The recent shooting in Arizona reiterates in a horrific way what the Bible means when it talks about the danger of the tongue. Over and over, we see prophets, apostles, and Christ Himself emphasizing the sharpness of the tongue, the pain and evil that careless words can cause, and the evil that can result from the tongue if we are not careful.
I really believe that many people are pushed towards dangerous action because of angry words they hear. In most cases, this action doesn’t end in tragedy. But sometimes it does. And the "sometimes" scenarios are too horrendous to risk.
that is why we must, as God warns us, guard our tongues, for it is a "double-edged sword." Angry political rhetoric leads those who are easily influenced to think that the only way to solve a problem is to shoot someone who disagrees with them. And they think they are justified in doing this - our rhetoric has become so angry, so divisive, that it leads some to think killing is a [possible course of action.
When this becomes the case, we need to change how we speak. We need to watch the words that come out of our mouths, for our tongue is a weapon more powerful than we realize. We need to seriously think about and definitely change how we discourse with one another, especially on points of disagreement, or there will be many more scenes like the one in Arizona to come.
We as Christians should be leading the way in godly discourse, not joining in full force in the angry dialogue. Because we are passionate does not mean our words should contribute to the anger and violence. We should follow Christ’s example and communicate wisely and with cunning, but in gentleness and love. In disagreement, our words should not promote violence, but only speak truth. Following Christ’s example, we can speak boldly and powerfully without causing people to draw their swords (or their guns).Current events of the day challenge us to think more about what we are saying and how we are saying it, instead of carelessly joining in the debate.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Political involvement
I recently wrote an article for Capital Commentary,an awesome publication produced by the Center for Public Justice, on the importance of Christian political engagement. Check it out if you want!
http://www.capitalcommentary.org/faith-and-politics/christian-political-engagement
http://www.capitalcommentary.org/faith-and-politics/christian-political-engagement
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Faith in Christ
"Following Jesus is not meant to be some cursory assent to the question 'Do you believe in Jesus?' Following Jesus is meant to turn our lives around so that we go out and live differently in a way that draws others to the God in whom we live and move and have our being."
"Doing mission is not for the few who choose to serve in distant countries. The mission of God calls all of us to step out of our comfort zones into another way of being and another way of doing. It calls all of us to accept the challenge of Epiphany to live and serve joyfully in a way that reveals Jesus to others so that they too hunger for the One who has transformed us." (http://godspace.wordpress.com/2011/01/05/eve-of-epiphany-we-have-come-we-have-seen-now-we-must-follow/)
These words by blogger Christine Sine strike a deep chord with me right now. Our Christian culture and the American church overall have not sat right with me over the past couple years, and I am realizing more and more that this unsettled feeling comes when my growing realization of who God is and who He made His church to be are contrasted with what His church actually is. So many of us have turned "faith in Christ" into a simple, theological concept that has made answering the question of "Are you going to heaven" the goal of our belief system.
Really, though, true faith in Christ should produce a deep awe of a holy God that we can never fully understand, but who we believe in anyway because our hearts will not be satisfied without His whispers. Faith in Christ, in the living God, will make our lives different than the lives of others around us because we will live believing in the magic and holy power of a magnificent God. Truly having faith in Christ will cause us to desire a better system, to strive for a different reality, to never grow used to hearing of heartache and never cease believing that God will use us to make that heartache go away. I've realized that I grow more and more dissatisfied with the world around me as the years go on because I grow more satisfied with Him. With who He is, with His truths, with His reality. I continue to not be satisfied with how things are not because there is something wrong with my faith, but because there is something right with my faith. I feel the power of the Spirit moving through my bones and feel Him crying out through me to desire more, to seek a different kind of world - a world where He is presented daily through how we live and what we say and how we love - and He aches within me when He sees Christians all around Him growing satisfied with the way the world is now. The more I get to know Christ and His personality, His heart, His vision for the world and for His church, the more I am filled with an excitement and a burning in my soul! I become more dissatisfied with the way things are because I see more of how they could be, and I yearn to be Christ's representative and bring His fiery love into the world. I yearn to be His feet that never stop running, yearn to help show the church how much more there is to living for Christ in this world.
It is more than praying a prayer once and saying "yes" when someone asks if you’re going to heaven someday. Faith in Christ is believing in His power to truly save and redeem - it is believing and desiring to see Him change this world in ways we could never change it ourselves. Faith in Christ gives us more in this life than just waiting for the next one. There is more we are called to: faith in Christ fills us with a desire to live like He lived and change the situations around us, just like He did while on this earth. And because of the power of the Holy Spirit, faith in Christ allows us to do even greater things than He did to love, heal, and redeem the world around us (John 14:12) – so that like Christ, we may draw people to the Father. Faith in Christ is fervently praying for "His Kingdom come, His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven, " and living in such a way that it is so.
Faith in Christ should cause us to live so drastically different than the world around us, because we live with hope in a power that can change things - and we live out that hope by joining with Him to bring about that change, believing and doing and saying things that are so clearly beyond human ability or social "norms." Living differently is not just for those who feel called to mission work in other countries, or for those who feel called to be pastors or work in a church building. Living differently is not something we choose a choice because it fits our personalities or preferred lifestyles. Living differently in this world should be an outpouring of true faith in Christ, faith in a powerful God who can truly do even more than “all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.” (Eph. 3:20) We are the ones who can live in such a way as to display His power and draw people to Him.
Do our lifestyles, our friendships, our marriages, our finances, our jobs, etc., reflect that we really believe in an awesome, holy God whose powers extend above all other principalities? Are we living in such a way that others see Him and fear Him and desire Him? The more I come to know Christ the more He urges me quietly and insistently to examine my own life and boldly follow His example, not living by the standard of the world but by the beautiful, all-satisfying standard He has given us.
"Doing mission is not for the few who choose to serve in distant countries. The mission of God calls all of us to step out of our comfort zones into another way of being and another way of doing. It calls all of us to accept the challenge of Epiphany to live and serve joyfully in a way that reveals Jesus to others so that they too hunger for the One who has transformed us." (http://godspace.wordpress.com/2011/01/05/eve-of-epiphany-we-have-come-we-have-seen-now-we-must-follow/)
These words by blogger Christine Sine strike a deep chord with me right now. Our Christian culture and the American church overall have not sat right with me over the past couple years, and I am realizing more and more that this unsettled feeling comes when my growing realization of who God is and who He made His church to be are contrasted with what His church actually is. So many of us have turned "faith in Christ" into a simple, theological concept that has made answering the question of "Are you going to heaven" the goal of our belief system.
Really, though, true faith in Christ should produce a deep awe of a holy God that we can never fully understand, but who we believe in anyway because our hearts will not be satisfied without His whispers. Faith in Christ, in the living God, will make our lives different than the lives of others around us because we will live believing in the magic and holy power of a magnificent God. Truly having faith in Christ will cause us to desire a better system, to strive for a different reality, to never grow used to hearing of heartache and never cease believing that God will use us to make that heartache go away. I've realized that I grow more and more dissatisfied with the world around me as the years go on because I grow more satisfied with Him. With who He is, with His truths, with His reality. I continue to not be satisfied with how things are not because there is something wrong with my faith, but because there is something right with my faith. I feel the power of the Spirit moving through my bones and feel Him crying out through me to desire more, to seek a different kind of world - a world where He is presented daily through how we live and what we say and how we love - and He aches within me when He sees Christians all around Him growing satisfied with the way the world is now. The more I get to know Christ and His personality, His heart, His vision for the world and for His church, the more I am filled with an excitement and a burning in my soul! I become more dissatisfied with the way things are because I see more of how they could be, and I yearn to be Christ's representative and bring His fiery love into the world. I yearn to be His feet that never stop running, yearn to help show the church how much more there is to living for Christ in this world.
It is more than praying a prayer once and saying "yes" when someone asks if you’re going to heaven someday. Faith in Christ is believing in His power to truly save and redeem - it is believing and desiring to see Him change this world in ways we could never change it ourselves. Faith in Christ gives us more in this life than just waiting for the next one. There is more we are called to: faith in Christ fills us with a desire to live like He lived and change the situations around us, just like He did while on this earth. And because of the power of the Holy Spirit, faith in Christ allows us to do even greater things than He did to love, heal, and redeem the world around us (John 14:12) – so that like Christ, we may draw people to the Father. Faith in Christ is fervently praying for "His Kingdom come, His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven, " and living in such a way that it is so.
Faith in Christ should cause us to live so drastically different than the world around us, because we live with hope in a power that can change things - and we live out that hope by joining with Him to bring about that change, believing and doing and saying things that are so clearly beyond human ability or social "norms." Living differently is not just for those who feel called to mission work in other countries, or for those who feel called to be pastors or work in a church building. Living differently is not something we choose a choice because it fits our personalities or preferred lifestyles. Living differently in this world should be an outpouring of true faith in Christ, faith in a powerful God who can truly do even more than “all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.” (Eph. 3:20) We are the ones who can live in such a way as to display His power and draw people to Him.
Do our lifestyles, our friendships, our marriages, our finances, our jobs, etc., reflect that we really believe in an awesome, holy God whose powers extend above all other principalities? Are we living in such a way that others see Him and fear Him and desire Him? The more I come to know Christ the more He urges me quietly and insistently to examine my own life and boldly follow His example, not living by the standard of the world but by the beautiful, all-satisfying standard He has given us.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
If the Tea Party can do it, then so can we...
What if there was a movement of people that actively stood up for Christ’s truths in our culture? What if we demanded leaders that truly stood up for legislation that promoted justice, peace, equality, and righteousness – and that actually acted in a way that promoted these truths?
As the Church, we are called to be "salt and light" in this world. (Matthew 5:13-16). It is no secret that our human nature suffers from the disease of inherent selfishness - looking at the world around us, this self-centeredness is apparent everywhere. Unfortunately, rather than visibly combating it, the Church seems to be joining in much of the time.
As my pastor recently said, our lives as Christians merely look "tweaked, but not transformed. Why would anyone want that?" We should be so salty and so filled with light that we look DIFFERENT to this world - different in a way that gives people the answer our hearts are all searching for.
How do we do this? How do we live in such a way that we are still in this world, still engaging the world, but live as salt - set apart and different?
I recently read an article elaborating on the beliefs and platform of the Tea Party. The article pointed out that the Tea Party has no “official” platform, but then went on to list their interests and priorities. As I read it, this problem of our inherent human selfishness grew more and more glaringly obvious: every single priority of the Tea Party had to do with self-interest. Whatever was best for them – for us – as Americans was the priority. No matter who else it affected and how – if it was what would most benefit the United States, that was the option they favored. It seems that the only platform of the Tea Party is self-interest.
I don’t think it is any secret why the Tea Party became so popular so fast: it is all about us. It feeds our already natural inclination to put ourselves before anyone else.
As Christ followers, we are called to be “transformed by the renewing of our minds" (Romans 12:2). We are called to actively fight this human nature as we learn to live in the power of the Spirit. We are called to actively provide an alternative, another way, to movements like the Tea Party that feed our selfish nature.
As Ravi Zacharias International Ministries writer Margaret Manning said in a recent article about this very topic of human selfishness: We isolate freedom to the realm of personal freedom, with little constraint or thoughtfulness to corporate consequences or responsibility. We do not often associate our gift of freedom with the opportunity to serve others… In his letter to the Galatians who were tempted to trade freedom for the grip of the law, Paul reminds, “[Y]ou were called to freedom; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself'" (Galatians 3:13-14). Paul's definition of freedom for love and service seems to fly in the face of understanding freedom as doing whatever one wants to do. And while we rightly deplore the restriction or oppression of human freedom as evidenced in totalitarian regimes and systems, we should likewise deplore the unchecked, unthinking, and often self-centered understanding of freedom that occupy many Western societies and systems. We are called to freedom. Paul reminds us of the true intention for freedom—it is a freedom for others—and not simply so we can pursue our own self-interest. It is a freedom grounded in love for the sake of another.
This is our purpose. Rather than let our selfish sinful dominate us and let us think the freedom we’ve been blessed with is to be used for our own purposes, let’s be reminded of Paul’s words: “…do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another…" This mindset is completely countercultural – it is completely the opposite of the popular message of personal interest that the Tea Party preached. So let’s be the counterpart to the Tea Party! If the Tea Party can gather such momentum, then how much more can a movement that is based on the selfless love of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit? As Paul also reminds us in Ephesians 3: 14-21, God is capable of - and WANTS - to do more than we can even imagine. And THROUGH US.
What if the Church passionately and boldly demanded policies that support education reform, child welfare, the sanctity of life (babies in the womb as well as those living in poverty all over the world), justice for those oppressed all over the world, peace in our relations with other countries, righteous action in our government and in our dealings with other nations, prison reform, an end to the sex-trafficking industry, and countless other values that we as the Church are called to zealously stand for.
Then we need to stand together as the Church in demanding leaders that will also seek these values – regardless of their policy affiliation. What would it look like to our divided and partisan country if we, if the Church collectively – which would be a much larger group of people than those following the Tea Party – mobilized behind these values? These values of justice, peace, righteousness, equality – the values that everyone desires and everyone needs – are the truths Christ exemplified perfectly and taught, and the truths that He also prayed for His followers to live out. Christ prayed in John 17 for His Church to show His beautiful, selfless love through being unified in Him. And through standing together for the truths He commanded us to live out, the world will see Him. The way the world will see Christ’s love is through living the way He taught us, and one of the main ways we can do that today is using the power in the system He has blessed us with in this country to stand together for His truths.
The Church is essential for the betterment of government and society, and it is a necessary part of God’s call on our lives to speak out in matters of politics and to influence our leaders. As Christians, we are called to holistic redemption: not just redemption of the soul or of the society, but of both. Christ calls us to carry His salvation of the hearts of all people, but He also calls us to become like Him, living differently in this world, in a way that physically brings His redemption to the hurting and broken world we are living in.
Through Christ in us, we can be a people that reflect God to this world – a people that bring His redemption here and now. I’m not suggesting we start our own Christian political party or our own little Christian nation – no, far from it! I’m suggesting we demand a better way: Christ’s way. Not “conservative, liberal, or moderate” – but CHRIST’S way. I’m talking about boldly standing for certain values and staunchly supporting those in power who also stand for those values – just as the Tea Party did.
But, unlike the Tea Party, we stand for only what brings true justice, righteousness, peace, and equality….we demand selfless love, and we live it out. We actively bring it into politics by demanding the kind of leaders who will fight for these principles. We live it out by bringing these principles into every area of our culture: into business, art, music, what we buy, what we eat, how we live day to day, how we interact with all those around us…we help push our Christian culture as a whole to be salty in every area of life, living in such a way IN our culture that Christ is truly reflected to the world around us.
As the Church, let’s join together in living differently to bring Christ into our culture. Through our different gifts, we can work together to live out Christ’s selfless love in this world, and to teach others how to do the same. We can stand up and demand political leaders that will work for the issues that were close to Christ’s heart, and that are close to our’s. We can figure out ways to live simply, not buying products that hurt our brothers and sisters in other countries. We can personally live in a selfless way, in a way that promotes biblical equality and fairness. We can use our money to support businesses that are engaging in Christ-like work and practice.
We as the Church can start a movement that, because it is based on the selfless love of Christ and the power of the Spirit in us, can do far more than anything the Tea Party was and is able to accomplish. We can help each other learn how to best be salt and light in this world, and help lead the United States and worldwide Church in discovering how to best be salt and light in our culture! As salt and light, we are called to preserve and bring out the beauty of our faith, bringing the flavor of Christ into everything we do and shedding His light on this world. Using our different gifts, passions, and ideas, let's spur each other on and help each other figure out how to do this! Let’s start a movement to change our Christian culture and the culture of the world around us – and through this, change the hearts of people all over the world.
As the Church, we are called to be "salt and light" in this world. (Matthew 5:13-16). It is no secret that our human nature suffers from the disease of inherent selfishness - looking at the world around us, this self-centeredness is apparent everywhere. Unfortunately, rather than visibly combating it, the Church seems to be joining in much of the time.
As my pastor recently said, our lives as Christians merely look "tweaked, but not transformed. Why would anyone want that?" We should be so salty and so filled with light that we look DIFFERENT to this world - different in a way that gives people the answer our hearts are all searching for.
How do we do this? How do we live in such a way that we are still in this world, still engaging the world, but live as salt - set apart and different?
I recently read an article elaborating on the beliefs and platform of the Tea Party. The article pointed out that the Tea Party has no “official” platform, but then went on to list their interests and priorities. As I read it, this problem of our inherent human selfishness grew more and more glaringly obvious: every single priority of the Tea Party had to do with self-interest. Whatever was best for them – for us – as Americans was the priority. No matter who else it affected and how – if it was what would most benefit the United States, that was the option they favored. It seems that the only platform of the Tea Party is self-interest.
I don’t think it is any secret why the Tea Party became so popular so fast: it is all about us. It feeds our already natural inclination to put ourselves before anyone else.
As Christ followers, we are called to be “transformed by the renewing of our minds" (Romans 12:2). We are called to actively fight this human nature as we learn to live in the power of the Spirit. We are called to actively provide an alternative, another way, to movements like the Tea Party that feed our selfish nature.
As Ravi Zacharias International Ministries writer Margaret Manning said in a recent article about this very topic of human selfishness: We isolate freedom to the realm of personal freedom, with little constraint or thoughtfulness to corporate consequences or responsibility. We do not often associate our gift of freedom with the opportunity to serve others… In his letter to the Galatians who were tempted to trade freedom for the grip of the law, Paul reminds, “[Y]ou were called to freedom; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself'" (Galatians 3:13-14). Paul's definition of freedom for love and service seems to fly in the face of understanding freedom as doing whatever one wants to do. And while we rightly deplore the restriction or oppression of human freedom as evidenced in totalitarian regimes and systems, we should likewise deplore the unchecked, unthinking, and often self-centered understanding of freedom that occupy many Western societies and systems. We are called to freedom. Paul reminds us of the true intention for freedom—it is a freedom for others—and not simply so we can pursue our own self-interest. It is a freedom grounded in love for the sake of another.
This is our purpose. Rather than let our selfish sinful dominate us and let us think the freedom we’ve been blessed with is to be used for our own purposes, let’s be reminded of Paul’s words: “…do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another…" This mindset is completely countercultural – it is completely the opposite of the popular message of personal interest that the Tea Party preached. So let’s be the counterpart to the Tea Party! If the Tea Party can gather such momentum, then how much more can a movement that is based on the selfless love of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit? As Paul also reminds us in Ephesians 3: 14-21, God is capable of - and WANTS - to do more than we can even imagine. And THROUGH US.
What if the Church passionately and boldly demanded policies that support education reform, child welfare, the sanctity of life (babies in the womb as well as those living in poverty all over the world), justice for those oppressed all over the world, peace in our relations with other countries, righteous action in our government and in our dealings with other nations, prison reform, an end to the sex-trafficking industry, and countless other values that we as the Church are called to zealously stand for.
Then we need to stand together as the Church in demanding leaders that will also seek these values – regardless of their policy affiliation. What would it look like to our divided and partisan country if we, if the Church collectively – which would be a much larger group of people than those following the Tea Party – mobilized behind these values? These values of justice, peace, righteousness, equality – the values that everyone desires and everyone needs – are the truths Christ exemplified perfectly and taught, and the truths that He also prayed for His followers to live out. Christ prayed in John 17 for His Church to show His beautiful, selfless love through being unified in Him. And through standing together for the truths He commanded us to live out, the world will see Him. The way the world will see Christ’s love is through living the way He taught us, and one of the main ways we can do that today is using the power in the system He has blessed us with in this country to stand together for His truths.
The Church is essential for the betterment of government and society, and it is a necessary part of God’s call on our lives to speak out in matters of politics and to influence our leaders. As Christians, we are called to holistic redemption: not just redemption of the soul or of the society, but of both. Christ calls us to carry His salvation of the hearts of all people, but He also calls us to become like Him, living differently in this world, in a way that physically brings His redemption to the hurting and broken world we are living in.
Through Christ in us, we can be a people that reflect God to this world – a people that bring His redemption here and now. I’m not suggesting we start our own Christian political party or our own little Christian nation – no, far from it! I’m suggesting we demand a better way: Christ’s way. Not “conservative, liberal, or moderate” – but CHRIST’S way. I’m talking about boldly standing for certain values and staunchly supporting those in power who also stand for those values – just as the Tea Party did.
But, unlike the Tea Party, we stand for only what brings true justice, righteousness, peace, and equality….we demand selfless love, and we live it out. We actively bring it into politics by demanding the kind of leaders who will fight for these principles. We live it out by bringing these principles into every area of our culture: into business, art, music, what we buy, what we eat, how we live day to day, how we interact with all those around us…we help push our Christian culture as a whole to be salty in every area of life, living in such a way IN our culture that Christ is truly reflected to the world around us.
As the Church, let’s join together in living differently to bring Christ into our culture. Through our different gifts, we can work together to live out Christ’s selfless love in this world, and to teach others how to do the same. We can stand up and demand political leaders that will work for the issues that were close to Christ’s heart, and that are close to our’s. We can figure out ways to live simply, not buying products that hurt our brothers and sisters in other countries. We can personally live in a selfless way, in a way that promotes biblical equality and fairness. We can use our money to support businesses that are engaging in Christ-like work and practice.
We as the Church can start a movement that, because it is based on the selfless love of Christ and the power of the Spirit in us, can do far more than anything the Tea Party was and is able to accomplish. We can help each other learn how to best be salt and light in this world, and help lead the United States and worldwide Church in discovering how to best be salt and light in our culture! As salt and light, we are called to preserve and bring out the beauty of our faith, bringing the flavor of Christ into everything we do and shedding His light on this world. Using our different gifts, passions, and ideas, let's spur each other on and help each other figure out how to do this! Let’s start a movement to change our Christian culture and the culture of the world around us – and through this, change the hearts of people all over the world.
Freed to Serve by Margaret Manning
very thought-provoking and very true article:
Freed to Serve
A recent article in Christianity Today magazine caught my attention. With an excerpt from his forthcoming book What Good Is God?, author Philip Yancey discussed his speaking and listening tour throughout several countries in the Middle East in 2009.(1) Part of his listening included hearing how the "Christian" West is viewed by those living in predominantly Islamic countries. Time and again, he heard a familiar refrain: freedom in the West was equated with decadence. Yancey writes, "Much of the misgiving...for the West stems from our strong emphasis on freedom...where freedom so often leads to decadence."(2)
Of course, Yancey would quickly acknowledge that the freedom we enjoy in the West is often taken for granted. In general, we are free to do and to be whatever we want. We move unhindered towards the achievement of our own personal freedoms and objectives, without worrying about impediment or coercive control from outside forces. Certainly, we enjoy the privilege of the freedom to move about our country across state borders effortlessly. We have the freedom to worship, unhindered by government intervention or surveillance. Many of us who have financial abundance are able to access freedoms that only money can buy. We are free to think as we want, speak what we want, and do what we want. In comparison with people in other countries, we have the freedom to fill in the blank with endless possibilities. Freedom is the air we breathe.
But if we take an honest look at how freedom is exercised in the Western world, we ought to turn a careful ear to this critique from those looking in from the outside. Our association of freedom with doing, being, or saying whatever we want is often cut off from the intended ideal. We isolate freedom to the realm of personal freedom, with little constraint or thoughtfulness to corporate consequences or responsibility. We do not often associate our gift of freedom with the opportunity to serve others.
The apostle Paul wrestled with this issue as he wrote to the early Christians at Corinth. In discussing matters of personal freedom he exhorted these early Christians that "all things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his or her own good, but that of his or her neighbor....whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:23, 24, 31). In his letter to the Galatians who were tempted to trade freedom for the grip of the law, Paul reminds, "[Y]ou were called to freedom; only do not turn your freedom into and opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself'" (Galatians 3:13-14).
Paul's definition of freedom for love and service seems to fly in the face of understanding freedom as doing whatever one wants to do. And while we rightly deplore the restriction or oppression of human freedom as evidenced in totalitarian regimes and systems, we should likewise deplore the unchecked, unthinking, and often self-centered understanding of freedom that occupy many Western societies and systems. We are called to freedom. Paul reminds us of the true intention for freedom—it is a freedom for others—and not simply so we can pursue our own self-interest. It is a freedom grounded in love for the sake of another.
- Margaret Manning, writer for Ravi Zacharias International Ministries
Freed to Serve
A recent article in Christianity Today magazine caught my attention. With an excerpt from his forthcoming book What Good Is God?, author Philip Yancey discussed his speaking and listening tour throughout several countries in the Middle East in 2009.(1) Part of his listening included hearing how the "Christian" West is viewed by those living in predominantly Islamic countries. Time and again, he heard a familiar refrain: freedom in the West was equated with decadence. Yancey writes, "Much of the misgiving...for the West stems from our strong emphasis on freedom...where freedom so often leads to decadence."(2)
Of course, Yancey would quickly acknowledge that the freedom we enjoy in the West is often taken for granted. In general, we are free to do and to be whatever we want. We move unhindered towards the achievement of our own personal freedoms and objectives, without worrying about impediment or coercive control from outside forces. Certainly, we enjoy the privilege of the freedom to move about our country across state borders effortlessly. We have the freedom to worship, unhindered by government intervention or surveillance. Many of us who have financial abundance are able to access freedoms that only money can buy. We are free to think as we want, speak what we want, and do what we want. In comparison with people in other countries, we have the freedom to fill in the blank with endless possibilities. Freedom is the air we breathe.
But if we take an honest look at how freedom is exercised in the Western world, we ought to turn a careful ear to this critique from those looking in from the outside. Our association of freedom with doing, being, or saying whatever we want is often cut off from the intended ideal. We isolate freedom to the realm of personal freedom, with little constraint or thoughtfulness to corporate consequences or responsibility. We do not often associate our gift of freedom with the opportunity to serve others.
The apostle Paul wrestled with this issue as he wrote to the early Christians at Corinth. In discussing matters of personal freedom he exhorted these early Christians that "all things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his or her own good, but that of his or her neighbor....whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:23, 24, 31). In his letter to the Galatians who were tempted to trade freedom for the grip of the law, Paul reminds, "[Y]ou were called to freedom; only do not turn your freedom into and opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself'" (Galatians 3:13-14).
Paul's definition of freedom for love and service seems to fly in the face of understanding freedom as doing whatever one wants to do. And while we rightly deplore the restriction or oppression of human freedom as evidenced in totalitarian regimes and systems, we should likewise deplore the unchecked, unthinking, and often self-centered understanding of freedom that occupy many Western societies and systems. We are called to freedom. Paul reminds us of the true intention for freedom—it is a freedom for others—and not simply so we can pursue our own self-interest. It is a freedom grounded in love for the sake of another.
- Margaret Manning, writer for Ravi Zacharias International Ministries
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Amos, worship, and justice
God said in Amos 5:21-24,
"I hate, I despise your religious feasts;
I cannot stand your assemblies.
Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.
Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!"
It is clear from this passage that it is not simply offering God our wealth, going to church, being "religious" and observing religious tradition, or even worshipping Him through song that pleases Him. It is living justly and righteously that pleases Him.
I was privileged to be a part of a meeting this morning where the discussion opened up with talking about the debate of the importance of the Word vs action and of personal salvation vs. acts of justice. Someone from our group wisely commented that unfortunately, many Christians hear "justice" and think only of the world's definition of "social justice." But God's justice is so different.
God's justice is seen completely in Christ, in redeeming us from our sin and giving us the chance to become the people He creates us to be. In Christ, God's justice is personified and not only are we justified, but we now have the chance to join with Christ in living out God's justice. Not only to carry His message of personal salvation and redemption to the world, but His message of physical and societal redemption as well. In Christ, we are not only forgiven but are also refined and molded and called to become more like Him. We are called to live as He lived - which means we do not just carry a message of hope after death, but hope now. God desires this world to be redeemed, and in Christ we can work to bring His redemption to all areas of life, working with the hope that one day God will come and perfectly complete the work He has called us to.
In Christ, it is not Word or action, personal or societal salvation. It is both. Both are an essential part of the Gospel. As someone also commented at our meeting this morning, they are intimately connected, flowing out of each other. It is clear from the passage in Amos that God desires action: He desires justice and righteousness. But He does not desire the type of action that results in mindless ritual and heartless religion. He is looking for action that is truly worshipful. And when we know Christ, true worship will flow from us: acts of justice and righteousness. Truly knowing Christ’s justice will cause us to live out that justice. One comes from the other: just as when God spoke and the earth came into being, just as when Christ spoke people were healed – when we read His Word we will not be able to help but act as He acted. Experiencing personal redemption will lead us to desire redemption of society and of the world – it will lead us to see the world more through God’s eyes and desire for it to be the way He intended it to be in the beginning – and this will lead us to do acts of justice to make it so. And as we see from Amos 5, this is true worship.
"I hate, I despise your religious feasts;
I cannot stand your assemblies.
Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.
Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!"
It is clear from this passage that it is not simply offering God our wealth, going to church, being "religious" and observing religious tradition, or even worshipping Him through song that pleases Him. It is living justly and righteously that pleases Him.
I was privileged to be a part of a meeting this morning where the discussion opened up with talking about the debate of the importance of the Word vs action and of personal salvation vs. acts of justice. Someone from our group wisely commented that unfortunately, many Christians hear "justice" and think only of the world's definition of "social justice." But God's justice is so different.
God's justice is seen completely in Christ, in redeeming us from our sin and giving us the chance to become the people He creates us to be. In Christ, God's justice is personified and not only are we justified, but we now have the chance to join with Christ in living out God's justice. Not only to carry His message of personal salvation and redemption to the world, but His message of physical and societal redemption as well. In Christ, we are not only forgiven but are also refined and molded and called to become more like Him. We are called to live as He lived - which means we do not just carry a message of hope after death, but hope now. God desires this world to be redeemed, and in Christ we can work to bring His redemption to all areas of life, working with the hope that one day God will come and perfectly complete the work He has called us to.
In Christ, it is not Word or action, personal or societal salvation. It is both. Both are an essential part of the Gospel. As someone also commented at our meeting this morning, they are intimately connected, flowing out of each other. It is clear from the passage in Amos that God desires action: He desires justice and righteousness. But He does not desire the type of action that results in mindless ritual and heartless religion. He is looking for action that is truly worshipful. And when we know Christ, true worship will flow from us: acts of justice and righteousness. Truly knowing Christ’s justice will cause us to live out that justice. One comes from the other: just as when God spoke and the earth came into being, just as when Christ spoke people were healed – when we read His Word we will not be able to help but act as He acted. Experiencing personal redemption will lead us to desire redemption of society and of the world – it will lead us to see the world more through God’s eyes and desire for it to be the way He intended it to be in the beginning – and this will lead us to do acts of justice to make it so. And as we see from Amos 5, this is true worship.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
The tools God has given us...
Excerpt from an article written by Adam Phillips on a conversation he had with Zambian evangelical leader Bishop Mususu while at the Lausanne Congress recently:
Bishop Mususu concluded (and I scribbled on my coffee cup): “Yes, the church is supposed to be salt and light, but it is the government that is collecting our tax and making foolish decisions and policies. We can’t allow these things to go unchallenged. We need to address needs along the way with mercy, but ours as the church is to not simply pick up babies downstream that have been tossed in the river. We must go upstream and confront these challenges where they start, and that is why we as a church need to advocate and confront unjust laws.”
So often in the states we talk about advocating our own elected leaders and holding them accountable. It’s important to know that churches and leaders in other countries around the world are doing their part to hold officials accountable in a spirit of good governance. We stand as members of a global body of Christ — each having a role to play and gifts therein. Bishop Mususu’s story is evidence that African leaders are doing their part in fighting injustice, and it remains an inspiration for us at this Third Lausanne Congress and beyond to ensure our respective leaders do their part as well. (http://blog.sojo.net/2010/10/19/the-global-church-must-hold-politicians-accountable/)
It is crucial that the Church do everything in our power to do to be Christ to the world. And that includes takig advantage of the democracy we live in here in the US, the tool of government we have been given, and the powerful political system we are a part of. If the Church in Africa is standing up and utilizing the government to do God's work, then how much more should we as American Christians, having a more reliable and free system (generally)? As Bishop Mususu said, it is not going to work long-term, it is not going to bring lasting, systemic change to merely "pick up the babies downstream." We need to prevent them from even being thrown in the stream - and because of the blessings God has given us, most of us as American Christians can go upstream and stop the babies from even being thrown in! As I heard a pastor say recently when speaking to the World Vision staff here in DC, the worldwide Church does have the resources to prevent world hunger. We are big enough and powerful enough to stop some of the most pressing and heartbreaking injustices. But we don't stand together and collectively unite to address these issues. Individual missionaries and individual church programs to spread the Gospel and help the poor are wonderful, definitely. But being salt and light in the world is more than sending individual missionaries out, more than handing a Bible to people in other countries, more than sending food to famished communities. Being salt and light is using all the tools and blessings Christ has given us in our country and our culture to bring as much lasting, systemic redemption to the world as possible until Christ comes again and makes all things new. And using our governments and politicians to help us do the work Christ has called us to is one of the ways we can work for systemic change and stop the problem upstream.
Bishop Mususu concluded (and I scribbled on my coffee cup): “Yes, the church is supposed to be salt and light, but it is the government that is collecting our tax and making foolish decisions and policies. We can’t allow these things to go unchallenged. We need to address needs along the way with mercy, but ours as the church is to not simply pick up babies downstream that have been tossed in the river. We must go upstream and confront these challenges where they start, and that is why we as a church need to advocate and confront unjust laws.”
So often in the states we talk about advocating our own elected leaders and holding them accountable. It’s important to know that churches and leaders in other countries around the world are doing their part to hold officials accountable in a spirit of good governance. We stand as members of a global body of Christ — each having a role to play and gifts therein. Bishop Mususu’s story is evidence that African leaders are doing their part in fighting injustice, and it remains an inspiration for us at this Third Lausanne Congress and beyond to ensure our respective leaders do their part as well. (http://blog.sojo.net/2010/10/19/the-global-church-must-hold-politicians-accountable/)
It is crucial that the Church do everything in our power to do to be Christ to the world. And that includes takig advantage of the democracy we live in here in the US, the tool of government we have been given, and the powerful political system we are a part of. If the Church in Africa is standing up and utilizing the government to do God's work, then how much more should we as American Christians, having a more reliable and free system (generally)? As Bishop Mususu said, it is not going to work long-term, it is not going to bring lasting, systemic change to merely "pick up the babies downstream." We need to prevent them from even being thrown in the stream - and because of the blessings God has given us, most of us as American Christians can go upstream and stop the babies from even being thrown in! As I heard a pastor say recently when speaking to the World Vision staff here in DC, the worldwide Church does have the resources to prevent world hunger. We are big enough and powerful enough to stop some of the most pressing and heartbreaking injustices. But we don't stand together and collectively unite to address these issues. Individual missionaries and individual church programs to spread the Gospel and help the poor are wonderful, definitely. But being salt and light in the world is more than sending individual missionaries out, more than handing a Bible to people in other countries, more than sending food to famished communities. Being salt and light is using all the tools and blessings Christ has given us in our country and our culture to bring as much lasting, systemic redemption to the world as possible until Christ comes again and makes all things new. And using our governments and politicians to help us do the work Christ has called us to is one of the ways we can work for systemic change and stop the problem upstream.
Political priorities should be defined by Christ
This was originally posted on Sojourners' God's Politics blog by Lavonne Neff. I wanted to repost it because I thought it gave some very practical priorities that biblical Christians should have when going to the polls! Our views and who we vote for should be defined by the issues of Christ, not by the media or a political party.
Dear Candidate: Talk about Your Goals
By: LaVonne Neff
http://blog.sojo.net/2010/10/18/dear-candidate-talk-about-your-goals/
It’s midterm election time. How are you going to vote? Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it? Your side — whichever it is — is the only one that will save America from utter financial and moral collapse. The other side — whichever it is — is full of liars and hypocrites controlled by unscrupulous cabals who, for financial reasons, are willing to ruin the common man. And woman.
I am so tired of political invective. I have come close to unfriending some very nice people on Facebook because they are always saying nasty things about the only party of truth and light, i.e., the one I favor. (Though nasty internet comments are certainly not limited to discussions of politics: I just read through a long list of vicious personal attacks that had to do with the genetics of an Airedale Terrier.)
Can we for a moment lay aside our overweening sense of personal righteousness and talk reasonably about goals?
Politics is a process of people working together to achieve goals that are good for everybody. Often we agree on the goals, though we disagree violently about how to achieve them. For example, I imagine we all think that if a great-grandmother develops Alzheimer’s disease and becomes difficult to care for, she should not be left in the street to fend for herself. We probably agree that all children who have the capacity to read and write should be taught to do so. The vast majority of us think it’s a good idea for a large country like ours to have an interstate highway system. Nearly all of us would like to live in an economy where jobs are plentiful and wages are adequate.
Where we disagree, of course, is how to achieve our goals, and a two-or-multi-party system can stimulate our thinking by challenging our presuppositions and enlarging the range of options we consider. It’s hard to believe, but several decades ago Democrats and Republicans often discussed issues respectfully and worked together to arrive at solutions. The Internet would allow us to do this again, if only we would stop calling names.
How are you going to vote in November? How about setting party labels aside and asking some goal-oriented questions of your candidates? And since many candidates are good at spinning their answers, how about setting campaign rhetoric aside and looking at what your candidates have actually accomplished in each area?
Here are ten goals that are important to me, with questions I need to consider:
Which candidate’s policies are more likely to help people escape from poverty? (I put this in first place because I am a Christian, and the ethical issue that receives the most space in the Bible is concern for the poor. I believe each party has a valid contribution to make to this issue, and I’d like to see both parties make it one of their major goals.)
Whose policies are more likely to create long-term jobs?
Whose policies will have a better effect on public health?
Whose ideas are more likely to provide high-quality education for children of all socioeconomic levels?
Whose ideas will better help us restore our decaying infrastructure?
Who is more likely to handle finances responsibly, keeping budgets balanced and planning for the future?
Who is more likely to show responsibility for the environment, keeping in mind not only our present needs but also the needs of generations to come?
Who is least likely to bow to the special interests that are financing his or her campaign? Who is least likely to be influenced by lobbyists? For that matter, which special interests are behind which candidates? (Open Secrets is a nonpartisan site that will help you follow the money that is following your candidates.)
Who is more likely to make accurate public statements? (Fact Check is a nonpartisan site that helps to sort out fact from fiction.) Note: It is possible to make an inaccurate statement without lying, but you probably don’t want either a liar or an ignorant person representing you.
Who has the better understanding of the common good — that is, that society depends on our working together, especially to help those who can’t help themselves and to build that which we can’t build alone — and not just on our getting the best possible deal for our individual selves?
I don’t believe either party has a corner on morality, justice, truth, intelligence, or good will. There are a few people of integrity and a lot of scoundrels leading both parties. I’d like to see us stop bickering about means and get to the important questions — what are we trying to accomplish in our towns, counties, states, and nation? And how can we work together to reach those goals?
Dear Candidate: Talk about Your Goals
By: LaVonne Neff
http://blog.sojo.net/2010/10/18/dear-candidate-talk-about-your-goals/
It’s midterm election time. How are you going to vote? Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it? Your side — whichever it is — is the only one that will save America from utter financial and moral collapse. The other side — whichever it is — is full of liars and hypocrites controlled by unscrupulous cabals who, for financial reasons, are willing to ruin the common man. And woman.
I am so tired of political invective. I have come close to unfriending some very nice people on Facebook because they are always saying nasty things about the only party of truth and light, i.e., the one I favor. (Though nasty internet comments are certainly not limited to discussions of politics: I just read through a long list of vicious personal attacks that had to do with the genetics of an Airedale Terrier.)
Can we for a moment lay aside our overweening sense of personal righteousness and talk reasonably about goals?
Politics is a process of people working together to achieve goals that are good for everybody. Often we agree on the goals, though we disagree violently about how to achieve them. For example, I imagine we all think that if a great-grandmother develops Alzheimer’s disease and becomes difficult to care for, she should not be left in the street to fend for herself. We probably agree that all children who have the capacity to read and write should be taught to do so. The vast majority of us think it’s a good idea for a large country like ours to have an interstate highway system. Nearly all of us would like to live in an economy where jobs are plentiful and wages are adequate.
Where we disagree, of course, is how to achieve our goals, and a two-or-multi-party system can stimulate our thinking by challenging our presuppositions and enlarging the range of options we consider. It’s hard to believe, but several decades ago Democrats and Republicans often discussed issues respectfully and worked together to arrive at solutions. The Internet would allow us to do this again, if only we would stop calling names.
How are you going to vote in November? How about setting party labels aside and asking some goal-oriented questions of your candidates? And since many candidates are good at spinning their answers, how about setting campaign rhetoric aside and looking at what your candidates have actually accomplished in each area?
Here are ten goals that are important to me, with questions I need to consider:
Which candidate’s policies are more likely to help people escape from poverty? (I put this in first place because I am a Christian, and the ethical issue that receives the most space in the Bible is concern for the poor. I believe each party has a valid contribution to make to this issue, and I’d like to see both parties make it one of their major goals.)
Whose policies are more likely to create long-term jobs?
Whose policies will have a better effect on public health?
Whose ideas are more likely to provide high-quality education for children of all socioeconomic levels?
Whose ideas will better help us restore our decaying infrastructure?
Who is more likely to handle finances responsibly, keeping budgets balanced and planning for the future?
Who is more likely to show responsibility for the environment, keeping in mind not only our present needs but also the needs of generations to come?
Who is least likely to bow to the special interests that are financing his or her campaign? Who is least likely to be influenced by lobbyists? For that matter, which special interests are behind which candidates? (Open Secrets is a nonpartisan site that will help you follow the money that is following your candidates.)
Who is more likely to make accurate public statements? (Fact Check is a nonpartisan site that helps to sort out fact from fiction.) Note: It is possible to make an inaccurate statement without lying, but you probably don’t want either a liar or an ignorant person representing you.
Who has the better understanding of the common good — that is, that society depends on our working together, especially to help those who can’t help themselves and to build that which we can’t build alone — and not just on our getting the best possible deal for our individual selves?
I don’t believe either party has a corner on morality, justice, truth, intelligence, or good will. There are a few people of integrity and a lot of scoundrels leading both parties. I’d like to see us stop bickering about means and get to the important questions — what are we trying to accomplish in our towns, counties, states, and nation? And how can we work together to reach those goals?
Monday, October 18, 2010
To live "set apart....."
There is no doubt that Christ calls us to live differently, to live "set apart" for Him. To be foreigner in this land. But we are called to be in this land. So how do we actually do that? How can we live like Christ, in our world today? In our culture today?
It was said about 18th century Christian and politician William Wilberforce that “One of the first manifestations of… 'the great change’…was the contempt he felt for his wealth and the luxury he lived in…Seeds were sown almost immediately at the beginning of his Christian life, it seems, of the later passion to help the poor and to turn all his inherited wealth and his naturally high station into a means of blessing the oppressed...Simplicity and generosity were the mark of his life…riches were… ‘the means of honoring our heavenly Benefactor, and lessening the miseries of mankind’…this was the way his mind worked: Everything in politics was for the alleviation of misery and the spread of happiness.” (excerpt from John Piper's book, "Amazing Grace in the Life of William WIlberforce)
Like Wilberforce, a sign of our faith in Christ should be our simplicity and our generosity. These are two qualities that I think have faded from the church recently, especially in our American culture. Therefore one of the biggest ways we can live differently in our culture is to live simply and generously, recognizing that everything we have been given - as Wilberforce recognized - is a means of honoring God and loving others. All we have – our money, our job, all of our blessings – is not ours to do with as we please, but is a way to join with Christ in spreading God's redemption and love in this world.
This is something that God has been teaching me and emphasizing so much to me lately. It is not right that so few live with so much and so many live with so little. As we come to know Christ, we become less and less settled about the reality of the world around us: we, like Wilberforce, begin to feel contempt for all that we have when so many have so little. At least we should begin to feel this way. I think I was able to ignore this unsettled feeing for a long time, as I think many others have been able to as well, because of the culture we live in. But even if we try to ignore it, our hearts tell us that there is something wrong with how things are. God makes it clear in His Word that this is inherently evil: "He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God" (Proverbs 14:31) God is not saying it is just a nice thing to do to help the poor: He is saying we are literally showing Him contempt - basically saying we hate Him - when we oppress the poor. It is not an option: if we claim to love God, then we must love and care for the poor and oppressed! Even though America,and much of the Western world, has helped us think it is "normal," and even right, that we have so much and some have so little, this is a lie that will be seen clearly tyhrough the truths of the Bible and through just a few minutes of honest reflection: it is not normal for there to be such an incredible divide in wealth. It is not normal for so many to be oppressed while so few are free. This is not how our world was meant to be,or how it shold remain. Just because some - because of family,location,or whatever other belssing from the Lord - are born able with and able to work for wealth,does not make this right. God blesses some to be a blessing to others, to do His work and be His hands and feet. And even though the culture may at times lend a hand to thinking the dispartiy in the world right now is normal, even though we may get used to how things are, this does not mean this is how they should remain. God has called His people to STAND - throughout the Bible and now today, He commands His people to affect and help change the culture they are in, according to His vision. He calls us to help make things they way He intended them to be. And the imensity of wealth some have while others have close to nothing is not how God intended things to be.
I would take it so far as to say that we are helping bring about oppression if we are comfortable with the way things are right now - which, as Proverbs states, means we are showing contempt for God by how we are living. I believe that by the way we live, by the things we buy and the opulence of our lifestyles, we are not just allowing, but promoting the oppression of others. That is why I do not think it is enough to say that because we go to church on Sundays and give money to a charity every so often we are living differently. I believe more needs to be done - I believe our very lifestyles need to change - or we need to at least attempt to change them - in order to resist oppressing the poor.
So how do we do that? I think we can start with one of Martin Luther King Jr.'s principles in his Nonviolence Pledge: "Sacrifice personal wishes that all might be free." I think this is a key principle for us as the church today, espeically the American church today. A spirit of selflessness is not one that is naturally bred in us Americans - we are told from a young age to do all that we can for ourselves, to seek the American Dream.to work hard and get what we "deserve." But really, this is opposite of what Christ tells us - but we as Americans have gotten really good at smehow twisting the whole message of the Bible to agree with the American Dream. What Christ actually says is to be so unattached to personal belongings,to selfish ambition, to what we want, that we would be able to drop it in a heartbeat to follow what He tells us. This means that we are to live in the reality that there is MORE to life than US. More to life than what I want,and maybe more than my dreams and what I always thought my life was about. This reality leads us to live, instead of doing all that we can to accomplish our goals and our ends, in a way that looks to Christ's bigger purposes and bigger vision. And because He told us to love others and work for the redempton of others in this world, truly living differently for Him means being willing to give up something I want - maybe a part of my dreams, maybe some money, maybe a part of my lifestyle - to bring Christ's freedom to all people. Working for Christ's dream and not our own means working to bring His justice, freedom, and peace - His salvation - above working to accomplish what I want. A selfless lifestyle is what Christ calls us to. But the great part about it is the more we separate Christ from the American Dream, the more we will see that this selfless lifetyle is way more in line with the dreams and passions He has given us than the self-centered "all about me" purposes our culture tells us to live for.
"Sacrificing personal wishes" can take on all shapes and sizes. As was said about Wilberforce, though, I think it means we are all called to live more simply than the world around us. We are called to not hold as tightly to money or value personal possesisons as much. There is a reason Christ talked so muchaboutmoney - He wanted to teach us to find our treasure elsewhere, to not place as much value on it as others. Living simply and not placing as much value on the material is the most counter-cultural, selfless way we can live for Christ in this world.
For example, there is an amazing organization called Advent Conspiracy. (www.adventconspiracy.org) They have come up with a simple but radical way to sacrifice personal wishes: instead of spending hundreds of dollars buying gifts for others on Christmas - and instead of asking others to do the same for you - give that money to people that really need it. They choose to sponsor digging wells in Africa to provide clean water for families that have none. Water. Talk about equaling out the incredible disparity between rich and poor: how can we not do this? Make Christmas what it is really about: spending time with family, fellowshipping and worshipping Christ, and give the money that you do not need to help provide people with one of their most basic needs: water.
Other people I've met ask family and friends to donate to a certain organization instead of buying them birthday presents. We can give up coffee (or go down to buying only one cup per day!), limit the amount of times we eat out a month, limit the amount of clothes we buy, etc, and give away what we would have spent. We can be more intentional in general about spending less money on clothes and other “extras” and giving that money away - like to an organization that is doing community development and nation-building, an organization that is truly helping make things more equal, more the way God intended.
I have a personal rule for myself that I do not buy new clothes unless it is something I need to do the work God has called me to (which I know is subjective!). Something that is objective though, is that every time you buy new clothes, whether you really need it or not, make a rule for yourself that you have to give an equal number of clothing away. If you buy two new shirts, go in your closet and take two shirts out to donate. You'll be suprised at how much you really don't need! Every time I have done this, I've realized there are at least as many clothes as I've bought, if not more, that I have not worn in months.
We can also be careful of the things that we do buy. Without us knowing, many of the clothes, food, electronics,and other prodcts we buy fuel oppression in other countries. Often we are supporting child-labor, the sex-trade, unfair wages, and civil war - we need to look into the products we buy and make sure we are not unknowingly supporting oppression! For example, right now we are fueling civil war in the Congo because of a mineral that is neccessary for our cell phones and laptops. So before you buy an electornic device like these, make sure it is not one that is using minerals from the mines that are feuling war, rape, and genocide in the Congo! (http://blog.sojo.net/2010/09/03/human-atrocities-in-congo-what-can-we-do/) There are resources all over the internet and elsewhere that willl help you make sure you are not oppressing others - it is up to us to make the effort!
Other practical ways to live differently and sacrificially (depending on where you are in life): be a foster family, adopt - use the blessings and resources that God has given you to always be taking in the widow and the orphan, the stranger, the one who has less than you. Always be mentoring, discipling, reaching out: pray about and find someone that you can teach and disciple in the way of Christ. This is our mandate in the world!
Be an advocate. Be involved. Christ has called us to be His voice, and when we stop doing that, injustice grows and His love is not seen. Deep, systemic change occurs when Christ’s love is taught and lived out – and how can that happen if His people are not speaking up or living out His commands? Election time is always the perfect opportunity to speak out and live differently! Speak up and demand politicans who will work for Christ's truths in this world! Have a high standard for who you vote for and who you support - do not follow the partisan ways of the world and, unfortunately today, the church as well. Support those leaders who are actively living out Christ's truths, and who will truly stand for those! It is Christ's truths that will change the world: his justice, mercy, peace, and love - so take advantage of the blessing God has given us of living in a nation where our voice can be heard, and demand a politian who will seek to further these truths when in office - and who is furthering them in his/her life. During election season right now there are dirty, partisan politics all around us: politicians are focusing more on winning their election than on the issues, and we are hard-pressed to find a politician who is living out the truths we see in the Word. "Only when we have people who will win the right way will we have people who will govern the right way." If a politican is not even running in a moral and just way, how can we trust him/her to govern in a moral and just way? We need to speak up more, demanding a higher standard for our politicians, letting them know we care about people and the issues, and will not vote for someone who cannot even run in a way that lets me know they care about what I care about. This is the perfect time to live differently - what if the Church stood up now and demanded something different, a different kind of politics, a higher standard among politicians? This would make the world take notice, and see the character of Christ in the standard we demand. See this article to read more about how to demand greater morality in our politics and politicians, thereby showing more of Christ to the world:
http://blog.sojo.net/2010/10/07/7-steps-to-civility-this-election-season/
When God used Gideon to fight for Him, Gideon very purposefully yelled "For the Lord, and for Gideon" as he ran into battle. (Judges 7:20) It is essential that we as well yell both and see the neccessity for both. We as people can do nothing good or monumental without God working in us and through us. But if we throw uipour hands and sit waiting for God to do everyhting, we are being lazy. God wants to use us! He wants to make us His hands and feet, His tools - and we must be willing! Just sitting and not doing, not loving or living any differently, is denying God the use of His tool. He wants to use us, even in the smallest things in our everyday live’s, to affect change for Him. We are not our own – our lives are His. We are called to partner with Him in His work!
“All men desire peace, but very few desire those things that make for peace.” (Thomas A. Kempis) It is one thing to say we are Christians, to say we want His will to be done in this world and for all people to know Him - and it is another thing to actually do the things that will make all that happen. I think any Christian you talked to would say they desire peace in this world, but how many of us are living our daily lives in such a way as to promote peace? Are we actively speaking out in favor of politicans, policies, and legislation that promote peace? Are the products we are using promoting war, or peace? Do our interactions with those around us promote peace? The same questions can be asked regarding the kind of life God has called us to live: I think we would all say we want to do God's will in this wolrd, but are we willing to do what it takes to actually see His will done in this world? Are we willing to give things up that make us more comfortable? Are we willing to live in a way that puts others before ourselves? Are we willing to put in the extra time, effort, and heart that it takes to live differently for Christ in our culture? I pray that as we come to know Christ more, we would naturally seek to do this. I pray that, like Wilberforce, we would see all our possessions and all our blessings as "a means of honoring our heavenly Benefactor, and lessening the miseries of mankind." Through His Spirit in us, I pray that He would give us the strength to have this perspective daily!
It was said about 18th century Christian and politician William Wilberforce that “One of the first manifestations of… 'the great change’…was the contempt he felt for his wealth and the luxury he lived in…Seeds were sown almost immediately at the beginning of his Christian life, it seems, of the later passion to help the poor and to turn all his inherited wealth and his naturally high station into a means of blessing the oppressed...Simplicity and generosity were the mark of his life…riches were… ‘the means of honoring our heavenly Benefactor, and lessening the miseries of mankind’…this was the way his mind worked: Everything in politics was for the alleviation of misery and the spread of happiness.” (excerpt from John Piper's book, "Amazing Grace in the Life of William WIlberforce)
Like Wilberforce, a sign of our faith in Christ should be our simplicity and our generosity. These are two qualities that I think have faded from the church recently, especially in our American culture. Therefore one of the biggest ways we can live differently in our culture is to live simply and generously, recognizing that everything we have been given - as Wilberforce recognized - is a means of honoring God and loving others. All we have – our money, our job, all of our blessings – is not ours to do with as we please, but is a way to join with Christ in spreading God's redemption and love in this world.
This is something that God has been teaching me and emphasizing so much to me lately. It is not right that so few live with so much and so many live with so little. As we come to know Christ, we become less and less settled about the reality of the world around us: we, like Wilberforce, begin to feel contempt for all that we have when so many have so little. At least we should begin to feel this way. I think I was able to ignore this unsettled feeing for a long time, as I think many others have been able to as well, because of the culture we live in. But even if we try to ignore it, our hearts tell us that there is something wrong with how things are. God makes it clear in His Word that this is inherently evil: "He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God" (Proverbs 14:31) God is not saying it is just a nice thing to do to help the poor: He is saying we are literally showing Him contempt - basically saying we hate Him - when we oppress the poor. It is not an option: if we claim to love God, then we must love and care for the poor and oppressed! Even though America,and much of the Western world, has helped us think it is "normal," and even right, that we have so much and some have so little, this is a lie that will be seen clearly tyhrough the truths of the Bible and through just a few minutes of honest reflection: it is not normal for there to be such an incredible divide in wealth. It is not normal for so many to be oppressed while so few are free. This is not how our world was meant to be,or how it shold remain. Just because some - because of family,location,or whatever other belssing from the Lord - are born able with and able to work for wealth,does not make this right. God blesses some to be a blessing to others, to do His work and be His hands and feet. And even though the culture may at times lend a hand to thinking the dispartiy in the world right now is normal, even though we may get used to how things are, this does not mean this is how they should remain. God has called His people to STAND - throughout the Bible and now today, He commands His people to affect and help change the culture they are in, according to His vision. He calls us to help make things they way He intended them to be. And the imensity of wealth some have while others have close to nothing is not how God intended things to be.
I would take it so far as to say that we are helping bring about oppression if we are comfortable with the way things are right now - which, as Proverbs states, means we are showing contempt for God by how we are living. I believe that by the way we live, by the things we buy and the opulence of our lifestyles, we are not just allowing, but promoting the oppression of others. That is why I do not think it is enough to say that because we go to church on Sundays and give money to a charity every so often we are living differently. I believe more needs to be done - I believe our very lifestyles need to change - or we need to at least attempt to change them - in order to resist oppressing the poor.
So how do we do that? I think we can start with one of Martin Luther King Jr.'s principles in his Nonviolence Pledge: "Sacrifice personal wishes that all might be free." I think this is a key principle for us as the church today, espeically the American church today. A spirit of selflessness is not one that is naturally bred in us Americans - we are told from a young age to do all that we can for ourselves, to seek the American Dream.to work hard and get what we "deserve." But really, this is opposite of what Christ tells us - but we as Americans have gotten really good at smehow twisting the whole message of the Bible to agree with the American Dream. What Christ actually says is to be so unattached to personal belongings,to selfish ambition, to what we want, that we would be able to drop it in a heartbeat to follow what He tells us. This means that we are to live in the reality that there is MORE to life than US. More to life than what I want,and maybe more than my dreams and what I always thought my life was about. This reality leads us to live, instead of doing all that we can to accomplish our goals and our ends, in a way that looks to Christ's bigger purposes and bigger vision. And because He told us to love others and work for the redempton of others in this world, truly living differently for Him means being willing to give up something I want - maybe a part of my dreams, maybe some money, maybe a part of my lifestyle - to bring Christ's freedom to all people. Working for Christ's dream and not our own means working to bring His justice, freedom, and peace - His salvation - above working to accomplish what I want. A selfless lifestyle is what Christ calls us to. But the great part about it is the more we separate Christ from the American Dream, the more we will see that this selfless lifetyle is way more in line with the dreams and passions He has given us than the self-centered "all about me" purposes our culture tells us to live for.
"Sacrificing personal wishes" can take on all shapes and sizes. As was said about Wilberforce, though, I think it means we are all called to live more simply than the world around us. We are called to not hold as tightly to money or value personal possesisons as much. There is a reason Christ talked so muchaboutmoney - He wanted to teach us to find our treasure elsewhere, to not place as much value on it as others. Living simply and not placing as much value on the material is the most counter-cultural, selfless way we can live for Christ in this world.
For example, there is an amazing organization called Advent Conspiracy. (www.adventconspiracy.org) They have come up with a simple but radical way to sacrifice personal wishes: instead of spending hundreds of dollars buying gifts for others on Christmas - and instead of asking others to do the same for you - give that money to people that really need it. They choose to sponsor digging wells in Africa to provide clean water for families that have none. Water. Talk about equaling out the incredible disparity between rich and poor: how can we not do this? Make Christmas what it is really about: spending time with family, fellowshipping and worshipping Christ, and give the money that you do not need to help provide people with one of their most basic needs: water.
Other people I've met ask family and friends to donate to a certain organization instead of buying them birthday presents. We can give up coffee (or go down to buying only one cup per day!), limit the amount of times we eat out a month, limit the amount of clothes we buy, etc, and give away what we would have spent. We can be more intentional in general about spending less money on clothes and other “extras” and giving that money away - like to an organization that is doing community development and nation-building, an organization that is truly helping make things more equal, more the way God intended.
I have a personal rule for myself that I do not buy new clothes unless it is something I need to do the work God has called me to (which I know is subjective!). Something that is objective though, is that every time you buy new clothes, whether you really need it or not, make a rule for yourself that you have to give an equal number of clothing away. If you buy two new shirts, go in your closet and take two shirts out to donate. You'll be suprised at how much you really don't need! Every time I have done this, I've realized there are at least as many clothes as I've bought, if not more, that I have not worn in months.
We can also be careful of the things that we do buy. Without us knowing, many of the clothes, food, electronics,and other prodcts we buy fuel oppression in other countries. Often we are supporting child-labor, the sex-trade, unfair wages, and civil war - we need to look into the products we buy and make sure we are not unknowingly supporting oppression! For example, right now we are fueling civil war in the Congo because of a mineral that is neccessary for our cell phones and laptops. So before you buy an electornic device like these, make sure it is not one that is using minerals from the mines that are feuling war, rape, and genocide in the Congo! (http://blog.sojo.net/2010/09/03/human-atrocities-in-congo-what-can-we-do/) There are resources all over the internet and elsewhere that willl help you make sure you are not oppressing others - it is up to us to make the effort!
Other practical ways to live differently and sacrificially (depending on where you are in life): be a foster family, adopt - use the blessings and resources that God has given you to always be taking in the widow and the orphan, the stranger, the one who has less than you. Always be mentoring, discipling, reaching out: pray about and find someone that you can teach and disciple in the way of Christ. This is our mandate in the world!
Be an advocate. Be involved. Christ has called us to be His voice, and when we stop doing that, injustice grows and His love is not seen. Deep, systemic change occurs when Christ’s love is taught and lived out – and how can that happen if His people are not speaking up or living out His commands? Election time is always the perfect opportunity to speak out and live differently! Speak up and demand politicans who will work for Christ's truths in this world! Have a high standard for who you vote for and who you support - do not follow the partisan ways of the world and, unfortunately today, the church as well. Support those leaders who are actively living out Christ's truths, and who will truly stand for those! It is Christ's truths that will change the world: his justice, mercy, peace, and love - so take advantage of the blessing God has given us of living in a nation where our voice can be heard, and demand a politian who will seek to further these truths when in office - and who is furthering them in his/her life. During election season right now there are dirty, partisan politics all around us: politicians are focusing more on winning their election than on the issues, and we are hard-pressed to find a politician who is living out the truths we see in the Word. "Only when we have people who will win the right way will we have people who will govern the right way." If a politican is not even running in a moral and just way, how can we trust him/her to govern in a moral and just way? We need to speak up more, demanding a higher standard for our politicians, letting them know we care about people and the issues, and will not vote for someone who cannot even run in a way that lets me know they care about what I care about. This is the perfect time to live differently - what if the Church stood up now and demanded something different, a different kind of politics, a higher standard among politicians? This would make the world take notice, and see the character of Christ in the standard we demand. See this article to read more about how to demand greater morality in our politics and politicians, thereby showing more of Christ to the world:
http://blog.sojo.net/2010/10/07/7-steps-to-civility-this-election-season/
When God used Gideon to fight for Him, Gideon very purposefully yelled "For the Lord, and for Gideon" as he ran into battle. (Judges 7:20) It is essential that we as well yell both and see the neccessity for both. We as people can do nothing good or monumental without God working in us and through us. But if we throw uipour hands and sit waiting for God to do everyhting, we are being lazy. God wants to use us! He wants to make us His hands and feet, His tools - and we must be willing! Just sitting and not doing, not loving or living any differently, is denying God the use of His tool. He wants to use us, even in the smallest things in our everyday live’s, to affect change for Him. We are not our own – our lives are His. We are called to partner with Him in His work!
“All men desire peace, but very few desire those things that make for peace.” (Thomas A. Kempis) It is one thing to say we are Christians, to say we want His will to be done in this world and for all people to know Him - and it is another thing to actually do the things that will make all that happen. I think any Christian you talked to would say they desire peace in this world, but how many of us are living our daily lives in such a way as to promote peace? Are we actively speaking out in favor of politicans, policies, and legislation that promote peace? Are the products we are using promoting war, or peace? Do our interactions with those around us promote peace? The same questions can be asked regarding the kind of life God has called us to live: I think we would all say we want to do God's will in this wolrd, but are we willing to do what it takes to actually see His will done in this world? Are we willing to give things up that make us more comfortable? Are we willing to live in a way that puts others before ourselves? Are we willing to put in the extra time, effort, and heart that it takes to live differently for Christ in our culture? I pray that as we come to know Christ more, we would naturally seek to do this. I pray that, like Wilberforce, we would see all our possessions and all our blessings as "a means of honoring our heavenly Benefactor, and lessening the miseries of mankind." Through His Spirit in us, I pray that He would give us the strength to have this perspective daily!
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
A new Way
Excerpt from: "Tension, Mercy, and Orphans" (whole article found at http://www.catalystspace.com/content/read/article_tension_mercy_and_orphans/)
By Jedd Medefind | Christian Alliance for Orphans
Tension. A high-wire pulled taut between two poles; a bow stretched back as far as it can go. Christ's call is rarely to the "golden mean," a comfortable-but-often-flaccid moderation that shuns any extreme. That was Aristotle. Rather, Jesus' disciples most often must grip two seeming opposites, both held tenaciously in pregnant tension: grace and truth, humility and boldness, justice and mercy.
At its worst, Christianity loses its tautness. We seize hold of one pole with white-knuckled grasp and abandon the other. At its best, our faith is tense as a bowstring in the hands of a master Archer.
We catch a snapshot of this tension in the seeming competition between evangelism and mercy ministry. Despite wide affirmation that "we can do both," most Christian organizations tend to emphasize one and under-develop the other.
Yet Christ's way was to hold insistently to both, always interweaving "preaching the Good News" and "healing every disease…" (Matthew 4:23). As we follow him in this, we come to see the two are not competing after all. Far from it. Tangible mercy in Christ's name bears compelling witness to the Good News like nothing else on earth. Meanwhile, the true Gospel is of such glory that both apathy and injustice melt before it; those embracing it, like Zacchaeus, restore wrongs done and extend self in sacrificial giving.
The above excerpt does an amazing job of describing a problem that every single human being struggles with. Balance. We have such trouble living in the tension of opposites, in finding a balance in life instead of being black and white about every single thing we encounter. The example Jedd gives is one that I have noticed so much in the Church today: either we emphasize acts of justice and don't address preaching the Gospel enough, or we over-emphasize evangelism and don't give proper weight to the actions of mercy and justice Christ clearly calls us to. It is so hard for us to find a balance. To, as Jedd highlighted, Christ held insistently to both, explaining and proving that acts of justice and mercy bear witness to the Gospel of Christ like nothing else can. Both, in equal amounts, are completely necessary. Both are needed to live like Christ and do the will of Christ. Loving God and living in true worship of Christ will naturally result in acts of mercy and justice. There is no need to fight for one over the other! Christ intends both of them to exist naturally together as we exist in Him. As Professor Paul Louis Metzger says, “Justice flows from God's heart and character. As true and good, God seeks to make the object of his holy love whole…We, the church, are to live now in light of Jesus' restoration of all things…As we experience the wholeness that Jesus offers, we are to carry his justice forward in the world.” As Jedd and Metzger both emphasize, personal redemption in Christ and living out His mercy to the world are intimately connected, and are an equal part of living in Christ.
The problem the human race has in general with balance has become too evident to me in the context of politics. Political activism is something I am particularly passionate about, as politics and government can be such a huge tool of the Church to show the love of Christ. In fact, God makes it evident through His Word that He desires the Church to utilize the government as a tool to do His will. Living in a country where we have the ability to make our voice heard and affect the world around us, we especially are called to utilize the blessings God has given us to help those around us. God makes it clear through His Word that He calls His followers to become like Him and to join Him in His mission in the world. And it is clear through His Word what His heart beat for: how can we ignore the Year of Jubilee He wrote into the law of the Israelites, that said that for no logical or apparent reason, other than that it is His heart’s desire, every seven years there was to be a year where all debts were forgiven, all crimes forgotten, all slaves and foreigners released from captivity (Leviticus 25) – it is clear that justice, mercy, and peace are God’s very heart: “The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed…” (Psalm 103:6). “Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it” (Psalm 34:14). God clearly calls His Church to stand up for His truths: to proclaim His salvation through living out His justice, mercy, peace, and righteousness. One of the main tools we have to do “tangible mercy in Christ’s name,” as Jedd said, and thereby proclaim His Gospel, is through the tool of government. The government is not meant to take the place of the Church – the government is merely the tool of the Church, issuing decrees that the Church then carries out. How amazing would it be if the Church properly utilized the tool of the government, making our collective voice heard enough to affect policy in the direction of the truths of Christ, and then also being the ones to carry out the policies the government decrees?
Unfortunately, I have seen the Church so often of late get caught up in this problem of balance, so much so that instead of utilizing government and doing the work we are called to do, we so often fall into the partisan ways of politicking, feeling pressure to pick a side, to be black or white. We have the choice to be either “conservative, Gospel-proclaiming, right-wing, evangelical Christians” or “liberal, social-justice emphasizing, watered-down Christians that trust big government too much to do the work of the Church.”
When really, we do not have to choose sides at all. In Christ, there is a third Way. There is an in-between. There is a balance. We can hold to the Gospel, and also just as strongly hold to social justice – because in Christ, the two are intricately connected. We can be conservative in that we believe the words of the Bible, but liberal in that we are open to the reality that the Church is changing and the truth of God can be understood and presented in new ways – without the Truth itself actually being changed. In this new Way, we follow Christ’s truths, and do not give in to the culture of the world that tells you there are only two options, one of which we must choose. In Christ, sometimes it is left, sometimes it is right, sometimes it is neither: we pursue what is just, peaceful, merciful, and righteous – we support those policies, politicians, campaigns, etc based on their identification with these truths. In this new Way, we choose the way of Christ, no matter the party affiliation or tradition. I am not in any way saying we should support the increase of religion in place of a party, or just make Christianity the new party – no, I am supporting the increase of the truths of Christ, and promoting that we stand up for whatever will increase these truths. Christianity should not be a political party that becomes a part of government – the Church should promote the truths of Christ in politics and government, and then the Church should be the one that the government can most trust to carry out their policies. It is the increase of Christ’s principles, and not the increase of a political party, that will truly benefit our society and lead to a higher standard among politicians and a higher standard when it comes to political priorities and policies.
By promoting these principles, society will only benefit – in His way, peace and unity are promoted in the political realm, modeled off of the tension Christ showed in His life from holding a wide range of truths in balance. Justice and mercy are promoted, which will further bring the love of Christ into the world. By seeking to promote Christ’s truths instead of fighting for a certain political party, the Church will help lead our political culture – as well as society – to a higher standard, in the direction of peace and justice, where human lives are truly a priority above self-interest and politicking. By promoting Christ’s truth, the Church will lead people to truly see the love of God – instead of the Church leading in the opposite direction, joining in and promoting the divisiveness that comes from picking sides.
As Christians, we are called to care about and participate in the political sphere – God has blessed us with a political system where we can actually make our voice heard, where we can speak up for the poor and oppressed. But that is what we are called to do: speak up for the poor and oppressed and seek justice for the widowed and the fatherless (Isaiah 1:17), seek peace (1 Peter 3:11) and love mercy and walk humbly (Micah 6:8). There is no need to pick political sides: we are called to support whatever and whomever promotes Christ’s truths, utilizing politics and government to carry out Christ’s mission. By promoting Christ’s truths, we will be demanding a higher standard for politicians and for political priorities.
How beautiful would it be if, because of the Church’s voice, our government stepped up their aid to the orphan and the widow? What if more relief was given to the poor and the oppressed? How amazing would it be if the voice of the Church was loud enough that not only were policies influenced, but that the government then relied on the Church to carry them out? For example, what if the government gave more aid to fund programs for the homeless, or to provide medicine for third world countries, and then entrusted more of these funds to faith-based organizations to implement? By focusing less on partisan politics and more on the truths Christ asks us to stand for, the Church will be much more able to carry out the mission Christ has called us to. To get to this point, though, it is essential that the Church realize our crucial role in utilizing the government to speak up for the poor and the oppressed, and live by Christ’s higher standard to do so, pursuing His truths and not letting ourselves fall prey to the current standards of the political culture. Let’s get to the place where not only is our voice strong enough to influence politics and policies for the better, but also to the place where our voice is trusted enough and passionate enough to then carry these policies out.
By Jedd Medefind | Christian Alliance for Orphans
Tension. A high-wire pulled taut between two poles; a bow stretched back as far as it can go. Christ's call is rarely to the "golden mean," a comfortable-but-often-flaccid moderation that shuns any extreme. That was Aristotle. Rather, Jesus' disciples most often must grip two seeming opposites, both held tenaciously in pregnant tension: grace and truth, humility and boldness, justice and mercy.
At its worst, Christianity loses its tautness. We seize hold of one pole with white-knuckled grasp and abandon the other. At its best, our faith is tense as a bowstring in the hands of a master Archer.
We catch a snapshot of this tension in the seeming competition between evangelism and mercy ministry. Despite wide affirmation that "we can do both," most Christian organizations tend to emphasize one and under-develop the other.
Yet Christ's way was to hold insistently to both, always interweaving "preaching the Good News" and "healing every disease…" (Matthew 4:23). As we follow him in this, we come to see the two are not competing after all. Far from it. Tangible mercy in Christ's name bears compelling witness to the Good News like nothing else on earth. Meanwhile, the true Gospel is of such glory that both apathy and injustice melt before it; those embracing it, like Zacchaeus, restore wrongs done and extend self in sacrificial giving.
The above excerpt does an amazing job of describing a problem that every single human being struggles with. Balance. We have such trouble living in the tension of opposites, in finding a balance in life instead of being black and white about every single thing we encounter. The example Jedd gives is one that I have noticed so much in the Church today: either we emphasize acts of justice and don't address preaching the Gospel enough, or we over-emphasize evangelism and don't give proper weight to the actions of mercy and justice Christ clearly calls us to. It is so hard for us to find a balance. To, as Jedd highlighted, Christ held insistently to both, explaining and proving that acts of justice and mercy bear witness to the Gospel of Christ like nothing else can. Both, in equal amounts, are completely necessary. Both are needed to live like Christ and do the will of Christ. Loving God and living in true worship of Christ will naturally result in acts of mercy and justice. There is no need to fight for one over the other! Christ intends both of them to exist naturally together as we exist in Him. As Professor Paul Louis Metzger says, “Justice flows from God's heart and character. As true and good, God seeks to make the object of his holy love whole…We, the church, are to live now in light of Jesus' restoration of all things…As we experience the wholeness that Jesus offers, we are to carry his justice forward in the world.” As Jedd and Metzger both emphasize, personal redemption in Christ and living out His mercy to the world are intimately connected, and are an equal part of living in Christ.
The problem the human race has in general with balance has become too evident to me in the context of politics. Political activism is something I am particularly passionate about, as politics and government can be such a huge tool of the Church to show the love of Christ. In fact, God makes it evident through His Word that He desires the Church to utilize the government as a tool to do His will. Living in a country where we have the ability to make our voice heard and affect the world around us, we especially are called to utilize the blessings God has given us to help those around us. God makes it clear through His Word that He calls His followers to become like Him and to join Him in His mission in the world. And it is clear through His Word what His heart beat for: how can we ignore the Year of Jubilee He wrote into the law of the Israelites, that said that for no logical or apparent reason, other than that it is His heart’s desire, every seven years there was to be a year where all debts were forgiven, all crimes forgotten, all slaves and foreigners released from captivity (Leviticus 25) – it is clear that justice, mercy, and peace are God’s very heart: “The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed…” (Psalm 103:6). “Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it” (Psalm 34:14). God clearly calls His Church to stand up for His truths: to proclaim His salvation through living out His justice, mercy, peace, and righteousness. One of the main tools we have to do “tangible mercy in Christ’s name,” as Jedd said, and thereby proclaim His Gospel, is through the tool of government. The government is not meant to take the place of the Church – the government is merely the tool of the Church, issuing decrees that the Church then carries out. How amazing would it be if the Church properly utilized the tool of the government, making our collective voice heard enough to affect policy in the direction of the truths of Christ, and then also being the ones to carry out the policies the government decrees?
Unfortunately, I have seen the Church so often of late get caught up in this problem of balance, so much so that instead of utilizing government and doing the work we are called to do, we so often fall into the partisan ways of politicking, feeling pressure to pick a side, to be black or white. We have the choice to be either “conservative, Gospel-proclaiming, right-wing, evangelical Christians” or “liberal, social-justice emphasizing, watered-down Christians that trust big government too much to do the work of the Church.”
When really, we do not have to choose sides at all. In Christ, there is a third Way. There is an in-between. There is a balance. We can hold to the Gospel, and also just as strongly hold to social justice – because in Christ, the two are intricately connected. We can be conservative in that we believe the words of the Bible, but liberal in that we are open to the reality that the Church is changing and the truth of God can be understood and presented in new ways – without the Truth itself actually being changed. In this new Way, we follow Christ’s truths, and do not give in to the culture of the world that tells you there are only two options, one of which we must choose. In Christ, sometimes it is left, sometimes it is right, sometimes it is neither: we pursue what is just, peaceful, merciful, and righteous – we support those policies, politicians, campaigns, etc based on their identification with these truths. In this new Way, we choose the way of Christ, no matter the party affiliation or tradition. I am not in any way saying we should support the increase of religion in place of a party, or just make Christianity the new party – no, I am supporting the increase of the truths of Christ, and promoting that we stand up for whatever will increase these truths. Christianity should not be a political party that becomes a part of government – the Church should promote the truths of Christ in politics and government, and then the Church should be the one that the government can most trust to carry out their policies. It is the increase of Christ’s principles, and not the increase of a political party, that will truly benefit our society and lead to a higher standard among politicians and a higher standard when it comes to political priorities and policies.
By promoting these principles, society will only benefit – in His way, peace and unity are promoted in the political realm, modeled off of the tension Christ showed in His life from holding a wide range of truths in balance. Justice and mercy are promoted, which will further bring the love of Christ into the world. By seeking to promote Christ’s truths instead of fighting for a certain political party, the Church will help lead our political culture – as well as society – to a higher standard, in the direction of peace and justice, where human lives are truly a priority above self-interest and politicking. By promoting Christ’s truth, the Church will lead people to truly see the love of God – instead of the Church leading in the opposite direction, joining in and promoting the divisiveness that comes from picking sides.
As Christians, we are called to care about and participate in the political sphere – God has blessed us with a political system where we can actually make our voice heard, where we can speak up for the poor and oppressed. But that is what we are called to do: speak up for the poor and oppressed and seek justice for the widowed and the fatherless (Isaiah 1:17), seek peace (1 Peter 3:11) and love mercy and walk humbly (Micah 6:8). There is no need to pick political sides: we are called to support whatever and whomever promotes Christ’s truths, utilizing politics and government to carry out Christ’s mission. By promoting Christ’s truths, we will be demanding a higher standard for politicians and for political priorities.
How beautiful would it be if, because of the Church’s voice, our government stepped up their aid to the orphan and the widow? What if more relief was given to the poor and the oppressed? How amazing would it be if the voice of the Church was loud enough that not only were policies influenced, but that the government then relied on the Church to carry them out? For example, what if the government gave more aid to fund programs for the homeless, or to provide medicine for third world countries, and then entrusted more of these funds to faith-based organizations to implement? By focusing less on partisan politics and more on the truths Christ asks us to stand for, the Church will be much more able to carry out the mission Christ has called us to. To get to this point, though, it is essential that the Church realize our crucial role in utilizing the government to speak up for the poor and the oppressed, and live by Christ’s higher standard to do so, pursuing His truths and not letting ourselves fall prey to the current standards of the political culture. Let’s get to the place where not only is our voice strong enough to influence politics and policies for the better, but also to the place where our voice is trusted enough and passionate enough to then carry these policies out.
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