Regaining a Christian Voice

A new sermon series at Faith Baptist Church on 1Corinthians 8-11. To hear yesterday's sermon go to www.faithmpls.org in the next couple of days.

I get so frustrated when my children won’t listen to me. I think my frustration is due to two factors: 1) I believe that what I have to tell them is often important and 2) I believe that I have earned the right to speak into their lives. I have to confess, however, that there are times that they do not listen because I lose my voice with them, not physically, but psychologically or spiritually because of my own failings, my own shortcomings, my own sin. And once my voice is lost it can be difficult to regain. I can complain about this, I can be adamant about my authority, I can whine and complain about it, but at the end of the day, regaining a lost voice takes time, patience, and consistency. And then, sometimes our voice comes back to us, slowly, tentatively at first, but it returns. It doesn’t return because I have been silent, it doesn’t return because in the meantime I have ignored the shortcomings or needs of my children, it returns because they begin to see my desire — as imperfect as it may be — to live well for them, for their best interest, for their well-being.

I share this story as an analogy. I fear that as Christians we seem to have lost our voice in society — and it is frustrating. It seems that many see Christians as small-minded, hateful, and hypocritical. As a Christian and as a baptist, I shudder with disgust and anger that Westboro Baptist Church protests at funerals of service men and women with signs that state, “God hates fags!” or “Thank God for IEDs.” Each time they yell in protest, the collective Christian voice is muted, the volume of the Gospel turned down, my voice as a Christian lost a little bit more. Politicians that claim Christian values seem incapable of valuing Christianity in their own marriages, and the volume on the Christian voice is lost a little bit more. Christian leaders that rail loudly against adultery, homosexuality, and a culture of sinfulness are often swept away by this same culture of sin and as they are swept away my voice, along with their voice, fades in the distance, dimmed by hypocrisy, silenced by sin. The examples could go on, and I would like to continue to point the finger at others, but I have to admit that far to often, I have contributed to the loss of a Christian voice in the world, not because I have been silent, but because I have been too loud, too arrogant, too brash. And I find myself without a voice, no one will listen, no one can hear me over the steady din of “Christian” self-righteousness, anger, and hypocrisy. How can I regain my voice?

Regaining a Christian voice will not happen overnight; there is no “magic bullet.” It will be hard work that requires time, patience, and consistency. I also realize that I do not have the entire answer, but I would like to make a few suggestions to assist in regaining a Christian voice:

• Firstly and most importantly, we need to demonstrate more love and humility. Christ does not tell his disciples that they should be known by their knowledge, or their ability to win arguments, or by how successful they are; they will be known by their love (John 13:35). We are to speak the Truth, but we are to speak the truth with love (Ephesians 4:14-16) and proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ with gentleness and respect (1Peter 3:15). We need to make sure that we do not use the Bible as a weapon.
• Secondly, don’t be afraid to become indignant over the hypocrisy and error of those who are doing evil in the name of Christ. While we are not to judge those outside the church, Paul states that we are to expel those who are doing evil within the church (1Corinthians 15:12-13). I realize that I have sin in my own life, but if we cannot universally claim as Christians that what the Westboro Baptist Church is doing is evil and that they are doing more damage to the Gospel of Jesus Christ than good then we deserve to lose our voice. The world needs to see that the hypocrisy and evil of a few breaks the hearts of the many, so don’t be afraid to denounce evil especially when it is in the church.
• Thirdly, don’t be afraid to point out with love, gentleness, and respect the immense good that the church has done. I would challenge anyone to find an organization that has built more schools, more hospitals, more orphanages; that has dug more wells; freed more
  

  Mbingo Baptist Hospital in Cameroon. I had the privilege of visiting this amazing hospital and training facility with my children in 2008.

  individuals held in the slave trade; advanced justice and peace more than the church of Jesus Christ. We need to recognize that while there have been many within the church that have silenced the Christian voice through the years and we need to stand against them, we also need to recognize that the actions of the Bride of Christ speak loudly in a dark world.

• Finally, we need to expect that at times — even when acting with the best of intentions, even when speaking the Truth with love, gentleness, and respect — we will not be heard. Our message will fail not because we are speaking with a lost voice but because it is falling on deaf years. Christ says that even when we do it right, even when we rise above the hypocrisy and arrogance of the failed Christian voice, even when we speak with His voice, there will be times that not only will we be ignored, but we will be ridiculed, mocked, and persecuted (Matthew 5:11-12). This is not an excuse to act poorly or to give up, but it is a reminder that the Way is difficult path. A path that requires much love, much patience, and much strength.

I realize that this isn’t the final answer to regaining the Christian voice, but I believe that they are first steps in the right direction. May God lead the way, may He assist us in regaining a truly Christian voice.

Beautiful Feet

These are thoughts and reflections from yesterday’s sermon, preached at Faith Baptist Church, 4350 Russell Ave N, Minneapolis, MN.  To listen to the sermon please visit www.faithmpls.org in the next couple of days.  Thank you to everyone who texted questions; I hope that this post will answer some of them.  

I have never been particularly fond of feet. They are exceptionally functional; therefore, I greatly appreciate a healthy pair of feet, but I have always been of the opinion that feet are a bit odd looking. The apostle Paul, however, seems to have a much higher view of feet; for him, feet were a symbol of our willingness to answer the call of God and proclaim the message of Good News concerning Jesus Christ, the Savior of all who call upon His name.  Because of this, Paul is of the opinion that feet can quite beautiful.

Paul’s high view of feet certainly comes in part from his study and appreciation of the Old Testament.  In Romans 10:15, he quotes the prophet Isaiah, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’”(Isaiah 52:7). It is an interesting question, however, to ask if Paul’s obsession with feet was also influenced by the Greco-Roman culture in which he was submersed.

Image of Hermes of clay pottery, ca 500-450BC, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Hermes the Greek god and his Roman counterpart, Mercury, were both identified as the messengers of the gods. Each of them were pictured from time to time with winged sandals, a symbol of their readiness to spread the messages from the gods. It is possible that Paul is drawing upon this imagery in Ephesians 6:15, when he encourages believers to have their feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel. Paul encourages us to be seen as the messengers, not of the false gods of the Romans or the Greeks, but of the one true God. A high calling indeed!

Interestingly, Paul, is mistakenly identified as Hermes by the Greeks in Lystra because of his acts of power and that he is the primary spokesman or messenger of the apostles that were there (Acts 14:12). May God grant us the strength to boldly proclaim His Good News with such power and authority that the hand of God is clearly seen in the works and words of the Church!  May we like Paul be ready to go and proclaim!  May we gladly take up the call to be the messengers of God with our feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  May it be said of us, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring Good News!”

PS
While I have never been impressed with the physical appearance of anyone’s feet, I want to say thank you to the countless people through the years — former pastors, Sunday school teachers, my parents, my brother, my wife, my own children, professors, mentors, role models, friends, etc. — that have had beautiful feet… GORGEOUS feet! Thank you for sharing the Good News with me; you have been the messengers of God!

CIVIL PARTICIPATION

These are thoughts and reflections from yesterday’s sermon, preached at Faith Baptist Church, 4350 Russell Ave N, Minneapolis, MN.  To listen to the sermon please visit www.faithmpls.org in the next couple of days.  This sermon was the last in a three part series exploring the development of theology and how it affects our view of issues in the public arena.    Thank you to everyone who texted questions; I hope that this post will answer some of them.

I firmly believe that God has called us to affect the world in which God has placed us.  This is our home, this is our sphere of influence, this is our mission field.  We are to take seriously the words that Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done, on earth as it is heaven.”  While we may be citizens of heaven, we are called to bring the reign of Christ here (see last week’s blog This World Is Not My Home).

Therefore, I believe that we have a spiritual responsibility to take on civil responsibility.  As Christians civil participation should be part of our Christian experience.  In Romans, Paul encourages the Christians to honor, submit, and participate (through taxes) with the government.  As Christians in the 21st century, we too should honor, submit, and participate (now not only through taxes, but voting, public forms, etc.) with the government.  Civil participation for the Christian, however, is not only through the arms of the government, but because of what Christ has done for us, we should care for those in need.  This is the one outstanding debt that we can never repay, the debt of love to our fellow persons — a debt that we owe because of the great love that God demonstrated to us through the cross of Christ.  Therefore, both through participation in the government and in our private practice, we are to engage in civil participation, and we are to engage in civil participation with civil participation.  In other words, our civil participation is to be civil.

Paul states in Romans 12:18, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”  We are to live at peace with others; our civil participation is to be civil.  That does not mean that we always give in or that we do not take a stand or that we do not speak the truth.  Rather, as we are reminded throughout scripture, we are to speak the truth with gentleness, respect, and love.  In a world where political conversation is more and more hostile, we need to demonstrate the Christian virtues of humility, self-control, and gentleness even when we disagree vehemently.

Paul’s word’s in Romans to respect, honor, and even submit to earthly authorities has it’s limits. Paul himself is subversive in declaring unapologetically that Jesus Christ is Lord, a position that eventually would lead to his death. What Paul was not willing to compromise was the gospel — both in content and how it was delivered.  The gospel calls us to civil participation, and it calls us to engage civil participation through civil participation.  Therefore, we must stand firm but as Paul reminds the Christians in Philippi, we must do so in a manner that is worthy of the gospel (Philippians 1:27).

Is your civil participation civil?  Are your disagreements with individuals who maintain different political opinions civil?  Are these conversations conducted in a manner that is worthy of the gospel?  Are you willing to speak the truth, but do so with love and gentleness?  This is a difficult task, a high calling, but one to which I believe God gives the strength and the spiritual gifts to those who ask and are willing to answer His call.

This World Is Not My Home?

These are thoughts and reflections from yesterday’s sermon, preached at Faith Baptist Church, 4350 Russell Ave N, Minneapolis, MN.  To listen to the sermon please visit www.faithmpls.org in the next couple of days.  This sermon is the second in a three part series exploring the development of theology and how it affects our view of issues in the public arena.  Next week’s sermon is “Developing a theology of…  Civil Participation:  fight or flight?”  Thank you to everyone who texted questions; I hope that this post will answer some of them.

As a Christian, is this world my home or not?  How we answer this question will have a significant impact on how we view creation and our responsibility to it.   Paul’s letter to the Philippians addresses the question of our citizenship, and correctly understanding the argument that Paul is making concerning citizenship is crucial for an appropriate Christian theology of creation care and will also impact our theology of civil participation — but more on it’s affect on civil participation during next week’s sermon.  For now, let’s explore it’s impact on creation care.

As a child, I remember singing the old hymn This World Is Not My Home:

This world is not my home I’m just passing through
my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue
the angels beckon me from Heaven’s open door
and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore

O Lord you know I have no friend like you
if Heaven’s not my home then Lord what will I do?
the angels beckon me from Heaven’s open door
and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore

As a young adult I loved this song so much I purchased a tie that had “This World Is Not My Home” printed on the tie.  Since then, however, my understanding of this world — and the next — and our relationship to it has changed. I want to be clear that I agree with the sentiment expressed in this song that heaven is being in the presence of God and that we have no friend like Him.  I also want to be clear that I agree with the implied theology of life after death and life beyond time as we know it.  What is problematic, however, is how carelessly this song treats the gift of creation — the home that God gave to us and asked us to care for it in His place.  This world is my home, and it was  given as a gift from the Creator.   If this is true then, why does Paul tell the Philippians in chapter 3 verse 20 that their citizenship — and by extension our citizenship — is heaven.

In order to fully appreciate what Paul is arguing, one needs to realize that Philippi was declared a Roman colony by Caesar Augustus.  This was a matter of significant civic pride for the people of Philippi — they were not simply citizens of Philippi, but because of the status of their city, they were citizens of Rome, the most powerful city in the world.  As citizens of Rome living in Philippi, they were not to leave Philippi to go to Rome, but rather through their lives, their actions, their character they were to bring the kingdom of Rome and the reign of the Caesar to Philippi.  Caesar was lord and Rome was his throne.  Therefore, Paul is not arguing for a theology of escapism from this world to the next; rather he is urging the Philippians to see their citizenship in heaven in the same light as their citizenship in Rome.  For the Christian, Jesus is LORD and heaven is His throne, and it is our responsibility to bring the Kingdom of Heaven and the reign of Christ to this world.

This understanding of our heavenly citizenship is consistent with a theology of creation care that sees humanity as the benevolent ruler in the place of the Creator who gave all creation to humanity as their home to govern with love and care.  An appropriate understanding of heavenly citizenship, therefore, does not negate our responsibility to creation care but actually heightens it.  Whatever the next life looks like, whatever life looks like after time as we know it comes to an end, whatever eternity has in store for humanity — we can have certainity that we are to bring the Kingdom of Heaven and the reign of Christ to this world now.  While our citizenship may be in heaven, our responsibility is here in this world that God has given to us as a gift to love and for which we are to care.

I realize that there are dangers of “going too far” in regards to creation care.  At the end of the day, human life bears the image of God — not animal life, and I believe that God has given this world to us as a gift — a gift to be loved and for which we are to care — but a gift to be used for our benefit just the same.  I do believe that some have gone too far, but if most of us were honest we would have to admit that we are no where close of going too far.  Rather, most us just need to start somewhere.  I know it is a small thing, but for me it will start by throwing a tie in the garbage and hopefully a lot less of what can be placed in recycling.  My wife also called Chili’s last night to ask for a hundred reusable cups for our Super Bowl party so that we would have less trash (by the way they said yes), and later this week, we will purchasing 100 plates for the same purpose.  Small steps.  Will they change the world?  Probably  not.   But with them I believe that we can hear the Creator’s steps more clearly walking with us in the cool of the day through the gift that he has given us for our benefit to rule with love and care.  What small step can you take to bring the Kingdom of Heaven and the reign of Christ to a world that groans as it awaits restoration?

Developing a Theology of LIFE: It’s More Than a Game

These are thoughts and reflections from yesterday’s sermon, preached at Faith Baptist Church, 4350 Russell Ave N, Minneapolis, MN.  To listen to the sermon please visit www.faithmpls.org in the next couple of days.  This sermon is the first in the three part series exploring the development of theology and how it affects our view of issues in the public arena.  Next week’s sermon is “Developing a theology of…  CREATION CARE: it’s not just for fruits and nuts,” and the following week will be “Developing a theology of…  Civil Participation:  fight or flight?”

Blogging is a new adventure for me.  My wife has been doing it for sometime and has encouraged me to consider it.  Like all new adventures, I expect that it will come with some bumps along the way.  Sometimes these bumps occur before we ever leave home.  This trip seems to have started with a bump as well before it “ever left home.”  I had hoped that individuals would be able to text me questions and thoughts about my sermon yesterday, and that this would be the content of my blog.  The number that was to make it possible to text directly to my email account, however, did not work for most people.  Therefore, I would be left to my own musings this morning about yesterday’s sermon if it would not be for a question from an unlikely source.

The question was not even directed towards me.  As a matter of fact, I didn’t even hear the question.  My wife overheard the question being asked by a child that sits with a good friend of mine who sits immediately behind my family almost every Sunday.  This man brings a handful of neighborhood children to church each week and does an excellent job answering their questions about church and all that goes on within the context of worship.  And this Sunday, my wife overheard one of them ask, “Why is the pastor crying?”

I have to admit that I don’t “like” that I cry when I preach.  I’m not against crying; I just think I do it more than I would like when I am preaching.  Sometimes I find myself crying at the things at which I least expect to cry.  Yesterday, I expected that I would cry a bit when I showed a picture of my dad, Clarence, who has been struggling with Alzheimer’s for quite sometime and is no longer unable to care for himself at all.  The picture is of my son, Siah, hugging my dad a few years ago when Dad was still able to walk a bit and communicate a bit with us which he is no longer able to do.

I planned to show the picture and talk about entering into community with those that are no longer able to enter into community with us.  In so doing, I believe we see the image of God clearly in those that are unable to do so many of the things that we take for granted.  This I believe is a piece of a healthy theology of life.

But, like so many times before, I was caught off guard and began crying earlier in the sermon about something about which I did not expect to cry.  As we look at a healthy biblical theology of life in Scripture, we realize that we are to value and hold in high regard those that are elderly.  As I attempted to communicate this point, I began to cry, and the question was overheard by wife coming from the pew behind her, “Why is the pastor crying?”  My friend responded by saying, “He really believes what he is saying.”

My friend was right.  I really do believe it.  Passionately.  Emotionally.  Too often, we in the Church  have come to value what the world values — youthfulness and strength above everything else.  When one no longer displays these attributes he or she is set aside for a newer model.  This is tragic.  As each of us considers a theology of life, it must include a firm conviction, a passionate belief, that those that have lived the most of life have much to teach us.  They are to be valued and held in high regard.  They are to be thanked for the sacrifices that they have made and continue to make.

Take sometime today to thank someone older that has invested in your life.