Last week we descended to a new low in the level of wickedness which is abroad in our country. A grandmother was shot and she and her three young grandchildren were burnt to death, by, so far, unknown assailants. Violent death is no longer major news in Jamaica, but this act of evil had the entire country talking. It is clear that our criminals fear neither man nor God anymore. So the killings go on unabated and all of us are wondering when it ever going to stop.But that's not the only kind of evil abound in the land. A principal of one of our leading high schools, writing in The Daily Gleaner today, captured the mood and outrage of all well thinking persons, in an article questioning why our children are being exposed to "filth" masquerading as popular music. She highlighted one song in particular , " Rampin Shop" by Vybz Cartel ( male) and Spice (female) - she claims it won the FAME FM - a local radio station - song of the week recently. Gave an abridged, edited for publication ( two lovers having violent sex and in obscene language describing how it should be done ) version of the song and shared with us results of interviews conducted with young students, examples of which are as follows:
" One night I was singing it loud as I wanted to do what Spice and Vybz Cartel was doing" 8th grade.
" I think I'm becoming addicted to it because its basically everywhere I go. I know that the lyrics are is wrong but it is hard to resist something that's constantly around you". 13th grade.
" In my opinion, Rampin Shop" has a very negative effect on our youths. We have to listen to these sexual lyrics not because we want to, but because it is polluting our communities." 7th grade.
Add to that the problems associated with the downturn in the world economy - loss of jobs, fear of losing your job, loss of hard earned savings, reduction in home values, reduced incomes, taking a pay cut to preserve jobs, a dollar that is rapidly losing value, high interest rates and spiralling cost of living. All of this coming on top of " ordinary everyday" trials of life. Marital problems. Problems with disobedient children and grandchildren. Health problems. Environmental problems. Problems with leadership in our nation. Even in our churches and in our communities. And finally death. That terrible event that robs us of our loved ones. Forever. Sometimes suddenly. Sometimes slowly. But there is no difference. The end result is the same. What is the answer? To whom do we turn? What is the solution to life's many and varied problems? What do we say to that mother, that family, that community that suffered such a tremendous loss. To that principal who is beside herself with rage - directly in particular at those who condone such madness ?
I got an answer this week from one of the readings for the Anglican church for this Sunday.
" The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" Psalm 111:
And a challenge from another reading for this Sunday, and which triggered a text message both to some those who believe and many of those who don't.
:"....yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. But not everybody knows this". 1 Cor. 8:6-7 NIV
And words, again from another reading, this time the gospel, which provoked a deep reflection and also triggered another text message, this time to very powerful men and women in this country who have significant authority:
" Be quiet said Jesus sternly. Come out of him. The evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. The people were all amazed....what is this a new teaching and with authority"? mark 1:25-27. With what authority do we speak? Can we fight the kind of evil that is abroad in Jamaica without the assistance of Christ?
This issue of fearing God goes to right the heart of the Christian life. Without which all our "head" knowledge of the "good news" , of God's love for us, of Christ's death on the Cross, of the Creeds and of church doctrine will not bring us any closer to being disciples of Christ, agents of His reconciliation and of His healing power in this land filled with so much evil, problems, sickness and death. As the problem is that it is not only the criminals and "out of order" artistes alone , who do not fear God, many "decent" law abiding citizens, and even some in the church" do not know either".And not just the high profile cases like Ted Haggert et al, but many of us who attend church regularly. Just listen how we are so easily distracted in church and spend much time chatting.How the " flesh " so easily takes over. See how we criticise each other, and other denominations, and are quickly moved to ( righteous) anger. How we spend our spare time, how we spend our money, how earn our money. What we watch! What we read! And where we go and what we do! How we leave and go to another church when we are unhappy or worse, stay home ( were we sent there by God for a reason?) . All of us. We have become too familiar with God and things of God. Perhaps even Holy Communion - "Here O my Lord, I see thee face to face, here faith would touch and handle things unseen" - has become routine and lacking in any meaning.
No doubt all of us would do well to reflect deeply on some words from a hymn which has come to mean so much to me in my understanding of the Christian journey and how much I am in need of God's grace to continue on that road faithfully;
My God how wonderful thou art........
O how I fear thee living God,
With deepest tenderest fears,
And worship thee with trembling hope,
And penitential tears.
Yet I may love thee too,
O Lord,Almighty as thou art,
For thou hast stooped to ask of me
The love of my poor heart.............
Instead ( or perhaps in addition to ) of being critical of the church, the priest, those in authority, when last have we wept " penitential tears? And can we really identify with the hymn writer fearing God with " deepest tenderest fears". As it is then and only then, when we have considered our own wickedness and deficiencies that we will truly appreciate: " yet I may love thee too O Lord...for thou has stooped"....bent down low, in and through Christ Jesus, to sinful mankind to ask for our love. This Almighty God!
My pastor preached a wonderful sermon today about evil and our response to it as church. Reminding us that if we do not share the good news with those who are fast bound with evil, then there is no one else. And that is the basis on which we will all be judged. Not our attendance at church. Not our status in the society. Not our success in business or in sport or in whatever vocation we chose. But rather did we witness by our lives and our deeds to the Christ within us. Such a single minded focus, however, as exhibited by Rafael Nadal's win over Roger Federer in Tennis early this morning, requires that we first fear God - with deepest trembling fears, and with penitential tears.
Then we will be given the authority to drive out evil from Jamaica land we love. Evil music and evil gunmen. Then we will be given the wisdom to provide healing for the sick, comfort the grieving, care for the dying, encourage the downcast and rule over the land with justice and righteousness.A friend, who is not a Christian, but reads these messages, asked me recently, how do we, or specifically I, move from Internet Ministry to making a difference in this country and for our people who we both love. The answer of fearing the one true and ever living God and Jesus Christ His Son first, is not only an answer to my friend's question but equally for those who long for peace, justice and truth, wherever and in whatever circumstance they live. But many do not know this. So we as Christians have much work to do, not only in Jamaica, but in this entire world. Amen
Monday, February 2, 2009
Saturday, January 31, 2009
The Renewal of the Church: Created to be like God - in and through Christ
Over time, I have come to understand that when the Lord wakes me up in the early morning to pray and to read and then to write, usually 4:00 am, although this morning it was 3:30 am, and I was tempted, only briefly, to watch Serena Williams play in the Australian Open finals, it's something more important than at other times. I woke up with two thoughts on my mind, and still fighting sleep, in fact I tried to go back to bed: "now to him who can do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine". And the renewal of the church - beginning with me. So I prayed for the renewal of the church : my own Anglican congregation at St. Andrew Parish Church and the wider Anglican church; the Baptist church; the Moravian church; the Methodist church; the United church; the Roman Catholic church; the Seventh Day Adventist church; the church of God churches; the Pentecostal churches and all the Evangelical churches - for renewal, so that the nation may be renewed.
I even prayed for the Jehovah's witnesses and the Mormons who are not part of the body of Christ.
Then I opened the Bible and turned to the book of Ephesians from where the quotation that was in my heart is recorded - still fighting sleep. And read and prayed. And read and prayed. And then I was told to write this.
" As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love, make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit - just as you were called to one hope when you were called - one Lord, one faith, one baptism,; one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all............
It was he who gave some to be apostles, and some to be prophets and some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of Christ of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the while body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
So, I tell you this, and insist on it, in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.
You, however, did not come to know Christ that way......... You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in your attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness............
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up in accordance with their needs that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander along with every form of malice. be kind and compassionate to one another forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly beloved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
But among you there must not even be a hint of sexual immorality........
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light ( for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. but everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is the light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said:
Wake up , O sleeper
rise from the dead
and Christ will shine on you.
Be very careful, then how you live - not as unwise but as wise making the most of very opportunity, because the times are evil.............speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Ephesians 4-5:21 NIV
I suppose there is much that I could comment on, but was given no such instructions. The Word of God is sufficient in itself.
I even prayed for the Jehovah's witnesses and the Mormons who are not part of the body of Christ.
Then I opened the Bible and turned to the book of Ephesians from where the quotation that was in my heart is recorded - still fighting sleep. And read and prayed. And read and prayed. And then I was told to write this.
" As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love, make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit - just as you were called to one hope when you were called - one Lord, one faith, one baptism,; one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all............
It was he who gave some to be apostles, and some to be prophets and some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of Christ of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the while body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
So, I tell you this, and insist on it, in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.
You, however, did not come to know Christ that way......... You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in your attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness............
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up in accordance with their needs that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander along with every form of malice. be kind and compassionate to one another forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly beloved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
But among you there must not even be a hint of sexual immorality........
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light ( for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. but everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is the light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said:
Wake up , O sleeper
rise from the dead
and Christ will shine on you.
Be very careful, then how you live - not as unwise but as wise making the most of very opportunity, because the times are evil.............speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Ephesians 4-5:21 NIV
I suppose there is much that I could comment on, but was given no such instructions. The Word of God is sufficient in itself.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Bush and Obama. Sin and Jesus
I usually check on with my friend Jean Lowrie-Chin's blog www.lowrie-chin.blogspot.com/ before I start writing on a Sunday night. And if you really wish to see a very moving video, from The Washington Post on what can only be described as, "The Obama Day", visit her blog. Which brings me to the story which I saw online recently. An elderly man came up to the marine guarding The White House and said. " Can I speak with Mr. Bush?" The guard replied and explained, kindly, to this senior citizen, that Mr. Bush no longer lived in The White House. The following day the same gentleman returned and posed the very same question to the guard, and received an unchanged answer. On the next day, when the old man came again asking the same question, the guard by now, quite exasperated, challenged the gentleman why he was behaving in this way - asking the same question time and time again. At which point the old man said simply, "I just love to hear the sound of it" - that George W. Bush no longer lives here.
One of things that struck me in my meditations and "double listening" ( to the world and to God) this week, is that a lot of the excitement about, adoration of, and fascination with, Barrack Obama, has its genesis in the diametrically opposite emotions which Bush provoked in the minds of so many across the US, and indeed the world. For a extremely useful perspective on this issue check out Ian Boyne's article in today's Daily Gleaner in the In Focus section.
http://www.go-jamaica.com/ All well thinking people across the world literally and metaphorically "breathed a sigh of relief" when # 43 left and # 44 assumed office. Never in modern history has a US president been so ill informed, arrogant, perhaps even guilty of lying, and just behaving like a " perfect idiot" like "George W". Which poses the question of how could he ever have been elevated to such a high office, or even come close to it? He was virtually the laughing stock of the world on account of his " Bushspeak", language. Undermined the US foreign policy of working closely with its Europeans allies in pursuing his, dangerous, doctrine of pre-emptive strikes. Presided over the meltdown of the American economy on which the rest of the world depends so heavily. And on his watch, men were guilty of " even inventing ways of doing evil", in Iraq and in " Gitmo".
So, no wonder then , in addition to the powerful message of hope that the ascendancy of a black man to the highest office in previously "Jim Crow " America, and Obama's consummate political skills, that people across America were determined to have their," coronation" on Obama Day.
And to, as one woman said in the Washington Post video, " breathe in the same air that Barack Obama breathed on that day."
In this middle of this orgy of excitement came a word from the Lord, which speaks to the very same issue, of our not being able to appreciate fully His goodness and mercy to us, unless we come to fully understand how wicked we were - inventing ways of doing evil - before being rescued by Jesus' great act of Redemption on the Cross of Calvary. It's a very sobering message as we contemplate how different Obama is from Bush and the potential that this transition has for the US and indeed for the entire world. As one issue is about what can happen if Obama succeeds. The other is what is very sure to happen if we do not listen and understand - God's immutable Word.
This is how the message unfolded:
" A cry is heard on the barren heights,
the weeping and pleading of the children of Israel,
because they have perverted their ways
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
Return, faithless people;
I will cure you of your backsliding."
Jeremiah 3: 21-22 NIV - part of the reading for today in my church.
The question is how did they get there? How could they have forgotten the Lord. This same people who were rescued by miracles by God from bondage in Egypt. What happened?
It continued:
" After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 'The time has come', he said, 'Repent, and believe the good news'."
Mark 1:14-15 NIV Part of the Gospel reading for today.
Then the Spirit of God led me to a passage which is often quoted in the "Christian" argument that homosexuality is an sinful act - in any context. In public or in private. But what many fail to appreciate, is that this passage contains a message which is an indictment against all "unredeemed" humanity. Not just one set of humanity.
This is how Romans 1:18-32 begins.
" The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of all men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen being clearly understood from has been made, so that men are without excuse........."
This morning, my security guard - on the way to church - companion, was able to quote Psalm 19, word for word as we discussed this issue, and he is not baptised, and which Psalm came to mind as I read the first section of Romans 1:13-32.
" The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the word of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.
There is no speech or language
where their voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out into all the earth,
Their words to the ends of the world....."
So having declared that mankind had no excuse for not knowing God, for " suppressing the truth", God's Word then addresses, in particular, why men and women have become homosexuals - " God gave them over" . That is, mankind reaped the reward of persistent godlessness and rebellion against a God who had revealed Himself, with power, to all mankind. So it is not that God did evil and allowed people to fall into sin. But rather, that the outcome of persistent rebellion against God leads inevitably to evil - of all kinds. And it is the "all kinds of other evil", that we have all committed, that St. Paul addresses in the less well known and read third section of Romans 1:18-32.
"........Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil greed, and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil, they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do these things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very same things but also approve of those who practice them".
Wow! Makes you wonder if we have been too hard on George W. Bush. As which one of us can claim that we are not represented in this very instructive passage of Scripture? Has our focus on the, admittedly sinful, acts of homosexuals, acted as a distraction from acknowledging our own sins and responding correctly to Jesus' call: " Repent and believe the good news".
Heartless..disobeying their parents....filled with every kind of depravity...insolent...full of murder....inventing ways if doing evil...." Does that not explain fully what is happening in Jamaica? What happened to Bush and his cronies! Why Osama bin Laden acted on 9/11 in the way that he did! Why, " everywhere is war", according to the late Bob Marley? And can such disobedience to parents, inventing ways of doing evil, heartlessness be cured and controlled by teaching people about family life, or by community policing or " hard policing for that matter, or " social interventions"? Is the replacement of Bush by Obama going to change " heartlessness in Israel and in Gaza? Or in Afghanistan or Iraq? Will such change make a difference to the greed and arrogance on Wall Street? Or the wickedness in Zimbabwe and in the DRC? ( Congo)
No, the reality is that, as my new Sunday morning traveling companion friend, who loves reading and quoting the Bible, has discovered, but not yet acted upon, is that unless we understand how wicked we are, we will never come to truly love Jesus. To want to know Him and what He has done for us on Calvary. To have our souls wait on him, " as the watchman waits for the morning", according to the Psalmist ( 130). To abandon every other pursuit in life until we gain this life giving and life sustaining salvation.
But, as the final part of the message indicates, this kind of evaluation of self, is hard for modern man and woman to " stomach". I was so struck by the reflection that it formed the basis of a text message sent out to many on my address book who have, until now, resisted the call to " Repent and believe the good news" - That " God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life " John 3: 16 . The most popular verse in history.
CHRIS TIEGEN JANUARY 19 LIGHT AND TRUTH
" I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness". John 12:46
IN WORD We live in a dark kingdom( Colossians 1: 13). The Bible is very clear and consistent about that. Our understanding was darkened ( Ephesians 4:18); we are surrounded by powers of darkness( Ephesians 6:12); we ourselves have done deeds of darkness( Romans 13:12); our motives are dark( Corinthians4:50 and even when we see god, we see Him very dimly ( 1 Cor. 13:12). In fact, Paul goes so far as to say that we were darkness( Ephesians 5:8).
This is insulting to the human ego, to say the least. We think we're fairly well educated and wise. We even have an intellectual era we refer to as the enlightenment. So when Jesus implies that He has come into the darkness, we might wonder where all this alleged darkness is. Aren't we pretty bright folks?
No, Jesus really is the only light this world has ever seen. We can't find illumination anywhere else. He's the One who through God once said "Let there be light," and there was light. We're the ones who shrouded this planet in a sinful haze of spiritual blindness. He came back into it with all the radiance of a million suns.
IN DEED Plato told an allegory of people who saw each other as shadows. They thought that they could see clearly enough, because shadows were all they knew. Like Plato's cave dwellers, we think we're well informed; and when we encounter light, we feel the pain of of brightness in our maladapted eyes. We turn back to the darkness we're so comfortable with.
Do not dabble in the wisdom of this world. the world no longer has anything to offer you. Its interpretation of life are but shadows; its knowledge is untouched by the light of truth. Do you really want understanding? Open your mind exclusively to Jesus and let Him shine.
Will these words cure us of our "backsliding"? Will they place in proper perspective Obama's role in history? Will we view George W. Bush in a different light? Will we read the book of Romans with a different perspective? Will we be humble enough to obey Jesus and repent and believe the good news? Will we understand better that social interventions in and by themselves cannot never cure mankind of " all kind of evil"? Will we ever appreciate fully that the " good news" is not about Jesus, not about the many messages in the Bible. But Jesus Himself. That only in Him and through Him can we ever be free from God's wrath and remain forever in His love. Thank God for Obama. But O God, we thank you so very much more for Jesus Christ, Son of the living God and our Blessed Redeemer.
One of things that struck me in my meditations and "double listening" ( to the world and to God) this week, is that a lot of the excitement about, adoration of, and fascination with, Barrack Obama, has its genesis in the diametrically opposite emotions which Bush provoked in the minds of so many across the US, and indeed the world. For a extremely useful perspective on this issue check out Ian Boyne's article in today's Daily Gleaner in the In Focus section.
http://www.go-jamaica.com/ All well thinking people across the world literally and metaphorically "breathed a sigh of relief" when # 43 left and # 44 assumed office. Never in modern history has a US president been so ill informed, arrogant, perhaps even guilty of lying, and just behaving like a " perfect idiot" like "George W". Which poses the question of how could he ever have been elevated to such a high office, or even come close to it? He was virtually the laughing stock of the world on account of his " Bushspeak", language. Undermined the US foreign policy of working closely with its Europeans allies in pursuing his, dangerous, doctrine of pre-emptive strikes. Presided over the meltdown of the American economy on which the rest of the world depends so heavily. And on his watch, men were guilty of " even inventing ways of doing evil", in Iraq and in " Gitmo".
So, no wonder then , in addition to the powerful message of hope that the ascendancy of a black man to the highest office in previously "Jim Crow " America, and Obama's consummate political skills, that people across America were determined to have their," coronation" on Obama Day.
And to, as one woman said in the Washington Post video, " breathe in the same air that Barack Obama breathed on that day."
In this middle of this orgy of excitement came a word from the Lord, which speaks to the very same issue, of our not being able to appreciate fully His goodness and mercy to us, unless we come to fully understand how wicked we were - inventing ways of doing evil - before being rescued by Jesus' great act of Redemption on the Cross of Calvary. It's a very sobering message as we contemplate how different Obama is from Bush and the potential that this transition has for the US and indeed for the entire world. As one issue is about what can happen if Obama succeeds. The other is what is very sure to happen if we do not listen and understand - God's immutable Word.
This is how the message unfolded:
" A cry is heard on the barren heights,
the weeping and pleading of the children of Israel,
because they have perverted their ways
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
Return, faithless people;
I will cure you of your backsliding."
Jeremiah 3: 21-22 NIV - part of the reading for today in my church.
The question is how did they get there? How could they have forgotten the Lord. This same people who were rescued by miracles by God from bondage in Egypt. What happened?
It continued:
" After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 'The time has come', he said, 'Repent, and believe the good news'."
Mark 1:14-15 NIV Part of the Gospel reading for today.
Then the Spirit of God led me to a passage which is often quoted in the "Christian" argument that homosexuality is an sinful act - in any context. In public or in private. But what many fail to appreciate, is that this passage contains a message which is an indictment against all "unredeemed" humanity. Not just one set of humanity.
This is how Romans 1:18-32 begins.
" The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of all men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen being clearly understood from has been made, so that men are without excuse........."
This morning, my security guard - on the way to church - companion, was able to quote Psalm 19, word for word as we discussed this issue, and he is not baptised, and which Psalm came to mind as I read the first section of Romans 1:13-32.
" The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the word of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.
There is no speech or language
where their voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out into all the earth,
Their words to the ends of the world....."
So having declared that mankind had no excuse for not knowing God, for " suppressing the truth", God's Word then addresses, in particular, why men and women have become homosexuals - " God gave them over" . That is, mankind reaped the reward of persistent godlessness and rebellion against a God who had revealed Himself, with power, to all mankind. So it is not that God did evil and allowed people to fall into sin. But rather, that the outcome of persistent rebellion against God leads inevitably to evil - of all kinds. And it is the "all kinds of other evil", that we have all committed, that St. Paul addresses in the less well known and read third section of Romans 1:18-32.
"........Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil greed, and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil, they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do these things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very same things but also approve of those who practice them".
Wow! Makes you wonder if we have been too hard on George W. Bush. As which one of us can claim that we are not represented in this very instructive passage of Scripture? Has our focus on the, admittedly sinful, acts of homosexuals, acted as a distraction from acknowledging our own sins and responding correctly to Jesus' call: " Repent and believe the good news".
Heartless..disobeying their parents....filled with every kind of depravity...insolent...full of murder....inventing ways if doing evil...." Does that not explain fully what is happening in Jamaica? What happened to Bush and his cronies! Why Osama bin Laden acted on 9/11 in the way that he did! Why, " everywhere is war", according to the late Bob Marley? And can such disobedience to parents, inventing ways of doing evil, heartlessness be cured and controlled by teaching people about family life, or by community policing or " hard policing for that matter, or " social interventions"? Is the replacement of Bush by Obama going to change " heartlessness in Israel and in Gaza? Or in Afghanistan or Iraq? Will such change make a difference to the greed and arrogance on Wall Street? Or the wickedness in Zimbabwe and in the DRC? ( Congo)
No, the reality is that, as my new Sunday morning traveling companion friend, who loves reading and quoting the Bible, has discovered, but not yet acted upon, is that unless we understand how wicked we are, we will never come to truly love Jesus. To want to know Him and what He has done for us on Calvary. To have our souls wait on him, " as the watchman waits for the morning", according to the Psalmist ( 130). To abandon every other pursuit in life until we gain this life giving and life sustaining salvation.
But, as the final part of the message indicates, this kind of evaluation of self, is hard for modern man and woman to " stomach". I was so struck by the reflection that it formed the basis of a text message sent out to many on my address book who have, until now, resisted the call to " Repent and believe the good news" - That " God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life " John 3: 16 . The most popular verse in history.
CHRIS TIEGEN JANUARY 19 LIGHT AND TRUTH
" I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness". John 12:46
IN WORD We live in a dark kingdom( Colossians 1: 13). The Bible is very clear and consistent about that. Our understanding was darkened ( Ephesians 4:18); we are surrounded by powers of darkness( Ephesians 6:12); we ourselves have done deeds of darkness( Romans 13:12); our motives are dark( Corinthians4:50 and even when we see god, we see Him very dimly ( 1 Cor. 13:12). In fact, Paul goes so far as to say that we were darkness( Ephesians 5:8).
This is insulting to the human ego, to say the least. We think we're fairly well educated and wise. We even have an intellectual era we refer to as the enlightenment. So when Jesus implies that He has come into the darkness, we might wonder where all this alleged darkness is. Aren't we pretty bright folks?
No, Jesus really is the only light this world has ever seen. We can't find illumination anywhere else. He's the One who through God once said "Let there be light," and there was light. We're the ones who shrouded this planet in a sinful haze of spiritual blindness. He came back into it with all the radiance of a million suns.
IN DEED Plato told an allegory of people who saw each other as shadows. They thought that they could see clearly enough, because shadows were all they knew. Like Plato's cave dwellers, we think we're well informed; and when we encounter light, we feel the pain of of brightness in our maladapted eyes. We turn back to the darkness we're so comfortable with.
Do not dabble in the wisdom of this world. the world no longer has anything to offer you. Its interpretation of life are but shadows; its knowledge is untouched by the light of truth. Do you really want understanding? Open your mind exclusively to Jesus and let Him shine.
Will these words cure us of our "backsliding"? Will they place in proper perspective Obama's role in history? Will we view George W. Bush in a different light? Will we read the book of Romans with a different perspective? Will we be humble enough to obey Jesus and repent and believe the good news? Will we understand better that social interventions in and by themselves cannot never cure mankind of " all kind of evil"? Will we ever appreciate fully that the " good news" is not about Jesus, not about the many messages in the Bible. But Jesus Himself. That only in Him and through Him can we ever be free from God's wrath and remain forever in His love. Thank God for Obama. But O God, we thank you so very much more for Jesus Christ, Son of the living God and our Blessed Redeemer.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Listening to Obama and listening to God
It's just amazing. For the entire weekend CNN has devoted most of its programming to cover the Obama pre-inauguration activities. Such is the hype surrounding the next President of the USA, as it appears that all of America is waiting with bated breath to hear his utterances, his next words of wisdom and his next inspiring speech. Perhaps they might as well declare Tuesday January 20th a public holiday also, following the one on Monday when Martin Luther King day will be celebrated. In fact, if the reports are accurate, perhaps most of the western world will take time out to listen to Obama's inaugural speech as the next President of the USA. Amazing stuff. In fact I can well recall hearing Obama's speech, played in its entirely on a local radio station, Nationwidenews, when he won his first primary in Iowa. I was driving to work, and tears came to my eyes and goosebumps covered my body as the soaring rhetoric and strong message of hope took hold of me in a way that had not happened for many a year. Such is the power of this man from whom , everybody wants to hear in these troubling times. Apart from Martin Luther King, who touched the souls of so many people around the world, very few modern leaders have been as inspiring as Barack Obama. We had a Prime Minister here in Jamaica many years ago, Michael Manley, who only had to stand and say , " Mr. Chairman" and everybody would go wild. But he was not in the same category as Obama. The point is though, are the American people really listening to what he is saying to them, as, the consistent undergirding theme, is his call for them to make some serious adjustments in their lifestyle? In their stewardship over the environment; in their approach to family life and care of their children; in the way they conduct their politics; in the way the capitalist model of running a economy has gone astray; in how they view and relate to others of different views and ethnic backgrounds within America and in the wider world and in their understanding of self and relationship to neighbour. Have they really been listening!
But as much as Obama's speeches have been closely followed by many, it was another, and much less celebrated woman, whose advice I heard on a local radio station - The Breakfast Club - which stayed with me all week. And whose words I have shared with a few other women this week.
They were discussing relationships and the do's and don't's which women, and men, should be aware of in the early stages, in order to better secure a successful long term union. At which point a local psychologist, with a strong focus on women, declared that , " women ought to learn to listen carefully to what men say in the first two weeks of a relationship. As this is the time that they are most vulnerable and will tell you all you need to know( in order for you to make a sound judgement). So if they turn up late for a date - that's saying something. If they treat the waiter at the restaurant with disrespect - that's saying something also". But, she went on to explain, that in her experience, women do not really listen carefully as they are either too busy chatting, or too emotionally caught up with the moment to listen. As a consequence, signals that a man sends out , and which really ought to raise 'red flags', go undetected , or ignored, and thus form the basis for much pain and grief later in the relationship.
All of this together with the spiritual lessons, which the Lord, who continues to amaze me with His timing, taught me this week, reinforced in my mind the critical importance of listening. Not just to man, but to the Creator of Heaven and Earth and all that is in it. In fact, one of my favourite theologians , from whom I have learnt much, John Stott, speaks clearly about the need for Christians to learn the art of, "Double Listening" - to the world around us and to God. In his own words he states in, " The Contemporary Christian" that ...." We listen to the Word in humble reverence, anxious to understand it, and resolved to believe and obey what we come to understand. We listen to the world with critical alertness, anxious to understand it too, and resolved not necessarily to believe and obey it, but to sympathize with it and to seek grace to discover how the gospel relates to it".
So what did the Lord reveal to me about listening to Him this week, as the Obama hype threatened to drown out God's Word, and my sympathy with, and amazement at, women who do not listen, time and time again, with very sad consequences, occupied much of my thoughts.
First He led me to reflect on the well known story about the prophet Samuel and his first encounter with the Lord. " ........speak Lord for thy servant heareth". 1 Samuel 3:1-8. The OT lesson appointed in the Anglican church for this Sunday.
And how the Lord told Samuel that He was going to judge his master Eli's family "forever", for he had failed to restrain his sons from committing sins and making themselves " comtemptible", even though he knew about their corrupt practices. Then the Spirit of the Lord led me to Ezekiel and to these words.
"He said to me, " Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you..........Son of man I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their fathers have been in revolt against me to this very day. The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, " This is what the Sovereign Lord says. And whether they listen or fail to listen - for they are a rebellious house - they will know that a prophet has been among them. And you son of man, do not be afraid of them and or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say, or be terrified by them, though are a rebellious house. You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious house....."
Ezekiel 2: 1-8 NIV
I have long held the view, and such thoughts are reflected in the prayer for this Internet Ministry, that my country, in particular, will not change for the better until the church is renewed.
" Lord renew thy church beginning with me. Lord renew thy church that the church may renew the nation", is the prayer.
Yes, there are issues of leadership, justice, economic management, family life and the kind of wisdom that we all should seek, as the twin realities of Obama and the unwise woman teach us. Lessons that life teaches us and which help us to hone our social economic and moral skills. But that experience, and those lessons, however well learnt, in and by themselves alone, will never help us to overcome the entrenched evil which is so pervasive in our island home. And manifest in the seemingly unstoppable " shottas" killing off our people and causing so much pain and grief in the nation.
Yes there is a role for the church to challenge the society and especially our political and business leaders as happens in Jamaica on the third Thursday of each New Year, when the church leaders organize a National Prayer Breakfast - whether they listen or fail to listen.
But for me, the key point in this week of lessons on the importance of listening, is the great need for the " New Israel" the present " Body of Christ", the church, to heed the call to repent of its rebellious ways. In the same way that young Samuel, after listening to God, was called to speak to Eli, and Ezekiel, in like manner, to speak to the children of Israel. And therefore the urgent need for us to look deep into our own souls and repent, and also to help one another along this road of repentance - whether they listen of fail to listen.
So it is not only that Jamaica, and indeed Jamaicans - and other countries too- are suffering because we have rebelled, heard but not listened and obeyed, against the ordained Word of God, and sought to follow "idols and gods who our fathers and mothers did not know", but equally so that church of God in Jamaica in need of renewal and cleansing. One of the most perplexing questions that we as Christians have to confront, about others who do not believe and for us who are always going astray and being disobedient is Why? Why do we believe in the Salvation offered on the Cross by the Lord Jesus and others do not - with disastrous consequences for the nation and for the individuals in due course? Why do we, who believe, and claim Christ, are so easily led astray into rank disobedience, time and time again, in little and serious sins - with equally disastrous consequences for the spiritual health of the nation?
And the Lord who knows everything in advance provided a reflection with some answers - this week.
EARS TO HEAR CHRIS TIEGEN JANUARY 15TH
" He who has ears to hear, let him hear". Luke 8:8
IN WORD Jesus uses this imperative fourteen times in the Gospels and Revelation. It is a common but curious command in His teachings. And it raises a lot of questions for us. Why, for example, would the One who was sent to seek and to save us seem so casual about who hears and obeys? Why is He not pleading with the obstinate to repent?
We may never know some of the intricacies of God's salvation --- why some believe while others don't. The reasons are mysterious to us. But one thing is clear: Jesus comes with the expectation that some will be ready to receive His message enthusiastically. And with that clear expectation comes the negative implication: Some will not. There are stubborn hearts in this world, listeners " without ears," and those who will not open themselves to the possibility of the truth of the Gospel. Even among believers, Jesus faced this resistance. many who accepted His claims could not --or simply would not --accept all of His teachings ( see john 6:60-66, for example). Then and now, we see a strange phenomenon --priceless, eternal truth is often not welcome in human hearts.
IN DEED This ability to hear has profound implications for unbelievers. rebellious souls cannot hear the words of Jesus -- really hear them -- until they recognize an acknowledge their won insufficiency. ( One of the great ironies of our age is that those who most often claim open-mindedness and the potentials of human enlightenment have completely shut their eyes to Jesus.) But this concept also has profound applications for us. We, too, must always be on our guard and aware of our insufficiency. Human nature gravitates towards rebellion and its inevitable result --deafness.
Jesus almost always uses this phrase after a difficult message. His hard teachings are often a stumbling block, but we can use them as a true test of the openness of our hearts. When Jesus' word grate against our natural inclinations, we must ask ourselves, " Do I have ears to hear?" How we respond will indicate the condition of our hearts.
Finally as I thought about the lessons for this week, a pastor at my church preached a sermon on " Christian Unity". And how much it is a "scandal" that there is so much division, competitiveness, and strained relationships in the " body of Christ". I thought about how so many churches get caught up in the "hype" of Christianity, listening a lot to songs like, " Jesus is my Redeemer - I love it too - but not being exposed to the deeper truths of the teachings of Christ. And therefore not really listening and not being renewed and not being truly effective disciples of Christ - falling away when temptations and trials come. I thought about all the attention being paid to Obama, "the leader of the free world", and how few are really listening to and being obedient to One God and Creator of all mankind, and whose promises will always come true. And as I write the wonderful words of an old hymn come into my heart:
Hark my soul! it is the Lord
Tis the Saviour, hear his word
Jesus speaks , and speaks to thee,
'Say poor sinner, lov'st thou me
I delivered thee when bound,
And when wounded, healed thy wound
Sought thee wondering, set thee right,
Turned thy darkness into light.......
Lord, it is my chief complaint
That my love is weak and faint;
But I love thee and adore;
O for grace to love thee more
I pray God that Obama will become an outstanding President. That people in America will listen carefully and respond to what he is actually saying. That women may learn to listen to men carefully before committing themselves to an intimate relationship. But most of all, I pray that we who have been created by God in His own image, and Redeemed, reconciled to Him by the blood of His own Son, may listen truly to Him and become obedient to His Son Jesus Christ and find true peace in this troubled world. O for grace to love and obey Him more. Amen
But as much as Obama's speeches have been closely followed by many, it was another, and much less celebrated woman, whose advice I heard on a local radio station - The Breakfast Club - which stayed with me all week. And whose words I have shared with a few other women this week.
They were discussing relationships and the do's and don't's which women, and men, should be aware of in the early stages, in order to better secure a successful long term union. At which point a local psychologist, with a strong focus on women, declared that , " women ought to learn to listen carefully to what men say in the first two weeks of a relationship. As this is the time that they are most vulnerable and will tell you all you need to know( in order for you to make a sound judgement). So if they turn up late for a date - that's saying something. If they treat the waiter at the restaurant with disrespect - that's saying something also". But, she went on to explain, that in her experience, women do not really listen carefully as they are either too busy chatting, or too emotionally caught up with the moment to listen. As a consequence, signals that a man sends out , and which really ought to raise 'red flags', go undetected , or ignored, and thus form the basis for much pain and grief later in the relationship.
All of this together with the spiritual lessons, which the Lord, who continues to amaze me with His timing, taught me this week, reinforced in my mind the critical importance of listening. Not just to man, but to the Creator of Heaven and Earth and all that is in it. In fact, one of my favourite theologians , from whom I have learnt much, John Stott, speaks clearly about the need for Christians to learn the art of, "Double Listening" - to the world around us and to God. In his own words he states in, " The Contemporary Christian" that ...." We listen to the Word in humble reverence, anxious to understand it, and resolved to believe and obey what we come to understand. We listen to the world with critical alertness, anxious to understand it too, and resolved not necessarily to believe and obey it, but to sympathize with it and to seek grace to discover how the gospel relates to it".
So what did the Lord reveal to me about listening to Him this week, as the Obama hype threatened to drown out God's Word, and my sympathy with, and amazement at, women who do not listen, time and time again, with very sad consequences, occupied much of my thoughts.
First He led me to reflect on the well known story about the prophet Samuel and his first encounter with the Lord. " ........speak Lord for thy servant heareth". 1 Samuel 3:1-8. The OT lesson appointed in the Anglican church for this Sunday.
And how the Lord told Samuel that He was going to judge his master Eli's family "forever", for he had failed to restrain his sons from committing sins and making themselves " comtemptible", even though he knew about their corrupt practices. Then the Spirit of the Lord led me to Ezekiel and to these words.
"He said to me, " Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you..........Son of man I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their fathers have been in revolt against me to this very day. The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, " This is what the Sovereign Lord says. And whether they listen or fail to listen - for they are a rebellious house - they will know that a prophet has been among them. And you son of man, do not be afraid of them and or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say, or be terrified by them, though are a rebellious house. You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious house....."
Ezekiel 2: 1-8 NIV
I have long held the view, and such thoughts are reflected in the prayer for this Internet Ministry, that my country, in particular, will not change for the better until the church is renewed.
" Lord renew thy church beginning with me. Lord renew thy church that the church may renew the nation", is the prayer.
Yes, there are issues of leadership, justice, economic management, family life and the kind of wisdom that we all should seek, as the twin realities of Obama and the unwise woman teach us. Lessons that life teaches us and which help us to hone our social economic and moral skills. But that experience, and those lessons, however well learnt, in and by themselves alone, will never help us to overcome the entrenched evil which is so pervasive in our island home. And manifest in the seemingly unstoppable " shottas" killing off our people and causing so much pain and grief in the nation.
Yes there is a role for the church to challenge the society and especially our political and business leaders as happens in Jamaica on the third Thursday of each New Year, when the church leaders organize a National Prayer Breakfast - whether they listen or fail to listen.
But for me, the key point in this week of lessons on the importance of listening, is the great need for the " New Israel" the present " Body of Christ", the church, to heed the call to repent of its rebellious ways. In the same way that young Samuel, after listening to God, was called to speak to Eli, and Ezekiel, in like manner, to speak to the children of Israel. And therefore the urgent need for us to look deep into our own souls and repent, and also to help one another along this road of repentance - whether they listen of fail to listen.
So it is not only that Jamaica, and indeed Jamaicans - and other countries too- are suffering because we have rebelled, heard but not listened and obeyed, against the ordained Word of God, and sought to follow "idols and gods who our fathers and mothers did not know", but equally so that church of God in Jamaica in need of renewal and cleansing. One of the most perplexing questions that we as Christians have to confront, about others who do not believe and for us who are always going astray and being disobedient is Why? Why do we believe in the Salvation offered on the Cross by the Lord Jesus and others do not - with disastrous consequences for the nation and for the individuals in due course? Why do we, who believe, and claim Christ, are so easily led astray into rank disobedience, time and time again, in little and serious sins - with equally disastrous consequences for the spiritual health of the nation?
And the Lord who knows everything in advance provided a reflection with some answers - this week.
EARS TO HEAR CHRIS TIEGEN JANUARY 15TH
" He who has ears to hear, let him hear". Luke 8:8
IN WORD Jesus uses this imperative fourteen times in the Gospels and Revelation. It is a common but curious command in His teachings. And it raises a lot of questions for us. Why, for example, would the One who was sent to seek and to save us seem so casual about who hears and obeys? Why is He not pleading with the obstinate to repent?
We may never know some of the intricacies of God's salvation --- why some believe while others don't. The reasons are mysterious to us. But one thing is clear: Jesus comes with the expectation that some will be ready to receive His message enthusiastically. And with that clear expectation comes the negative implication: Some will not. There are stubborn hearts in this world, listeners " without ears," and those who will not open themselves to the possibility of the truth of the Gospel. Even among believers, Jesus faced this resistance. many who accepted His claims could not --or simply would not --accept all of His teachings ( see john 6:60-66, for example). Then and now, we see a strange phenomenon --priceless, eternal truth is often not welcome in human hearts.
IN DEED This ability to hear has profound implications for unbelievers. rebellious souls cannot hear the words of Jesus -- really hear them -- until they recognize an acknowledge their won insufficiency. ( One of the great ironies of our age is that those who most often claim open-mindedness and the potentials of human enlightenment have completely shut their eyes to Jesus.) But this concept also has profound applications for us. We, too, must always be on our guard and aware of our insufficiency. Human nature gravitates towards rebellion and its inevitable result --deafness.
Jesus almost always uses this phrase after a difficult message. His hard teachings are often a stumbling block, but we can use them as a true test of the openness of our hearts. When Jesus' word grate against our natural inclinations, we must ask ourselves, " Do I have ears to hear?" How we respond will indicate the condition of our hearts.
Finally as I thought about the lessons for this week, a pastor at my church preached a sermon on " Christian Unity". And how much it is a "scandal" that there is so much division, competitiveness, and strained relationships in the " body of Christ". I thought about how so many churches get caught up in the "hype" of Christianity, listening a lot to songs like, " Jesus is my Redeemer - I love it too - but not being exposed to the deeper truths of the teachings of Christ. And therefore not really listening and not being renewed and not being truly effective disciples of Christ - falling away when temptations and trials come. I thought about all the attention being paid to Obama, "the leader of the free world", and how few are really listening to and being obedient to One God and Creator of all mankind, and whose promises will always come true. And as I write the wonderful words of an old hymn come into my heart:
Hark my soul! it is the Lord
Tis the Saviour, hear his word
Jesus speaks , and speaks to thee,
'Say poor sinner, lov'st thou me
I delivered thee when bound,
And when wounded, healed thy wound
Sought thee wondering, set thee right,
Turned thy darkness into light.......
Lord, it is my chief complaint
That my love is weak and faint;
But I love thee and adore;
O for grace to love thee more
I pray God that Obama will become an outstanding President. That people in America will listen carefully and respond to what he is actually saying. That women may learn to listen to men carefully before committing themselves to an intimate relationship. But most of all, I pray that we who have been created by God in His own image, and Redeemed, reconciled to Him by the blood of His own Son, may listen truly to Him and become obedient to His Son Jesus Christ and find true peace in this troubled world. O for grace to love and obey Him more. Amen
Sunday, January 11, 2009
A year in review: Daggering, Murder, Expletives and God's revealed Word.
Each year round about this time, all the media houses compete with each other to come up with the best " Year in Review". Recently I heard a promo from one local radio station, Nationwidenews, that has stayed with me all week. A mother's wail, coming from deep in her soul was captured on tape. She was begging, beseeching - you could almost see her face awash with tears and distorted with grief - the criminals who had abducted her young daughter to return the child, " even if they had raped her". She just wanted her child back alive even if emotionally scared. I shuddered involuntarily as something in me identified with that distraught woman, as if it were my own child. What a country! What a hell of a country.
This morning on my to church I picked a security guard, it has become a routine now on a Sunday morning, and as usual we got talking about the state of the nation. As I lamented about the continued high murder rate, he recalled, quite animatedly, reading the news about a similar kind of wickedness happening in the USA many years ago. And gave quite a graphic account of one murderer stating that, "He enjoyed seeing the bodies jerking ( in the throes of death) when he fired on his victims". And thus my companion, working class, unlettered but quite knowlegeable and wise about the things of this world, explained that evil was rampant in the world and has been for a long time. Further that, in his experience, many of these young, " shottas", use drugs - marijuana and cocaine and thus are filled with pure evil, Hence the state of our nation. So he concluded, contrary to what many think, Jamaica was not any more blessed than any country, as wickedness and evil abound.
Then tonight on the news we heard about an elderly blind woman, who was found strangled to death, and which event provoked the local member of Parliament to wonder aloud on television, "What kind of person could perform such an heinous crime"? In the middle of all of that, I came home from church this morning and spent a few minutes quietly in my car, reflecting and pondering on the fact that, this kind of madness cannot continue for much longer. Something catastrophic is going to happen soon.
Now murder is one thing. But " daggering " is quite another. All week I have been hearing about this "outrageous" new dance move which, from all accounts is throwing a veritable " dagger" into the moral soul of the nation. Then, today I got an e-mail from a friend and a columnist who sent me her article, published in today's The Sunday Herald, http://www.sunheraldja.com/article/show/2105 which gave great detail about the dance and how it was corrupting the minds of the youth - in particular. What a country. What a hell of a country!
Later, on "All Angles", a television programme hosted by arguably one of our best journalists, I overheard a discussion on the use of " bad words" - expletives. With one proponent pulling the " discriminating against the poor" card, whilst defending their right to use that kind of language in their, " own space", as I understood him . What a country!
While the madness swirled around me this week on the outside, in my soul the Lord spoke comforting, but challenging words which once again reinforcedin my mind how He is always ahead of us preparing the way, if we would but stop to listen. One morning during my devotions, whilst praising God, I was led to an old hymn, again, but this time the words of a particular verse stayed with me all week. So much so that I sent out the following text message, using verse three, to many of my Internet friends who have not yet accepted Jesus as Lord, and Saviour and friend.
Praise to the Lord who doth prosper and defend thee....
Ponder anew
What the Almighty can do,
If to the end he befriend thee....
What a friend we have in Jesus.
The first two verses of that hymn are:
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation;
O my soul, praise him for he is thy health and salvation:
All ye who hear,
Now to his temple draw near,
Joining in glad adoration.
Praise to the Lord, who o'er all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shieldeth thee gently from harm, or where fainting sustaineth:
Hast thou not seen
How thy heart wishes have been granted in what he ordaineth
and the last verse is:
Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore him!
All that has life and breath, come now with praises before him!
Let the Amen
Sound from his people again:
Gladly for ay we adore him.
As I write these words, I am thinking, how different this country would be, if this were the kind of conversation we engaged in day by day. How to bring back praise and honor and glory to a God who created all of us and gave us breath? A fact validated by words from the Old Testament reading appointed for today in my church:
" This is what God the Lord says-
he who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it,
who gives breath to its people
and life to those who walk on it......"
Isaiah 42: 5 NIV
Wondering how this nation would benefit from reflection on, and pondering anew, the possibilities for this country, our communities, our families, if God were to truly befriend us - once we place our trust in His Beloved Son Jesus? To talk about how the nation could change overnight if, " The Amen", would sound from God's people again. The problem is that people do not readily see the link between murder, which most will condemn, and " daggering" and the use foul language as part of our " cultural heritage". Why? Because we mistakenly believe that we can let in a little, " sin", that does not bother anyone, (rebellion against God' will and purpose) in one part of the house and contain it there. We can let in a little pornography in the bedroom, a little homosexuality , " between consenting adults in the privacy of their bedroom", a few bad words in the community, according to one's taste - we all agree not on public radio - and allow adults to indulge in daggering in the dance hall, and maybe just once per year, allow a little, " letting down of the hair", during Carnival on the city's streets. But evil, once given access, cannot be confined to one part of the nation. And this evil has spread its wings and threatens to consume the nation in every aspect of its life. And so a woman wails for her daughter, not knowing, and perhaps not even caring, that her plight has been a long time coming. As for years, many of us in the church, aware of our mandate to :
" open the eyes that are blind, to free the captives from prison,
and release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness" Isaiah 42:7 NIV,
have been warning our people about the consequences of what they consider " a little sin", a
" private matter". Who knows perhaps they will soon publicly advocate that " poor people" can praise a mighty God with a powerful and choice expletive, ignoring the fact that His Word say:
" Be holy as I your God am holy".
No, the reality is that despite what " our foolish minds" tell us, God will not befriend a people who are bent on rebellion. Many of the children of Israel, God's "chosen people", perished in the desert, after being rescued so dramatically from the hands of Pharaoh, because of their continued disobedience. Why?, To set an example to others. Thus we ignore these things at our own peril.
The question then arises, " What does one do to rescue a people intent on destroying themselves", and daggering their way into 2009? As far too often in our zeal to find solutions we make seemingly wise decisions, hurriedly, on our own, only to find out later that evil continues unabated. And worse if we are not careful we are somehow affected by it. In the same way that many " false doctrines" are now leading many Christians away from a focus on the Cross, and accordingly leading the nation astray, with their "Prosperity" gospel. Forgetting the prophet Jeremiah's warning to all of us, priests and journalists and protectors of the kind of our '"cultural heritage" which glamorizes the use of expletives:
" Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak with visions from their own minds.
not from the mouth of the Lord.
They keep saying to those who despise me ,
' The Lord says: you will have peace.
And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts
they say, ' No harm will come to you'.
But which one of them has stood in the council of the Lord
to see or to hear his word?
Who listened and heard his word?
Jeremiah 23: 16-18 NIV
The answer came from the words of another old hymn. The message? It takes time to know God's will for us. We have to ask with a deep longing. It is not possible without accepting the example of suffering and sacrifice which Jesus exhibited on the Cross of Calvary. God's will and purpose and power is only revealed to, and shared with, those who admit that:
Nothing in my hand I bring.
Simply to your cross I cling.
Naked come to you for dress .
Helpless look to you for grace.....
The words from the hymn.
Breathe on me, Breath of God.
Fill me with life anew;
That I may love what Thou does love
And do what Thou wouldst do
Breathe on me, Breath of God,
Until my heart is pure;
Until my will is one with Thine
To do and to endure.....
The fact is that we too are filled with all kinds of evil, and it is only when we turn and accept Christ that a merciful God will cleanse us from all sin and empower us to love all His people - even those dagger and curse and murder and wine. It is only the power of the Holy Spirit which can enable us to rescue our people from the " darkness" that pervades the land and that keeps our people in the dungeon of sin, even when they think that they are living the " good life".
Pray God that this year we may spend more time praising the Lord, and asking Him to " Breathe on us". Amen.
This morning on my to church I picked a security guard, it has become a routine now on a Sunday morning, and as usual we got talking about the state of the nation. As I lamented about the continued high murder rate, he recalled, quite animatedly, reading the news about a similar kind of wickedness happening in the USA many years ago. And gave quite a graphic account of one murderer stating that, "He enjoyed seeing the bodies jerking ( in the throes of death) when he fired on his victims". And thus my companion, working class, unlettered but quite knowlegeable and wise about the things of this world, explained that evil was rampant in the world and has been for a long time. Further that, in his experience, many of these young, " shottas", use drugs - marijuana and cocaine and thus are filled with pure evil, Hence the state of our nation. So he concluded, contrary to what many think, Jamaica was not any more blessed than any country, as wickedness and evil abound.
Then tonight on the news we heard about an elderly blind woman, who was found strangled to death, and which event provoked the local member of Parliament to wonder aloud on television, "What kind of person could perform such an heinous crime"? In the middle of all of that, I came home from church this morning and spent a few minutes quietly in my car, reflecting and pondering on the fact that, this kind of madness cannot continue for much longer. Something catastrophic is going to happen soon.
Now murder is one thing. But " daggering " is quite another. All week I have been hearing about this "outrageous" new dance move which, from all accounts is throwing a veritable " dagger" into the moral soul of the nation. Then, today I got an e-mail from a friend and a columnist who sent me her article, published in today's The Sunday Herald, http://www.sunheraldja.com/article/show/2105 which gave great detail about the dance and how it was corrupting the minds of the youth - in particular. What a country. What a hell of a country!
Later, on "All Angles", a television programme hosted by arguably one of our best journalists, I overheard a discussion on the use of " bad words" - expletives. With one proponent pulling the " discriminating against the poor" card, whilst defending their right to use that kind of language in their, " own space", as I understood him . What a country!
While the madness swirled around me this week on the outside, in my soul the Lord spoke comforting, but challenging words which once again reinforcedin my mind how He is always ahead of us preparing the way, if we would but stop to listen. One morning during my devotions, whilst praising God, I was led to an old hymn, again, but this time the words of a particular verse stayed with me all week. So much so that I sent out the following text message, using verse three, to many of my Internet friends who have not yet accepted Jesus as Lord, and Saviour and friend.
Praise to the Lord who doth prosper and defend thee....
Ponder anew
What the Almighty can do,
If to the end he befriend thee....
What a friend we have in Jesus.
The first two verses of that hymn are:
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation;
O my soul, praise him for he is thy health and salvation:
All ye who hear,
Now to his temple draw near,
Joining in glad adoration.
Praise to the Lord, who o'er all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shieldeth thee gently from harm, or where fainting sustaineth:
Hast thou not seen
How thy heart wishes have been granted in what he ordaineth
and the last verse is:
Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore him!
All that has life and breath, come now with praises before him!
Let the Amen
Sound from his people again:
Gladly for ay we adore him.
As I write these words, I am thinking, how different this country would be, if this were the kind of conversation we engaged in day by day. How to bring back praise and honor and glory to a God who created all of us and gave us breath? A fact validated by words from the Old Testament reading appointed for today in my church:
" This is what God the Lord says-
he who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it,
who gives breath to its people
and life to those who walk on it......"
Isaiah 42: 5 NIV
Wondering how this nation would benefit from reflection on, and pondering anew, the possibilities for this country, our communities, our families, if God were to truly befriend us - once we place our trust in His Beloved Son Jesus? To talk about how the nation could change overnight if, " The Amen", would sound from God's people again. The problem is that people do not readily see the link between murder, which most will condemn, and " daggering" and the use foul language as part of our " cultural heritage". Why? Because we mistakenly believe that we can let in a little, " sin", that does not bother anyone, (rebellion against God' will and purpose) in one part of the house and contain it there. We can let in a little pornography in the bedroom, a little homosexuality , " between consenting adults in the privacy of their bedroom", a few bad words in the community, according to one's taste - we all agree not on public radio - and allow adults to indulge in daggering in the dance hall, and maybe just once per year, allow a little, " letting down of the hair", during Carnival on the city's streets. But evil, once given access, cannot be confined to one part of the nation. And this evil has spread its wings and threatens to consume the nation in every aspect of its life. And so a woman wails for her daughter, not knowing, and perhaps not even caring, that her plight has been a long time coming. As for years, many of us in the church, aware of our mandate to :
" open the eyes that are blind, to free the captives from prison,
and release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness" Isaiah 42:7 NIV,
have been warning our people about the consequences of what they consider " a little sin", a
" private matter". Who knows perhaps they will soon publicly advocate that " poor people" can praise a mighty God with a powerful and choice expletive, ignoring the fact that His Word say:
" Be holy as I your God am holy".
No, the reality is that despite what " our foolish minds" tell us, God will not befriend a people who are bent on rebellion. Many of the children of Israel, God's "chosen people", perished in the desert, after being rescued so dramatically from the hands of Pharaoh, because of their continued disobedience. Why?, To set an example to others. Thus we ignore these things at our own peril.
The question then arises, " What does one do to rescue a people intent on destroying themselves", and daggering their way into 2009? As far too often in our zeal to find solutions we make seemingly wise decisions, hurriedly, on our own, only to find out later that evil continues unabated. And worse if we are not careful we are somehow affected by it. In the same way that many " false doctrines" are now leading many Christians away from a focus on the Cross, and accordingly leading the nation astray, with their "Prosperity" gospel. Forgetting the prophet Jeremiah's warning to all of us, priests and journalists and protectors of the kind of our '"cultural heritage" which glamorizes the use of expletives:
" Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak with visions from their own minds.
not from the mouth of the Lord.
They keep saying to those who despise me ,
' The Lord says: you will have peace.
And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts
they say, ' No harm will come to you'.
But which one of them has stood in the council of the Lord
to see or to hear his word?
Who listened and heard his word?
Jeremiah 23: 16-18 NIV
The answer came from the words of another old hymn. The message? It takes time to know God's will for us. We have to ask with a deep longing. It is not possible without accepting the example of suffering and sacrifice which Jesus exhibited on the Cross of Calvary. God's will and purpose and power is only revealed to, and shared with, those who admit that:
Nothing in my hand I bring.
Simply to your cross I cling.
Naked come to you for dress .
Helpless look to you for grace.....
The words from the hymn.
Breathe on me, Breath of God.
Fill me with life anew;
That I may love what Thou does love
And do what Thou wouldst do
Breathe on me, Breath of God,
Until my heart is pure;
Until my will is one with Thine
To do and to endure.....
The fact is that we too are filled with all kinds of evil, and it is only when we turn and accept Christ that a merciful God will cleanse us from all sin and empower us to love all His people - even those dagger and curse and murder and wine. It is only the power of the Holy Spirit which can enable us to rescue our people from the " darkness" that pervades the land and that keeps our people in the dungeon of sin, even when they think that they are living the " good life".
Pray God that this year we may spend more time praising the Lord, and asking Him to " Breathe on us". Amen.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
A New Year's message - God have mercy. Christ have mercy.
I returned to my home in Jamaica on New Year's day and was soon greeted with the news in one of our print media that, " THE ORGY of violence which resulted in more than 1,600 people being murdered across the island last year has continued in 2009 with 13 persons killed in the first 48 hours".
And the carnage on roads continued with three dying in one crash on New Year's day with others following as the days passed. That was my introduction to the New Year. But other "stuff" happened before the old year passed which did not augur well for the new. In a gated, previously crime- free, community in Miami where I spent the Christmas holidays, manholes went missing and so did car tyres. All four on a car right next door, and five other vehicles were reportedly vandalized. On the International scene we grieved, once again, as yet another New Year's disaster took place in a night club - this time in Thailand, and once again the Israelis and the Palestinians are at war.
So where is the Happy New Year that we were all wishing for each other? What is the basis for making all those resolutions? What is the basis for some very prominent pastors, " predicting", that despite the forecast for a downturn in the world's economy, Jamaica will enjoy good economic fortune this year. My Bishop answered this very question in a very insightful sermon this morning at church. New life and new beginnings and happiness, as one year passes into another only comes when there is a new life in Christ Jesus. Otherwise we are trapped in the same old problems which flow from one year to another relentlessly, thus fulfilling the writer of the book of Ecclesiastes that, "there in nothing new under the sun".
So what was my experience with the Lord this past week as we entered a new year? Not necessarily in that order, but the following things happened to me. Firstly, I woke up one morning with a song in my heart - " Do you hear what I hear", and having some difficulty recalling this not unfamiliar Christmas carol in its entirety, I " googled " it and found a wonderful revelation. Initially I thought the message from the Lord was all about the importance of listening carefully to Him. But on reflection on the sequence of the Carol I found additional messages.
Said the night wind to the little lamb.
" Do you see what I see?
Way up in the shy, little lamb.
A star, a star, dancing in the night
With a tail as big as the kite......
Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy,
"Do you hear what I hear?
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy,
Do you hear what I hear?
A song, a song high above the trees
With a voice as big as the the sea..
Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king,
"Do you know what I know?
In your palace warm, mighty king,
Do you know what I know?
A Child, a Child shivers in the cold--
Let us bring him silver and gold...
Said the King to the people everywhere,
"Listen to what I say!
Pray for peace, people, everywhere,
Listen to what I say!
The Child, the Child sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light.....
First of all, only those who listen carefully to the Lord will truly hear what He is saying. Only those who believe and trust in faith will hear God speaking. Secondly the message from the Lord is passed from one medium to another until the King reveals the truth to everyone - that we should all pray for peace, and that only the Christ child can bring us goodness and light up the darkness of our lives. Finally, as the Bishop pointed out this morning, in this context of the song arising in my heart at this time, New Year is all about Christmas. And Christmas is all about a new dispensation - what the theologians call the year of the Jubilee.
The second message was even more pointed, and follows on the first. Those who hear God, even " beyond the sacred pages of Holy Scripture", must be obedient to His revealed Word in Scripture. One morning, last week, my meditations and a " voice in my head", led me to this dramatic passage of Scripture.
" So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven".
Acts 26:19. NIV.
St. Paul was testifying to the authorities to whom he had appealed for justice after the Jews had sought to have him killed for spreading the " gospel". And in doing so, recounted the story of his conversion on the road to Damascus, and about which vision from heaven he now affirms his obedience.
The point here is that God is a talking God and will inform us of His Will. So we ought to be very careful as children of God, to indulge in passing resolutions, which are not ordained by the Lord. And making optimistic predictions which flow from the " foolishness" in our hearts rather than from the Word of God. But the important thing is to be obedient when the message is clear.
So how do we know when God speaks ?
I got an answer from Oswald Chambers on Day 2.
WILL YOU GO OUT WITHOUT KNOWING? OSWALD CHAMBERS' MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST JAN 2.
"He went out, not knowing whither he went." Hebrews 11:8
Have you been " out" in this way? If so, there is no logical statement possible when anyone asks you what are you doing. One of the difficulties in Christian work is this question ---" What do you expect to do?" You do not know what you are going to do; the only thing you know is that God knows what He is doing. ( This was the essence of the prayer of a young pastor who prayed for us at my workplace on the first working day in the year) Continually revise your attitude towards God and see if it is a going out of everything, trusting in God entirely. it is this attitude that keeps you in perpetual wonder -- you do not know what God is going to do next. Each morning you wake up it is to be a " going out", building in confidence on God. " Take no thought for your life...nor yet for your body" ---take no thought for the things for which you did take before you " went out".
Have you been asking God what is he going to do? He will never tell you. God does not tell you what he is going to do; He reveals Himself to you. Who He is. Do you believe in a miracle-working God, and will you go out in surrender to Him until you are not surprised an atom anything He does?
Suppose God is the God you know Him to be when you are nearest to Him -- what an impertinence worry is! Let the attitude of the life of be a continual " going out" in dependence on God, and your life will have an ineffable charm about it which is a satisfaction to Jesus. You have to learn to go out of your convictions, out of creeds, out of experiences, until so far as your faith is concerned, there is nothing between yourself and God.
Wow! " God does not tell you what he is going to do; He reveals Himself". Is Christmas an answer for all of us who are seeking to know God's will and predicting, and planning for, all kinds of things about which know nothing?
The last two messages are very clear and rooted in Scripture. One is a passage that I have been searching for. And the Lord woke me up in the middle of the night this past week to point me to it.
" For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him". Philippians 2:29 NIV.
No equivocation here. Journeying with Christ, in the new year or the old involves suffering. Sacrifice. Leaving behind attitudes and behaviours and places where we used to go, things we used to watch, and "stuff" we used to do and say. Plus the' persecution' from those who oppose us - even within the family.
Lastly, the Christian life is not about our deserving anything from God. Good economic fortune. Health and strength. Healthy relationships. Freedom from thieves and robbers, gunmen and fatalities on our roads. But rather being the recipients of God's mercy and being in a right relationship with Him, in and through the Christmas and Good Friday experience - culminating in Easter.
This is what I was told to read last night. And it began like this.
CHRIS TIEGEN EXTRAVAGANT MERCY JAN 3
" I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners "
Mark 2:17
............IN DEED God desires to be known in His mercy. Not just mercy, in fact but extravagant mercy. Incomprehensibly extravagant mercy. Mind-boggling mercy.....
ROMANS 9:14-16 & 11:32
" Just as it is written: Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated. What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all. For he says to Moses;
I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whim I have compassion.
It does not therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy......For God has given over all men to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all".
So last night I prayed with all my heart for mercy. Not for good fortune. But for God's mercy. For all my family. And myself. Immediate. Extended. Community. Church ( Anglican/Episcopalian, Baptist, Moravian, Roman Catholic, United, Church of God, Pentecostal and Seventh Day Adventist, all Evangelical churches) Internet. Road Safety. Work...as I recalled the experience of someone who was invited to go with someone else for a visit with family. The person suddenly feeling weak and tired, declined and instead, in obedience to a feeling deep in the soul, went upstairs to pray. Moments later, the person with whom the individual would have been travelling, was killed in a hail of bullets - in the car. The person testifying was not a Baptized Christian but grew up in the knowledge of God and prayed regularly.
Our God is a mysterious God, and is not to presumed upon, but to be listened to, and obeyed and to be asked for mercy. In the new year and in the old as He reveals Himself to us more and more in and through the Christ whose birth created a New and Eternal Life. Amen.
And the carnage on roads continued with three dying in one crash on New Year's day with others following as the days passed. That was my introduction to the New Year. But other "stuff" happened before the old year passed which did not augur well for the new. In a gated, previously crime- free, community in Miami where I spent the Christmas holidays, manholes went missing and so did car tyres. All four on a car right next door, and five other vehicles were reportedly vandalized. On the International scene we grieved, once again, as yet another New Year's disaster took place in a night club - this time in Thailand, and once again the Israelis and the Palestinians are at war.
So where is the Happy New Year that we were all wishing for each other? What is the basis for making all those resolutions? What is the basis for some very prominent pastors, " predicting", that despite the forecast for a downturn in the world's economy, Jamaica will enjoy good economic fortune this year. My Bishop answered this very question in a very insightful sermon this morning at church. New life and new beginnings and happiness, as one year passes into another only comes when there is a new life in Christ Jesus. Otherwise we are trapped in the same old problems which flow from one year to another relentlessly, thus fulfilling the writer of the book of Ecclesiastes that, "there in nothing new under the sun".
So what was my experience with the Lord this past week as we entered a new year? Not necessarily in that order, but the following things happened to me. Firstly, I woke up one morning with a song in my heart - " Do you hear what I hear", and having some difficulty recalling this not unfamiliar Christmas carol in its entirety, I " googled " it and found a wonderful revelation. Initially I thought the message from the Lord was all about the importance of listening carefully to Him. But on reflection on the sequence of the Carol I found additional messages.
Said the night wind to the little lamb.
" Do you see what I see?
Way up in the shy, little lamb.
A star, a star, dancing in the night
With a tail as big as the kite......
Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy,
"Do you hear what I hear?
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy,
Do you hear what I hear?
A song, a song high above the trees
With a voice as big as the the sea..
Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king,
"Do you know what I know?
In your palace warm, mighty king,
Do you know what I know?
A Child, a Child shivers in the cold--
Let us bring him silver and gold...
Said the King to the people everywhere,
"Listen to what I say!
Pray for peace, people, everywhere,
Listen to what I say!
The Child, the Child sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light.....
First of all, only those who listen carefully to the Lord will truly hear what He is saying. Only those who believe and trust in faith will hear God speaking. Secondly the message from the Lord is passed from one medium to another until the King reveals the truth to everyone - that we should all pray for peace, and that only the Christ child can bring us goodness and light up the darkness of our lives. Finally, as the Bishop pointed out this morning, in this context of the song arising in my heart at this time, New Year is all about Christmas. And Christmas is all about a new dispensation - what the theologians call the year of the Jubilee.
The second message was even more pointed, and follows on the first. Those who hear God, even " beyond the sacred pages of Holy Scripture", must be obedient to His revealed Word in Scripture. One morning, last week, my meditations and a " voice in my head", led me to this dramatic passage of Scripture.
" So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven".
Acts 26:19. NIV.
St. Paul was testifying to the authorities to whom he had appealed for justice after the Jews had sought to have him killed for spreading the " gospel". And in doing so, recounted the story of his conversion on the road to Damascus, and about which vision from heaven he now affirms his obedience.
The point here is that God is a talking God and will inform us of His Will. So we ought to be very careful as children of God, to indulge in passing resolutions, which are not ordained by the Lord. And making optimistic predictions which flow from the " foolishness" in our hearts rather than from the Word of God. But the important thing is to be obedient when the message is clear.
So how do we know when God speaks ?
I got an answer from Oswald Chambers on Day 2.
WILL YOU GO OUT WITHOUT KNOWING? OSWALD CHAMBERS' MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST JAN 2.
"He went out, not knowing whither he went." Hebrews 11:8
Have you been " out" in this way? If so, there is no logical statement possible when anyone asks you what are you doing. One of the difficulties in Christian work is this question ---" What do you expect to do?" You do not know what you are going to do; the only thing you know is that God knows what He is doing. ( This was the essence of the prayer of a young pastor who prayed for us at my workplace on the first working day in the year) Continually revise your attitude towards God and see if it is a going out of everything, trusting in God entirely. it is this attitude that keeps you in perpetual wonder -- you do not know what God is going to do next. Each morning you wake up it is to be a " going out", building in confidence on God. " Take no thought for your life...nor yet for your body" ---take no thought for the things for which you did take before you " went out".
Have you been asking God what is he going to do? He will never tell you. God does not tell you what he is going to do; He reveals Himself to you. Who He is. Do you believe in a miracle-working God, and will you go out in surrender to Him until you are not surprised an atom anything He does?
Suppose God is the God you know Him to be when you are nearest to Him -- what an impertinence worry is! Let the attitude of the life of be a continual " going out" in dependence on God, and your life will have an ineffable charm about it which is a satisfaction to Jesus. You have to learn to go out of your convictions, out of creeds, out of experiences, until so far as your faith is concerned, there is nothing between yourself and God.
Wow! " God does not tell you what he is going to do; He reveals Himself". Is Christmas an answer for all of us who are seeking to know God's will and predicting, and planning for, all kinds of things about which know nothing?
The last two messages are very clear and rooted in Scripture. One is a passage that I have been searching for. And the Lord woke me up in the middle of the night this past week to point me to it.
" For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him". Philippians 2:29 NIV.
No equivocation here. Journeying with Christ, in the new year or the old involves suffering. Sacrifice. Leaving behind attitudes and behaviours and places where we used to go, things we used to watch, and "stuff" we used to do and say. Plus the' persecution' from those who oppose us - even within the family.
Lastly, the Christian life is not about our deserving anything from God. Good economic fortune. Health and strength. Healthy relationships. Freedom from thieves and robbers, gunmen and fatalities on our roads. But rather being the recipients of God's mercy and being in a right relationship with Him, in and through the Christmas and Good Friday experience - culminating in Easter.
This is what I was told to read last night. And it began like this.
CHRIS TIEGEN EXTRAVAGANT MERCY JAN 3
" I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners "
Mark 2:17
............IN DEED God desires to be known in His mercy. Not just mercy, in fact but extravagant mercy. Incomprehensibly extravagant mercy. Mind-boggling mercy.....
ROMANS 9:14-16 & 11:32
" Just as it is written: Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated. What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all. For he says to Moses;
I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whim I have compassion.
It does not therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy......For God has given over all men to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all".
So last night I prayed with all my heart for mercy. Not for good fortune. But for God's mercy. For all my family. And myself. Immediate. Extended. Community. Church ( Anglican/Episcopalian, Baptist, Moravian, Roman Catholic, United, Church of God, Pentecostal and Seventh Day Adventist, all Evangelical churches) Internet. Road Safety. Work...as I recalled the experience of someone who was invited to go with someone else for a visit with family. The person suddenly feeling weak and tired, declined and instead, in obedience to a feeling deep in the soul, went upstairs to pray. Moments later, the person with whom the individual would have been travelling, was killed in a hail of bullets - in the car. The person testifying was not a Baptized Christian but grew up in the knowledge of God and prayed regularly.
Our God is a mysterious God, and is not to presumed upon, but to be listened to, and obeyed and to be asked for mercy. In the new year and in the old as He reveals Himself to us more and more in and through the Christ whose birth created a New and Eternal Life. Amen.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Obama mania and Christmas
I spent my Christmas in Obama country. Deep in Obama country. Actually it began at the airport in Jamaica where I bought the latest Newsweek magazine featuring Obama. Then in Miami; The Herald, CNN, CBS' feature 60 minutes, all " got into the act". You just could not escape him. Time magazine - special edition. Life magazine - special edition. Ebony - special edition. The inauguration plans; the campaign revisited again and again; Obama revealed - literally, as the press went ballistic over a shot of Obama in his bathing trunks. You really had to try hard and remember that it was Christmas and that Jesus Christ ought to be at the center of all things.
So in the midst of this Obama mania the Lord sent me through friends, His Word, and reflections from a past Saint, reasons why we need to vigilant about maintaining our focus on our Saviour's birth, death and resurrection.
The first one was a message from a friend, young Rev. Michael Elliot, who received a message from another friend. The message? My interpretation. Even with the best will in the world, which Obama admittedly has, only Christ alone satisfies the deepest longing of the human heart. Only Christ alone can raise us up, "When I am down and O my soul is weary; When troubles come and my heart burdened be...."
A Christmas Message from the Baptist World Alliance
What do you do: when you suffer severe loss and the cancer of loneliness gnaws away at the source of your energy,when the beast called malaria destroys the life of many and threatens to wipe out your family,when the dreadful sounds of war still drown out the gentle voices of little children,when your dream of a land to call your own remains stubbornly anchored in the realm of unlikely possibility? Just what do you do?
What do you do: when the economic tsunami that shakes the world rocks the foundations of your material security,when you look into the near future and see your name on the list of those who must be axed if the enterprise in which you work is to survive,when the uncertainty of preserving your ownership of the space in which you live, space you call your own, takes hold of you,when recent challenges to your health serve as undisputed evidence of your mortality? Just what do you do?
What do you do: when the dreams you once cherished retreat into oblivion before the darkness of unexpected misfortune,when the hopes you once embraced skittle from the calendar of the possible in ways that even the blind can see,when the doubts that flow over the contours of your mind take hold of you and threaten to erase the confident faith you once held dear, when the despair dealt out by the tragedies of this life erodes the vibrant hope and abundant joy you once enjoyed? Just what do you do?
You listen to the voice of the messenger who announces the message of Christmas: "Do not be afraid; for see - I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord" (Luke 2:10-11). The message of Christmas is about the coming of one who deals a comprehensive blow to the edifice of the argument serving our fears and erects, in its place, a lovely fountain from which flows endlessly the Good News that makes Christmas the special time it is: Jesus is here! God is here! We can take leave of our fears and find strength and security in the salvation that God makes available to us! May the confident faith that Christ's coming announces be yours throughout this season and in the coming years!
Neville Callam General Secretary Baptist World Alliance
The second one came right out of the Bible. And followed a deep meditation on the well known hymn; " I need thee every hour". Especially the line : " Stay Thou nearby Lord; Temptations lose their power when Thou art near...."
" Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you what the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid"
John 14:27 NIV
The message -which came out of my experience this Christmas. There are very few things that I absolutely need to get in life. I don't absolutely need to get the latest cell phone - the Blackberry Storm ( forget about the Pearl and the Curve). I don't absolutely have to buy those nice silk ties, the lovely dress shirts, the latest " Sketchers shoes", the flat screen HD TV. I can really do without them. I thank God for the gifts, but it is time to learn that that I can live without the " latest stuff". This is the essential point - within a wider context - made by Thomas Friedman in his latest book " Hot Flat and Crowded". The same world famous author who wrote the highly acclaimed, " The World is flat" and who now returns to focus on the America which seems to have lost its way, and highlights one such example, which resonates well with the rampant commercialism which threatens to replace the focus on Christ at Christmas. In the same way that, at this time, Obama threatens to do also.
"In some ways, the subprime mortgage mess and housing crisis are metaphors for what has come over America in recent years. A certain connection between hard work, achievement, and accountability has been broken. We've become a subprime nation that thinks it can borrow its way to prosperity - putting nothing down and and making no payments for two years. Subprime lenders told us that we could have the American dream - a home of our own - without the discipline or sacrifice that home ownership requires"
So yes, we absolutely need to read books, but not a lot of the other " stuff". But more importantly, what we absolutely do need in our lives, is a peace that only Christ can bring.
But what kind of Peace is this that we celebrate at Christmas. Chris Tiegen, to whom the Lord led me after reading the John passage on Peace, has one answer.
JESUS OUR PEACE
"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.".. Matthew 10: 34
IN WORD Isaiah prophesied about the coming " Prince of Peace". ( 9:6) The angels declared peace on earth in Luke 2:14 as they announced the coming Lord. But Jesus had a different declaration. People will fight about the truth of His words. They will draw swords against each other in heated conflict over His claims. The fact of His cross and resurrection would become history's greatest scandal. When persecution comes, friends and family members will turn each other in. And when judgement comes, He will be the dividing line by which families and nations are split.
Was His prophecy true? History bears it out. There is no more controversial figure in the entire human race than Jesus. He has been blessed as God incarnate and cursed as a man-made delusion. He has changed countless lives even while " scholars" have disputed whether He ever existed.
No, the kind of peace the world seeks is harmony on this planet. Jesus makes it clear that His peace is of a different order. It reconciles God with His traitorous and humanity with its holy God. It puts a new Spirit in a once conflicted heart. It is a peace within and a peace from above, but it is not a universal peace among our race. Many hate Him. It will always be so. Such is the rebellion of man......................
Some of my friends, who are not Christians, but who are part of this Internet Ministry, are often "scandalized" by Jesus' claims and therefore the church's assertion that " Jesus is the only way to the our Father in heaven". It is a point of view widely held in secular America and in particular, the media. So, here in Miami we often hear " Happy Holidays". And many editorials, even in Jamaica, focus on the " good works" aspect of the Christmas story. Sharing with the less fortunate, loving our neighbour and even tolerance of other people's view of God. It is a view which found its way into the Life magazine's special edition on Obama. It is a view which we must gently, but firmly renounce, even with those who are humbly seeking for answers to deep questions, as Obama obviously is . As to countenance any other view would be to do violence to what transpired on the cross of Calvary, and which divine act of Atonement, began, on earth, at Christmas.
' ......He was prepared to bear witness to his faith in God's purposes, discuss the influence of theology on his political philosophies, address the questions he raised in his first book: " How do we transform mere sentiment into love?" On the other hand there was certainly that if faith meant anything, it surely meant a call to action, to help the least among us, to be our brother's keepers. On the other, he was fully prepared to confess his doubts and talk of mystery, of what he didn't fully understand.
At a time when America grows even more diverse, when more than two thirds of people believe that ' many religions can lead to eternal life', Obama rejected " certainty theology" in favor of something more inquiring, more inclusive........'
Therefore as much as we all celebrated, and continue to do so, Obama's famous victory on Nov. 4. And as much as we celebrate Christmas with the exchange of gifts, enjoy the sweet fellowship of family, share with others in need, our greatest priority at this time is the Peace of God that passeth all human understanding. And which Peace only Christ alone offers.
Obama spoke to a particular need among Americans and indeed the entire world on Nov 4.
"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.
In a sense both Neville Callam earlier, and Chris Tiegen, in the following quotation, echo a similar but profoundly different sentiment, to a different set of questions. And the answers from both, serve to highlight the difference between frail man, Barack Obama, who needs our prayers, and God Almighty who at that first Christmas, became incarnate as Jesus Christ, and who alone is to be worshipped and glorified.
" For everyone who has ever wondered how God sees him or her; for everyone who has ever doubted God's love when a prayer has gone unanswered or a life has become broken; for everyone who has ever cried out to God, " Are you there?" or " Do you care?". Jesus is that answer: He has come to do God's will and His will is very, very good........."
So in the midst of this Obama mania the Lord sent me through friends, His Word, and reflections from a past Saint, reasons why we need to vigilant about maintaining our focus on our Saviour's birth, death and resurrection.
The first one was a message from a friend, young Rev. Michael Elliot, who received a message from another friend. The message? My interpretation. Even with the best will in the world, which Obama admittedly has, only Christ alone satisfies the deepest longing of the human heart. Only Christ alone can raise us up, "When I am down and O my soul is weary; When troubles come and my heart burdened be...."
A Christmas Message from the Baptist World Alliance
What do you do: when you suffer severe loss and the cancer of loneliness gnaws away at the source of your energy,when the beast called malaria destroys the life of many and threatens to wipe out your family,when the dreadful sounds of war still drown out the gentle voices of little children,when your dream of a land to call your own remains stubbornly anchored in the realm of unlikely possibility? Just what do you do?
What do you do: when the economic tsunami that shakes the world rocks the foundations of your material security,when you look into the near future and see your name on the list of those who must be axed if the enterprise in which you work is to survive,when the uncertainty of preserving your ownership of the space in which you live, space you call your own, takes hold of you,when recent challenges to your health serve as undisputed evidence of your mortality? Just what do you do?
What do you do: when the dreams you once cherished retreat into oblivion before the darkness of unexpected misfortune,when the hopes you once embraced skittle from the calendar of the possible in ways that even the blind can see,when the doubts that flow over the contours of your mind take hold of you and threaten to erase the confident faith you once held dear, when the despair dealt out by the tragedies of this life erodes the vibrant hope and abundant joy you once enjoyed? Just what do you do?
You listen to the voice of the messenger who announces the message of Christmas: "Do not be afraid; for see - I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord" (Luke 2:10-11). The message of Christmas is about the coming of one who deals a comprehensive blow to the edifice of the argument serving our fears and erects, in its place, a lovely fountain from which flows endlessly the Good News that makes Christmas the special time it is: Jesus is here! God is here! We can take leave of our fears and find strength and security in the salvation that God makes available to us! May the confident faith that Christ's coming announces be yours throughout this season and in the coming years!
Neville Callam General Secretary Baptist World Alliance
The second one came right out of the Bible. And followed a deep meditation on the well known hymn; " I need thee every hour". Especially the line : " Stay Thou nearby Lord; Temptations lose their power when Thou art near...."
" Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you what the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid"
John 14:27 NIV
The message -which came out of my experience this Christmas. There are very few things that I absolutely need to get in life. I don't absolutely need to get the latest cell phone - the Blackberry Storm ( forget about the Pearl and the Curve). I don't absolutely have to buy those nice silk ties, the lovely dress shirts, the latest " Sketchers shoes", the flat screen HD TV. I can really do without them. I thank God for the gifts, but it is time to learn that that I can live without the " latest stuff". This is the essential point - within a wider context - made by Thomas Friedman in his latest book " Hot Flat and Crowded". The same world famous author who wrote the highly acclaimed, " The World is flat" and who now returns to focus on the America which seems to have lost its way, and highlights one such example, which resonates well with the rampant commercialism which threatens to replace the focus on Christ at Christmas. In the same way that, at this time, Obama threatens to do also.
"In some ways, the subprime mortgage mess and housing crisis are metaphors for what has come over America in recent years. A certain connection between hard work, achievement, and accountability has been broken. We've become a subprime nation that thinks it can borrow its way to prosperity - putting nothing down and and making no payments for two years. Subprime lenders told us that we could have the American dream - a home of our own - without the discipline or sacrifice that home ownership requires"
So yes, we absolutely need to read books, but not a lot of the other " stuff". But more importantly, what we absolutely do need in our lives, is a peace that only Christ can bring.
But what kind of Peace is this that we celebrate at Christmas. Chris Tiegen, to whom the Lord led me after reading the John passage on Peace, has one answer.
JESUS OUR PEACE
"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.".. Matthew 10: 34
IN WORD Isaiah prophesied about the coming " Prince of Peace". ( 9:6) The angels declared peace on earth in Luke 2:14 as they announced the coming Lord. But Jesus had a different declaration. People will fight about the truth of His words. They will draw swords against each other in heated conflict over His claims. The fact of His cross and resurrection would become history's greatest scandal. When persecution comes, friends and family members will turn each other in. And when judgement comes, He will be the dividing line by which families and nations are split.
Was His prophecy true? History bears it out. There is no more controversial figure in the entire human race than Jesus. He has been blessed as God incarnate and cursed as a man-made delusion. He has changed countless lives even while " scholars" have disputed whether He ever existed.
No, the kind of peace the world seeks is harmony on this planet. Jesus makes it clear that His peace is of a different order. It reconciles God with His traitorous and humanity with its holy God. It puts a new Spirit in a once conflicted heart. It is a peace within and a peace from above, but it is not a universal peace among our race. Many hate Him. It will always be so. Such is the rebellion of man......................
Some of my friends, who are not Christians, but who are part of this Internet Ministry, are often "scandalized" by Jesus' claims and therefore the church's assertion that " Jesus is the only way to the our Father in heaven". It is a point of view widely held in secular America and in particular, the media. So, here in Miami we often hear " Happy Holidays". And many editorials, even in Jamaica, focus on the " good works" aspect of the Christmas story. Sharing with the less fortunate, loving our neighbour and even tolerance of other people's view of God. It is a view which found its way into the Life magazine's special edition on Obama. It is a view which we must gently, but firmly renounce, even with those who are humbly seeking for answers to deep questions, as Obama obviously is . As to countenance any other view would be to do violence to what transpired on the cross of Calvary, and which divine act of Atonement, began, on earth, at Christmas.
' ......He was prepared to bear witness to his faith in God's purposes, discuss the influence of theology on his political philosophies, address the questions he raised in his first book: " How do we transform mere sentiment into love?" On the other hand there was certainly that if faith meant anything, it surely meant a call to action, to help the least among us, to be our brother's keepers. On the other, he was fully prepared to confess his doubts and talk of mystery, of what he didn't fully understand.
At a time when America grows even more diverse, when more than two thirds of people believe that ' many religions can lead to eternal life', Obama rejected " certainty theology" in favor of something more inquiring, more inclusive........'
Therefore as much as we all celebrated, and continue to do so, Obama's famous victory on Nov. 4. And as much as we celebrate Christmas with the exchange of gifts, enjoy the sweet fellowship of family, share with others in need, our greatest priority at this time is the Peace of God that passeth all human understanding. And which Peace only Christ alone offers.
Obama spoke to a particular need among Americans and indeed the entire world on Nov 4.
"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.
In a sense both Neville Callam earlier, and Chris Tiegen, in the following quotation, echo a similar but profoundly different sentiment, to a different set of questions. And the answers from both, serve to highlight the difference between frail man, Barack Obama, who needs our prayers, and God Almighty who at that first Christmas, became incarnate as Jesus Christ, and who alone is to be worshipped and glorified.
" For everyone who has ever wondered how God sees him or her; for everyone who has ever doubted God's love when a prayer has gone unanswered or a life has become broken; for everyone who has ever cried out to God, " Are you there?" or " Do you care?". Jesus is that answer: He has come to do God's will and His will is very, very good........."
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