More Paradigm Shifts

I went to church this past Sunday at a church where nobody knew me. Just as a visitor…no responsibilities or others looking to me for an answer.

It was really nice.

You notice different things when you’re just one of the people in the congregation. I suppose I was like most folks in the fact that I wanted only a few things out of the service. I wanted to laugh one good time, find something in the sermon that meant something to me personally, and I wanted my children to have a good time. That was it. Yep, I was that guy – the guy ministers complain about all the time: the consumer. But I noticed something by the end of the service. The pastor was trying so hard. I felt bad for him. I’ve tried that hard before. It sucks.

I see arena-style church services everywhere I go. But never before have I been so disillusioned with them. These are the ones where the guy or girl gets up in front of everyone. They all face the same direction and watch Pro Presenter backgrounds. Everyone is trying so hard to engage a lethargic group of people.  I’m personally in a the midst of a radically changing paradigm.  Much of the professional church world is consumed with its own progress. And that progress is most often tied to “nickels and noses.” Money and attendance. In fact, the success touted by many churches over Easter weekend had to do with attendance rather than heart change.

As a minister, I think I’m pretty much done with that game. I have two new goals now. One has to with my job as a minister and on has to do with those to whom I am serving. My new job description is this: to partner with what God is already doing rather than “starting” something that others will find appealing. Honestly I’m just too tired to do that any longer. And for people, my goal is to help them realize what God thinks of them and assist them in doing the ”greater works” that Jesus talked about. It’s not to get them to sit down and listen to me. It’s to help them listen to God. I can’t help anyone anyway.

I’m not sure where that is going to lead me. But I plan to enjoy the journey.

The Preachers

In two potentially narcissistic posts, I’d like to share some of the preachers/teachers and books that have really shaped my worldview, influenced my reading of the Bible, and transformed my preaching style.

Now, as I’ve said before, I’m a spiritual “mutt.” I have no problem with this. Mutts can be good dogs, too. And I think this becomes fairly clear when I start listing influences in my spiritual life. Though I’m Wesleyan through and through, there aren’t many Methodists in this list. It’s also interesting that I’ve met very few of those that have influenced me the most.

Malcolm Smith. Hands down, this guy is the most spiritually influential teacher in my life. Somewhere along the way, my grandmother pulled out a series of tapes (yes, tapes) by a Charismatic Episcopal Bible teacher named Malcolm Smith. He said more about theology, practical living, and pastoral guidance in one sermon than all the sermons I’d previously heard combined. I listened for hours. I’m still listening.

Martyn Ll0yd-Jones. Lloyd-Jones is an icon in Christian circles. Pastor of Westminster Chapel in later years, he is one of the most articulate and precise preachers I have ever heard. For years, Lloyd-Jones was a medical doctor and when he answered the call to preach, he brought that same “surgical” expository style to his sermons. Listening to ”the Doctor” is like watching someone peel back layers of an onion. For him, the gospel was only as good as it was practical.

Greg Boyd. Theology professor turned pastor, listening to Greg is like listening to a mad man. He’s all over the place. But his understanding of God and his ability to relay the importance of the cross is unmatched. Greg goes where many preachers do not go – he always has a fresh perspective. Rarely have I seen a male pastor give so much attention to soul care and the emotional, intuitive side of Christianity. He’s a joy to listen to.

John Lynch. This guy is a new find for me. Mix a dry wit and a message of radical grace and you’ll get John’s sermons. He’s the teaching pastor at Open Door Fellowship Church in Phoenix, Arizona. I love the fact that John never gets tired of his central message: the love and grace of God. But more than a conceptual model, John talks about how grace makes its way into our practical lives. Good stuff.

There are others I listen to: Andy Stanley, John Eldredge, Craig Groeschel, etc. But for many people, the guys above are off the radar. Give them a listen when you have time.

There’s one more preacher I should mention: my former boss, Leigh Ann Raynor. She’s the Senior Minister at Porterfield UMC in Albany, Georgia. The first time I heard Leigh Ann speak, I was fascinated. Previously, I had preached countless sermons in a more extemporaneous style…and all the pitfalls that came with it: lack of clarity, rambling, and flippant regard for the time of those listening to me. Somewhere along the way God began to convict me that if I couldn’t say what I needed to say within about 25 minutes, then I was being a bad steward of the time I was given to speak. Now, that’s not for everyone – it’s just what I felt God was saying to me. So, while attending her services and serving on her staff I took notes not only on what Leigh Ann said but how she said it. Every word was chosen carefully and delivered with an extemporaneous feel…but she was preaching from a transcript. After a slow marriage of the two, I now preach in a style that is similar to hers. The point? Don’t ever underestimate the influence of a local minister. If you are one, take heart –  people are listening more than you think.

There’s a Little Bit of Judas…, Part 2

We were sitting outside having a picnic last Saturday in the front yard – Beth and the girls and me. Now, to that point we hadn’t mowed the yard this Spring. And until about six days ago it didn’t need it. But after a few days of rain and temperatures in the 70s, every weed known to man sprouted in my yard. Every weed, people. The girls loved it however and with the arrival of each pollen-infested bloom, they talked about how beautiful the “flowers” were. Full of allergy medicine, I kept trying to tell them that they were not real flowers. Just weeds that…well…bloomed. They weren’t buying it. They loved their yard full of flowers.

But as we sat outside last Saturday, the lawn care company showed up. That guy (at Dad’s request) took his John Deer professional grade lawnmower off the back of his trailer and plowed right through the center of the girls’ “flower garden.” And that’s when I heard a chorus of screams behind me. The girls wailed as their flowers were destroyed. It was horrible to watch. At first I thought about fleeing the scene of the crime. Then I thought, If I start screaming too, maybe they won’t see me as complicit in the crime. In the end, I fell back on a father’s tried and true method: I attempted to reason with a dependent. I consoled Claire Grace, “Honey, they’re just weeds. Our yard will look better with them cut down.” “No Dad! They’re flowers!” “No sweetie, they’re just weeds.” In that moment, I came to the horrible conclusion that I had just taught my daughter how to discriminate. In a subtle way I had taught her that some “flowers” weren’t as valuable as others. I said that for the same reason I buy into discrimination: someone had taught me the same concept when I was her age. But who gave me the right to decide which flowers my daughters should love?

Let me see if I can tie this to Judas. Judas wasn’t just betraying Jesus’ whereabouts – but something much deeper. Judas was betraying himself. He betrayed his own ability to love others by refusing to manipulate or discriminate against them. That’s why the word betray literally means “to hand one over” – you are discriminating against someone’s ability to choose for themselves and handing over their decision to someone else you think can do a better job. One’s agenda for that of another. Judas essentially did that to Jesus – he felt he knew a better way. That’s not too difficult for anyone to do, particularly when we feel we know what is best in a given situation. But its motivation is always pride. But love does the opposite. Love frees us to allow others to make their own choices. And that’s exactly what the cross does. In the cross, Jesus says, “I have died for you. Now, what is your choice? Here is my life. What do you plan to do with yours?” The cross doesn’t discriminate. It gives everyone the same choice. Their own choice.

Holy Week can bring about different emotions in people. Some people are bored with the same story of the cross and resurrection.  I’ve been in that category before. For some, it reveals the character of God for the first time. I’ve been in that category, too. And this is what I’ve settled on: how the cross happened is somewhat of a mystery. I can’t tell you the mechanics of how the cross saves me exactly. There are lots of theories on that. But why the cross happened is as clear as day. The cross gives us an event that we can point to and say, “God, I know you love me because no one ever laid down their life for me like you did. I will never doubt your character because I’ve seen your love for me in action…and it beckons me to know you more.”

I think Jesus would’ve restored Judas just like he did Peter. That is if Judas had felt worthy of restoration. After all, Judas was a weed, right? Worthy of thirty snakes for his thirty sins. But it’s important to see exactly who Jesus invited to the table to share in his final meal. In those disciples, every range of faith and doubt existed at that table – those who loved Jesus and those who would betray him. The weeds and the flowers. The only reason Judas could betray Jesus was because Jesus had invited him there anyway. And that’s the beauty of the cross – all manner of people in various stages of belief find themselves at the “table” of the body and the blood of Christ. The invitation is to everyone. And this year we are invited to the table of his death and resurrection again. Jesus invites intimacy and closeness regardless of your spiritual condition. God doesn’t discriminate. And we can reconnect with that spiritual truth this week: the indiscriminate love of God poured out for us at the cross and the power of resurrection life returned to us.

There’s a Little Bit of Judas…, Part 1

John 13:21-32

The United Methodist Lectionary gives a few scriptures to preach from during each day of Holy Week. There were four for today. This one I immediately shied away from. I actually had already mentally worked on an outline for one of the other passages. But then I began to realize why I shied away from the story of Judas. I was afraid. It is really difficult to craft a sermon from such a daunting passage, simply because there seems like there’s no middle ground with Judas – either you over-vilify him…or you are too lenient on him. So for me, choosing this passage was an exercise in faith. Hopefully you’ll get something out of it as well.

The story of Judas’ actions of betrayal immediately follows one of the most beautiful passages in the gospels – right after Jesus removes his outer garments and humbly washes the feet of a group of men who were fighting over having to do the exact task Jesus had undertaken. And as they sit down to dinner, there’s a sharp turn in the passage at verse 21. We sense a sudden anger fly over Jesus at the possibility of betrayal just after he has been so open and giving in this act of service. Of course, the disciples miss this completely. The text says Peter asks John to question Jesus, but in the original Greek language, Peter merely nods in John’s direction, hoping that the youngest disciple can coax some information out of their leader – like two kids hitting up their dad for the keys to the car. Jesus replied “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl” – an act of honor and respect in the Middle Eastern culture of that time. Even how Jesus discloses Judas’ intent to betray is done with an air of hospitality and dignity.

Judas is one of the most hated figures in history. Somewhat of a shadowy figure and the etymology his name doesn’t help much. Scholars have ventured that “Iscariot” describes Judas’ profession as a fruit grower. Others translate the root of his name “dagger” and associate him with a group of assassins called the Sicarii. Others tie his name to his birthplace – literally, “the man from the city.” Or as we’d say it, Judas the “city slicker.”

The gospel accounts actually don’t vilify Judas too much. They lay his actions out there objectively and don’t write much commentary about his motives. They do however attribute his intent to betray Jesus as the work of Satan…but that says more about the cosmic battle Jesus was fighting than what type of person Judas was. Judas was a pawn in the epic of human salvation. And (unfortunately) he was cast with a really bad part in that drama. When looking for a scapegoat, the early Christians turned on Judas. Some writings that were written after the gospels have Satan gloating over that fact that Judas was so easily deceived. But eventually, early Christians just started assigning Judas all the blame. I found an interesting story in a Christian writing from the sixth century that recounts Jesus’ conversation with Judas in hell. Jesus scolds Judas and then pronounces his fate: thirty snakes are sent to devour him eternally, one for each of the thirty sins he committed with those thirty pieces of silver. Of course, by the medieval time of Dante’s Inferno, we find Judas hanging out in the ninth and final circle of hell. And that’s where evangelical Christianity has kept him ever since. And that’s what concerns me: Judas never gets a second chance – we assume we already know everything we need to know about Judas, right? On that point, let me deviate from our text for a few minutes…

Note: I wrote this sermonette about two weeks ago. I just started Greg Boyd’s podcast from February called “Judas Christianity.” You can find it here. Until listening to that, I wasn’t aware of just how much I sounded like that guy! For issues of Judas fulfilling predetermined prophecies of betrayal in the Old Testament or about motives for Judas’ act of betrayal, give it a listen. Or you can pick up a copy of William Klassen’s Judas: Betrayer or Friend of Jesus? Part two, tomorrow…

“Grace Revealed,” Part 3

And there’s one more area that grace can impact our daily lives. And that’s having a grace-filled church. Churches often receive a bad rep nowadays. You hear comments about how people “love Jesus, but hate the church.” I’m not so sure God feels that way. In fact, the Bible seems to be pretty clear that God thinks the church – with all its judgment, criticism, gossip, and pride – is the most beautiful thing he has ever seen. A perfect and radiant bride for whom he would do anything…even die a horrible death.

So, what does a grace-filled church look like? I’ve got a couple of ideas, but let me illustrate with another story about children. My two older daughters are pretty steady kids. They don’t overreact too much when they don’t get their way. So, when they started school, I noticed something that completely threw me for a loop. When I would pick up the girls, buckle them in their seats and drive off, they would both start crying…I’m talking about emotionally falling apart, people! I couldn’t figure out why this was happening. I scolded them for crying. I bribed them with candy. I tried to get them to sing songs with me. Nothing worked! I asked our caretaker if the same thing happened with her. She smirked and told me they saved that especially for me! This went on for several months…until finally I read something interesting in a parenting book. Children often withhold their emotional reactions to the day’s events until they are most secure – in this case, with a parent. In other words, my daughters were saving their true feeling for a time when they felt safest: with their daddy.

People look to churches for the same thing. For a church, there’s a simple formula as well: grace = safe. More than just a Methodist compliance statement, God has called the church to be a “safe sanctuary” for everyone who comes here. In a grace-filled church, people can fall apart and it’s okay. It’s fine for people to struggle. To confess. To grieve. To share their deepest hurts without fear of it being immediately placed on the gossip vine. It takes a long time for someone to give their trust and confidence to another. And it only takes one moment for that trust to be shattered. Like my daughters, people intuitively know when their church becomes a place where it is no longer safe to share.

What does a grace-filled church look like? It values the feelings of others. It creates ways for people to be open and honest about their struggles. It believes the best about others, even when there may be evidence to the contrary. It encourages and lifts up those who are hurting. It ministers to people who don’t fit the mold rather than distancing itself from them. It focuses on the important things in life rather than obsessing over trivialities. In other words, like Numbers 6, it’s a church with a smile on its face…only because the smile is genuine. It reflects the gracious glory of God with the same terms that describe its Maker: favorable, pleasant, generous, kind, concerned for other’s well-being, beautiful, benevolent, and full of gratitude. Are we a grace-filled church? I think so. Are there ways we can become a more gracious church? A safe house for hurting people? Sure there are. There’s always room to grow.

So, how does this happen? How do we become a grace-filled person, family, and church? Well, this may sound a little simplistic, but there’s no quick fix or magic formula. Grace fills our lives simply by letting Christ do those things through us. To be grace-filled toward others, we must first accept grace for ourselves. We must learn to live in a grace-filled relationship with Christ. That means that we stop keeping rules for God and learn to rest in his arms. It means we must first be open with God before we can be open with others. It means we allow God’s healing grace access to every detail of our lives. For then and only then can we show graciousness to others in the smallest of ways.

And that’s the problem for many people who don’t live grace-filled lives toward others. It’s because they have never received grace for themselves. They’ve never released themselves from their own tyrannical expectations. They never collapsed in the arms of Jesus because they were too busy trying to impress him. I suppose that’s what Catholic monk Thomas Merton was talking about. He said, “If we believe God is a stern, cold lawgiver who has no real interest in us, who is merely a ruler, lord, and judge and not a father, we will have great difficulty living the Christian life.” And if the Christian life is anything, it’s a life of grace.

Why were those early Christians willing to joyously shout “Grace to you!” as they passed each other in the street? They realized that despite their flaws and failures, God was smiling at them. That may be difficult for some of you right now as post-Christmas blues set in. Christmas is not the easiest time for many people. But what I hope you walk away with this morning is this: when God looks at you – this morning, right where you are – he smiles at you, too. He always gives us the benefit of the doubt. Do you want to put God in a good mood? Start spending time with him. And as we are given a revelation of grace in Jesus Christ, it captures our imagination. It focuses our attention. And gradually we become grace-filled just like the gracious God who created us for friendship with him.

“Grace Revealed,” Part 2

You may be saying, “That’s all fine and good, Sam. But how does that apply to my daily life?” So, let’s explore some ways that serving a grace-filled God impacts our lives. First up: what does it mean to be grace-filled people? As a parent some of my most basic examples of Christian living come from my interactions with my children. And somewhere along the line I learned about what parenting experts call “retreating with dignity.” Children make mistakes all the time.  Some parents choose to put their children on the spot, accusing them of making a mistake. Sometimes that works. Other times, all that does is intimidate the child into lying.

But when you allow a child to “retreat with dignity,” you give them ample opportunities to right their wrongs. You give them the chance to do right thing rather than immediately confronting them. When children feel they can trust the adult, they will open up to them. That’s difficult for parents to do – it requires humility, patience, self-control, and a certain leveraging of authority. Here’s a personal example. Sometimes our children tell us they have brushed their teeth when really, they haven’t been in the bathroom long enough to do so. And, certainly, there was no toothpaste involved. We can react one of two ways. We can say, “I know you didn’t brush your teeth – there wasn’t enough time! Get back in there!” Or we can say, “Wow, that was quick! Do you need another minute to brush some more?” the second one allows a child to retreat with dignity – without shame and condemnation.

Really, as grace-filled people, we have the same options. Do we strong-arm people into confessions of guilt or do we allow the Holy Spirit to convict? Chances are we’ve had plenty of chances to overlook the ingratitude and inappropriate remarks of others during the holidays, right? Listen to some scriptures about being grace-filled people in moments of great annoyance:

A foolish person shows his annoyance at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult. (Prov. 12:16)

A person’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense. (Prov. 19:11)

Peter, the disciple known for sticking the proverbial foot in his mouth, echoes Proverbs:

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 4:8-11)

That’s the definition of graciousness – what grace looks like when Christians display it. It’s giving someone the benefit of the doubt, knowing that God will correct them in his timing, not ours.

So, what’s another area where grace can impact practical living? How about our family life? It’s normally our spouses and children that bear the brunt of our graceless words and actions. And that’s part of being a family. But what about a grace-filled family? What would a family centered on grace look like? Well, for families, there’s a simple formula: grace = space. Family members need space to be who they are, to make mistakes, and feel unconditionally loved in the process. And for that to happen, several things have to go out the window.

First, spouses and children have to be free of unspoken expectations about who they must be. All parents have expectations for their children…and spouses have expectations for one another. But when family members are held to a standard they do not know about much less are able to meet, defeat and resentment set in. Second, a grace-filled family is free of control and manipulation. One family member cannot hold the others “hostage” through intimidation, guilt, shame, emotional outbursts, and the like. To do so undercuts the trust and respect that God desires as the foundation of each family.

Does that mean that we shouldn’t have standards of behavior and consequences for our children? I’m not saying that at all. But how we apply those standards makes all the difference in the world. Once again, look at Jesus. He derived the same results as the Pharisees, but did so in a way that promoted love and freedom rather than legalism and fear. Likewise, a grace-filled family has the following qualities. Spouses work as a team rather than assign blame. They don’t drudge up past failures. They defer to each other and are more interested in what’s best for everyone involved. And finally, they allow God to do the correcting, not each other. Do we as parents as spouses have moments where cajoling, threatening, and manipulation occur? Sure. But for families walking in grace towards one another, those can be the exception – not the rule.

“Grace Revealed,” Part 1

Grace Revealed

12/27/09 (listen here)

2 Timothy 1:8-10

Today as part of our final Sunday in 2009, we’re going to talk about grace. Grace. Funny word, huh? It means different things to different people. It’s a pretty name. It describes someone with poise – someone who carries themselves well in social circles. Some people “say grace” at the dinner table. Then, there’s the spiritual definition. And that’s probably the most confusing of all. What is grace exactly? It’s often thrown around in the same category as mercy, or peace, or righteousness. Just another spiritual term that sounds abstract to us.

So, what is grace? Well, I always grew up hearing the standard definition “unmerited favor.” That didn’t make any sense either! But if you go back to the original languages of the Bible – Hebrew and Greek – then the picture becomes a little clearer.  In the Old Testament the word means favorable, elegant, pleasant, generous, kind, enjoyable. The word picture given is of someone who when you see them, you can tell they are in a good mood just by the look on their face. We can see this idea in a famous Old Testament passage – Numbers 6: “May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.”

To match these ideas in the Greek language, the New Testament writers borrowed a secular term: charis most often used in festive settings. People would raise their glasses and toast saying, “Grace!” similar to saying Salud! or Cheers! or Prost! Or even the infamous “Bottoms up!” The word meant health, favor, beauty, goodwill, benevolence, and gratitude. Christians would walk down the street and exclaim “Grace to you!” Life is good! We’re forgiven! God is smiling over us!

So, why all the fuss? Why were the earliest Christians so joyous about their faith? I see Christians today and often think about how unhappy they seem. Sure, they’re doing all the right things…but there’s no joy. They often serve God as if it requires us to walk around on egg shells. That God at best merely tolerates us. I believe it’s because they may not understand exactly what it means to serve a grace-filled God.

You see, when we say that God is a God of grace, that means that those qualities we mentioned before also describe our relationship with him: favorable, pleasant, generous, kind, concerned for our well-being, beautiful, benevolent, and full of gratitude. It means that God not only loves you…but that he likes you. He’s not tolerating you and rolling his eyes when we inconvenience him. He’s not impatient with our mistakes and condescending. When God thinks about you, he smiles. Time spent with you puts God in a good mood. God is a God who always gives us the benefit of the doubt. He’s the perpetual optimist.

Now, some people don’t like that idea. They think it makes God look weak. A stern God works better for them. God is better seen as the enforcer. As if we need someone to remind us of how bad things can be for us if we don’t fall in line. And though that type of “divine disciplinarian” can change our behavior for a while…it doesn’t transform our hearts. Let me put it to you this way: you may be thankful for the policeman who keeps us safe. You may also be thankful that he turns onto another road after he’s been following you for a mile or so. But when was the last time you turned your car around, followed him down that road and invited him to dinner? And that’s the difference. We can be thankful for an enforcer – but that doesn’t mean he’s your friend.

And for me, that’s the “take home” lesson of the Advent season. Jesus became human to help us understand who he was. Up until that point there had been a good deal of miscommunication about who God was. Sometimes in the Old Testament, we have a beautifully shining picture of God “smiling over us” (like in Numbers 6). But other times we get a partial view of God, the best that the Israelites could give at the time. The picture of God was not totally clear. He’d be kind and gracious interacting with one person and then angry and violent in his next human encounter. And it leaves us with a view of an unpredictable and untrustworthy God. One day God is in a good mood and another day he’s in a bad mood.

And that’s why Jesus came: to clear up the confusion. You see, extreme miscommunication requires extreme clarification. And that’s what Jesus is for us. Jesus is God making things clear. Curious as to the character and nature of almighty God? Look no further than Jesus. Jesus is “grace revealed.” After all, Jesus said in John 14 that if you have observed him – how he treats others, how he compassionately heals the sick, how he pours his life into his friends – then you have a pretty good idea of what God looks like. In Jesus’ ministry, we see the definitions of “grace”: favorable, pleasant, generous, kind, compassionate, beautiful, benevolent, and full of gratitude. Jesus is the grace-filled God. A God who gives the benefit of the doubt. A divine optimist who believes that the good work he began in you will be completed (Phil. 1:6). It’s also why the author of Hebrews reminds us to fix our eyes on Jesus, “the champion who initiates and perfects our faith” (NLT).

What Can We Know About Heaven and Hell?

I’ve heard a lot of sermons on heaven and hell. Too many I think. But I have noticed something interesting in the last few years: the detailed accuracy with which people describe both eternal places. Preachers seem to know everything about heaven and hell. Particularly hell. And that strikes me as strange for a couple of reasons.

First, the New Testament language about heaven is pretty vague. Certainly not up to our Western standards of rational detailed analysis. Most heavenly images are taken from Revelation which is clearly a book of symbols and Jewish apocalyptic imagery. Plus we have various experts describing heaven in detail for us, even down to what kind of house we get and what types of jobs will be waiting for us. Honestly, despite the popularity of Randy Alcorn’s book, most of that is conjecture. Peacefulness, joy, and comfort certainly describe it, but most people understand that golden streets and crystal seas are illustrations for something truly indescribable. People are okay with a preacher saying, “I don’t know everything about heaven, but I know it’s gonna be good!”

What’s more fascinating is the painstaking detail in which hell is described. Eternal torment involving fire, pain, and torture. According to most evangelial views of hell, people have the rest of eternity to sit around on fire and think about the bad things they did. Okay, that’s a little sarcastic there, but honestly hell is used more often in altar calls than heaven is. Some people, just in my questioning of the standard image of hell are getting nervous reading this right now. But what’s so strange about that is just how ambiguous the Bible is about the afterlife. People are satisfied to know that God has prepared somewhere for them in heaven and that puts their lack of detail at ease. But hell is a different story. In fact, the more detailed you can be, the better chance of scaring someone into salvation.

But really, hell is even more ambiguous than heaven. The Old Testament uses the word sheol to describe the afterlife – a word that means “grave” and little more. The Jews were relatively unconcerned about the afterlife, fully content to focus on what they could do in the present life to honor God. The New Testament seems to be more exact. But a closer look shows that there’s still much to debate. Jesus describes some ideas about it, but never really gives us details. He compares it to a local garbage dump (Gehenna) and talks about worms. And there’s more. The Greek word (aiōnios) generally used to describe the fire of hell is translated in as “eternal” – a period of time.  But in other places, the same word is used to describe an act of permanence of destruction – a state of quality. So, traditionalists say that it means eternal fire while conditionalists say it means permanent destruction (death) of the wicked. But the truth is that aiōnios and its Hebrew counterpart (olam) speak of things that all come to an end: the Passover, Caleb’s inheritance, Solomon’s Temple, and Gehazi’s leprosy. It’s just not that simple – the word means both. Similarly, traditionalists say that “gnashing of teeth” describes the torment of sinners in hell. But the ancient use found in the Old Testament assigned “gnashing of teeth” to someone about to destroy another – in the conditionalist’s case: God. So what does that mean to us today?  Honestly, it doesn’t tell us much.  And that’s the point I’m making. The same verses are used by people who believe different things about hell. And, surprisingly, I’m okay with that.

Why can we leave the details of heaven alone yet be compelled to extract every detail about hell? Because hell helps preachers out. Descriptions of hell illicit responses from people and, if used just right, can increase altar call numbers. But in doing that, I think we miss the point. When I told someone the other night that the gospel is not about them not going to hell, they looked at me strangely. They simply had never thought that there might be something beyond “fire insurance” and a list of do’s and don’ts to the gospel. The Bible shrouds the afterlife in ambiguity for a very important reason: so we won’t be tempted to bribe people into the Kingdom of God using either heaven or hell. If that’s what made you decide to be a Christian, then great. But intimacy with God lies beyond such ”survival of the fittest” techniques of evangelism. The gospel is about falling in love with a God who has already declared his unconquerable love for you.

Preaching the Synoptic Gospels

I finally finshed up my reading on faith and science. That was certainly a lot to think about. I’ll post about those ideas in the next few weeks as I get my thoughts together for my Sunday school series.

So, I finally get to read something I am interested in for a few weeks. I immediately pulled Brad Young’s latest book, Meet the Rabbis off the shelf – I’ve been dying to read it for months. It reminded me about how much I love the “Jerusalem School” of Synoptic  interpretation. That is something I’ve never really posted about so I thought I’d do that here. I first encountered this movement while studying the historical background of the New Testament in graduate school. It was marvelous. I thought my brain was going to explode. The context of first century Judaism is one of the most (if not the most) important aspects of Synoptic interpretation. Since the early 80s, the Jerusalem School has used rabbinical tradition and Jewish cultural context to frame the words of Jesus (It began with the work of David Flusser, Robert Lindsey, and Shmuel Safrai at Hebrew University). In its rabbinical context, Jesus’ words reveal precise interpretation – something lost in our generalized, Westernized approach to scripture. For me, they do what Robert Alter and Simon Bar-Efrat have done for the Old Testament. If you are preaching the gospels and have not digested their research, chances are good you may be missing a significant part of its meaning – particularly the parables. And that doesn’t have to do with our ability to interpret a text, but rather our inability to fully interpret without the original rabbinical references. All the Greek in the world won’t help you unearth those Hebraisms that inform that original interpretation.

Though not all of the books below originated in the “Jerusalem School,” here’s a good list to start with when learning about Synoptic context and rabbinical tradition:

Brad Young, The Parables: Jewish Tradition and Christian Interpretation

Kenneth Bailey, Poet and Peasant/Through Peasant Eyes

David Bivin and Roy Blizzard, Understanding the Difficult Words of Jesus

David Daube,  The New Testament and Rabbinic Judaism

Julius Scott, Jewish Backgrounds of the New Testament

Marvin Wilson, Our Father Abraham

David Flusser, The Sage of Galilee

David Instone-Brewer, Traditions of the Rabbis from the Era of the New Testment: Prayer and Agriculture

Oskar Skarsaune, In the Shadow of the Temple: Jewish Influences on Early Christianity

 Do yourself a favor and read everything Young and Bailey have written.

Here’s a thought: a lot of folks are worried about “postfoundationalist” interpretation of the Bible – that there is no “framework” in which to firmly place Jesus’ teachings. But it seems that Jesus made sure that his words would not be interpreted too far from his original intent. He didn’t choose archaeology or geography to anchor his teachings. He chose literature – rabbinic literature to be exact. And the literature/oral tradition with which Jesus interacted (the Mishnah, Tosefta, and Tannaitic Midrashim, etc.) has been painstakingly preserved by its followers. So, the “reference” points of the gospels are as strong today as when they were spoken by Jesus himself. Curious about the “framework” from which Jesus taught? Check out the books above.

“Change We Can Believe In,” Part 3

As usual, God offers us an alternative. Self-esteem is derived from something deeper: God-esteem. I am convinced that deep down, what we think about ourselves is directly related to what we believe God thinks about us. Behind each of our motives lies a deeper truth: the core of our being is directly tied to how we view God. If you believe God thinks little of you, then you’ll think little of yourself. If you wake up every morning to a God who plans to bully you through adverse circumstances all day to teach you some patience, then your day isn’t going to go very well. If you believe God tolerates you, then you will merely tolerate others. But if you believe God is gracious and kind…if you believe that God not only loves you, but that God likes you, you will esteem yourself differently. Honestly, 99% of events in a day have little effect on your life. Yet, we swing back and forth, acting like insignificant issues are life-changing. There are only two reasons for this: 1) we’re bored or 2) we have nothing more permanent to base our outlook on.

God-esteem places full confidence in the permanent character of God. For me, this is based solely on the unyielding love of a God who wants my affection and devotion. His love for me is unconditionally the same at all times in life. Churches have heard about the love of God so much that they fail to realize what it entails. The key to understanding the love of God is to understand that it’s unconditional. Before I understood what unconditional love meant, I had assumed that God’s love was like that of a parent or friend – it rose and fell based on my performance for him. When I say that I mean I believed that although God “loved” me the majority of the time, I felt like God rarely approved of my walk with him. His love, acceptance, and approval was conditional – based on the circumstances of my behavior.

Unconditional love is love that isn’t swayed by performance. And though I knew that there was nothing I could do to make God love me less, I had missed the other side of unconditionality. There was nothing I could do to make God love me more. So, all my attempts to get God’s attention were not increasing his delight in me. I was not winning him over with my scripture memory or my praise and having my radio preset to K-Love. He was winning me over with his unconquerable, unstoppable, undaunted love for me. I was the center of God’s full, intense, and romantic affection. And I was not getting his attention – he was stalking me with an undying level of infatuation that never ends. And there was nothing I could do to change that – all I had to do was lay back into his love and rest there my whole life.

Love without conditions. Without reservations. Without qualifications. Though others may see me as a failure, in God’s eyes, I never am. So my outlook on life never changes – and my view of myself reflects that permanence of God’s unconditional love. My self-esteem is really God-esteem. How does God esteem me? He loves me. And there’s nothing anyone can do about it! That’s the ultimate “happening” in life…a truth that lives above the ups and downs of life’s circumstances. God-esteem keeps us stable in times of change – it’s the only permanent thing on the planet. And that’s the root of lasting joy and fulfillment. When you can stake your life on the reality of Zephaniah 3:17: that God takes “delight in you with gladness/With his love he will calm all your fears/He will rejoice over you with joyful songs,” then you have something that gives you permanent joy. That’s what God thinks about me. That’s what God thinks about you.

Our scripture this morning reflects this truth. How do we know that God loves us unconditionally? We find the answer in Jesus. Jesus is God explaining himself to the world…inviting us into his forgiveness and grace. “God became flesh and dwelt among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ. Jesus, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us.” We were created to connect with God in such a way that the changes of life seem trivial when we’re basking in the glow of God’s unconditional love.

Coping with change involves resting in the truth that something more permanent lies beyond the changes we see in life. Circumstances come and go, but at no point do we cease to be the sole focus of God’s intense unfailing, unconditional, eternal love. That’s a reality that doesn’t happen overnight for most people. You may feel you are undeserving of that type of love. I have good news: you’re in good company. No one deserves it. That’s the point. Yet, we gladly receive it. And as we learn to live our lives in that awesome truth, our dependence on the accolades of others, the tyranny of the workplace, and the desire for material things are seen for the second-rate things they are. Nothing compares to the unconquerable love of God. It’s waiting for you this morning.