities in many ways (Philippians 3:3-11).  Paul learned that his weaknesses allowed the power of God to shine more brightly in his life and that helped him to find contentment with his inadequacies (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).
So the next time someone points out one of my weaknesses, rather than arguing about it or belittling my critic, I hope that God gives me the grace to agree with him or her.  If it helps to highlight the Lord’s strengths, then I pray that, like Paul, I can be content with my weaknesses rather than boasting of my strengths.

God loves you!

Mike

A Burden For The Church

“Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern” (2 Corinthians 11:28–29)?

Paul had just finished rehearsing a long list of physical struggles he had endured for the sake of the kingdom of God.  Beatings, stoning, shipwreck, hunger, thirst, exposure -- to name a few.  As much as these things brought pain to his life, Paul had learned that they came and went.  Every day wasn’t filled with such intense physical struggle and danger.  Mercifully, there were some breaks in between the bruises.

But in the verses at the beginning of this article, Paul speaks of an relentless, everyday struggle in his life -- his deep concern for the churches within his sphere of influence.  One gets the sense after reading through the context that, as painful as the physical struggles were, the mental and emotional strain Paul felt for the churches was a pain that reached a deeper level.  Perhaps more than anyone, Paul knew the spiritual dangers that threatened local gatherings of believers.  He wrote of false apostles and deceitful workers who disguised themselves as apostle of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:13).  He warned of savage wolves who would not spare the flock in their efforts to draw disciples away (Acts 20:29).  Of course there was also the internal biting and devouring that Christians inflicted on one another (Galatians 5:15).  No wonder his concern was so intense!

Do I feel the pressure of concern for the church of which I am a part?  And if I do, how would such a concern reveal itself?  Does my concern for my local fellowship show up in my prayers?  In my participation?  In my support?  Would an outsider look at me and be able to detect a concern for the fellowship I call home and the body of Christ at large?  May the Lord give me a burden for the church!

God loves you!

Mike

Half-Hearted

          Aiden Rodgers was born with half a heart.  Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome happens in about 1 in every 6000 live births.  While in the womb and connected to the mother’s life support system, babies with this condition do pretty well.  The unborn child can have a normal heart rhythm and exhibit no symptoms, making the problem difficult to diagnose prior to birth.  But once born, problems begin to develop.  Forced to work on its own now, the underdeveloped heart can’t keep up with the critical needs of the growing infant’s body.  Without immediate medical attention at birth, the baby can go into cardiac arrest within days.  Since Aiden’s condition was diagnosed pre-birth, the doctors were prepared to address his problems without delay.  He underwent his first open heart surgery shortly after his birth on May 19, 2014, at just four days old.  The surgery itself is risky with a nearly 16 percent mortality rate but thankfully he survived.  Aiden experienced his second surgery on September 15 and was able to go home on October 3.  A third surgery will be necessary between the ages of two and three.  This little boy won’t be out of the woods even then because complications can arise.  But under the watchful eyes of his parents and medical professionals, things are looking up for this brave little boy (Source: “Baby Born With Rare Diagnosis: He Only Has Half His Heart”; Nicole Kwan, foxnews.com).
          Facing life with only half of a physical heart is very difficult. The same is true with half of a spiritual heart.  The difference is that we choose how much heart we have and use spiritually.  Half-heartedness in our relationship with God shouldn’t be tolerated. Jesus claimed that the greatest commandment of all was to “...love the Lord your God with ALL your heart, and with ALL your soul, and with ALL your mind” (Matthew 22:37).  Divided loyalties never work (Matthew 6:24).  God is unwilling to share the throne in the heart of his child (Exodus 20:3).  He desires your WHOLE heart, not just a fraction of it.

God loves you!
Mike

Warts And All

“Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God” (Romans 15:7).

These are powerful, sobering words when you think about it.  How did Jesus accept us?  He accepted us with all of our failings, weaknesses, and insecurities.  He welcomed us when we were a mess.  We didn’t have to clean ourselves up to a certain standard of acceptableness.  We didn’t have to have all of our “ducks in a row.”  Paul said it this way: “For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (Romans 5:6–10).

Did you catch that?  God seeks a relationship with us while we are “helpless”, “ungodly”, “sinners”, and “enemies”.  It doesn’t sound like we bring much of worth to the bargaining table.  Is God content to leave us in such a pitiful state?  Of course not.  Through the work of His Spirit he works to transform us into the image of Christ.  He desires for us to be so much more.  But that doesn’t change the fact that He accepts us as we are, warts and all.

So that is our model for accepting each other in the body of Christ.  Sounds like a tall order, doesn’t it?  Frankly, most of us think the church would be a much better place if everyone was more like us.  We have our unwritten standards of acceptability.  But “I’ll accept you if…” is not acceptable if I am committed to accepting you as Christ accepts me.

God loves you!

Mike

Relevant Revelation

“There are perils in the clamant demand for relevance. If we become exclusively preoccupied  with answering the questions people are asking, we may overlook the fact that they often ask the wrong questions and need to be helped to ask the right ones.  If we acquiesce uncritically in the world’s own self-understanding, we may find ourselves the servants rather of fashion than of God.  So, in order to avoid the snare of being a “populist” or a modern false prophet, the type of bridge to be built must be determined more by the biblical revelation than by the zeitgeist or spirit of the age.  The Church’s calling is to challenge secularism, not to surrender to it.  Nevertheless, there is a great need for more understanding of, and sensitivity to, the modern world around us” (John R.W. Stott, Between Two Worlds, pp. 139-40).
Stott highlights the delicate, and sometimes precarious, balance between relevance and revelation.  To emphasize one to the exclusion of the other hinders our efforts to advance God’s kingdom.  How do we find the proper balance?  As always, the answer is found in the life and work of Jesus Christ.
Jesus was the most relevant person who ever lived.  Now that doesn’t mean that he was the most popular person in every crowd or that he catered to every whim of his culture.  He didn’t get too wrapped up in the “spirit of the age” around him.  But he did meet people at the point of their need.  He connected on their level and engaged them in the midst of their reality.  That is true relevance.
But Jesus was also fully committed to the word of his Father.  While he did serve at “street level,” he always ended up applying God’s timeless truths to the struggle of everyday reality.  While he said things in different ways and used a variety of illustrations, the core message never varied.
Our call as disciples is to serve our culture as Jesus served his.  May our efforts to be relevant never compromise our commitment to revelation.

God loves you!

Mike

The Way of the Cross

          “There is a lot of nerves and hand-wringing and worrying right now about the future of the church and how the church in North America is dying.  We are losing all of our money, we are losing all of our power, we are losing all of our influence.  What I want to encourage you with today is that death is something empires worry about.  It’s not something resurrection people worry about.  So maybe all this change in the church means that our empire building days are over.  And maybe that is a good thing. Maybe it means that God is doing what God is always doing -- and that’s making something new.  Chesterton said, “Christendom has had a series of revolutions and in each one of them Christianity has died.  Christianity has died many times and risen again for it had a God who knew the way out of the grave.”...If Christianity as we know it must die, may it die to the old ways of dominance and control and be resurrected to the way of Jesus... resurrected to the way of the cross” (Rachel Held Evans).
          Followers of Jesus, at least in the first two or three centuries of church history, had no political or financial clout.  And, perhaps more telling, they didn’t expect to have any.  They had been taught that the world would hate them just like it hated their Lord (John 15:18-20; 1 John 3:13).  They had be instructed to treat persecution, insults, and slander as a blessing (Matthew 5:10-12).  They knew they were aliens in a hostile environment and expected to be treated accordingly (1 Peter 2:11; 4:12).
          For whatever reason, the modern-day church in the U.S. has different expectations.  We expect to have a seat at the table in politics and government and cry “foul” when we excluded.  We are mistreated and react angrily.  Rather than living as aliens, we live and sound more like worldly citizens than heavenly ones.
          Where did we go astray and how do we get back?

God loves you!
Mike

Boast In The Lord

          “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.‘I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get’”(Luke 18:10–12).
          We can be so full of ourselves, can’t we?  Of all people, disciples of Christ should know better but we boast anyway.  “Look at who I am!”  “Look at what I have done!”  While most of us would never verbally express it in such bold terms, our boasting still exhibits itself in the way we interact with others.  We may have a condescending or judgmental attitude toward others.  We might draw attention to ourselves and our accomplishments through our actions.  However it happens, it is still boasting.
          My guess is that Saul of Tarsus, like most Pharisees, was a man acquainted with boasting.  Even after his conversion and even after he viewed such accomplishments as “rubbish”, the list of his former boastings came easily to mind (Philippians 3:4-8).  But Paul had learned a better way.  He learned to boast about his weaknesses rather than his strengths (2 Corinthians 12:9).  He learned to boast in the work of God rather than his own works (Ephesians 2:8-9).  His boasting came to be centered in the cross of Jesus (Galatians 6:14).
          Rather than boasting about ourselves, let’s boast in our Lord.  “But he who boasts is to boast in the Lord.  For it is not he who commends himself that is approved, but he whom the Lord commends” (2 Corinthians 10:17–18).  Self promotion won’t gain the approval that is most important.  May the words we speak and the attitudes and actions we display be of the kind that seek the commendation of God.  May we bring glory to Him and not to ourselves.  Lord, help us to only boast in you!

God loves you!
Mike

Dress Code

The Sublette County Sheriff's Department in western Wyoming made the news this past week but it had nothing to do with crime.  The newly elected sheriff, Stephen Haskill, has implemented a new dress code for his department. Haskell is requiring deputies to wear black trousers, a tan shirt, black boots and a black ball cap.  He cites the need for safety and uniformity as his rationale for the changes.  The decision has raised a bit of a ruckus in the sparsely populated, rural county.  It seems that cowboy attire, including hats and boots, have long been the dress code of choice and the change has some riled up.  In fact, a 28 year veteran with the department, Deputy Gene Bryson, has opted to retire rather than change uniforms.  He was quoted in one report as saying, “"And I've had a cowboy hat on since 19 -- I don't know.  That's what looks good to me in the sheriff's department. It's Western. It's Wyoming."  Further dialogue, though, did reveal that Bryson, 70, was planning to retire later this year anyway.

Fashion statements aside, it remains the prerogative of the sheriff in Sublette County to determine the dress code for those under his authority.  In a similar way, God determines the way those under his authority dress themselves.  And while he does have an interest in how we dress externally, he seems to be more concerned with how we dress inwardly. Hear the word of God: “...put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts” (Romans 13:14).  “Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11).  “So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience…” (Colossians 3:12).  “Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity” (Colossians 3:14).

God has a dress code.  What are you putting on?

God loves you!

Mike

Critics

“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; who does actually try to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly. Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat” (Theodore Roosevelt, quoted in Hand Me Another Brick, by Charles Swindoll, p. 79, sermonillustrations.com).

Don’t you suppose that Jesus got tired of the critics?  As he “went about doing good” (Acts 10:38) in his ministry, there were no shortage of negative individuals that criticized his efforts and did their best to discredit him.  “Who is this man who blasphemes?” (Luke 5:21).  “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” (Luke 5:31).  “Why do you do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” (Luke 6:2).  “If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner” (Luke 7:39).  On and on it went.  

Being a critic is one of the easiest jobs in the world.  There is very little investment or effort involved.  In fact, the critic would rather much rather disparage or denigrate the investment and effort of others.  Don’t be that person!  Rather than criticizing the efforts of others, let’s get involved ourselves!  When we get involved, there is less time to focus on the flaws of others.

God loves you!

Mike

Endurance

  The movie “Unbroken” is the cinematic portrayal of the life of WWII hero Louis Zamperini, who spent much of the war as a captive in Japanese prisoner of war camps.  It is an amazing true story of courage and perseverance in the face of extreme pain and suffering.
          The strength of character that helped Zamperini endure such incredible adversity during the war was forged earlier in his life.  As a youngster, he was always getting in trouble, making choices that were setting him on a course for failure.  Thankfully, his older brother, Pete, intervened at a critical point in Louie’s young life.  He saw some athletic potential in his younger brother and tells him: “You keep going the way you’re going, you’ll end up as a bum on the street. You train. You fight harder than those other guys and you win. If you can take it, you can make it. You can do this, Lou, you just gotta believe you can. Pop does. Ma does. I do. Louie, a moment of pain is worth a lifetime of glory.”  To his credit, young Louie listens and changes the whole course of his life.
          “A moment of pain is worth a lifetime of glory.”  This is a universal truth that applies to any worthwhile endeavor. Jesus believed it.  The writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus endured the cross and the shame that accompanied it because He kept his focus on the joy beyond the suffering (Hebrews 12:2).  For Jesus, the road to exaltation ran through the dark valley of emptying, humbling, and suffering (Philippians 2:7-11).  Paul believed it.  Paul knew that “momentary, light affliction” in his life was producing an incomparable “eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:17).   According to Paul, the sufferings of this world weren’t worthy of being compared to the glory of the world to come (Romans 8:18).
          Does knowing these things make our suffering less painful? No.  But perhaps it can give us some measure of strength to endure it.

God loves you!
Mike

Fight The Insanity!

Albert Einstein defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”  Perhaps we would do well to ponder that as we face the beginning of a new year.
Are there things that need to change in our lives in 2015 that would help us to become more Christ-like?  Who would dare to say “no?”  We all have at least one area (and likely many more) that could stand some improvement.  If we are honest with ourselves, we know exactly what needs work.  I don’t have to point out your shortcomings and you don’t have to point out mine.  We know them better than anyone else.  After all, in most cases, we’ve excused, coddled, encouraged, and became comfortable with our un-Christlike behavior.  That’s why bad habits are so difficult overcome.  We’ve become used to them.  We keep trying old methods of defeating old problems and ending up with the same old result -- failure.
Could it be time for a new approach to an old problem?  The beginning of a new year is symbolic of a fresh start, an opportunity to do things differently.  Let me encourage us all to look at old problems with a new perspective.  If the old ways of dealing with sinfulness in our lives have proven unsuccessful, its time for some new ways.  Maybe we could be more diligent in limiting bad influences and encouraging good influences in our lives.  Perhaps we could be more insistent about putting God’s agenda before our own.  Possibly we could be more involved in meeting the needs of others than satisfying our own.
Those are just a few suggestions of some new approaches.  If we think carefully about it, we can probably come up with more.  Just remember -- if the old methods haven’t worked, its time for new methods.  Fight the insanity!  With God’s help, we can win the battle over ungodliness in our lives.  But success will mean doing things differently this year.  Make 2015 a year where we all change for the better!

God loves you!

Mike