the Accidental Theologian

It has happened to us all. You're going through life, just minding your own business ... maybe you're at the grocery store, at work, or even with the family. It can happen in such places as a hospital (think emergency room, ICU, or even the waiting room), a church's sanctuary, and even your child's bedroom when you're tucking them in at night. It happens in face-to-face conversation, on the phone, and even strikes while composing a note or email. No one is immune, and no place is sacred. It happened to Job's friends, to the original 12 Israelite spies, and even to Jesus' disciples, especially, it seems, to Peter.

It's being what I call an "accidental theologian". This is a condition that can strike us at any time, in any place. It happens when we are confronted by a person or situation that challenges our understanding of life, and we react by theologizing based on what we think is right, or what we think people need to hear.

Now at first glance, you might think that there's nothing wrong with that; after all, we all give advice now and then, or we are called to comfort or encourage. But the main problem with being this accidental theologian is that we, you and me, are at the center. Period. Or more accurately, our opinions and thoughts about God become the foundation of what we think, say, or do. Sometimes we "accidentally" get it right - we say or do the right thing - but our hearts are not in the right place. The prophet Isaiah recorded God's response to this sort of behavior and its subsequent theology, when he wrote,

"The multitude of your sacrifices—
what are they to me?" says the LORD.
"I have more than enough of burnt offerings,
of rams and the fat of fattened animals;
I have no pleasure
in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.

When you come to appear before me,
who has asked this of you,
this trampling of my courts?

Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
I cannot bear your evil assemblies.

Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts
my soul hates.
They have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.

When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I will hide my eyes from you;
even if you offer many prayers,
I will not listen.
Your hands are full of blood;

wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds
out of my sight!
Stop doing wrong,

learn to do right!

(Isaiah 1:11-17a, NIV)

While our actions and behavior are important, they are ultimately no better than the condition of the heart out of which they flow. What then, we must ask, pleases God? Isaiah answers that question, too ...

learn to do right!
Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow.

"Come now, let us reason together,"
says the LORD.
"Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.

If you are willing and obedient,
you will eat the best from the land;

(Isaiah 1:17-19, NIV)

Isaiah first points us to the problem ... ourselves: our own hearts and minds. When we trust in our own wisdom, when we trust in the religion of our own holy opinion, when we baptize our own thoughts as having some weight from on high, the things we say, no matter how well intentioned, or how pious sounding, will miss the mark. But then Isaiah points us back to God. In this regard, the Psalmist draws us even closer to the best place to root our thoughts. In Psalm 1, we read this ...

Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.

But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.

(Psalm 1:1-3, NIV)

We are to avoid the counsel of the wicked (or giving wicked counsel!), or standing with sinners or sitting with mockers. Good advice. But avoiding the negative is not enough. More importantly, the Psalmist calls us to something more positive; he calls us to God's Word. We are to not only avoid doing evil, but we are to delight in God's word, taking up studying it, meditating on it.

By doing so, we are rooting ourselves, our "theology" in God's Word, His opinion. And we can have confidence in God's Word. The apostle Paul tells us that all Scripture is ...

... God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and
training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped
for every good work.

(2 Timothy 3:16, 17)

By rooting ourselves in God's Word, Scripture, we are "protecting" our theology from becoming "accidental". We are also protecting others - those whom we think we're helping, those who are not like us, not one of us, not us - from a theology that may be from the heart - our heart; not God's - but that ultimately doesn't lead to life. Paul calls us to do this very thing, this rooting ourselves in Scripture, where he writes,

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one
another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with
gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed,
do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through
him.

(Colossians 3:16, 17, NIV)

One key to this being rooted in Scripture, however, is that our actions as theologians must be guided by wisdom, God's wisdom. Anyone can pick up a Bible, open it up, and start quoting Scripture. But only those who seek to do so in and out of God's wisdom - given through God's Spirit - will wield God's Word properly. James, the brother of Jesus, and the over-seer of the Church in Jerusalem, had this to say about wisdom,

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all
without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must
believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown
and tossed by the wind.

(James 1:5,6, NIV)

But we're talking about a particular kind of wisdom. James goes onto clarify this idea of wisdom further, and how wisdom, as the ground in which our being rooted in Scripture lays, is the source of good theology. He writes,

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by
deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter
envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the
truth. Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly,
unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there
you find disorder and every evil practice.

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.

(James 3: 13-18, NIV)

Living out of this second kind of Wisdom leads us to living out a theology that is pure (rooted in God's Word, not our own opinion), peace-loving (not feeling like we have to win every argument), considerate (kind), submissive (not having to assert ourselves or our own opinions), full of mercy (not trying to wound or blow our opponents out of the proverbial water), full of good fruit (see Matthew 5:1-12, and Galatians 5:22-23), impartial (we'll let God's Word be the deciding factor, not our own likes and dislikes), and sincere (we're neither trying to impress others, nor act or speak out of selfish motives). When we root our theology in God's Word through His Wisdom, we will be ministers of peace.

When we find ourselves in those times where we are called on to speak, whether it be on the scene of an emergency, when a friend asks us for advice, when someone asks what we think about a particular issue or topic, or when our child asks us what God means or is saying after we've read with them from God's Word, by knowing God's Word, by praying for God's Wisdom, we can have confidence that the theology we speak out of, speak from, is not at all accidental, but is rooted in the heart of God, and will serve His purpose in that situation.

What do you think?

thoughts before school ...

While I don't have much in the way of deep thoughts to share, seeing that the new school year begins tomorrow for me and my kids, I'm feeling like I should at least have something "penned" for the occasion. That being said, I'm astonished at how quickly summer passed by. All three of my kids have grown so much over the summer. And we've done a number of fun things together this summer ... the usual trip to grandparents for long weekend excursions (the kids loved the pool!), trips into Chicago to visit various and sundry museums, and a number of walks around a few different Forest Preserves were among our summer's activities.

We also had many a trip to the town library ... on average of at least once a week, and sometimes twice. In order to connect with my oldest daughter, and gain some insights into her own reading habits, I spent the last week and a half reading all four of the Twilight series books. I have to admit, they are really well written with a good story line that pulls the reader in. As my wife told me last winter, it's more Pride and Prejudice meets the Vampire than a typical monster/horror story. But she's also read biographies of Christian missionaries, and so many other titles that I cannot hope to relay them all to you. My youngest daughter adopted her older sister's appetite for reading, and has devoured a great many books herself, including an interest in the Guiness Book of World Records genre of encyclopedias. My son was the most noticable in his growth of reading habits. He went from only getting out kid's graphic novels to increasing his reading level through the likes of A to Z Mysterys and the Chet Gecko mystery series. It's all very encouraging to see. My wife enjoyed the library, but in addition to the books, she encouraged us to attend a couple of Monday night concerts hosted on the library green. The first one we attended was a Steel Drum band, while the last was a young Christian band. Both were very enjoyable.

But now it's back to school. The kids are nervous - they still feel unsettled after having moved out here almost nine months ago - but to be honest, so am I. Tomorrow begins year two of my classroom studies, and in some ways, I feel more pressure. I am looking forward to being in classes with friends, and hanging out and catching up. I think I missed that a great deal during the summer break. But it is also back to a break-neck reading, research and writing schedule.
Sarah has taken the last few days off from work so that we could have some family time together before the school year started back up. Our staycation was good. But she heads back into her office tomorrow, with all of it's own rollercoasterness.

And I am reminded that we are not going through our various and sundry first days of school alone. The Lord is with us - He goes before us, beckoning us to follow Him. And when I focus on that, when I remember that He called me to this program of study and that He called our family out here so that we would be together, then I remember that He who called us is faithful, and He will accomplish His purpose(s) in our lives. Oh, that faith in Christ would be the constancy of my focus each and every day, and throughout. That God would be glorified in every thought, word, and deed that described my daily walk. This is my hope ... for tomorrow ... for every day.

These are my thoughts before school. As things get going, I hope to add more.

Sermon Podcast: "Rooted in Scripture"

For those interested, my latest sermon is online at http://joycast.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=508393. Thanks to Pastor Scott Hackler for the invite to proclaim and share God's Word on Sunday, July 26. Feel free to give a listen, and share your thoughts. God bless!

'The Shack'

As the title implies, I am interested in your thoughts, your feelings, ... your reaction to this book, "The Shack". I just finished reading it this evening, and my feelings are ... well, I don't want to unduly influence your own comments or thoughts.

Here are some questions to help prime the proverbial pump for discussion:

• What do you think is Paul Young's purpose in presenting this story?
• What were your "gut" feelings about the story?
• What did you think about the presentation of God?
• Did this story provoke any theological questions for you? If so, what were they?
• Did this story provoke any theological concerns for you? If so, what?
• How do you reconcile the "theology" of "The Shack" with the whole message of Scripture?
• How might this story be useful in communicating the gospel in today's culture/world?
• Do you see any limitations to this story's use in communicating the Christian faith? If so, what would they be?
• Does this book get you thinking about your own "theology"? How so?

I certainly don't expect anyone to answer all of these questions, though you are each welcome to try. I do encourage you consider each of them before you begin answering. I'm hoping that a number of people will indeed respond, and do so respectfully and thoughtfully, to any and all responses, not least, my own.

God's blessings to you!

The Difference of a Year

I'm living in the Chicagoland area, much as I was a year ago. The only difference is that a year ago, I just gotten out here, having driven cross-country to begin a grueling Summer of intensive German language reading studies. Back East, in Philadelphia, my family was adjusting to not having me around. It was hot and humid back in the Philadelphia region. Lots of thunderstorms. Lots. Back here in Chicago, it was hot, but not oppressive. Low humidity compared to what I was used to back East. Even comfortable.

Emily had just returned from completing her freshman year at Houghton College in upstate New York. She had done well, and had plans to major in Pre-Med. Emily is the third of seven kids. Her father is a Methodist pastor, and a year ago, was in the midst of packing up the church-owned parsonage he and his family had lived in for over fifteen years for a move to a new church family in the Delaware Water Gap region, north of Philadelphia.

That was a year ago.

On Tuesday, June 10, 2008, a terrible wave of thunderstorms blew through the Philadelphia region. That evening, Emily was outside, raking up fresh-cut grass, with one of her younger brothers when the storm hit. They went in, waiting out the storm, hoping for it to end so they could go back outside and cool off. From what I was told, the storm seemed to have ended. Emily and her brother went back outside, maybe fifty yards from their house. It thundered, and her brother decided to go in. There was a loud a thundering crash of lightening, and he decided to run inside, turning to yell to his sister to do the same, but she was lying on the ground.

I won't try to recount all the details to the story that was told to me many times. But Emily was struck by lightening. And she was dead. Her brother ran in, and told his parents, a neighbor called 9-1-1, and her father ran out and began CPR. An ambulance showed up, and continued trying to recusitate Emily. CPR wasn't working, and neither did the defibulator. My understanding was that after administering adrenalin along with another shot from the defibulator were they able to get her heart started ... somewhere around fifteen minutes after her heart had first stopped beating.

That was a year ago.

The initial prognosis was not good. It was an emotionally painful time. But after weeks in the burn unit, and then more weeks at a rehab hospital, Emily was able to go home. But she is not the same Emily. She suffered brain trauma due to the lack of oxygen, and requires much attention. However, God in His grace, delivered her. She undergoes regular therapy sessions due to the great attention, courage, and love of her parents and siblings. She has made noticable, if slow progress. And it is far greater progress than any of her initial physicians estimated possible.

She is relegated to a wheel chair, and needs help being fed. But with great effort, she can respond to some questions. She is aware of her surroundings.

That was a year ago.

She was dead, but now she is alive. It's the difference of a year. While there is no prodigalness (if there is such a word) to this story, Emily's parents are today thankful to God, the God of mercy and grace. God restored her, gave her back to them. Their lives are not at all what they thought they'd be at this point. Their life as a family is are hard. But they would not trade it for the alternative. They trust God. Trust Him to work through life's difficulties. Trust Him for the grace to deal with the day-to-day difficulties. Trust Him to bring life out of death.

The difference of a year can be absolutely incredible. It can also be absolutely frightening. We, like the hypothetical man in the book of James - whom James holds up as making all of life's plans without any care or concern for God - too often live our lives without any sense of how quickly life can change. Only those who have experienced tragedy, whose faith has been tested in the crucible of pain and suffering like Emily and her family, know how fragile is humanity. As Isaiah, and Peter after him remind us, the grass withers, and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God stands forever.

The difference of a year reminds me that God, and God alone, must be our foundation. As Emily's mom and dad have reminded me solely by the way they've lived out their faith this past year, only faith in God is enough to get us through a year.

Fear Factor

Is 'Fear' something that never crosses your mind? Something that other people deal with?

More than likely 'Fear' is something you know of, something you live with. If you're like me, you are familiar with fear. I know a lot about fear because I grew up with it as part of my life. When I was younger, fear almost won, almost drove me to kill myself. Even today, fear is something that still seeks to have mastery over my spirit. I know its cold voice.

But before we go any further, it's helpful to distinguish between rational, or what we might call 'real' fear, and irrational fear. Real fear is the sort of thing that keeps us alive, keeps from injury. It was the motivator that kept you from sticking your hand on a hot burner on the stove, or kept you from running out in traffic.

Irrational fear, however, is different.

It is an abberation of the former kind. It is sometimes no more than a figment of that part of our imagination which is fallen. And other times it is the means by which the enemy, Satan, the devil, seeks to paralyze us into inaction or doing the wrong thing. It often contains a grain of truth, just enough reality or facts to make it seem real, believable, or just plain old frightening. But whereas real fear is our bodies' way of keeping us alive or unhurt, irrational fear has only one purpose ... to hurt us, to harm us, to dehumanize us. And what I mean by that last part is simply that irrational, unreal fear makes us less than who God created us and calls us to be.

Do you fear? Does fear plan a daily role in your life? Does it effect your marriage? Your relationships and/or friendships? Does it keep you in the same dead-end job? Does fear keep you from attempting your dreams? Does fear keep you from giving your whole heart and life to God? Does it keep you from trusting God?

When fear seems bigger than life, when fear seems bigger than God, life is not full. No matter how good our lives may look on the outside, fear can still rule in our hearts. Image is not everything, however, for fear robs us of the joy that God would have us live out of. In some ways, fear that dominates one's life is nothing less than an idol. Even when we don't want it to be so, when we fear we are forcing God off the throne of our hearts. But lest you think this is a note to express to you how angry God is about you being fearful, fear not.

"Fear not". It is one of the most oft repeated messages God or His angels first speak to people. It tells us that fear is not part of God's kingdom. Fear is not part of God, and it is not be part of our character. And yet, that often seems like a word that's so much easier to agree with than it is a reality to live out of. We don't want to fear, and yet, if you've grown up with fear, or you have become accustomed to fear, it's hard to imagine how to live otherwise.

But this is exactly what God not only calls us to, but promises us. John the apostle writes exactly this, when he says of God's love for us, "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." And Paul writes about God's work in us through His Holy Spirit, "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline."

God is not a god of fear, but one who loves us - though not with a sloppy, sentimentalism that allows us to live however we want. True love, as John reminds us, drives out all fear. True love is the very opposite of fear. God's kingdom drives out fear. This is one of the awesome dynamics of the Kingdom of God that Jesus first proclaimed to the people of Galilee and Judea. It is the same message that his first disciples continued to spread to the ends of the earth. And it is at the heart of the message proclaimed in the combined witness of the New Testament Gospels and letters.

It is, I think at the heart of a story about Jesus and His disciples from the Gospel of John 6:16-24, where the apostle writes ...

16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, 17 where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. 18 A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. 19 When they had rowed about three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, "It is I; don't be afraid." 21 Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading. 22 The next day the crowd that had stayed on the opposite shore of the lake realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with his disciples, but that they had gone away alone. 23 Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24 Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.

It is significant that among the disicples crossing the Sea of Galilee in that boat, several were experienced fishermen. Rough waters at night were nothing to be taken lightly. And yet when Jesus shows up, after night has fallen, they are frightened at the sight of him walking across the choppy, stormy waters. But wouldn't you be?

Instead, Jesus identifies Himself, "It is I." And He tells them, "Don't be afraid." We need to read more than just Jesus not wanting the disciples to be afraid. There's much more to both this story, and to our lives.

Jesus is not just trying to calm their fears in the moment. He's also making a statement; He's making a claim that only God can make. He is asserting that He is not only the Jewish Messiah, sent by God. He is stating that He is the God of heaven and earth, the One, True God, who commands nature.

Interestingly, in both Matthew 8 and Luke 8, Jesus calms a storm by merely speaking - commanding the storm to stop - and it does so. John wants us to know not only that God is with us when things seem dark and stormy. John, along with the other Gospel writers, is stating that Jesus is Lord over the things that cause us fear.

Don't read this the wrong way. God is not using the things that cause us fear in order to punish us or keep us down. Even coming to such a conclusion is the result of buying into fear. No, not at all. Instead, God wants us to trust Him in the midst of life's storms. The things that cause us fear, whether they be of the real kind (like mortgage foreclosure), or the irrational kind, are nothing compared to God, because the reality is - even if we cannot "feel" His presence - God is with us, and God is in control. He wants us to trust Him to take care us in the storm, and trust Him to bring it to an end.

Fear, the irrational kind, is ultimately the means for keeping us from believing God is as good as Scripture testifies to. Consider that even after humanity sins against God in the garden, God fashions clothes for Adam and Eve. Consider that God chooses one man to enter into a binding covenant with. Consider that God remembers His covenant, and rescues an insignificant group of slaves from Egypt, puts up with their complaints and whining, and leads them to the promised land. And that's just part of the Old Testament!

The revelation of God's love continues into and is incarnated in Jesus, God's Son. Consider this love is so great that Jesus teaches with the authority of God in order to correct the poor and sometimes false teaching of men. Consider that God's love in Jesus is so great that Jesus is willing to die a painful and hideous death in order to defeat sin, depraved human nature, and the devil. And consider God's love is so great that not even death could keep Jesus from rising from the dead to new life. And if that's not enough, consider, too, that it is God's love present in our lives, present in the heart of every faith-filled, believing man and woman in the third person of the Trinity, God the Holy Spirit.

God's love is with us. We do not need to fear anymore. God is with us. Emmanuel. God has saved His people. Y'shua. This is the Good News of the Kingdom of God. It is this love that keeps "fear" at bay in my own life.

It is this love that has defeated the power and temptations of death that sought after me to take my own life as a 17 year old, but which God meant instead to illuminate the power of His love for me in Jesus Christ. Love is all-powerful, because God is love. And true love drives out all fear.

Don't be afraid! God is with us!

The Wisdom of God, Part 2

I had been reading my daily e-devotion from Scripture Union, UK one morning, and there it was, staring at me ... the familiar but incredible story of Isaiah's vision of the throneroom of God. While this is a story I am quite familiar with, I wanted to read it with an eye toward understanding it wisely.

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.

2 Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.

3 And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory."

4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.

5 "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."

6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.

7 With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."

8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"

9 He said, "Go and tell this people: " 'Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.'

10 Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed."

11 Then I said, "For how long, O Lord?" And he answered:"Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged,

12 until the LORD has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken.

13 And though a tenth remains in the land, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land."

Isaiah 6:1-13

There's a lot of imagery here, and it can be easy to miss its relevance for us today. But what stands out to me is how Isaiah's response is as attention getting as the very vision he is confronted with.

Imagine yourself caught up in a vision, finding yourself in the throne room of the LORD, and angelic beings flying around. What is your reaction? A throne room is not something we Americans can really identify with, and even the idea of seeing God on a throne isn't necessarily something that we could imagine too easily. We won't even touch on angels with six wings. But what they said made Isaiah shudder with fear ... and maybe we, too, should pay attention and pay heed to what they said.

Upon hearing their call - "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty" - Isaiah becomes mindful of his own sinfulness. We are not told why he becomes so conscious of it. We don't know exactly what he has done. But this is not the issue.

We need to realize that regardless of how "good" we think we are, our goodness, or our good deeds in no way measure us up to God, who is the very definition of "good". This is where 'Wisdom' comes to play. Wisdom from God helps us understand that in the presence of God, we must cry out for mercy, we must cry out for grace. God's Wisdom helps us realize that we need His salvation. It was Wisdom that helped Isaiah realize that being in the very presence of God was dangerous just because God is so holy, because to be in the presence of God is not safe.

I am drawn to remember that part of the story from the Chronicles of Narnia, in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, where the children are in Mr. and Mrs. Beaver's den, and he tells them about Aslan. The children are scared of what they've been told, and ask, "Is Aslan safe?" "Safe? No, Aslan isn't safe. But he's good."

God is not safe - He is not something we can manipulate for our own sense of good. God is not here to make us happy. Isaiah understood this.

This is the sort of wisdom that confronts us when we are in the very presence of God. We cannot resist it. It cannot be ignored. Why? Because it is part of how we were created. It is part of our DNA, as we have been created in the image of God. As Scripture elsewhere tells us, that every knee will bow before God (Rom. 14:11; Phil. 2:9-11). In the presence of God, we do nothing else - it is wisdom.

The question then is how do we gain this wisdom and apply it to our every day lives? How do we live in a way that is 'wise'? Again, Isaiah offers us a great example. He cries out his confession, and humbly receives God's grace and forgiveness. But then he does something that I think we often miss ...

Isaiah becomes quiet, and he listens. He does not try to make excuses, nor does he try to make bargains. Neither does he babble. He listens. And when he hears God's voice, God's call, "Whom shall I call, who shall go for us?", Isaiah is able to respond in faith. He can respond in faith because He knows God's grace - he knows, as in knowing by experience, God's forgiveness - he has experienced who God is. He speaks up, "Here I am, send me!"

This is wisdom. I want to suggest that wisdom can be differentiated from knowledge in several ways, one of which is that wisdom is not just something that fills the head, but is by its very nature, something that positively impacts the decisions and choices we make. It is an adverb to the way we live. Wisdom takes knowledge and applies it in a way that honors God, and shows us living much more closely to the way that God intended for us.

Even though God sends him on a difficult task - to deliver a message - he is willing to go ... confident in his relationship with God. This is no small thing. The mission is to deliver the hard news of judgment to the people of Judah and Jerusalem. But Isaiah does so, and does it willingly.

Why? I think that it is because he knows who he trusts is trustworthy. This is the point of Wisdom.

Are you willing to humble yourself to living out of the Wisdom of God, or will you reject it in favor of what you think you know? what you think is right? The Wisdom of God has been fully revealed in the event which billions of Christians around the world celebrate in Christmas. Jesus Christ is the Wisdom of God personified, incarnate, the living example of who God is, and who God calls us to be.

It is in reading the inspired Word of God that we see Wisdom lived out. Turn to such a passage as Matthew 5, and see it unfold in the teachings of Jesus. Turn to the crucifixion narratives in any of the Gospels, and feel it in Jesus' forgiveness of His murderers. Turn to Acts 1 and 2, and pay attention to Jesus' promises, as He gives the Wisdom of God in the giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

As Christians, we have access to the Wisdom of God because the Wisdom of God dwells in us. This is the good news. Now I invite you to choose Christ Jesus; choose to live wisely. And you will live out and live out of the Wisdom of God.

The Wisdom of God, part 1

What do you think of when you hear or read the word, 'wisdom'? Is it an amorphous something in your mind? Does it seem like one of those words that you feel like you know it, but can't really describe it? Is it different than knowledge? How does it apply to you?

James, the brother of the Lord Jesus Christ, wrote to Christians who were scattered around at least the western Mediterranean seaboard due to persecution. Throughout his letter to them, he expresses a number of thoughts and concerns, but what I find both incredible and self-convicting is how the wisdom of God flavors the entire letter. Consider the presence and power of God's wisdom in what James says here, where he writes in James 2 ...

1 My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. 2 Suppose someone comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor person in filthy old clothes also comes in. 3 If you show special attention to the one wearing fine clothes and say, "Here's a good seat for you," but say to the one who is poor, "You stand there" or "Sit on the floor by my feet," 4 have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong?

8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, "Love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, "You shall not commit adultery," also said, "You shall not murder." If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.

12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

It is easy to read this and just come away discouraged or frustrated with yourself for not living up to what James wrote to Christians almost two thousand years ago. And because we can remove ourselves from it by consideration of its original audience, or because we have socially removed ourselves from interactions with people who are different from ourselves, we think we're doing okay. Or maybe we think that because Jesus came, died on the cross, and rose again, that a "new" law is in effect, and so, like Martin Luther before us, we wrongly think that James is still, somehow, stuck in following the Law of Moses.

But is that true? If we understand that the Wisdom of God has been at work as the integral part of God's plans for creation from before He uttered the words that started it all off, then we must reject such thoughts. If we are willing to see Jesus as the fulfillment of all things in Old Testament that refer to God's making for Himself a people to be a light to the world, and not superseding the Law, then we must see God's Wisdom, not only at work from creation to His consummation at the end of Revelation, but God's Wisdom as God incarnate, Jesus Christ.

Understanding that allows us to appreciate, then, the words of Alistair Metcalfe, when he writes for Scripture Union UK's WordLive devotions (12/13/2008) ...

What’s going on inside the minds of individuals when they show favouritism?
Why is there such a strong temptation among people – even God’s own people – to
show preference towards the wealthy, the well-to-do or the well-connected – even
when they can be the very ones who tend to make our lives difficult (vs 6,7)?

James gives us a clue by going on to speak about the Law of Moses (vs
8–13). The first two commandments given in Exodus 20 establish God as the only
one to be feared and worshipped, and leave no room for idolatry – and I think
idolatry is the root issue here (see Exodus 20:3–6).

How easy it is for us to see people not for who they truly are – made in the image of God and carrying his identity – but purely in terms of what they can do for us. It’s only when we see other human beings as objects that we can covet their bodies adulterously. And it’s only when we see life as disposable that we can imagine dealing with them murderously (v 11).

God doesn’t show favouritism because he sees us rightly – not as
commodities, but as his children. Loving others as we love ourselves (v 8) means
choosing to see one another in the same way.

This is the Wisdom of God that is present in those who have received Jesus as Savior and Lord. The Wisdom of God is available to God's people. And yet, we often choose to live as though we knew Him not. We sin because we do not see the way God sees. We sin because we do not understand as God understands. We sin because we can only see what we (our sin self) want to see.

When we avail ourselves ... no better, when we surrender ourselves to God's mercy, we align our will, our very selves, with God. We are able to see people made in the image of God, the imago Dei. We do not see others as objects which we may covet, or life as disposable which we may toss. God have mercy upon us, for Jesus didn't just limit these sins to actions, but to thoughts - greed, lust, murder.

But the Wisdom of God is the "cure" to sin and sinfulness. As Jesus permeates us, our thoughts and then our lives become free from sin. This is why Paul writes that we are to be transformed [in and by the work of the Holy Spirit of God] through the renewing of our minds. This is not a dichotomy, as if our bodies didn't matter. Rather, Paul goes on to note that once our minds are renewed, we shall be able to test and approve - to know intimately - God's good and perfect will. We will know, we will approve, and we will participate willfully, joyfully in God's will - not in our own sinful desires.

What do you think? Where is the Wisdom of God in your life? It's more than just having Scripture memorized ... it is living the Scriptures out, and doing so to God's glory!

Of Michael and Anthony

Back on Wednesday, Dec. 17, I spent much of the day at the O'Hare International Airport, wondering if the delay in my flight was going to be short, or the matter of several hours. It seemed all flights to Philly were experiencing some delay due to "weather" in Philadelphia. But in the course of that time, I met two different men, and had two entirely different conversations - both concerning God.

When I sat down at Gate F 10, I wasn't looking to evangelize anyone. In all honesty, I was tired. Just that morning I had turned in my last paper, culminating two plus weeks of burning the proverbial candle at both ends. After arriving at the airport, getting my boarding pass, and making it through security, I sat down for a leisurely lunch. But at the gate, it was anything but restful. I just wanted to relax, to veg, to rest. In the economy of God, however, He often has other plans.

Michael was about my age, and was on his way back to Philadelphia from Chicago, where he and a coworker had been doing some sort of project. I never did find out what they were doing, but it was obvious that they were both ready to get home, and equally irked at their flight being delayed. Michael had already been drinking in order to pass the time away. He seemed friendly enough, wanting to include me in the conversation with his coworker. Then he asked me what I was doing going to Philly. To make a long story short, I shared with him that I was out in the Chicago area going to school to study theology. That got his attention, to say the least. What ensued from there was Michael trying to argue me into a corner, trying to get me to admit that he didn't need to follow the church's religion, and that he was a good guy, therefore he didn't need the church.

I don't consider myself a gifted evangelist, per se. But I tried to meet him where he was. I asked him why he thought he was good, why he thought being good was good enough, from where did his sense of good and bad, and right and wrong come from? The questions seemed to irritate him, and yet he was the one who wanted to keep talking. I guess I could've walked away, but I felt that this was an opportunity from God. In the end, I felt like I had done nothing to help Michael understand what made my faith in Christ different from his belief that he was good enough to get by with God as he was. Michael did not accept my explanations. But as he finally boarded his flight, I was reminded that the Christian faith is not built on an intellectual or rationale series of thoughts. It requires us to believe. After Michael left, I felt like I had failed, and thought about what I could have done differently to have been effective in sharing the gospel with this man -- but it was for naught -- it just made me feel all the more like I could not share my faith. Michael didn't agree with me, but rather, felt justified to reject the truth in exchange for essentially worshipping his own self.

On the plane ride home, however, I met a young Korean man who was on his way back to Southern New Jersey. He had just completed his first freshman semester at Univ. of Illinois, and was feeling very reflective. It turned out that Anthony was a Christian. It turned out to be an opporutity to just listen to someone who was trying to make sense of his faith amidst all of the challenges to it within the college culture. Even though I was even more tired, what began as a conversation while waiting for the plane to take off continued on as a thoughtful dialogue on Jesus, the faith, the church, and our response to each. In the end, when the plane landed, what I did share with him were some things that God has been speaking to my heart. But the conversation turned out to be very encouraging for both of us. Anthony was very encouraging to me. In the sharing of his story with me, he also explained to me how the conversations we had were helping him understand points in his faith that were tough for him to grasp, and that as we talked, he gained insights into how to live out his faith well.

Where Michael left me down and discouraged, Anthony showed me that God doesn't waste opportunities -- that He is sovereign. What was my calling in meeting with Micheal? What came to mind later was the saying that some are called to sow, some are called to water, and some are called to harvest. We are called to be faithful to as much as we understand of God's plan. But this sometimes mean that we must just deal with whatever awkwardness, and keep doing what God was calling me to.

Anthony reminded me of the value of being faithful, and that even in the face of uncertainty, God has pleasant surprises for us. While Michael was really hard to talk to, Anthony, as a brother in Christ, was able to understand spiritual things. Anthony sought to be faithful, and even on a plane, with a complete stranger, he was willing to share out of what God had blessed him with and for.

The conversation with Micheal left me frustrated and feeling inarticulate. It left me questioning myself. But the conversation with Anthony was a gift from God. In some ways, I felt like it confirmed my calling to teach theology to seminarians, to pass onto them my passion for the Word of God as the basis for our theological work. But both conversations taught me something about the LORD and the church. Both taught me to trust the Lord, and to be faithful, even when I felt like I wasn't being understood, or what I said was rejected by someone. I don't know whether Michael thought anymore of our conversation - he was actually quite upset that I suggested only those people who received Jesus as their savior and sought to live for Him would receive eternal life - but I did ask him to consider what I had shared with him, and to read in Scripture for himself the good news that I shared with him that day. I have prayed for him, asking that God would bring someone into Michael's life in order for him to have opportunity to profess faith in Jesus Christ. I also prayed that Anthony would have the grace to follow through on his faith in Christ, and to pray for opportunities that would be in line with God's will for him to bring God glory.

Two men. Two different stories. Both in the same day. Both by God's glory. I thank God I had the opportunity to meet these different men and try to be faithful to what I thought God was calling me to.

What do you think?

Between Moralism and Virtue

There's an inherent tension in living out the Christian faith. We are confronted by our own sinfulness and sinful behavior by a God who is holy and just, who loves us, but cannot tolerate our sin/sinfulness. His solution? Send His one and only Son to be fully human while also being fully God, so that the Son may take the penalties and sinfulness of the whole world onto Himself. Through His dying, though holy and right with God on His own merit, He is resurrected to new life, and through the giving of His Holy Spirit, He invites us to into His kingdom by confessing our sinfulness, and acknowledging Him as Savior and Lord, to live our lives for Him. That's the good news, the gospel, in a nutshell.

But what does that living our lives for Him look like?

It is no obvious thing, perhaps, to point out that such a life speaks to a holistic transformation of the individual, and the community of faith to which that person is a part. The Church, as that community of faith, should not be understood as a purely institutional structure, to which the believing individual has voluntarily aligned themselves with, however. Instead, as Paul makes clear in 1 Cor. 12, the Church (local and universal) is the very body of Christ. This means that being "saved" means that we are part of Christ's body - it is ontological to our new life in Christ (that is, it is part of our being). It also means that being a part of the Church is to be and will impact our pursuit of Christ, our being like Him through the way we live. This should be a positive thing - though, in all honesty, sanctification (the transformation of a person's life toward holiness in Christ) is often not easy, is often awkward, and sometimes painful as our "old" self (our self-centeredness and its related desires) dies in order for the person Christ died for us to become, whom God created us to be.

To that end, I want to talk about the impact that this transformation has on us as believers as we live out of our transformed lives.

This, of course, speaks to how we understand that living out. Is it merely an issue of a dualistic way of living? What I mean is an inner life and a separate outer life. Or, is it a seamless approach? The outer life as an expression of one's inner life. What I invite you to consider is that 'moralism' is merely a dualistic approach, versus 'virtue' as being the seamless approach.

'Moralism', as I'm presenting it, is where the individual, and most often, the community, seeks to establish a set of agreed upon outward actions and behaviors that they believe best reflects who they understand themselves to be. At first glance, this doesn't sound all that bad. After all, Christians are called to be moral people. If God is good, then He certainly calls us to be good. Jesus tells us that no man is good, only God. Therefore, our behavior should strive to like God's - yes?

The problem with 'moralism' in general is that it is an outward-in approach to holiness. It is concerned with the image that is projected. Now, don't misunderstand me here. I'm not advocating a no-holds-barred approach to behavior - for Christians or unbelievers. But I am saying that an approach to living out our faith that puts behavior first is at best flawed, and worst, it is simply unChristian. Back in the lat 1990's/early 2000's, some company ran a marketing campaign ... 'Image is everything'. I thought it was an appropriate moniker for our culture at large. Unfortunately, I think it also seems to be how a great many Christians live out their faith. The great problem with the 'moralism' approach is that we take what Scripture says about how we are to live, and we seek to live out of those truths on our own, in our own strength and understanding. Do you see the inherent problem?

Perhaps it can only be captured by looking at 'virtue' as the seamlessness between one's inner life and their outer life. Virtues, as I want to define them, are in essence, the character traits of the very person of God, and as perfectly expressed by Jesus Christ during his earthly life. It is a life that is transformed from the inside out. Our exterior behavior is still quite important, but is less about living up to a mandated set of rules - what inevitably turns into 'legalism' - and more about, as Jesus says in Matthew 5, "letting your light shine for all to see".

Another way we may understand the power and purpose of 'virtue' is through the image of the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, self-control, goodness, and faithfulness - see Galatians 5:22-23). To put it succinctly, we are called to exhibit these fruit in our own lives. But not by merely imitating them in our own lives.

Rather, we are to manifest them. What's the difference??? Just as faith is a gift from God, through the inner working of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer and of the Church, the manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit comes about through the Holy Spirit's working in and through the inner life of each believer. Through the Spirit's work of sanctifying the believer, the fruit is brought forth. The "old", pre-Christian self dies away, while the "new", post-Pentecost believer is brought forth. And as a result of the inner changes, through the presence and power of the Spirit, the outer self changes, too.

We take on the very character of Christ Jesus. We exhibit the 'virtues' of the Triune God of grace. We live out the law of love. Not perfectly. Remember what I mentioned earlier ... sanctification is often slow and sometimes painful ... it is often messy. But where 'legalism' and 'moralism', as exterior-oriented emphasizing living, condemn, virtue, as life in the Spirit, corrects and teaches, and most importantly, seeks to love. While this is not always done perfectly - after all, we are all humans on the journey of sanctification - we are offered the ongoing grace of God in Jesus through the Holy Spirit.

'Virtue', then, is ultimately concerned with the condition of the heart. As my wife has taught me as we've sought to parent our children well, when one of our kids does something wrong, one of our first questions to them is, "what was in your heart, that you thought that was okay to do (or say)?" We want our kids to consider what is in their hearts, especially before they do or say something. It is a question I have sought to regularly ask myself when I feel anger or angst towards something or somebody. I will give the Holy Spirit credit for bringing such a question to mind, and say that it is part of my journey of faith, through sanctification, that it feels (too often for my comfort) like I need to ask myself that question a lot. But I am comforted that in asking that question, I am drawn to look not first at my behavior, but first at my heart, the throne of my behavior. Jesus tells us that the condition of our heart will decide who we are (see Matt. 5:21ff; 6:19ff; and 9:4 as examples). 'Virtue' comes from God, while 'moralism' is our own attempts at being 'good'.

As God's people, as beneficiaries of Jesus' death and resurrection, we are called to live holy lives, transformed lives ... no longer as people in darkness and ignorance, but as people who have been changed from the inside out. By living 'virtuously', we are living from the inside-out, we are living depently on God's Spirit to do for us what only God's Spirit can do, sanctify us, make us holy as God is holy. Living this way, living God's way, then, means that we live out of the joy of God, knowing that it's not up to us to be "good", but that God is working in us. When there are struggles, we should recognize that there is sin or a sinful attitude in our hearts, one that needs to be brought before God and removed from our hearts.

While it's not the purpose of this note, this transformation comes about through the regular reading of the Word of God in the Scriptures, regular personal prayer, and regular participation in your local church. These three things work as God's tools for transformation toward the inside-out life of 'virtue'.

What do you think? How do you see this in your own life? What has God taught/shown you regarding the condition of your heart and your behavior?

a New year

looking back at the stretch of time over the last several months of 2008, and looking ahead into at least the first several months of 2009 should mark some of the biggest amount of change my family as a whole has ever experienced. we spent New Year's Eve "homeless" as we are in transition between the selling of our home in one state and moving to a rental townhouse in a completely different state. the kids will start new schools. my wife will look for a new job. and I will start the second full semester of my studies. there are many new changes and experiences in store for us in this new year. all very exciting. and we pray that all that happens, all we set out to do, will all be to God's glory - may He be glorified in our lives.

I hope 2009 will be a wonderful year for you and yours, too. God's many blessings be yours.