A Word (or two) from Mark

This year as I was reading Luke 2 in preparation for Christmas Eve I was struck by the contrast in scenes.  The chapter begins with Caesar Augustus decreeing that a census be taken of the whole known world.  This is human authority being exercised at the highest level.  A few verses later we read about the birth of a baby in what can only be viewed as an insignificant setting among an insignificant people on the human scale of importance at the time.  Yet we know this baby would do something so amazing that it would  far outstrip any and every accomplishment by all of the Roman Caesars combined.  His mother, Mary, noted this in her magnificent prayer prior to Jesus birth.  In it she says “He has brought down rulers from their thrones, and has exalted those who were humble.”  There is incredible beauty and power in the simple story of this birth, this gift of a son who would change the world.  I want to remember that the way to bring change to the places it is desperately needed is not by wielding the power of a “Caesar”, but by loving the way Jesus did.

Merry Christmas

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Yesterday I mentioned this prayer written by Reinhold Niebuhr.  The first few lines of this prayer were adopted by Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12 step programs.  The wording has been changed slightly as it is used and adapted by different groups,  it would appear.  This is supposed to be the original and unabridged version.   As I mentioned on Sunday, I think it reflects a good perspective on running the race before us.  There are things God calls us to do.  There are other things we need to leave alone. They aren’t for us to fix.  I think it is possible for us to place too much of our focus on the wrong thing. When we do this, we are distracted from running the race before us.  We become tangled and encumbered.  (Hebrews 12: 1, 2)

Why not pray this prayer for a week, and see how God blesses your perspective?

God, give us grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed,
Courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the Wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.

Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

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Here is a quote from the introduction to the book The Divine Conspiracy.  Dallas Willard is describing  Jesus and his early followers.

“The early message was, accordingly, not experienced as something its hearers had to believe or do because otherwise something bad – something with no essential connection with real life– would happen to them.  The people initially impacted by that message generally concluded that they would be fools to disregard it.”

As I read this explosions went off in my head.  We try to get people to follow Jesus or else something bad will happen in the future.  Jesus invited people into an amazing interaction with God NOW.  Eternal life begins now and extends into all eternity.  It isn’t something that happens to us when we die.  It starts now.  If you want to “go to heaven when you die”…try living with God now. Following Jesus is the way. The good news is He is still accepting all who will come to Him.

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So far in our  study of  the book of Nehemiah we have encountered one of a number of lists Nehemiah recorded.  Lists are not particularly exciting reading.  But they make a point.  God keeps a record.  We know that He promises great reward to those who follow, love and serve Him.  Jesus said even a cup of cold water given in His name would be rewarded.  But there is another side to this particular list in Nehemiah.  As he describes all of the participants rebuilding the wall, one group is mentioned as not supporting the work.  They didn’t get involved.  When I saw that, I felt sorry for them.  They are recorded in the Scriptures as those who didn’t want to get involved in God’s work.    Then I thought of the times that I hang back from what I think God might be asking me to do.  Or the times when I neglect something as simple as praying for someone who needs it.  I am not letting the fear of God’s lists make me feel guilty.  I am not beating myself up over it.  But I am determined…. I want to be on the list that keeps saying yes to God.  I hope you are too.

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Advent is an interesting word.  Its literal meaning is arrival or coming into place.  But its long association with Christmas has brought with it this sense of anticipation.  We are preparing for the coming of the Lord.  Advent wreaths, readings, decorations, and special seasonal music all point us to the central event, the birth of Jesus.  But there is a great contrast between our anticipation of this event and the actual course of events.  On the actual day of Jesus birth there were few who knew what was coming.  Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Zechariah, and likely some other family members knew that something unusual was happening.  It wasn’t until angels and stars got involved that a wider audience was drawn to the scene.   So although long heralded by the prophets, there was little attention given to the actual event until after His arrival.

But since advent means arrival or coming into place, it can also be applied to Jesus’ second coming.  The question I am asking myself this year is do I anticipate Jesus’ second “arrival” with the same count down mentality that I anticipate Christmas?  Am I looking for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our Great God and savior Jesus Christ?  Just assuredly as Jesus came the first time, an event we celebrate yearly, He is coming again.  Am I preparing for that coming with anticipation and joy?  I think it is safe to say His arrival that day will be unlike anything we have ever imagined before.  It gives us cause to rejoice, sing, and work because we have hope.

Advent is a good word.  It is rich with meaning.  Let’s apply it joyfully  to both comings and live in the light of each.

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I was reading in my journal this morning and discovered an interesting entry from a year ago.  I was reading Zephaniah 1:12 and made this comment. “It seems it is worse to believe God is passive than it is to believe He is Evil.”  The reference speaks of God judging those who are stagnant in spirit.  The actual text reads thickening on their lees.  This is a reference to wine.  When wine was aged they let it sit and a settlement developed.  Before drinking the wine, they strained out the settlement.  It seems that inactivity, lethargy, passivity and complacency lead us to a place of believing that God is passive and inactive in our world.  Zephaniah, the prophet, spoke of God’s judgment against His people who were stagnant in spirit.

This is why Thanksgiving is so important.  It is essential for us to express our thanksgiving to God.  We have to remember all He has done for us.  If we don’t, we will become dull in our understanding.  Our lees will thicken.  We will become stagnant.  As we have been saying all fall, we serve a good and beautiful God.  Let us remember and give thanks for all He has done for us.

We are putting a big sheet of paper on the wall in our house this week.  Everyone who enters has to write at least one Thanksgiving on the sheet.  Together we will write a praise to God.  He is truly worthy of it.  Don’t let your lees thicken.  Give Him praise.

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As we have been studying the Good and Beautiful God together I have been trying to deepen my own understanding of God’s character.  Certainly the words we have encountered in this book are familiar to us.  We would use words like good, generous, trustworthy, loving to describe God’s character.  It is just how deeply we delve into those qualities that is at question.   It is easy to use any of these words superficially, until we come face to face with Jesus.

In His sermon, the one we call the sermon on the mount, He said this.  “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you……For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?  Do not even the tax collectors do the same?”  Just prior to His crucifixion He said this.  “Greater love has no man than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”

When we speak of Jesus death for us, we realize that it was much more than someone laying down his life for his friends.  He did it for His enemies.  He did it for us who were far off and hostile to Him.

From this I realize two things.  Jesus’ love is far more profound and deep than anything I know and  God is definitely not like me.  That makes me deeply grateful.

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As we have been studying the Good and Beautiful God by James Bryan Smith  together we have been discovering how deep God’s love and goodness are.  Of course these are words we use of God all the time, but with reflection we discover that we don’t really “get it”.  We don’t truly believe He is good because if we did, we would trust Him more than we do.  One of the challenges we face with loving a truly good God is our discomfort over the word wrath.  On the one hand we want justice.  So punishing the sinner sounds good and just, as long as the sinner is someone else.  As far as our own sin is concerned, we want mercy.

Part of our discomfort with speaking of God’s wrath is that we know how destructive human rage is.   We don’t want an all powerful God to destroy us.  But here is the important difference.  God is never out of control the way we are.  His wrath is NOT like His love.  His Love is eternal.  It IS His character.  We can say God IS love.  But we can’t say God IS wrath.  Wrath is His measured, just response to sin.  He will always love, through out eternity.  But His wrath has its place in dealing with a creation that has been corrupted by sin.  There will be no need of this response when as Revelation speaks of it…the first things are done.

So as we read the Scriptures we can not ever allow ourselves to forget God’s goodness, generosity, trustworthiness and love when we read of His wrath.  He never ceases to be those qualities.  God IS love.  Let us trust Him as He continues His purpose to make all things new.

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Yesterday we talked about love.  John tells us quite clearly in I John that God is love.  It is His very character and essence.   But it is difficult for us to accept such love.  We feel for some reason that we have to earn it or be worthy of it.  We doubt that God really loves us as we are, so we must clean ourselves up or work on something before we can expect God to love us.  This false narrative is incredibly destructive. It keeps us from believing  and receiving God’s love for us.   John makes it clear that God loves first.  God doesn’t wait until we have achieved some merit before He loves us.  He loves us first.  He sent Jesus while we were yet sinners.

So why do we persist in believing we have to achieve something?  It probably connects to our need for control.  We believe that somehow if we can achieve something that merits God’s love then we are still in control. We can demand or expect rather than simply receive.    But a key lesson in learning to live with God is to realize we aren’t in control.  We are at His mercy.  But that is a very, very good place to be.  His love and mercy are everlasting.  We do not seek “worthiness” to be able to receive God’s love.   God loves us which MAKES us worthy.  The value and worth of each individual is not set by their achievements, accomplishments, talents, abilities etc.  Their worth is set by their creator who made them and loves them.  The simplest  of children’s songs affirms this so clearly for us.  Jesus loves me this I know.   It is when we come to know and believe this that life with God begins in rich ways.  We are loved.  So we can love those around us with a love we are given.

For more help with this, read 1 John 4 multiple times.  It clearly shows us how our love flows from the Father’s love for us.

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Once you begin to think about the concept of “earning” you can trace just how intertwined the idea is to your life.  For example, when we give to some, we expect a suitable expression of appreciation.  The greater the gift, expense or effort on our part, the greater the appreciation should be.   We seldom enjoy sacrificing our time and effort for someone who doesn’t seem to appreciate it or even acknowledge it.  It can be even more difficult to give to someone who feels they are “entitled” to our efforts.  But receiving heart felt thanks from someone goes along way to motivate us to give again.  Somehow we think of them as “deserving”.

Because we resist giving to “undeserving” people,  it is easy to think the same thought about God.  But God is different than we are.  This is what Jesus says about God in Luke 6:35.   “But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great,and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men.” God is kind to ungrateful men.  When I first read that passage, I thought of other people. Yes, there are ungrateful people out there.  Then I realized I,  too, am one of the ungrateful people.  Would it ever be possible for me to express adequate appreciation for all God has done for me?

There is another realization that came with seeing my own ingratitude.  God doesn’t give to me because I have said an adequate number of thank yous.  In fact, I realized that the simple fact that I didn’t place myself in the ungrateful category initially showed that I somehow thought I had “earned” God’s blessings by my thanks.  Ouch.  There is that earning thought again.  I think it is very hard for us to root out the notion that we earn God’s blessings.  He gives and gives and gives because it is in His very nature.  He is good. He is generous.

All of our attempts to earn or gain credit with God show how much we fail to understand His generous heart.  There isn’t anything good He wouldn’t do for us.

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