Month: January 2010

One takeaway

~ brandon ~ Leave a comment

As I wrote earlier, we cannot expect to understand every instance of suffering in our world.  Yet, with each tragedy there is one clear take away.

Luke 13:1-5

There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way?  No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem?  No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

Here Jesus deals with a similar tragedy–two in fact.  He uses both cases to make the same points.  The first point is simple:  those who experience calamity are not worse sinners than those who don’t.  To apply it to Haiti, we cannot say that Haitians are worse sinners than Dominicans, or even than us.

One point often overlooked in tragedies is our common guilt.  ‘All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,’ Romans 3:23 reminds.  So, not one of us is innocent in God’s eyes.  Romans 6:23 adds, ‘The wages of sin is death.’  So, everyone who sins deserves nothing but death.  Now we understand Jesus.  His audience was just as deserving of calamity as those at Siloam.

The better question for tragedy is why God would ever prevent any tragedy or suffering?  Why, if we all deserve His just condemnation, would He not dish it out upon all?  The answer, of course, is grace.  Each moment we live is a moment of grace, a moment where we are not getting what we deserve, but receiving a wonderful gift.

Jesus second point is the real take away–repent.  Never one to miss an opportunity, Jesus seems to understand the frailty of life.  One moment you are going to work, the next you’re involved in a car accident and clinging to life, or worse.

Since this life is short, and there is much more to come, we are wise to reflect upon Jesus words.  Are you repenting from the sin for which God could justly condemn you?  Are you trusting in Christ’s perfect sacrifice as the only ground for God’s forgiveness?  Are you ready, right now, to face His Holy Judgment, if calamity should befall you?

Understanding Suffering

~ brandon ~ Leave a comment

From Newsweek:

I just got to a point where I couldn’t explain how something like this could happen, if there’s a powerful and loving God in charge of the world. It’s a very old problem, and there are a lot of answers, but I don’t think any of them work.

The suffering in Haiti has reminded us of an age-old question:  If God is loving and all-powerful, why does He allow tragedy and suffering?  Like the article points out, there are myriad ways we answer this question.  I, like Job, don’t have a complete answer, but I do have some questions about how we view God.

In the article quoted above we find a typical description of God–loving and powerful.  That’s all.  But, is that all God is?  Is He only a heavenly Santa supposed to use His power to prevent any form of suffering and pain?  And, if so, then shouldn’t we all be living in some form of Eden, right now?

Perhaps, while God is love, He is also much more.  Perhaps He is also just, righteous, holy, pure, jealous and wrathful.  Perhaps He is also all-knowing, able to see each event as it connects to all other events.  Perhaps, in His perfect knowledge and wisdom, He is able to see good, righteous reasons to allow calamity to occur.  Thus, while He might hate suffering and calamity, He might be inclined to allow it because of the bigger, eternal picture.

Let me give you an example.  Earlier I wrote:

The second is a young girl, dying from cancer.  This little girl didn’t just want prayer she also wanted answers.  I tried my best to answer her questions, and we prayed for her and her family.  Now, this little girl was not healed.  However, something even more amazing happened.  Before cancer claimed her, Christ claimed her.  This little girl accepted Christ, and even asked to be buried with one of the letters I wrote—so she could show it to God!  The peace with which she died, and this request led her parents—non-Christians—to ask their own questions.  Even though they lived two states away (they were in our area for her treatment) we prayed for them and put them in touch with a good church.

A few months later I received a letter from that little girl’s mom.  In it was a picture, which still sits on my desk, and a note.  That note shared how she and her husband came to know Christ, and how they could see God’s mercy.  She understood that her little girl died so that the girl, the mom and the dad could find eternal life.  She believed that it was a part of God’s plan, and though painful, worth it.

While God never promises to tell us what good end He achieved through allowing suffering, we can know He does not allow anything without a good, perfect and pleasing purpose.  The story of that dear little girl is evidence that God does not bring calamity where God does not send grace.

Perhaps God is not 2D after all.

More Unseriousness

~ brandon ~ Leave a comment

On the fan forum site “Avatar Forums,” a topic thread entitled “Ways to cope with the depression of the dream of Pandora being intangible,” has received more than 1,000 posts from people experiencing depression and fans trying to help them cope.

via Audiences experience Avatar blues – CNN.com.

So, now people are depressed and suicidal because the beauty and wonder of Pandora is not real.  What’s next, being upset because you’ll never spin webs like Spiderman?

Seriously, though, this underlines the fact that we are not built for this world.  We were created for more, for something far greater.  And we will find something to try and fill that void.  For these folks, an impossible fantasy is their void-filler.  Others turn to utopian ideals, and other, more pragmatic folks, turn to sensual pleasure.  But whatever your kick, you will look for something else, something greater.

Perhaps this is because we are fallen creatures.  Within us is an innate realization that we were made for more than this fallen world.  But we don’t want to accept the simplest conclusion:  we were made for God.  You see, if I accept this conclusion it means I am no longer master of my domain.  It means I am servant, creature and beholden to the God who made me.  It means He calls the shots, not I.  It means I must live according to His plan.

For many this is simply unthinkable, and so they reject the concept of God.  They turn, then, to the Creation and fellow creatures to try and find what they are looking for.  For me, I turn to God.  I figure if I was created by Him and for Him, then I can never realize the fulness of all that I was created for apart from Him.  Thus, satisfaction, peace, joy and all those desires of my heart can only be finally and fully found in Him.

So, why would I trade lesser pleasures in the Creation when I am offered the superior pleasures from the Creator?

“my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, declares the Lord,” Jeremiah 31:14 (ESV)

Unserious

~ brandon ~ 1 Comment

In case you missed it, a bra-color for cancer awareness thing swept through Facebook last week. Women were posting the color of the bra they were wearing in the name of breast cancer awareness. This morning, a former coworker posted that he was glad it was over because it was inappropriate.

I don’t think it was really inappropriate, but I also don’t think it really did anything to raise awareness of breast cancer. Kind of like this doesn’t really do anything for free speech.

We are a unserious society.

Naming Sin

~ brandon ~ Leave a comment

But We’re Still Gonna Kill You by Mark Steyn on National Review Online.

Whatever you think of his politics, Steyn’s argument seems to be:  if we cannot name our enemy, then we cannot win.  I think that’s a sound point we can apply to the Christian’s struggle against sin.

We live in an age where sin is an antiquated concept.  We rationalize and justify behaviors that our grandparents would be ashamed of.  We’re more worldly, better educated and able to see how those moral codes of old were arbitrary, and intended to discriminate and oppress.  Therefore, we are free to live as we see fit and no, we don’t really care what you think.

Import that thinking to the Church.  In the Church we still believe in right and wrong, good and evil and things such as sin.  We still believe in God’s judgment and a place called Hell.  Yet, we often fail to name our sin.  We, too, fall victim to the rationalizations of our culture.

Young adult partying all the time?  Well, that’s just how everyone is at their age.  Thirty-something parents foisting their kids off on day-care and schools and after school programs from pre-school on?  Hey, it’s tough to make ends meet today.

A first step toward victory over sin is naming it.  It’s asking God what He calls sin, and applying that standard to my own life.  It’s seeing where my life fails to match up to Christ’s teaching and realizing:  Jesus was nailed to a cross for this.

Bad Economic News

~ brandon ~ Leave a comment

WORLD Magazine | Todays News, Christian Views.

You probably have heard the discouraging December jobs report:  85,000 jobs lost and 661,000 not even looking for jobs.  The ongoing economic malaise is of concern to me for a few reasons.

Of course there is giving.  Ministry relies upon donors, we don’t sell a product or a service.  With fewer folks working, that means less to donate–which impacts what a ministry can or can’t do.  So, we must be wise and faithful.  Wisdom dictates we focus our limited resources on our core mission–making disciples.  Extras can, and should be shed.  Faith dictates that we trust God to provide for that core mission.  In other words, we don’t stop teaching Sunday School because we’re afraid we can’t heat the building.  We teach and trust God to provide.

The declining economy, while stealing donations from non-profits, also means more people in real need.  Our food pantry and benevolence fund has seen much more use over the past year than in the 6 that preceded it.  Already we’ve spent our budgeted benevolence, and will begin taking benevolence offerings to continue meeting needs.  It’s kind of a catch-22, more people need help but there is less to help them with.  Again, loving people is core mission stuff–so we continue to do so, trusting God to provide.

Additionally, there is the spiritual concern for the flock.  Some don’t know how to handle money problems in a Christian manner.  Some will ask, ‘Why me?’ Others might decide to blame God.  One of a Pastor’s great challenges is to help folks see these times are a purifying opportunity.  As businesses and ministries must shed extras and refocus on core mission–so, too, must Christians.  What an opportunity to realize how much time and money we invest in that which is ultimately fleeting.  What a chance to refocus my whole life upon that which is eternal.

Overall my hope is to set an example of wise faith:  not wasting resources, but also not doubting God’s continued provision.

In the mean time, I’d love for our government to do one thing:  make the US the most attractive place to do business.  Doing so, I believe, will do more to invigorate the economy than any number of stimuli or bailouts.