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.

We Are Penn State!

I'm just excited that with Penn State's win over Michigan State this evening, we have won the Big Ten conference title, and are headed to the Rose Bowl. It is still disappointing that having lost to Iowa two weeks ago, we are no longer in contention for a National title, but at least we're going for the Roses.