8 August 2106

“I will give you as a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”  Isaiah 49:6 (NRSV)

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:10 (NRSV)

            Good Monday afternoon. Today we come to the final two Beatitudes and the blessings of persecution. Our discussion today more or less hinges on a couple definitions-persecution and righteousness. According to the Easton’s Bible Dictionary article on persecution, religious persecution for the Jews began with Ahab’s wife Jezebel, who sought to eliminate worship of the one true God and replace it with worship of Ashtoreth and Baal. Young’s Analytical Concordance gives ‘follow after’ as an alternate translation of the Greek word (used 6 times; 28 for persecute). Once again we see a force opposed to God, in active opposition to God’s people-relentlessly following them, intent upon doing harm.

            A quick check of ‘righteousness’ in the Olive Tree search engine shows the word occurring 214 times; 136 times in the Old Testament, 77 times in the New Testament with 11 of those occurrences in the Gospels. According to Young’s, righteousness can also mean justice; Easton’s equates righteousness with justification. So we see those who stand for what is just-from God’s point of view-being relentlessly pursued by those who are opposed to God and all He stands for. Keep this thought in mind.

            Now, there is a sense in which the Church in the United States today is not being persecuted. For example, I live in a city of around 22,000 and there are over 60 churches listed on churchfinder.com for my area; my sense is there may be a few more. On any Sunday, in these and churches all over the country, pastors, preachers and priests are free to preach the Gospel and teach from the Bible without fear of President Obama’s secret police coming in to arrest them and haul them off, never to be seen again. Christian leaders are free to endorse political candidates as well (but not from the pulpit if they want to remain tax-exempt). Generally speaking, as far as I know, Americans are not jailed or put to death for following Jesus.

            There are, however, a lot of hot-button issues facing our culture today which invite persecution and ridicule. Same sex marriage, gay ordination, freedom to refuse services to gays, abortion rights, and euthanasia-are all front and center. These issues have two things in common. They invite, if not require, us to take a stand, and they are divisive by doing so. No matter what side you come down on, somebody will-with varying degrees of forcefulness- criticize you. You may even be relentlessly pursued. As followers of Christ, how then do we respond? How do we stand for God’s justice? These are the high-profile issues that split churches well as our culture; there are others. Climate change, wage inequality, health care, poverty, unequitable distribution of resources, exploitation of human beings of all ages all cry out for justice. So what do we do? And what does any of this have to do with our Beatitudes, anyway?

            I’m glad you asked. We are called, in Isaiah’s words, to be a light to the nations. We are called to demonstrate God’s justice to anyone who needs to see it, which is pretty much everyone. When we do, forces opposed to God will relentlessly peruse us, perhaps to do us harm. In some cases forces within the church, convinced they have the correct version of God’s justice and we do not, will relentlessly pursue us. Some may seek to alienate; some may even seek to deny Christ’s gracious gift of redemption (which is offered, as far as I can tell, to all humanity; whether or not it is accepted is another story). How do we respond?

            We do what Jesus did. In presenting His message, Jesus treated people with grace and dignity and compassion. He reasoned from Scriptures-the Hebrew Scriptures-to make His case for God’s justice; to offer Himself as God’s Messiah. He made His points, preached His message and left it there for people to accept or reject. As far as I can tell Jesus never attempted to persuade by force of will. When the final test came-submit to the Father’s will or not, save us or save Himself-well, as it says somewhere, He was obedient to death, even death on a cross.

            So that’s what we do. We search the Scriptures to find guidance-the mind of God-and reason from them. This does not mean pulling a verse or two out of context to justify our point of view. It does mean reading the entire context with an open mind and heart, allowing God to teach us His point of view, and allowing for the fact His may be considerably more complicated, perhaps even opposed, to ours. We make our case (maybe even preach the Gospel) and leave it there. Conversion is God’s work, not ours. We do not attempt to persuade by force of will. We do not intend to divide but, knowing some will reject our position, we will need to be prepared. We also need to be aware people are watching. Remember Peter’s words-conduct yourselves honorably, give no cause for accusation. Above all we need to know when to remain firm and stand fast (and suffer when necessary), and when it’s ok to be flexible or just walk away.  

            Finally we need to remember the promise-the Kingdom of Heaven. There may yet come a time for us when following Jesus becomes a life-threatening decision. In the meantime, standing firm with our Lord for justice has the promise of the Kingdom here and now as we demonstrate-and bring about-its presence by our presence; and the promise of the final fulfillment when our Lord returns.

 May the Lord bless you and keep you this day. JRG

6 August 2016

“And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each.” Acts 2:6 (NRSV)

“…but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them-in that case you may even be found fighting against God!” Acts 5:39 (NRSV)

“God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.” James 1:12 (NLT)

            Yesterday we made a brief case for the existence of a force that stands in opposition to God and everything He purposes to do. Today we will look at how the church fared in the face of this opposition; Monday we return to Matthew. The same forces that opposed Jesus while He was alive continued to oppose persecute His followers. Peter and John are brought before the council for healing a cripple. They are arrested, jailed, and flogged for preaching in Jesus’ name. Stephen is stoned; Saul is sent to Damascus to persecute Christians there.

            After Stephen the Church begins its outward movement. Philip goes to Samaria. Paul is converted on the way to Damascus. The Jews there try to kill him; he flees in a basket. Peter goes to Cornelius and preaches to the Gentiles. They receive the Holy Spirit; God shows His salvation plan is for everyone, Jew and Gentile. The persecution that resulted from Stephen’s stoning drives Christians farther outward, to Phoenicia, to Cyprus, to Antioch. Herod has James brother of John put to death and Peter arrested. The church prays; God miraculously intervenes; Peter escapes. Do you sense what is happening here? Then forces of opposition intended to silence these Christians once and for all only serve to further the cause.

            Around this time Paul begins the first of three missionary journeys; he will plant churches in Asia Minor and Europe. Along the way he will be stoned and left for dead, beaten, whipped, jailed. Everywhere Paul goes he is followed and harassed by a group of trouble-making Jews. These Jews incite the people; they incite the civil authorities; they challenge Paul’s apostolic authority and accused him of all manner of false teaching. Throughout it all the church thrives. Persecution is so fierce John, in his old age, is compelled by God to write a book of assurance; a book that presents the definitive end to all opposition and clearly establishes God’s authority and final victory.

            Now, I realize I have left a whole lot out here, but the points remain. Opposition to God has existed since the beginning. Persecution will come. God will deliver His people through this persecution and we will come out the other side victorious. Some of us will suffer for the faith; some of us may die for the faith. Jesus never promised we would have it easy. He did promise we will be blessed in our persecution, if we persevere.

           

  May The Lord bless you and keep you this day. Don’t forget to spend time in worship with your brothers and sisters tomorrow. Lord willing, I will see you all Monday. JRG

5 August 2016

“So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them, male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:27 (NRSV).

“For you are a people holy to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on earth to be his people, his treasured possession.” Deuteronomy 7:6 (NRSV)

“Hear the word of the Lord, O people of Israel;
for the Lord has an indictment against the inhabitants of the land.
There is no faithfulness or loyalty,
and no knowledge of God in the land.” Hosea 4:1 (NRSV)

            Today we come to the final two beatitudes, and persecution. Before we consider these final blessings I want to review a little bit of our history. For the next couple days, without getting too theological, I hope to sort of lay some groundwork-maybe even make a case-for why we should, as God’s people, expect some persecution-or at least opposition-in our lives. We will be brief; Monday we return to Matthew.

            Beginning with Genesis 3 we sense the presence of someone or something or some force opposed to God. We are not told where it comes from; only that an attempt is made to create doubt, to sow the seeds of mistrust, to thwart God’s plan. The serpent makes its accusation-“did God really say…He knows you will be like Him…” Humankind betrays God for what looked like a better deal and the rest, as they say, is history. Opposition to God has been established; it will not be going away any time soon.

            But God does not give up on His creatures. Time after time He calls them out and makes His covenants with them: with Noah; with Abraham; with Israel; with David. Always the promise is the same-believe, obey and you will be blessed. “I will walk among you, and will be your God…”; “you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Leviticus 26:12, Exodus 19:6, NRSV). Note the language here. I will be with you. You will show the nations who I am. I will make you priests; set you apart-you will represent the nations before me; you will mediate my presence to them. Listen to me and I will bless you greatly. The idea was that the nations will see all this and say, “Wow, what a great God. What can we do to be blessed in that way? Compared to your God, our puny, lifeless gods of wood and stone are nothing”.

            Well, it didn’t quite work out that way. God promised blessings but He also promised curses for disobedience. The force opposed to God-the accuser, ever vigilant to expose our weaknesses, relentless in his efforts to subvert God’s good plan, ever desiring to see us miserable -had his way. Israel failed to demonstrate God. The promised blessings gave way to promised curses. God sent His prophets to remind His people of the covenant; to make God’s legal case before His rebellious people. All to no avail. The accuser accuses-“see, I told you they would reject you”. Finally the LORD leaves the Jerusalem temple (Ezekiel 10:18-19). It seems as though God no longer dwells with His people, as if He has finally given up.

            You see the conflict here-God creating a people who will show what He is really like by living according to His instruction; the opposition force doing everything in its power to ruin the plan. The stage is set. Tomorrow we will take a quick look God’s return; the opposition’s reaction and how the early church was affected. Monday we go back to Matthew.

May the Lord bless you and keep you this day. JRG

4 August 2016

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” Matthew 5:9 (NRSV)

“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” Psalm 133:1 (NIV)

“Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.” Romans 12:18

           

            I think it would be a pretty safe bet to say seeing His children get along makes God happy. I also think this is at least partly because He would like us to realize that every single thing-skills, abilities, appearance, personalities, everything-come from Him and Him alone. We are all equal this way. We may not have received equal gifts in equal measure but we have all received “from His abundance…one gracious blessing after another” 9John 1:16, NLT). Some of you may not agree with this premise; that’s ok. I realize the need for a distinction between what we have received and how hard we work with what we receive; my concern here is with the source. We’ll come back to this in a bit.

            The foundation for peacemaking was laid thousands of years ago on Mt. Sanai when Moses received the Ten Commandments. Commandments six through ten direct our behavior towards each other; each one, in a different way, opposes peacemaking. Murder, adultery, stealing, lying, coveting; all of them, in one way or another say ‘I’m more important than you; my needs are more important than your needs; my rights are more important than your rights’. What does God say to this? ‘No, they are not. I am the only one who has any claim on your life; you listen to me.’ At this point it might be worth mentioning the relationship, the interaction, between God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Three distinct persons working in perfect harmony not so much because they have to but because they want to. A mystery indeed, but well worth pondering.

            All well and good, but how do we actually become peacemakers in our little spheres of influence? The word occurs only here in the New Testament. What does Jesus mean for us to do? Well, personally speaking, I am a big fan of unity in the church; of putting relationships first. Not first to the point of throwing doctrine out the window and creating a free for all, but I believe a lot of doctrinal arguments are simply not that necessary. Once we learn to focus on the image of God in our brothers and sisters, however broken or tarnished it may be, we will be better able to apply our doctrine to redemption restoration. Paul has some interesting things to say regarding church unity and proper doctrine in Romans 14 and 15; 1 Corinthians 3 and 4 and particularly 6:1-8. The next time one of you finds yourself in some church dispute, rather than taking sides and defending your position take some time to listen to what is being said. Try to understand the opposing point of view. Look for common ground. We have a spirit of unity, not division. Listen much, pray much, speak little. Leave room for the Spirit’s guidance.

            Speaking of looking for common ground, it isn’t just for churches. I’m thinking it’s a pretty basic ingredient in most mediations, and most relationships too, for that matter. Again, this involves listening much and speaking little. It involves being openness to change and willingness to surrender a paradigm or two along the way. It most definitely does not involve anything that could be considered intentionally divisive; nothing that would create the ‘us-against-them’ mentality we see so much of today. This means being very careful what we say. Words have great and lasting power, especially to do harm. Five minutes with the nightly news proves my point here. Use your words wisely, sparingly and with consideration. This is a habit that will take some time to develop but it is well worth the effort.

            Finally, a great deal of what we have been talking about here comes down to individual rights and what we do with them. The way of the world is force of will and imposition of (or denial of) personal rights and opinions. We are not to be that way. Being a peacemaker involves looking for common ground; surrendering individual rights when necessary; being open to change and building one another up. It is rooted in the humility that comes from knowing our place before God as the source of our very life and everything that comes with it. Jesus Himself is our guide and our example; let us continually look to Him.

May the Lord bless you and keep you this day. JRG

3 August 2016

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” Matthew 5:8 (NRSV)

“Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?
And who shall stand in his holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart…” Psalm 24:3-4 (ESV)

“Surely God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;
I had nearly lost my foothold”. Psalm 73:1-2 (NIV)

            Good morning (it’s still morning here, barely). Today we consider what it might mean to be pure in heart, and how we might be able to demonstrate that purity to the world around us. I’m thinking many of Jesus’ listeners already believed their hearts were pure and their hands were clean. Then again, maybe not. For the religious of that time and of this time it is easy to fall into the trap of works-righteousness, thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought (I myself am prone to this. Who’d have thunk it?). Paul speaks to this in Romans 12:3 and Colossians 2:23. The idea is we are not made pure by what we do; rather a pure heart defines and guides what we do. I think Jesus had something similar in mind.

            Jesus here echoes Psalm 24, asking and answering the question ‘who can see God-who can dwell in His presence’? Well, none of us. We have neither clean hands nor a pure heart. But Jesus does and He gifts them to us. I think one way to see Psalms 22, 23, and 24 is as a kind of trilogy speaking of Jesus’ crucifixion (22), death (or crossing over, if you prefer) and resurrection (23) and ascension (24). There is a bit of a parallel here for us. Psalm 22 echoes our struggles with sin and the flesh. Psalm 23 assures us we are not left to our own devices, even in our worst moments. In psalm 24 we enter, with our Lord, into the presence of the Father. We hear Jesus say “my clean hands can be yours; my pure heart can be yours. I have taken away your heart of stone and given you a heart of flesh, my heart”. Ezekiel warned us this would happen (11:19 and 36:26); he was right indeed.

            So what’s the point to all this? Psalm 73 answers that. The psalmist gives a timeless lament. The arrogant and the wicked are prospering (at the people’s expense) and getting away with it. They seem immune to conditions that plague normal people-well fed and comfortable they believe themselves to be beyond God’s reach, if indeed there is a God at all. The Psalmist was flummoxed-how could God let this happen? Why not just join them? Finally, in the sanctuary, in God’s presence, he figures it out. He realizes God is enough. Indeed, God never left him and will continue to guide and council him.

            Friends, could it be we are God’s sanctuary for those facing similar doubts and struggles today? Could it be our purity of heart, such as it is, such as we receive from God, might be a lighthouse of sorts guiding someone in to safe harbor? Some small kindness shown to a stranger; a listening ear to a friend; evidence of a purity of heart that enables us to see God now without judgement in the faces of those in need (or those we disagree with) and later, when God calls us to His gates. Seeing and being seen; knowing and being known. Standing against evil, oppression and exploitation whenever and wherever we see it. Being the voice for those who have no voice even when it makes us uncomfortable or unpopular or both. Looking beyond our narrow self-interests in favor of a greater good. Purity of heart that restores and polishes the Imago Dei in all of us. Who was it that said ‘when one is lifted up we all are lifted up?

            One more thing, for those of you still with me. I want to take a moment to put a plug in for another blog. Here we focus on being the presence of God for others; there we share and celebrate signs of God’s presence. When any of you see or sense God’s presence in your day to day lives, I encourage you (actually, I’m not above begging) to post it there. Let us rejoice and celebrate together. You can find that blog at signsofhispresence.blogspot.com and I’m pretty sure you can get there at www.signsofhispresence.com.

May the Lord bless you and keep you this day. JRG

             

2 August 2016

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy” (Matthew 5:7, NRSV)

“…because judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful.           Mercy triumphs over judgement" (James 2:13, NIV)

           

            Good morning. Today brings us to one of my very favorite subjects-God’s mercy. God’s

Mercy is without doubt the only reason I am still alive today, not to mention sitting here writing this post. Not to go too deep theologically here, but the fact is God’s mercy is the only reason any of us are here, believers and unbelievers alike. Perhaps our first practical step in showing mercy is simply spending some time alone with God learning how to receive mercy. As we consider this, we see the reason this beatitude is located here, after poverty of spirit, mourning, meekness and hungering and thirsting for righteousness. If any of you have any doubt as to our need for mercy, take a few minutes to review the Ten Commandments with an honest open heart and see how you stack up. Ask God for help here, perhaps using the words of Psalm 139: “search me. O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the ancient way.” (Psalm 139:23-24, NRSV). Remember, we are not seeking judgement or condemnation here, but a fuller appreciation of the mercy of God.

            As we learn to become comfortable with the mercy shown us, showing mercy to others becomes more and more natural. Not quite second nature, but at the very least something we are aware of. Gradually our tendency towards mercy overcomes our rush to judgement. Now, I realize there are many out there who will take exception to this. That’s ok. We are not concerned here with what others are up to or think about us or even with defending our position. Jesus Himself has a lot to say about the proper relationship between mercy and judgement and I will leave it to you to research this. I will say the distinction between showing mercy and tolerating sinful behavior is an important one and not to be taken lightly.

            Now, back to the practice of actually showing mercy. One way we can show mercy is simply to pray for our enemies. I try to keep a pretty low profile and aside from a few Facebook friends on the other end of the political spectrum, I’m pretty sure I don’t have many enemies. At least, not that I’m aware of. However, there are people with whom I strongly disagree, on a variety of topics for a variety of reasons. These people do not provoke me to charity or lovingkindness or any of those godly things. Praying for God to bless them and prosper them is not my first inclination. However, I’m here to tell you I have tried it and the results are amazing. I began by confessing I was praying for them strictly because God commands it, not because I wanted to. I don’t know how much of a difference it made in their lives but it certainly made a difference in mine.  

            Another way to show mercy on a more personal, one-on-one level is simply not to judge others. As I mentioned above, this can get a little sticky. Remember, we are dealing with the individual person here, not individual acts. We are opening our hearts to others-our fellow travelers, as it were-learning to see them as God would like us to see them. Note-we are not so much trying to see as God sees-this is not possible without massive infusions of divine grace. We are trying to see as God would have us see-looking for the divine image, however tarnished it may be. And, as always, we recognize judgement, redemption and restoration are God’s alone to give, to whomever He wills.

            Perhaps we have a friend caught in some particularly bad habitual behavior, from which escape is difficult. Perhaps someone offended us in the past or did something really stupid they never quite got over. We may know someone struggling with guilt over some past thing that continues to haunt and condemn. And here is the key. We do not condemn. We forget their offenses as God forgets ours-as far as the east is from the west, as the Psalmist says. Do you see now the importance of understanding God’s mercy towards us? In a sense we are talking about forgiveness here. We will be coming upon forgiveness later on, but I think it can be difficult at times separating one from the other.

            One more thing about mercy. God Himself is, as Jesus says, kind to the ungrateful and the wicked (Luke 6:35). This verse and its context, 32-36 (and Lamentations 3:23-23, since we’re on the topic), have become a sort of polestar for me, helping me understand (as much as is humanly possible, anyway) God and how He expects us to live. I highly recommend them as a sort of supplemental to this discussion. I could write about mercy for days. My hope is that the Lord will bless this little piece and use it to get you started.

May the Lord bless you and keep you this day. JRG

           

            

1 August 2016

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

                                                                                                Matthew 5:6 (NRSV)

“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters…”

                                                Isaiah 55:1 (ESV)

“On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.”      John 7:37 (ESV)

            Good morning, and happy August. I hope you all had a blessed and restful Sunday, as much as you were able. Today we look briefly at what hungering and thirsting for righteousness might mean in spirit and in practice. Theologians have written for centuries about the righteousness of God; defining it here is way beyond the scope of this simple blog. The overall point in these verses seems fairly straightforward, however-righteousness, however one chooses to consider it, comes from God alone. We ourselves have none. The Biblical witness, from Genesis to Revelation, is clear on this point. Equally clear is the promise-anyone who comes to Christ seeking righteousness will be satisfied.

            Note the language here. Everyone who comes, anyone who thirsts, whoever drinks. Jesus opens His righteousness to anyone who comes; this is a basic, foundational principal of the Kingdom. Later in Matthew we see Jesus pronouncing woes on the Pharisees for ‘[locking] people out of the Kingdom of Heaven” (23:13-14). Notice here it is the religious leaders of the time locking people out, while the God whom they claim to serve is busy inviting people in.

            For our part-and I say this in the full realization that many may strongly disagree on this point-I believe we are called to do the same (invite people in, not lock them out). How? Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words if necessary (attributed to Francis of Assisi; whether or not he actually said it is open to debate). Maybe a better way to phrase it is ‘do not withhold the Gospel from anybody’. I realize we are straying into the realm of evangelism here but I want to make one last point-this is an invitation. An open invitation, but an invitation none the less. Isaiah invites. Jesus invites. We invite. The telling is ours; the acceptance is not.

            There is also a social justice aspect to hungering and thirsting for righteousness, a desire to see all people treated equally, and fairly. This means we ourselves must set the example by treating all people equally and fairly, as much we are able. Care for those who, for whatever reason, cannot care for themselves. Care about those whose beliefs or lifestyles or expressions of faith we may disagree with or even find offensive. Care without a judgmental or condescending attitude; but rather with a desire for the righteousness of God to touch to them as God has touched us. We are all equally needy here. Jesus promises us “A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over” (Luke 6:38). Why? So the running over may overflow to those around us, all those around us in our day to day lives.

            Are you seeing a pattern here? It is an attitude of the heart that, by realizing the truth of how we relate to God (rather, how God desires to relate to us), enables us to see how we relate to others as well. We find our place here on earth by finding our place with God, who is right here with us. When we recognize the need for righteousness in ourselves we are less inclined to condemn that same need in others. In a very real sense true social justice is simply recognizing the Imago Dei in all humanity, and acting accordingly. So open your heart, and your mind. You just might be pleasantly surprised by what you find.

The LORD bless you and keep you this day. JRG