Determination.

Determination.
With God, all things are possible. So buckle up, show up, and NEVER give up.

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Whack-a-Mole Christianity


Ever since Sunday school I've had the picture in my head all wrong. It seemed everybody wanted to make those Pharisees in the Bible out to be such villains. How dare they get it so wrong about Jesus? How could they be such hypocrites. How could they be so blind to how much THEY needed the Savior?

I originally wanted to list all the occasions where these infamous Pharisees are recorded in indicting situations, and receiving rebuke from Christ. But here's one in particular that can serve as the prototype for most all of them:

John 8:3-5:
"The pastors and life-long church-goers brought in a woman caught stating she was a homosexual. They told her story on Facebook and said to Jesus,'Teacher, this woman was caught being sexually immoral. We all know that's against God's commands in Scripture, and we're commanded to ostracize her from our churches, stop talking to her, and shame her publicly. Now what do you say?' "

OOPS. I mis-typed that a little bit. But if you know your Bible well or looked up or Googled John 8:3-5 to see how far off I was with my hyperbolic translation, you realize I'm not taking any liberties. 

The Pharisees aren't our villainous scape goats of Sunday School stories. They are you and me (or at least they very well may be). 

What was Jesus' response to the Pharisees - the super religious people of the day - when they put him on the spot?

"If any one of you is without sin, let him throw the first stone at [the woman caught in adultery]."

**Let me make a disclaimer quickly before I proceed: I have a pretty specific crowd in mind as I write this. I'm writing this to, firstly, MYSELF, because for many years my own pride in my spiritual standing has been founded in so many silly things that don't count with God that I can't name them all. And despite the work He's done on my heart recently, I still have mental constructs and lies within my heart that I have to catch and correct daily. Next, I write this for every one of you who went to a Christian school, entered a Christian ministry position, or has a shiny church attendance record and - if you look deep down - believes this is something God pats you on the back for. I write it for the moralists and the politically active who like to throw their hat in with "conservatives" and "right wingers" and "Republicans" when it comes to social issues like abortion, homosexuality, gay marriage, and every other politicized issue that's making the world think Christians just want others to behave like them. Listen, if the shoe fits, WEAR IT.**

People...we have seen this verse umpteen times. We KNOW it's in the Bible that Jesus himself stood up for someone who was openly a sinner and, instead of siding with the experts in religion and theology, whose lifestyles were so outwardly commendable, he reminded them rhetorically that they too were sinners and, therefore, had no right to condemn. 

Moments later he spoke to this woman using a gentleness and grace that is all too rare these days:

"Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"

"No one, sir." She said.

"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin." 

Jesus didn't entirely let her off the hook and convey there was nothing wrong with her sinfulness. But he showed her that, with Jesus, there is forgiveness. 



I'm at the point where I almost can't stand it anymore. In everything I read or see in society, or especially in social media (where hearts are really worn on the sleeve), my eyes and heart are bombarded with all the vitriol. The way some of us viciously attack others who disagree with us! The way we rip to shreds the intelligence level, the sanctity level, or even the level of humanity of those who oppose the Biblical viewpoint on hot topics these days -- my, my, my....I have had my moments too, sadly. But I can't handle this hatred, this animosity, and this verbal violence being a representation of what Christians are in 21st century America. 

It's gotten to the point where so many of us out there - in my close circles, or strangers on the internet, and anywhere in between - are going about their lives like being a Christian is a game of "whack-a-mole." "Oh, there's a sinner!" *WHACK!* "Oh, there's another sinner!" *WHACK!* "Oh - *gasp* a homosexual!" *WHACK WHACK!* 

We are in an age of continual outrage as Christians. And it has to stop. We are called to be witnesses, not to come out guns blazing with every disturbing headline in the news or law passed or repugnant thing you think a neighbor, coworker, or friend on social media did. 


Robert Paul Wolff said, "...Moral outrage is the last resort of the powerless." 

Is that what we feel? Do we feel powerless? Do we feel like no one is standing with us or standing up for us?

Do we realize how errant it is if we think it's US at all that are being offended? 

Make no mistake about it. We are all in the gallows to which we point our adamant fingers. 

Romans 3:23 reminds us that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace."

Both pieces of that verse are critical for breaking apart our stony, judgmental hearts. We ALL have sinned. Who are we to place one category or quantity of sin above or below another's? Who are we to think that God can forgive my sins, but someone else's need to have a floodlight cast upon them for all the world to see, like a prisoner trying to escape a POW camp? 



Apples...oranges... Homosexuals...owners of lustful thoughts... Abortionists...haters and slanderers... Potty-mouths...potty-minds... Those who don't go to church...those who go to church thinking it makes them right with God...

All. Have. Sinned. They. Have. Sinned. I. Have. Sinned. 

Your sin is just as ugly and wretched when you think it's your job to point out every other sinner we should turn up our noses against. Their sin or category or label is public content. Yours may be more private. How would you like it if it WEREN'T? I know I wouldn't!

AND....all are justified freely by His grace. It covers them. It covers you and me. We are no different. These high horses need to be dismounted from, and spanked with a "yah!" to be sent galloping off into the hills. 



The point with all of this is: studying how Jesus interacted with the sinners of his generation shows that his way of addressing sin was radically a different way from how many in the Church seem to think it should be done. And we wonder why the culture is so anti-Christian! They're simply repelled by all the anger and vehemence and moral outrage. They see us doing nothing but pointing with our fingers instead of reaching out our hands. 

What are we afraid of?

Next time one of these people you think should be an outcast is found before you in your life, what if you engaged with them? What if you invited him or her to church? What if you stopped what you were doing, or paused where you were going, and had a discussion - lovingly and humbly - about whatever they wanted to discuss? What if you became a friend to that person? What if you learned their story? What would it cost you?

I'm betting it would cost you nothing, and grant you much. 

Ultimately, that would be the only way you'd ever have the opportunity to influence them to see the truth to which you and I hold so firmly, trusting in our Lord. They sure won't come to that truth if their head is bruised from our "whack-a-mole" mallet. 

Perhaps this is all summed up best by something written by a friend of mine, who works in ministry here in the Midwest:

"In all of this, I need to remember this very important thing: It is the Gospel that changes hearts. We're in a season right now where far too many Christians are trying to "stand up for the truth" by standing in opposition to same-sex marriage, as though getting people to follow God's Law is the goal. It's not. The goal is to introduce them to Jesus. Let your life be a testament to what he has done for you, and how much you love him, and let that be what brings people to him."

We cannot ask for legislation of morality, folks. We cannot expect that our country will be granted a renaissance of godly spirituality through the functions of government. Stop thinking it all comes down to picketing, boycotting, and crossing your arms with a big frown on your face. Unless your endgame is for the world to see Christians as a bunch of legalistic grumps. But good luck talking to anyone about God's grace in your own life that way. 



Let your guard down. Have conversations. Get into the messes with people. Let your light shine (don't use a flame-thrower!). God's powerful goodness and mercy will do the work. Just be the "jar of clay" (2 Corinthians 4:7) who's good at making friends and sharing the hope you have found for yourself. Love this world as your Savior has loved you and has found you desirable enough to save. 

We are ALL saved by the same grace. Praise God for that!





Saturday, September 5, 2015

Enter the Fray


Don't you look away. Don't you dare.

If any of what I have to say stands a chance of sinking in the way it ought to, you must start with the grotesque truth. 

Before writing this, I put images like this before my eyes for the first time in a little while. I'd seen the flash in a pan stuff associated with the videos that have been released this summer, exposing Planned Parenthood. But it had been a while since I sat and looked at a picture of an aborted child. Not an aborted fetus, an aborted child. 

Looking at images like this didn't take long to bring me to tears. Those tears were of grief, for the hideousness of the loss of precious life. They were tears of anger, as I almost snapped a sharpie in my hand from clenching it so hard, thinking that this has been allowed to go on over 40 years. They were tears of intervention, a desperate pleading for mercy from God - mercy on our country, where images like this are of something legal, and not a crime

I remember a time when, as a high schooler, I used to point out to others, in my frustration, how contradictory it was for the law to count as two deaths the death of a pregnant mother in an auto accident. "What if she was on her way to an abortion clinic??" I'd say, and plead for your agreement that this was so backwards. 

Somehow...to my shame...this issue has dimmed in the spotlight of my heart and mind over the years since I first grappled with it. But recently, God has nudged my conscience repeatedly, and I've had my moment of realizing I must do more. 

Have you had your moment? 

Take an extra 2 minutes - please! - and click the link below for a slice of a message at Hope Church, given last Sunday. For right now, listen from 21:30 to 23:40 (though I'd highly recommend setting aside the 42 minutes to listen to the whole thing when you can, or go check it out at www.hopeinjesus.org. 


There is a lot of outcry in our lands today, for many different reasons. And if your personal outcry, about which you've already taken action and are passionately committed to making a difference, is something else besides this, God bless you in that. May you stand strong. May you "seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God." 

But if not, listen up. God has called us. He has called you and I to do something about this.

In 2013, 3 people were killed by the explosion at the Boston Marathon, arranged by a terrorist. There was massive outcry for justice. 

In 1995, 168 people were killed in Timothy McVeigh's bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building. There was a massive outcry for justice. When he was executed, you probably weren't sad about it. Maybe you even nodded in righteous approval. 

On September 11th, 2001, nearly 3,000 of our dear American citizens were killed when terrorists flew hijacked airliners into the World Trade Center towers. America went to war over it. The outcry still lives in the hearts of many, and we are a country divided to this day over the issue of how to view Muslims. 

Where is our outcry over abortion??

Where is our outcry over the 57,000,000 (that's 57 MILLION) babies who have died in America since the Roe v. Wade decision??


There are several reasons why we might not do something about this issue. The reason that it's not wrong, and that a woman has sacred rights to her own body that supercede those of anything/anyone growing inside her - - THIS reason is for a different discussion. If you uphold this reason, I really truly pray for you, and hope that your eyes are someday opened, and the lie is cast out. 

But other reasons exist too that have held far too great a power over us as Christians. We might agree it's terrible, yet feel powerless to change anything. "What can I do as one person?" might be the thought inside. Or we might feel at a loss for where to start. "What part of the warpath should I first step foot on?" we ask. 

Frankly, I think the biggest reason most of us do basically nothing is that we are like the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. We are "overfed and unconcerned."

Hold on a second, you say. What gives you the right to lump us into that kind of company?

See what God said about Sodom and Gomorrah in Ezekiel 16:49-50:

"Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom:
She and her daughters were arrogant, 
overfed and unconcerned;
they did not help the poor and needy.
They were haughty and did 
detestable things before me.
Therefore I did away with them 
as you have seen."

Sounds like the masses in America, doesn't it? Sounds like the corruption, the moral backsliding, and the general apathy that's out there on account of being a society that, for the most part, has it better than 90% or more of the rest of the world's population. We have fast food chains whose coverage maps shame those of cell phone providers. We have our flat screens, our smartphones, our jacuzzis. We have our flex spending accounts, our grocery stores with entire aisles dedicated to just chips.We have our IMax theaters, our $200 Nikes, our sofa sectionals, and our "bling." We have our cake, and boy, do we eat it too. 

That passage also sounds like you and me. Don't shake your head or cross your arms at me. We have everything...except the time of day for causes that matter. 

Disagree? 

What do our calendars look like?
What do our spending histories look like?
What do we most cry over?

Is abortion still running rampant in our country? 
Don't our children still die in the womb or on cold metal trays because we choose in favor of ourselves and our comfort, or because we don't know we have other choices?
Don't women still get bullied by someone else into thinking abortion is her duty in her circumstance?
Don't people that we know go on down the road, led by the conformity to a politician's statement, or the murmur of the crowd on social media, simply because actual conversations with others about sensitive issues make us uncomfortable?

We are the apathetic ones. We are the ones ignoring the outcry. We are the ones preferring to play Judge instead of entering the fray and rolling our sleeves up and DOING SOMETHING about this. We are the ones who, by veritably sitting by and allowing injustice to happen over and over, are no better for that than those carrying out the heinous acts themselves. And meanwhile we content ourselves to think,

"Somebody else will do something."

Somebody else is YOU. Somebody else is ME. 

Enter the fray with me, brothers and sisters. Stand up against the injustice being done, and find a way - any way you can - to take action, in prayer AND donation. In prayer AND adoption. In prayer AND foster parenting. In prayer AND volunteering to get the word out there that there is another option besides ending new lives God has started knitting together in the womb. 

One such place you can begin is in support of an organization like WELS Lutheran for Life (www.alife2.com). Their mission is "Saving the life of a baby, transforming the family from at-risk to thriving, and doing it all again tomorrow." They need your prayers, they need your monetary first-fruits, and they even need your hands, feet, and voices! They are acting on behalf of God's children who cannot speak for themselves!


The point is, let's not sit idly by any longer. The outcry has been reaching God's ears for over 40 long years. We are God's church. We are his "church militant," as some like to say. Well, then let's get militant already. Let's form ranks. Let's put on the full armor of God, and with boldness and an audacity for justice, march out and take action in answer to the outcry in our land! 

Please.....don't ignore this. Let the Holy Spirit speak to you about this. Don't be afraid to put yourself out there. Enter the fray. 

For me, this all started because one day, I realized I'd only written my own posts on social media, or shared someone else's, about this issue...and that's it. One day God whispered to my soul that he wanted me to take a step (or a thousand, I don't know yet) farther than that. I have taken a couple steps onto the warpath for myself (beyond just writing this). I'm saying "Here am I, Lord, send me!" 

Will you? The warpath awaits, soldier.