We gathered last night as a rag-tag group of followers. We were imperfect, and are imperfect, yet we gathered in Your name and for Your glory. We who are imperfect at work and school and home, gathered to here a word from You.
And the word was Vision.
Sight. See. Notice. Watch.
We learned that revelation--seeing You and Your world--is key to being transformed. We are not molded until we begin to see. We are not shaped until we see Your shape. We cannot love until we witness Your love. Our hearts cannot beat for You until our eyes are unveiled to Your glory; until we are in awe of Your beauty.
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I am sitting in my office this morning. There is music playing from the computer I am using to type this. There is a small space heater hidden under my desk warming my feet and legs. I have a to-do list sitting to the left of me, my water sitting right next to the screen, and a stack of books over to the right. I have things to accomplish, lessons to work on, people to email...
But...
But I cannot escape the need for Vision. To see You, and to see You with Your eyes. And I wonder, am I alone? I wonder if there are others needing to be reminded of you, to see You with fresh eyes this morning?
What Vision of You do I need to remember today?
Is it the Incarnation?
In this moment do I need to remember that You went from perfection to human? Do I need to remember that You crawled into my messy world and walked with me? Do I need to remember that I am not above other people's messy lives, but that I, like You, can jump into the mess of their lives to help them see a better way?
Is it the Crucifixion?
In this moment do I need to remember that You--all powerful and everything in Your control--willingly gave up life itself (and You are life itself!). That You sacrificed Yourself for me, taking on my sin. Do I need to remember that true love is sacrificial. It is not self-serving. True love dies for its beloved.
Is it the Resurrection?
In this moment do I need to remember that You are more powerful than death, darkness, and sin. That You are already victorious and reigning and that Your kingdom is already here and is still on the way! Do I need to remember that the old system, the way the world does things, is not powerful against You and Your army of light. That in the end I will be justified for choosing You and for living according to Your word. Do I need to remember the power of Your victory?
Or is it the daily moments that you walked this earth?
You fed the poor. You cast out demons. You showed love to the prostitutes, the traitors, the violent, and the timid. You cared for Your enemies, and you fed those without food. You accepted homelessness to show people God. You taught us that we are to do likewise. That it is not Christian to pray for the destitute but do nothing to help. You taught that we are not to look the other way when we see injustice and poverty and violence. We are to step up and be like you. Caring for both the victim and the guilty.
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Lord, help us to see You today. Let my little world in office and home grow bigger as I seek to act like You. Let me be a picture of You today, so others may see You through me.
Amen.
Showing posts with label Transformation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Transformation. Show all posts
Monday, February 17, 2014
Monday, July 11, 2011
Would God Really?
The title of this post is in my opinion the most dangerous question we can ask.
Would God really?
Would God really condemn homosexuality?
Would God really send people to hell?
Would God really create man and woman with different roles?
Would he?
I have a major issue with this type of language. Let me explain the danger of this little phrase.
First, this phrase expresses a secret atheism. I believe that among many modern Christians a moderated atheism has become an acceptable norm. This strand of atheism expresses itself by creating for oneself a form of godliness that fits the cultural norms that we have established for ourselves. In other words, we suggest that if our God doesn't believe exactly as we do, he must not be much of a God. This is the crux of secret atheism. We don't really believe in a God that is beyond our scope, our mind, our capability. We only want the religious experience and the peace it brings. In other words, we desire the peace found in the gospel without the God who brings the gospel.
Second, when we pose the question "Would God really?" we are suffering from cultural elitism. Think about this for a second. The Middle Ages (and much of the religious right) struggle with the question of whether God would really call us to a life of peace. When we assume that God couldn't condemn certain lifestyles, certain supposed victimless crimes, what we really assume is that our current culture understands the ultimate direction required for societal perfection. This is the same elitist mindset that declared the earth was flat. We cannot trust ourselves as the ultimate standard of the universe, of God's creation, or of God's design for human life.
Third, what we are really saying when we say "would God really" is something more like this: This is so far removed from my understanding that I refuse to acknowledge God if he works this way. In other words, we again want to place God in a box we can understand.
If God really created everything (think about that for a minute: everything!), can't we expect him to have a little different viewpoint on the world than we do? Can't we expect that God says things, does things, teaches things, and commands things that just plain don't make sense to us?
This week, I will look at several issues where God says things that go against our cultural senses. I am going to try to be fair with biblical texts, even when they make me squirm (and some issues that come up in the Bible really do make me uncomfortable). I ask you to join me, challenge yourself to take God's word seriously.
Perhaps he will make you uncomfortable. It may scare you. But transformation is always difficult, it always hurts. If we are truly Christian, if we are truly followers of God, than we must allow Him to transform us through His word. Imagine if a caterpillar never became a butterfly because if feared the transformation within the chrysalis. The beauty God intended for it would be missed altogether. Join me, and perhaps we can transform ourselves into something better entirely: Faithful People.
Topics:
Wednesday: Gender Roles
Thursday: Peacefulness
Friday: Unity
Monday: Homosexuality
Tuesday: Eternal Judgment
Wednesday: Redemption
I look forward to some good conversations!
Would God really?
Would God really condemn homosexuality?
Would God really send people to hell?
Would God really create man and woman with different roles?
Would he?
I have a major issue with this type of language. Let me explain the danger of this little phrase.
First, this phrase expresses a secret atheism. I believe that among many modern Christians a moderated atheism has become an acceptable norm. This strand of atheism expresses itself by creating for oneself a form of godliness that fits the cultural norms that we have established for ourselves. In other words, we suggest that if our God doesn't believe exactly as we do, he must not be much of a God. This is the crux of secret atheism. We don't really believe in a God that is beyond our scope, our mind, our capability. We only want the religious experience and the peace it brings. In other words, we desire the peace found in the gospel without the God who brings the gospel.
Second, when we pose the question "Would God really?" we are suffering from cultural elitism. Think about this for a second. The Middle Ages (and much of the religious right) struggle with the question of whether God would really call us to a life of peace. When we assume that God couldn't condemn certain lifestyles, certain supposed victimless crimes, what we really assume is that our current culture understands the ultimate direction required for societal perfection. This is the same elitist mindset that declared the earth was flat. We cannot trust ourselves as the ultimate standard of the universe, of God's creation, or of God's design for human life.
Third, what we are really saying when we say "would God really" is something more like this: This is so far removed from my understanding that I refuse to acknowledge God if he works this way. In other words, we again want to place God in a box we can understand.
If God really created everything (think about that for a minute: everything!), can't we expect him to have a little different viewpoint on the world than we do? Can't we expect that God says things, does things, teaches things, and commands things that just plain don't make sense to us?
This week, I will look at several issues where God says things that go against our cultural senses. I am going to try to be fair with biblical texts, even when they make me squirm (and some issues that come up in the Bible really do make me uncomfortable). I ask you to join me, challenge yourself to take God's word seriously.
Perhaps he will make you uncomfortable. It may scare you. But transformation is always difficult, it always hurts. If we are truly Christian, if we are truly followers of God, than we must allow Him to transform us through His word. Imagine if a caterpillar never became a butterfly because if feared the transformation within the chrysalis. The beauty God intended for it would be missed altogether. Join me, and perhaps we can transform ourselves into something better entirely: Faithful People.
Topics:
Wednesday: Gender Roles
Thursday: Peacefulness
Friday: Unity
Monday: Homosexuality
Tuesday: Eternal Judgment
Wednesday: Redemption
I look forward to some good conversations!
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