My Grandma died today, from complications and injuries sustained in a stroke and auto accident last Friday. She was 89. As I think through the good, bad, and ugly of my memories, I'll probably post some of them here (though mostly the good, I hope. :-))
Over the years, as we saw the boxes pile up, I began to despair over the condition of her house. I wouldn't want to touch anything, for fear that something would fall over, and the mess would never be sorted out. But I remember once not long after Kim and I were married, when we visited Grandma, and Kim mentioned that it would be nice to see a picture of my mom when she was younger. No sooner was it off her lips, than Grandma was up poking around in the back room, where I dared not go, and she quickly found a box of old photos, that had just the thing. She always seemed to know much more about what was going on in her house than the untrained eye would guess.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Good morning, closet door!
I was recently trying to explain to a friend what transition stress/shock was like, as we've been feeling it in this, our fifth house in the last 17 months. I told him that transition shock was not knowing where to buy milk, or looking at your fridge and having to figure out where to go to get what you need to make a meal. And I think knowing your "commercial space" in a given locale is part of it. But there's another space that I've been figuring out, too. Normally, I deal with transitions from one house to another fairly well. This house is the first in awhile that I have felt this kind of shock, probably because we were in two (very) short term situations before finding this one. For the first week, I would wake up in the night, and have no idea where the walls were. I've heard discussions of "mind maps" that our mind/body has, that tell us where our limbs, etc are -- the part of our psychology that needs to adapt when we loose a limb. I think it goes further than that. Our house is not as permanent as our limbs are, which we carry everywhere. But there is a comfort and a certainty to knowing where the lamp is beside your bed, and not having to feel all over for it, because it has been in that same place forever. Or where your bed is situated in the room, and what the path is to the bathroom. Being colorblind, I'm told I have better night vision than most people. But I think the fact that I can normally get up and about without the lights on has at least as much to do with the fact that I know what is there. I'm not talking about a sensory perception, that looks around, or considers and remembers what the facts are. I'm talking about your body having navigated a particular space so many times, that it becomes habit -- it becomes natural. You don't have to think about it (much) anymore. And I think this is the stress. Having to think through every little detail of life (where are the car keys? Where is my underwear? Where is the children's medicine? Where is my flashlight? etc., etc., etc.) drains the intellectual and emotional energy to think through the things we would normally think about, when these more basic things are given. I'm not saying that no one else ever has to look for car keys, or re-evaluate where to buy milk. The burden is when this all happens at once.
Anyway, I got up this morning, and felt my way to our bedroom door, and whacked my head on the closet door. If you'd asked me where the closet door was, I could have told you. I never have had this kind of closet door before (they're folded on each side, so they stick out into the room on each side when open), but I know we have them now, and we have for almost four weeks. But my body still had no idea that its quest for the hallway put it on a collision course with the closet door.
Anyway, I got up this morning, and felt my way to our bedroom door, and whacked my head on the closet door. If you'd asked me where the closet door was, I could have told you. I never have had this kind of closet door before (they're folded on each side, so they stick out into the room on each side when open), but I know we have them now, and we have for almost four weeks. But my body still had no idea that its quest for the hallway put it on a collision course with the closet door.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
And out comes the sun(glasses)!
This weekend was rather trying for us. We know there is a reason for the trials we face, and at times we beg God to know what it/they is/are. But it seems like part of His reason it to get us to trust Him more, without seeing the reason now. We look back at what Piper calls bygone grace, and we see that, in 2003, when we left for our first term, we left much later than we wanted, and were spared many other hardships we would surely have found, had we followed our original plan. But we can't see what's up ahead just now.
I went fishing On Saturday, and James and I each caught two fish. We came home, cleaned them up, and did a few other things around the house while everyone else was out. Part of what I was doing was finishing prep for the two presentations I would make the following day. Then the call came. Kim was stranded 22 miles south on I-5 with a dead car (turns out it was only the transmission!), and the leisurely evening I had planned became a road trip, grabbing emergency drive-through on the way to pacify the natives (this was already the dinner hour when it happened). When we got home, we were told yet again how stressful our children are to our (very very gracious) hosts, and we stayed up late talking, realizing it was probably time to find other housing, rather than stress these people too much, and risk hurting our relationship with them. So Sunday morning I babbled my way through a few stories, and we got home and all got a healthy 45 min nap before hitting the road again, this time an hour north. More drive-through, and a hasty meal in a church courtyard. This presentation went a lot more smoothly (though I messed up the instructions to the A/V people!), but it was hard to tell if anyone was touched. We'll see.
All day Sunday, we're driving a 1982 Volvo we have been graciously loaned, with a car seat and two booster seats in the back, four-window AC, and sun visors that don't really block the sun. But that's OK, since Kim got me these really cool sunglasses a couple months ago, that fit me well, and that I enjoy wearing. Only I can't find them. So I squint and groan, and ask God what His purpose in this is.
I had breakfast with a pastor last week, and we talked about this very question, that God doesn't always (ever?) show his purpose on our timeline, and sometimes God is just asking us to press on with what we know is right. We don't see the dawn, but it does eventually come. Plodding through this day, and the night that follows, another day does come.
So this morning, as we're rushing to get everyone out of the house for swimming lessons, Kim digs through the swim bag, and finds my sunglasses. Apparently I left them there in the chaos of taking the boys on a swim picnic last Friday. I don't know how to explain the joy I felt, though in putting them on (I didn't care that I was inside the house!) It was like the dawn had finally come, and the sun was finally starting to shine. I know it is such a silly thing to let such mundane things affect your outlook on life. But it seems like our lives are so full of the mundane these days, that we've got to get it organized and put away, or it will kill us.
So God puts my sunglasses away, and lets me struggle through a whole weekend of squinting, to show me that He is good even then, and that He does bring the sun out again. Or, as the scriptures say, that His mercies are new every morning. Even this morning.
I went fishing On Saturday, and James and I each caught two fish. We came home, cleaned them up, and did a few other things around the house while everyone else was out. Part of what I was doing was finishing prep for the two presentations I would make the following day. Then the call came. Kim was stranded 22 miles south on I-5 with a dead car (turns out it was only the transmission!), and the leisurely evening I had planned became a road trip, grabbing emergency drive-through on the way to pacify the natives (this was already the dinner hour when it happened). When we got home, we were told yet again how stressful our children are to our (very very gracious) hosts, and we stayed up late talking, realizing it was probably time to find other housing, rather than stress these people too much, and risk hurting our relationship with them. So Sunday morning I babbled my way through a few stories, and we got home and all got a healthy 45 min nap before hitting the road again, this time an hour north. More drive-through, and a hasty meal in a church courtyard. This presentation went a lot more smoothly (though I messed up the instructions to the A/V people!), but it was hard to tell if anyone was touched. We'll see.
All day Sunday, we're driving a 1982 Volvo we have been graciously loaned, with a car seat and two booster seats in the back, four-window AC, and sun visors that don't really block the sun. But that's OK, since Kim got me these really cool sunglasses a couple months ago, that fit me well, and that I enjoy wearing. Only I can't find them. So I squint and groan, and ask God what His purpose in this is.
I had breakfast with a pastor last week, and we talked about this very question, that God doesn't always (ever?) show his purpose on our timeline, and sometimes God is just asking us to press on with what we know is right. We don't see the dawn, but it does eventually come. Plodding through this day, and the night that follows, another day does come.
So this morning, as we're rushing to get everyone out of the house for swimming lessons, Kim digs through the swim bag, and finds my sunglasses. Apparently I left them there in the chaos of taking the boys on a swim picnic last Friday. I don't know how to explain the joy I felt, though in putting them on (I didn't care that I was inside the house!) It was like the dawn had finally come, and the sun was finally starting to shine. I know it is such a silly thing to let such mundane things affect your outlook on life. But it seems like our lives are so full of the mundane these days, that we've got to get it organized and put away, or it will kill us.
So God puts my sunglasses away, and lets me struggle through a whole weekend of squinting, to show me that He is good even then, and that He does bring the sun out again. Or, as the scriptures say, that His mercies are new every morning. Even this morning.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Hezekiah and the Law
2For the king and his princes and all the assembly in Jerusalem had taken counsel to keep the Passover in the second month— 3for they could not keep it at that time because the priests had not consecrated themselves in sufficient number, nor had the people assembled in Jerusalem— 4and the plan seemed right to the king and all the assembly.
Interesting that the king would know that he is breaking the law here, but that it would seem right to him, anyway. Presumably that it is better to celebrate a month late than to miss the year entirely.
15And they slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. And the priests and the Levites were ashamed, so that they consecrated themselves and brought burnt offerings into the house of the LORD.
So apparently in addition to being late, the sacrifices weren't made by the priests and levites!
16They took their accustomed posts according to the Law of Moses the man of God. The priests threw the blood that they received from the hand of the Levites. 17For there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves. Therefore the Levites had to slaughter the Passover lamb for everyone who was not clean, to consecrate it to the LORD.
Presumably some of those that made the priests and levites ashamed were those sacrificing without being clean, in addition to not being levites or priests.
18For a majority of the people, many of them from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover otherwise than as prescribed.
Even though some of them did not offer the sacrifices unclean, they still ate of the passover unclean.
So, to summarize the points of breaking the law,
1. The passover was held in the wrong month.
2. The lambs were sacrificed (initially) by ordinary people.
3. (Some of) the people sacrificing were not clean.
4. The majority of the people ate without being clean.
I'm not sure how big of a deal #2 is in the law, but the others seem to be emphasized fairly strongly. And yet, what is the outcome?
For Hezekiah had prayed for them, saying, "May the good LORD pardon everyone 19who sets his heart to seek God, the LORD, the God of his fathers, even though not according to the sanctuary's rules of cleanness." 20And the LORD heard Hezekiah and healed the people.
So seeking God, and asking forgiveness for the wrong ways we do it, brings healing.
And in the end, they broke/amended/added to the law one more time:
23Then the whole assembly agreed together to keep the feast for another seven days. So they kept it for another seven days with gladness.
I trust this was covered by Hezekiah's earlier prayer.
Edit Aug 1 2010:
I just noticed, a chapter earlier, in 2 Chronicles 29:
34But the priests were too few and could not flay all the burnt offerings, so until other priests had consecrated themselves, their brothers the Levites helped them, until the work was finished— for the Levites were more upright in heart than the priests in consecrating themselves.
I guess this argues both for internships where people who aren't necessarily qualified for the work to it anyway, and for moving on with the work however you can.
In any case, I'm glad to see that there is Grace, and provision for our need.
Interesting that the king would know that he is breaking the law here, but that it would seem right to him, anyway. Presumably that it is better to celebrate a month late than to miss the year entirely.
15And they slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. And the priests and the Levites were ashamed, so that they consecrated themselves and brought burnt offerings into the house of the LORD.
So apparently in addition to being late, the sacrifices weren't made by the priests and levites!
16They took their accustomed posts according to the Law of Moses the man of God. The priests threw the blood that they received from the hand of the Levites. 17For there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves. Therefore the Levites had to slaughter the Passover lamb for everyone who was not clean, to consecrate it to the LORD.
Presumably some of those that made the priests and levites ashamed were those sacrificing without being clean, in addition to not being levites or priests.
18For a majority of the people, many of them from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover otherwise than as prescribed.
Even though some of them did not offer the sacrifices unclean, they still ate of the passover unclean.
So, to summarize the points of breaking the law,
1. The passover was held in the wrong month.
2. The lambs were sacrificed (initially) by ordinary people.
3. (Some of) the people sacrificing were not clean.
4. The majority of the people ate without being clean.
I'm not sure how big of a deal #2 is in the law, but the others seem to be emphasized fairly strongly. And yet, what is the outcome?
For Hezekiah had prayed for them, saying, "May the good LORD pardon everyone 19who sets his heart to seek God, the LORD, the God of his fathers, even though not according to the sanctuary's rules of cleanness." 20And the LORD heard Hezekiah and healed the people.
So seeking God, and asking forgiveness for the wrong ways we do it, brings healing.
And in the end, they broke/amended/added to the law one more time:
23Then the whole assembly agreed together to keep the feast for another seven days. So they kept it for another seven days with gladness.
I trust this was covered by Hezekiah's earlier prayer.
Edit Aug 1 2010:
I just noticed, a chapter earlier, in 2 Chronicles 29:
34But the priests were too few and could not flay all the burnt offerings, so until other priests had consecrated themselves, their brothers the Levites helped them, until the work was finished— for the Levites were more upright in heart than the priests in consecrating themselves.
I guess this argues both for internships where people who aren't necessarily qualified for the work to it anyway, and for moving on with the work however you can.
In any case, I'm glad to see that there is Grace, and provision for our need.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Uses of the law in the body
Romans 14
1As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. 3Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master[a] that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
Don't pass judgment, it is a man's supervisor who criticizes his work.
5One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.
You ARE responsible to your own conscience.
6The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. 9For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
Whatever the result of our conversation with our conscience, we need to make our decisions out of our desire to serve the Lord. If we eat, or don't, or celebrate, or don't, or drink beer, or don't, we do it to please God. That's what He wants, more than anything else.
This is an interesting tension, between freedom and accountability. We are to leave each other's opinions alone, and let God instruct and criticize them. We have freedom from fear of public criticism. But we are responsible, and we must use the freedom we have to please Him. We are accountable to God for how we use the freedom his Son bought for us.
10Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11for it is written,
"As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess to God."
12So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
Now here's an interesting mix. Until this section, we are accountable to God alone, and give freedom between each other. But here we see that we are all related, and how. We are all called to stand before God's judgment, and we are all called to worship him. So we are together in that we all will give account of ourselves, and we all worship the same God. We ARE a body, like it or not, but we are NOT the head, like it or not.
13Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.
Now we are not only not to judge, but we are to decide not to hinder. That almost sounds like encouraging one another. But what other response can we come up with, if this one must account for himself in the same way I do? If I'm going into an interview, I may look at the guy across the isle as a competitor, and not talk to him. But we know that God is not grading us on a curve, and there is not a quota he is filling with the best applicants. And we all will get along, not in the same company, but in the same family. If that guy succeeds, my boss gets more 'help,' and I get another co-worker. I want him to join our family, because I'm NOT accountable to him, but we DO get to worship together.
14I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean.
This line has offended me almost every time I read it. What do you mean the facts aren't relevant? What about everything the law said about cleanliness? Is that all a matter of what you THINK?
15For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died.
So, my boss/father tells me to get along with my brothers. I'm not loving either of them, if I insist on what I want, without concern for the effect it has on them. Even more so, if I specifically hurt the goals our Father is attaining.
16So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil.
So how does this fit? I like drinking beer and wine. Do I let teetotalers talk about them as inherently evil? Or is he talking about good good stuff? probably. So I need to discern between what is simply pleasing, and what is good.
17For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
And I guess this is why. Because we aren't talking about early sustenance, we're talking about eternal life.
18Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. 19So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
Do Jesus really does care for His church, and if we care for Him, we will, too.
20Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God.
Another reminder of perspective - we're talking about eternity here.
Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats.
This summarizes much of the passage, I think. The thing itself is not inherently wrong, but we MUST care for our brother. Now, this stands out in contrast of two different positions I have held:
1. Alcohol is bad, and we should avoid any amount of it at all cost.
2. People who say #1 are wrong, and should be corrected, humiliated and/or avoided at all cost.
We don't have the freedom to make up facts about alcohol. Neither to we have the freedom to pretend that it is of eternal importance. What is eternal is people worshiping Jesus. So, if I meet with someone who thinks having a beer is normal, I'll have a beer, and enjoy it. And with someone from the first camp, I'll meet, eat, pray, and talk with them without making alcohol an issue (particularly by drinking in front of them). I have held the position that this passage applies to people who are tempted to drink, but I think it must go beyond that. The "work of God" here is the blood of Christ applied to a fellow believer. Someone, by my drinking, may not tempted to drink to excess themselves, but if they ARE tempted to criticize me and my profession, I should not be satisfied with that. I should not be satisfied by leading a brother into hypocrisy, judgment, and contention. I would only be satisfied with that when my concern is in doing what I want, and not with the spiritual health and maturity of the other person. So,
21It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.
I'm not sure I want to bring up the question of vegetarians, though Paul seems to be saying that it applies... There is much less biblical warrant for vegetarianism than teetotaling, and we cannot be entirely responsible for others' thoughts. I imagine I should continue relating to people, and considering their (and my) maturity of the utmost importance, and figure out if we're having steak later.
22The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves.
This first half sounds like the coward's position, though I understand that we ARE relating to God, and that we ARE relating to each other.
23But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.
Perhaps this last line is the best summary, that what we do from faith is the right thing to do. We will screw up any law we make, directly or indirectly, intentionally or not. But we MUST act with faith, trusting that the unseen (i.e., God, Heb 11:6) is both there and relevant, or we are in sin. So we don't ignore the law, but we can't worship it either. And we don't have to worship each others' silly rules, but we can't blow them off, either.
God have mercy on us all.
1As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. 3Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master[a] that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
Don't pass judgment, it is a man's supervisor who criticizes his work.
5One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.
You ARE responsible to your own conscience.
6The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. 9For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
Whatever the result of our conversation with our conscience, we need to make our decisions out of our desire to serve the Lord. If we eat, or don't, or celebrate, or don't, or drink beer, or don't, we do it to please God. That's what He wants, more than anything else.
This is an interesting tension, between freedom and accountability. We are to leave each other's opinions alone, and let God instruct and criticize them. We have freedom from fear of public criticism. But we are responsible, and we must use the freedom we have to please Him. We are accountable to God for how we use the freedom his Son bought for us.
10Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11for it is written,
"As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess to God."
12So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
Now here's an interesting mix. Until this section, we are accountable to God alone, and give freedom between each other. But here we see that we are all related, and how. We are all called to stand before God's judgment, and we are all called to worship him. So we are together in that we all will give account of ourselves, and we all worship the same God. We ARE a body, like it or not, but we are NOT the head, like it or not.
13Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.
Now we are not only not to judge, but we are to decide not to hinder. That almost sounds like encouraging one another. But what other response can we come up with, if this one must account for himself in the same way I do? If I'm going into an interview, I may look at the guy across the isle as a competitor, and not talk to him. But we know that God is not grading us on a curve, and there is not a quota he is filling with the best applicants. And we all will get along, not in the same company, but in the same family. If that guy succeeds, my boss gets more 'help,' and I get another co-worker. I want him to join our family, because I'm NOT accountable to him, but we DO get to worship together.
14I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean.
This line has offended me almost every time I read it. What do you mean the facts aren't relevant? What about everything the law said about cleanliness? Is that all a matter of what you THINK?
15For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died.
So, my boss/father tells me to get along with my brothers. I'm not loving either of them, if I insist on what I want, without concern for the effect it has on them. Even more so, if I specifically hurt the goals our Father is attaining.
16So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil.
So how does this fit? I like drinking beer and wine. Do I let teetotalers talk about them as inherently evil? Or is he talking about good good stuff? probably. So I need to discern between what is simply pleasing, and what is good.
17For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
And I guess this is why. Because we aren't talking about early sustenance, we're talking about eternal life.
18Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. 19So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
Do Jesus really does care for His church, and if we care for Him, we will, too.
20Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God.
Another reminder of perspective - we're talking about eternity here.
Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats.
This summarizes much of the passage, I think. The thing itself is not inherently wrong, but we MUST care for our brother. Now, this stands out in contrast of two different positions I have held:
1. Alcohol is bad, and we should avoid any amount of it at all cost.
2. People who say #1 are wrong, and should be corrected, humiliated and/or avoided at all cost.
We don't have the freedom to make up facts about alcohol. Neither to we have the freedom to pretend that it is of eternal importance. What is eternal is people worshiping Jesus. So, if I meet with someone who thinks having a beer is normal, I'll have a beer, and enjoy it. And with someone from the first camp, I'll meet, eat, pray, and talk with them without making alcohol an issue (particularly by drinking in front of them). I have held the position that this passage applies to people who are tempted to drink, but I think it must go beyond that. The "work of God" here is the blood of Christ applied to a fellow believer. Someone, by my drinking, may not tempted to drink to excess themselves, but if they ARE tempted to criticize me and my profession, I should not be satisfied with that. I should not be satisfied by leading a brother into hypocrisy, judgment, and contention. I would only be satisfied with that when my concern is in doing what I want, and not with the spiritual health and maturity of the other person. So,
21It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.
I'm not sure I want to bring up the question of vegetarians, though Paul seems to be saying that it applies... There is much less biblical warrant for vegetarianism than teetotaling, and we cannot be entirely responsible for others' thoughts. I imagine I should continue relating to people, and considering their (and my) maturity of the utmost importance, and figure out if we're having steak later.
22The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves.
This first half sounds like the coward's position, though I understand that we ARE relating to God, and that we ARE relating to each other.
23But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.
Perhaps this last line is the best summary, that what we do from faith is the right thing to do. We will screw up any law we make, directly or indirectly, intentionally or not. But we MUST act with faith, trusting that the unseen (i.e., God, Heb 11:6) is both there and relevant, or we are in sin. So we don't ignore the law, but we can't worship it either. And we don't have to worship each others' silly rules, but we can't blow them off, either.
God have mercy on us all.
See the change You want to be in the world
Pastor Martin Emmrich gave a sermon tonight, looking at three questions in Mark's account of the calming of the storm, in ch 4:35-41. He started by asking why this account was placed as it was, following the three short parables on the Kingdom of Heaven that precede it in Chapter 4. In looking at the three parables, I found the following:
A Lamp Under a Basket
21 And he said to them, "Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? 22 For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear." 24And he said to them, "Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. 25 For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away."
Or, the light brings things to visibility, things will be seen and heard. There will be complete transparency in weights and measures.
The Parable of the Seed Growing
26And he said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. 27He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."
Or, the Kingdom of God is overnight change and growth that we do not understand, but we do profit from it.
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
30 And he said, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, 32yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade."
Or, the Kingdom changes the small and insignificant to be great and others prosper in its greatness.
So we see three times that the Kingdom of God brings about change. It brings transparency, it brings fruit, and it brings growth in size and importance. And we profit from all these changes, though we do not bring them about. So the Kingdom of God brings change.
Then we get to the story in question:
Jesus Calms a Storm
35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, "Let us go across to the other side." 36And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. 37And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. 38But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" 39And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Peace! Be still!" And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40He said to them, "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" 41And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, "Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"
We see here a great change, but no mention of the Kingdom of heaven. So what is the connection? How does the change come about in this story? What is the focal point on which things turn? Jesus comes on the scene, awaking and saying "Peace! Be still!". So Jesus and His authority is the point on which things change, the power of the Kingdom of Heaven. Or, as Jesus said in Luke 17:
20Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed, 21nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or 'There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you."
Interesting that he would follow this up by saying
22And he said to the disciples, "The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. 23 And they will say to you, 'Look, there!' or 'Look, here!' Do not go out or follow them. 24 For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day.[i] 25But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
His switch from 'the kingdom of God' to 'the days of the Son of Man' could almost go unnoticed, and it is clear from the context, and from how we know the story unfolds, that he is talking about himself here. Before He arrives on the scene to bring the change we are all need so badly, he must first suffer and be rejected. But when He does come, there will be no doubt. I guess this is what we summarized from the beginning of mark on through the first several chapters. Jesus arriving on the scene changes things. His power over the spirit world, the natural world, the possessed, etc. is incomprehensible, yet undeniable.
Pastor Emmrich then brought us to the three questions:
1. 38b"Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" This is the existential question (why are we, if you don't care?)
2. 40b"Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" This is the faith question.
3. 41b"Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?" This is the identity question.
The faith and identity questions go hand in hand, as the faith is in the person identified, and the identity requires faith to discern. Ultimately the question of the nature of faith must come up, at which point Hebrews 11:1 was brought up:
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
What is hoped for is not yet, and what is not seen may be presently invisible, or future.
Pastor Emmrich went on to summarize Mark 5, with the three healings, of the demon possessed man in the graveyard, the woman with the 12 year old blood flow, and Jairus' daughter, who was brought back from the dead. He contends that in each of these cases, Jesus is contending and showing himself victorious over death, which is our greatest fear. Fear and faith are contrasted, and shown to be each others' opposites. He tells us "Do not fear, only believe." (Mark 5:36b) Thus fighting our greatest fear, that of death, is our greatest path to faith. What are we seeing, then, that gives us this victory over fear? We are seeing the change that Jesus brings, this "Kingdom of God."
We see that, though things are dark now, there will come a Light, that will make all things clear (and just!). We see that the small things we plant will grow and provide for us. We see that the smallest seed will bring us shade, that the world and its (unjust) systems will be turned upside down. We see that Jesus will come, and make all things right:
3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." (Rev 21)
So, when and how do we have/get this faith? The question was raised as to whether the disciples showed it before the coming of the Holy Spirit. Well, they hid at Jesus' arrest, they ran from the cross, and after his ascension they worshiped in an upper room, presumably to avoid the attention of the Jewish authorities. More fear than faith, it would seem. But then, after the Holy Spirit came upon them, and after Peter and John were arrested for preaching:
31After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. (Acts 4)
So it is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we see the change that Jesus is bringing to our world, that He will consummate finally one day. And the faith that He gives to see that now helps us weather the trials that happen between now and then, as all this junk WILL be made right!
Amen! Maranatha!
A Lamp Under a Basket
21 And he said to them, "Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? 22 For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear." 24And he said to them, "Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. 25 For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away."
Or, the light brings things to visibility, things will be seen and heard. There will be complete transparency in weights and measures.
The Parable of the Seed Growing
26And he said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. 27He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."
Or, the Kingdom of God is overnight change and growth that we do not understand, but we do profit from it.
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
30 And he said, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, 32yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade."
Or, the Kingdom changes the small and insignificant to be great and others prosper in its greatness.
So we see three times that the Kingdom of God brings about change. It brings transparency, it brings fruit, and it brings growth in size and importance. And we profit from all these changes, though we do not bring them about. So the Kingdom of God brings change.
Then we get to the story in question:
Jesus Calms a Storm
35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, "Let us go across to the other side." 36And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. 37And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. 38But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" 39And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Peace! Be still!" And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40He said to them, "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" 41And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, "Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"
We see here a great change, but no mention of the Kingdom of heaven. So what is the connection? How does the change come about in this story? What is the focal point on which things turn? Jesus comes on the scene, awaking and saying "Peace! Be still!". So Jesus and His authority is the point on which things change, the power of the Kingdom of Heaven. Or, as Jesus said in Luke 17:
20Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed, 21nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or 'There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you."
Interesting that he would follow this up by saying
22And he said to the disciples, "The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. 23 And they will say to you, 'Look, there!' or 'Look, here!' Do not go out or follow them. 24 For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day.[i] 25But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
His switch from 'the kingdom of God' to 'the days of the Son of Man' could almost go unnoticed, and it is clear from the context, and from how we know the story unfolds, that he is talking about himself here. Before He arrives on the scene to bring the change we are all need so badly, he must first suffer and be rejected. But when He does come, there will be no doubt. I guess this is what we summarized from the beginning of mark on through the first several chapters. Jesus arriving on the scene changes things. His power over the spirit world, the natural world, the possessed, etc. is incomprehensible, yet undeniable.
Pastor Emmrich then brought us to the three questions:
1. 38b"Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" This is the existential question (why are we, if you don't care?)
2. 40b"Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" This is the faith question.
3. 41b"Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?" This is the identity question.
The faith and identity questions go hand in hand, as the faith is in the person identified, and the identity requires faith to discern. Ultimately the question of the nature of faith must come up, at which point Hebrews 11:1 was brought up:
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
What is hoped for is not yet, and what is not seen may be presently invisible, or future.
Pastor Emmrich went on to summarize Mark 5, with the three healings, of the demon possessed man in the graveyard, the woman with the 12 year old blood flow, and Jairus' daughter, who was brought back from the dead. He contends that in each of these cases, Jesus is contending and showing himself victorious over death, which is our greatest fear. Fear and faith are contrasted, and shown to be each others' opposites. He tells us "Do not fear, only believe." (Mark 5:36b) Thus fighting our greatest fear, that of death, is our greatest path to faith. What are we seeing, then, that gives us this victory over fear? We are seeing the change that Jesus brings, this "Kingdom of God."
We see that, though things are dark now, there will come a Light, that will make all things clear (and just!). We see that the small things we plant will grow and provide for us. We see that the smallest seed will bring us shade, that the world and its (unjust) systems will be turned upside down. We see that Jesus will come, and make all things right:
3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." (Rev 21)
So, when and how do we have/get this faith? The question was raised as to whether the disciples showed it before the coming of the Holy Spirit. Well, they hid at Jesus' arrest, they ran from the cross, and after his ascension they worshiped in an upper room, presumably to avoid the attention of the Jewish authorities. More fear than faith, it would seem. But then, after the Holy Spirit came upon them, and after Peter and John were arrested for preaching:
31After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. (Acts 4)
So it is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we see the change that Jesus is bringing to our world, that He will consummate finally one day. And the faith that He gives to see that now helps us weather the trials that happen between now and then, as all this junk WILL be made right!
Amen! Maranatha!
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Depression in a Bottle
When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope of our being saved was at last abandoned. (Acts 27:1-20 ESV)
I found this verse interesting. I've heard commentary on this passage, that talked about whether the centurion should have listened to the pilot and owner of the ship or to Paul, but not much about how people felt when it was clear they had gone wrong.
We have felt like this much this year, and this is perhaps the first time I see a really good representation of it. Not that I've been to sea much, though I have felt the uncontrollable wrenching of seasickness. What would it be like to not see the sun or stars for days? I think this is something of what we have felt. Praise God, it didn't end there. When we see the sun blotted out, we know that this is not the end of it. Paul did make it to Rome. And, as God promised Noah,
Gen 8: 21b "I will never again curse the ground for man's sake,
although the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; nor
will I again destroy every living thing as I have done.
22 "While the earth remains,
Seedtime and harvest,
Cold and heat,
Winter and summer,
And day and night
Shall not cease."
In doing a bit of a word search, I also saw that the sun and stars would give testimony to the power of Jesus when He comes to make all things right:
Luke 21:25"And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
But those distresses aren't the end, either. Once He has shaken the heavens and the earth, he provides for all our needs, giving us the light we need, and ending our mourning:
Isaiah 60:19 " The sun shall no longer be your light by day,
Nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you;
But the LORD will be to you an everlasting light,
And your God your glory.
20 Your sun shall no longer go down,
Nor shall your moon withdraw itself;
For the LORD will be your everlasting light,
And the days of your mourning shall be ended.
And in the end, we will praise Him, along with the very creation we feared to lose:
ps 148:
3 Praise Him, sun and moon;
Praise Him, all you stars of light!
4 Praise Him, you heavens of heavens,
And you waters above the heavens!
5 Let them praise the name of the LORD,
For He commanded and they were created.
6 He also established them forever and ever;
He made a decree which shall not pass away.
It is His eternal decree we aught to fear, I guess. Because the only way the sun and moon and stars would actually be lost is by command of the One who brought them to us in the first place. So until we lose His favor, we should be OK. And He tells us it will be OK when He does finally remove them, and fulfill our needs directly.
So, we want to feel fulfilled, responsible, loved, in control of our lives, etc. And we don't, which feels like the sun and stars have abandoned us. Can we trust God to fill the need for these affirmations? Can we trust that there will at least come a day, if it isn't already here, where God will fill these needs for us personally and directly, keeping us from needing affirmation in our suave personal relations, our organized dayplanner, our articulate speech, or our cool job? Having been through a shipwreck this last year, I can testify that I see clearly the vision presented in Rev 21:
3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."
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