January 29, 2012

"BEING FAMILY"

1 Corinthians 8: 1-13

One of the biggest points of discussion within the Christian faith tradition today is how to understand the Bible as the Word of God. This issue underlies much of the in-house debate among Christians. The fundamentalist position is that the Bible is the inerrant word of God; the Bible is the way God delivered it and there are no errors in it. Then there are positions moving from there to the other side that it is a human document. The reality is that the Church fathers finally voted on which letters and gospel accounts would make up the Holy Book in the 5^th century after much discussion and debate. The Church set them apart as sacred.

Yet, no one takes everything literally in the Bible or else we would be stoning to death all men and women who are caught in adultery; we would be taking our juvenile delinquents before the city council who would have the responsibility to take them to the river and stone them to death. We wouldn’t be eating shell fish, shrimp or pork. Women should not take leadership roles in the church – therefore, no women Elders, or ministers. There are some churches today that hold to that – a woman can’t even get up and tell a stewardship meditation. If we took the Bible seriously, we would still allow slavery. To be honest, there is always some picking and choosing as to which items one will focus on and which ones you push to the background. Different congregations focus on different issues. To take a hot topic issue today – homosexuality; how one understands the Bible as the Word of God will directly influence your thought on that matter.

The position I come from is that Paul was writing a letter to friends and he had no clue that what he wrote would be considered Holy Scripture 300 years later. In order to understand the issues Paul was addressing in Corinth in 50 AD, we have to first understand the cultural context in which he was writing. Our text for today is a perfect example. "Now concerning food sacrificed to idols…" The last time I checked, Rays Meats on S. 3^rd Ave wasn’t sacrificing the cows to some god or statute; Washington Beef in Toppenish wasn’t offering the cows to some god before slaughtering them. We don’t have to ask the person behind the meat counter at Safeway if any of the meat had been religiously blessed. This particular issue of meat being offered to idols is a non-issue for us today. That was a 1^st Century issue.

So, can we skip this passage? NO! Though the specific issue is not relevant to us today, what Paul is saying to his friends in Corinth is relevant to us. Let’s take a quick look at the basic issue. The Corinthian culture was one of numerous gods. As a part of their worship to these gods, it was a custom to pray to a particular god and bless the animal in the process of killing it, not unlike our praying together before we eat a meal. There was a direct connection between meat sold to be eaten and the worship of particular gods. Now, when a person became a Christian, leaving behind his/her former way of life, they don’t immediately forget their former ways. Some of these new "babies in Christ" (weak) were so fresh that when they sat down to eat meat at a meal, they still connected the meat to the gods they use to worship. If they ate the meat it would be honoring the god to which it was sacrificed. This was a cause of temptation to go back to former ways instead of being faithful now to Jesus Christ.

What Paul was saying was that those of us who have been in the Christian tradition longer know that these gods do no exist and they have no power. Yet, these new Christians who are still wet from baptism are "weak" (babies, newborn, helpless) in the faith and still have some emotional connections to their former life. Meat being offered to idols means nothing to us because we know they don’t exist. Yet, if there is a sister or brother in our church family for whom this could still be a source of spiritual temptation and struggle, then those of us for whom it is not an issue need to be sensitive and compassionate.

Just because we have the knowledge and spiritual maturity and we know we have the correct answer, that is not enough. The pastoral and spiritual implications of keeping the whole body of Christ together are more important than being right or winning. "Take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak." Spiritual maturity may move you to a different position, but you should never use your knowledge or maturity to tempt a brother or sister.

A contemporary issue might be that of alcohol. If you enjoy a glass of wine or a bottle of beer on occasion but find yourself in the company of someone who is wrestling with an alcohol problem, you wouldn’t go and sit a glass of wine in front of him to tempt him or stand in her face talking with her all the while holding an alcoholic beverage in your hands right in her face. If you care about the person you will change your actions out of love.

I have been called in to officiate at funerals where, in talking with the family, they talk about how Mom is now joined with Dad in heaven and they are catching up on all the gossip and planning on going on a fishing trip. Maybe she is making bread or putting her favorite apple pie in the oven. I just listen. I’m quite sure that is not what heaven is like but that is not the time or place to say, "I’m sorry folks but you got it all wrong." No, at a time of grief, you listen; you accept where they are because those images are giving them comfort. Those images are ones which they can grasp and help them in their grieving. That is not my understanding at all, but they are in a time of "weakness" and who am I to wound them when they are vulnerable. That is not the time or place to educate them.

People stand at different points in their understanding of God, the Bible, Jesus, salvation; people are in different positions in their relationship with God. There are times to teach and instruct, and there are times to refrain from blowing their world apart. Wisdom is knowing when. Building up the Body of Christ is more important than being right or winning. Dialogue and coming to consensus is more important than a majority wins position (we win; you lose) when it comes to being Church.

The Apostle Paul was addressing the small church in Corinth and how they should treat one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. This is family talk. Yet, this issue also involves how we address people in the community who may not be Christian. I read this past week a book I picked up; They Like Jesus But Not the Church: Insights from Emerging Generations" by Dan Kimball (Zondervan, 2007). Dan is an evangelical pastor in his late 30s or early 40s who has spent a lot of time listening to young adults and their reasons why they like Jesus but can’t stand organized church. One of the reasons so many young adults are rejecting Church is that the "church is judgmental and negative." His position is that you need to spend the time building relationships before you can really tell them the message of Jesus. He shares a story to illustrate this. One day Dan was passing through the Dallas/Forth Worth Airport when he sees a young man in his 20s wearing a black T-shirt with the word "Intolerant" in bold letters on the front. Underneath it in smaller letters are the words "Jesus says" and then the words, "He is the way and the truth and the life." Dan was afraid to see what was written on the back but had no choice as they were standing in line. On the back was written: "Islam is a lie! Homosexuality is a sin! Abortion is murder!" Dan is a conservative evangelical pastor who basically agrees with the message but he cringed at what the young man was doing. Dan went up to the young man and started a conversation with him. After he shared that he was a Christian, Dan said, "I wouldn’t be wearing that shirt, though; I think it repels people from the message rather than drawing people to Jesus." The young man basically replied, "That’s not my problem; the Holy Spirit will handle that. I’m just delivering the message."

Whether you agree with the message on the young man’s T-shirt or not (I don’t) you have to recognize that this kind of attitude builds a wall of resistance and hostility among people toward the church. He was doing a lot more harm than good in presenting Jesus Christ. I do appreciate Dan Kimball’s approach though I may not agree with all his theology. This is similar to what Paul was addressing in Corinth. Paul stated, "Anyone who claims to know something does not yet have the necessary knowledge; but anyone who loves God is known by him." What Paul is saying is that when you are living the life of Jesus (the Realm of God), love trumps being "right." Compassion is more important than "winning." Relationship take precedence over forcing your right knowledge down someone else’ throat. It may take a lot longer; it may take a lot of time and patience, but it is the heart of Jesus.

We don’t have the issue today of meat offered to idols, but I wonder to what other areas of life this teaching of Paul might be applied?

January 8, 2012

YOU’RE ALL WET

Mark 1: 4-11; Acts 19: 1-7

"Because of your confession of faith that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and you accept him as your Lord and Savior, you are now baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen." Those were said over me by my father over 50 years ago when I stood in the baptistry of the First Christian Church of Wolcott, Indiana. Words similar to these were pronounced over many of you as well before you were lowered into the waters of baptism. For some of you, the words and water were spoken over you as a child or infant and your parents stood there and spoke on your behalf. The use of water for baptism "in the name of the father, son and Holy Spirit" has been spoken over millions of people for 1,900 years. We are all part of that tradition. Do you remember? What does your baptism mean to you?

The reason behind baptism has changed over the years. For the Jews to whom John the Baptist baptized, the waters were a sign of repentance (turning toward a new life) in preparation for the coming of the Messiah. For Jesus, the waters of baptism were not so much for repentance as a symbol of ordination, if you will. It symbolized Jesus’ commitment to take on the ministry set aside for him. In the early Church, baptism was a taken after of year of examination and education where one said, "Jesus is Lord" knowing full well that you were denouncing Caesar as Lord and denouncing the gods of the community, even your family. It was an act of treason, in a way. Baptism was an act of expressing a new loyalty. It frequently meant that you were excommunicated from your family. It could very well mean persecution and isolation from the community in which you grew up. It meant prison and execution for some. What does your baptism mean for you?

All that changed in 313 AD when Constantine, Emperor of Rome, saw the handwriting on the wall. The Christian faith, even in the midst of persecution, was growing. Constantine, in a political move, decided to give Christianity official status as a religion. Within a few years, Christianity moved from a religion that was being persecuted to a religion where the leaders sat with the Emperor in the halls of power. This ushered in the era of Christendom where the Church held a dominant position of power and leadership, the official church of the land. Everyone was baptized. At your birth you not only became a citizen of that country, you were baptized into the Church. Citizenship and membership in the Church was one and the same thing. Constantine had all his armies baptized by marching down to the river – though they held their swords above their heads. Baptism was no longer an act of commitment; it was just something everyone did. The baptismal rolls at the church were the birth records for the state. What does baptism mean to you?

This age of Christendom lasted from the 4^th Century AD for well over 1,000 years. It began to fade in Europe with the Age of Enlightenment. It persisted here in the North American continent with the struggle in the Colonial Period of Anglicans, Puritans, Presbyterians and Quakers all trying to become the dominant church in this new country, trying to establish here the system of church and state that existed in Europe. But that didn’t happen. You could argue that Christendom slowly faded and breathed its last breath in the 1960s. You can no longer assume that someone you meet at the coffee shop is a Christian. You can no longer assume that you will expect people to be in church on Sunday morning. There are still signs of it around when the President of the United States is expected to end each speech with, "God bless America." And political candidates are expected to have a religious affiliation; we have "One Nation Under God" in our Pledge and " In God We Trust" on our coins . Yet, in all sense and purposes, the Age of Christendom is over. And in some ways, that is a good thing!

In the first 3 centuries of its existence, the Christian faith grew and spread all across the Roman Empire, and beyond. In spite of fact that Christians experienced persecution, the church grew. Bishops in the Church were eaten by lions in the Coliseum in Rome as a spectator sport; yet the church grew. After Constantine, the Bishops sat at the table with the Emperor and discussed politics. The Church became a power in the nation. Everyone was baptized. The argument can be made that the Church had lost its purpose. It had succumbed to the temptation of power and politics, nothing like what Jesus intended in his life. When everyone was baptized, it meant nothing.

Baptism. Christian baptism is the physical act of water washing over us, whether infant or adult, in which we commit our lives to being a follower of Jesus Christ. It is an act of initiation. It is the outward act by which we proclaim to the world that we have chosen to follow Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. It is an act in which we submit ourselves to the grace of God for forgiveness of sins, being washed and cleansed. But it is also an act in which we open ourselves to the Holy Spirit to intentionally reside in us. Our baptism is our call to ministry. Do you remember your baptism?

Baptism has profound ethical and missional implications. We are making a conscious choice to follow Jesus Christ. We proclaim to be a Christian! And what does that mean? Baptism is not just about getting to heaven when we die; that is a mistaken view. What baptism is about is making a conscious choice to live one’s life in the spirit of Jesus Christ (Kingdom of God). Look at Jesus’ life: compassion, forgiveness, mercy, making whole, including those pushed to the margins, caring for those who are sick, hungry, homeless, without clothes. He associated with the low income folk and stood up for them. He challenged those in power with their attitudes of superiority. Attitudes of superiority, greed and power are washed away in the waters of baptism. We are given a new heart and mind; the heart and mind of Christ. We no longer think just for ourselves but for others. We love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves. We even try to love our enemies, not defeat them. Jesus was about building community, not playing power games.

There is the strong missional sense of baptism as well. In our baptism we each are called to ministry, to share this love and grace with others, to help transform this broken, selfish, greedy world into the Realm of God where justice, love and grace prevail. That means that we have to embody this in our lives. The Church is to be an alternative community living in the midst of a dominant culture that holds different values. The Church is to reflect different values than the culture.

The problem is that a lot of people want to be baptized yet don’t want be transformed. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German Lutheran pastor and theologian who challenged Hitler, in his book The Cost of Discipleship, talks about it as "cheap grace." Cheap grace is where you want to be forgiven of your sins but not have to change your lifestyle; cheap grace is when you want to be seen as a Christian but you don’t want to do the hard work of changing your values and morals. Grace is costly. Baptism is demanding.

One of the reasons for the downfall of the church and the end of the age of Christendom was precisely the fact that the Church had become too much a part of the culture and allowed the brokenness of the world to corrupt its ways. Priest and ministers, acting in immoral ways. Lay leaders of the church spouting racist statements, acting as bigots and sexists, preaching love and grace on Sunday morning but abusing the customers on Monday afternoon. And I know a number of folk who have never been baptized yet have lived lives much more compassionate, forgiving, gracious and giving than some people who make a name for themselves as being outstanding Christians. What does your baptism mean to you?

I picked up a book this last year that I want to commend to us at Englewood as a study book this year. It is written by two Disciples of Christ pastors and theologians, Michael Kinnamon and Jan Linn. The book is titled, Disciples: Reclaiming Our Identity, Reforming Our Practice. It is about our denomination, the Disciples of Christ, and helps outline what are the key theological elements of our denomination. In the chapter on baptism, one of the writers tells this story. I’m quoting,

Baptism is an act of commitment. Baptism is a sign that you will intentionally seek to follow Jesus Christ as your Lord. And that may very well mean a change of values and moral, even friends. It may very well mean that you will look at the world differently, through the lens of Jesus. To be a Christian is to be countercultural. Following Jesus is costly. The church has made the mistake of not demanding enough. Do you remember your baptism. What does it mean to you?

January 1, 2012

FROM WHERE ONE STANDS

Luke 2: 22-40

The month of January derives its name from the Roman god, Janus, the god of beginnings and endings. If I remember correctly this god has two faces, one looking back and one looking forward. We look back and review the past year and we also look forward and wonder what will happen. Beginnings and endings.

Our son, Danny, was just 6 weeks old when Kathy and I journeyed by car from Laverne, Oklahoma to the Northwest in June of 1975. My ordination service into Christian Ministry was held in Auburn; one of the pictures I recall of that day was one of my parents, Kathy’s parents, my grandparents along with Kathy, Danny and myself. 4 generations; three generations of ministers. A few days later we were in Oregon and we stopped to see my great aunt, Goldie Ruth Wells who was well into her 80s and living in Salem. I took a picture of Aunt Goldie holding Danny in her apartment. Goldie, a missionary for 30 years in Belgium Congo, now holding another generation.

Then there was the time not too many years ago when Kathy’s parents, Charles and Jean, visited us in Yakima. We knew this would be the last visit of Jean’s to Yakima because she was terminally ill with pancreatic cancer. There was Jean, knowing that she would not live too many more months, frail and weak, sitting in our living room holding her great granddaughter, Makenna, who was 3 months old; a big smile on her face. Tears in Charles’ eyes. It was one of those sacred moments.

I’m sure we all have family photos similar to these. Beginnings and endings. The circle of life. The passing of time. Deaths and births. For everything there is a season; a time to be born and a time to die.

I can imagine Mary and Joseph arriving at the Temple in Jerusalem when Jesus was 8 days old; they had made the short journey from Bethlehem to do what the Torah commanded, sacrifices to God of thanks for the birth of their child. As they walk into the temple, an elderly gentleman whom they did not know comes up to them and asks, "May I hold your child?" A complete stranger, yet one you could not refuse. All of a sudden he starts praising God and making statements that are totally amazing. What would you think?

Simeon was his name. Simeon was a devout follower; a righteous person. The story goes that God had promised him that before he died he would see the Lord’s Messiah. Something told him that this baby was the one – the Salvation of the Lord. This child would be the light of revelation to Gentiles and the glory of Israel. I’m sure no one there fully understood what was meant by that or how that would come to be, but it must have been unsettling. "Okay; now I can die in peace; the One has arrived!"

Every mother and father holding their newborn child has dreams and images of what might be. I remember having those dreams and fantasies as I looked into the newborn faces of Danny and Michael, but I primarily remember my being scared to death at the responsibility of raising this child that we had brought into the world.

Yet, like last Sunday, we remember this dedication in the Temple and the account with Simeon precisely because of the life and death of Jesus. And Luke weaves into the story here some foreshadowing of what this child’s life will be like. In the midst of all the joy and celebration of the birth of a child, a shadow is cast across his face. In the midst of all the light and brightness, a dark presence in the corner cannot be ignored. Do we really want to know is going to happen to us, or to our children, 30 years from now?

Jesus didn’t run for election. Jesus didn’t try to convince the crowds that his message was right and that they ought to vote for him. Jesus stood in the role of a prophet; prophets don’t run for election. Prophets don’t have to phrase things just right in order to get elected. Prophets know that their message will be liked by some but opposed strongly by others. Most prophets would rather not be prophets; it is painful; you don’t have many friends. Your life gets threatened. Speaking truth to power can threaten one’s lifespan tremendously. Turning on a light creates shadows.

Simeon recognized that if Jesus is the Lord’s salvation, then there will be many who will reject him. He will be opposed; he and his message will not be popular; he will be a threat. His very presence will force the true inner thoughts and motivations to be revealed. And most people don’t want to face their true inner thoughts, let alone have them revealed to the public.

The Lord’s salvation is that all people would be in relationship with God. And that means that all people will be recognized as children of God: Gentile and Jew; women and men; rich and poor; healthy and sick. Salvation means that people’s lives have to be transformed. It means that we can no longer be greedy, or self righteous, or think just for our own self interest. Salvation means more than just being right with God, but also being right with our neighbor. Our whole way of thinking and living gets transformed; that is salvation.

The nice sweet images of "peace on earth and good will to all," the "silent night, holy night; all is calm; all is bright," the visions of hope, peace, joy and love that lit our Advent candles, "joy to the world, the Lord is come; let earth receive her king" – these images make us feel good, but the reality is that when God’s presence is lived in the reality of life, things can get messy. When King Jesus arrived, King Herod took up the sword.

Bringing salvation means a transformation of our lives, which means a transformation of hearts and minds, attitudes and opinions, values and morals. Salvation means a change in the direction of our lives; it means taking on a different perspective of life and the world, trying to see from the perspective of God.

But what strikes me as very interesting is that Jesus came to Israel, God’s own people, proclaiming salvation. Wait a minute! The Jews were already God’s chosen ones. God had brought them out of Egypt; God had given them the Torah; God had promised a special relationship already. They had the Torah;; they had the Temple. Yet, Jesus came among faithful believers and called for repentance. Those who are most religious may think they are saved by the traditions and regulations that they fail to be transformed from within!

Look at Jesus’ ministry – he sought to live the Realm of God in contrast to the realm of this world. It meant including those whom you wanted to forget; it meant sitting with people whom you use to call names or avoided or wanted to expel from your community. It meant accepting as equals those whom you grew up calling every name in the book. It meant touching those who were unclean; it meant sitting down to eat with people you were told to avoid. It meant seeing your neighbor with a different set of lenses. It meant giving of yourself in order that others could have life. It meant listening to others and hearing their stories, their lives. It meant refusing to pick up the sword to fight when everyone else was shouting, "Kill them."

Yet, living this Realm of God will be opposed by many because it is a threat to their power, their lifestyles, their sense of superiority, what they already believed. When Jesus stands in your midst, it is harder to express prejudice and hatred. When Jesus stands in your midst, it is harder to reject another human being and deny them basic human rights. When Jesus stands in your midst, your real inner values are revealed; your true self is exposed. It is easier to kill the messenger than to face the reality that we need to change. What is worst is when one proclaims outwardly to be a follower of Jesus but whose inward attitudes and actions are anything but of Jesus.

I think you get the point. If we take Jesus seriously, if we put Jesus in our midst, our true self and motives are revealed in light of the love and grace of God. We are called to make a decision as to how we will live in light of that light now shining in our world.

Babies don’t stay babies very long. The joy and innocence of infants becomes difficult reality. Our hopes and dreams confront reality. We have to make decisions as to how we will live. Jesus showed us a way – the way of the Realm of God. It is costly, yet it is the way to Life.

It’s dangerous to hold a baby in your arms; babies change how you live.