Some Thoughts on Romans 1

Crudely put, the book of Romans is about proving that God’s grace and salvation is free to all who believe. For Paul, the author, no special group membership exists that gets you into the club. If you knock, you will enter. In chapters one and two, Paul lays out the judgment against humanity. We have known God, but in our evil, denied God and thus subject to the wrath of God.

Not surprisingly, Paul holds back no punches. He doesn’t just say that folks were bad or evil or not nice to each other. Nope, that’s too abstract for Paul. Rather, he states that they (meaning you and me and everyone else) are full of: wickedness, evil, covetousness, malice, envy, murder, strife, deceit, and craftiness. Additionally, they are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, rebellious toward parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, and ruthless.

This specificity bothers are modern ears and makes our cheeks flush. “We aren’t that bad,” we want to say. “Sure, some folks might be like this. You know, people like Hitler or Stalin.” We are uncomfortable with these accusations. Doesn’t Paul know that folks are nice and trying their hardest? Doesn’t Paul know that it isn’t their fault? Doesn’t Paul know that I don’t gossip, I just like talking? In our modern world we like to think that evil and malice have been expunged by the rule of law and modern psychology. In the capitalistic system, we just turn these negatives into positives, making a tidy sum along the way. Evil is a deficiency that can be fixed or at least mitigated. 

I don't think Paul would agree with that sentiment...

Gideon and Failure

When reading the bible it is easy to get caught up with the idea of "super" people. All these folks--talking to God, trusting God, doing what God wants them to do--seem extra special. "They have it easy," I think. "They here directly from God. Angels come visit them. Of course it's easy to follow Yahweh when Angels knock on your door." And we say to ourselves, "if only." If only I heard from God like that, all would be well. If only angels came to my tent then would I really follow God and serve the poor. If only the fleece stayed dry then I would quick the job I hate and start trusting God.

The thing is, if only, doesn't really work out too well for the people of God. Take Gideon, for instance. This guy  is perhaps the most famous of the minor characters in the Bible. His people are oppressed and as a member of the weakest clan in the tribe, he can do nothing about it. But God sends an angel to speak directly to him to tell him to first cut down the alter to Bael and then kick out the Midianites. Over the next few chapters we see God speaking directly (God said) to Gideon three or four times. Gideon speaks back and even tests God on numerous occasions (the famous fleece test). With the power of God, Gideon kills a whole bunch of Midianites, becomes fabulously wealthy, and is hailed by all the northern tribes.

And yet, Gideon fails. Gideon has heard from GOD. Gideon has done wonders because of the strength of GOD. But the idols are too strong. Gideon makes an idol for God and Israel falls away. The people had once again experience the might of God, but they forget their story. Gideon forgot too and did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.

A Reflection on Joshua 6 & 7

At times Israel can seem like a sullen teenager. In Joshua 7 the Israelites are defeated by the city of Ai because the Israelites have sinned against God. Joshua, not knowing about the sin, rips his clothes, throws dust on his head, and prostrates himself before God. He then complains bitterly and says we should’ve just stayed on the other side of the Jordan (and I read the tone, ‘because this trip sucks!’).

God calls him out, “Stand up! Why have you fallen upon your face?” “Joshua,” God says, “you are a ding bat. Do you think I have given up so easily? That I, the Lord of Lords, will let you be destroyed for no reason. No, someone has sinned.”

You see, Joshua assumes that God has left the people to be destroyed. He jumps to the worst possible conclusion and lets fear overtake him. It is easy to mock, but Joshua’s reaction is so natural. When things don’t go our way, we assume God is against us. And that it is God’s fault we are here in the first place (if I didn’t follow God, I wouldn’t be here). Fortunately, the Lord is bigger than our temper tantrums.

Favorite Lines of the Bible

"for I am certain that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this was not done in a corner." Paul, spoken to King Agrippa, Acts 26.26.

I'm not a bible basher, and, in fact have been known to skirt around the issue once or twice (sorry Grandpa Fred). I'm not good at talking about the need for Jesus and our hope in Him. I want to keep it quiet and out of the way. Like the middle-schooler I once was, I want to fit in. And in America we are pushed to make religion private and inward. In polite society religion ought not to impinge on one's public performance. Don't be the awkward uncle at Thanksgiving and tell people about Jesus. Keep your mouth shut and be cool about the whole thing and everyone will be happy. But, as Paul points out, this was not done in a corner. The acts of Jesus were not hidden away. The prophets declared from the mountaintop. The glory of the Lord was revealed in a risen man.

God of the Hills

Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord alone. So begins the famous the Shema found in Deuteronomy 6:4. It is the definition of the Jew’s relationship with God 3000 year ago and today. Throughout the Bible you find this theme: that God is one and he rules the whole world, that all powers are beneath Him, that nothing can separate us from Him. Moses knew this. Paul knew this.

Yet, for the people of Israel it is a difficult commandment to fully comply with. Throughout most of their history the Israelites live in the hill country of Judea. Their neighbors control the lush plain and the coast. The hills are too often barren, good only for sheep and goats. The Israelites see the ease of their neighbors and wonder about their gods. See, in this ancient world the gods are particular to space in time. Too many, Yahweh is just a god of the hills—one of many. His way is hard and difficult. His way depends upon the fickle rain. The gods of the valley give abundant grain to the cities.

The Israelites see their neighbors and in their jealously cannot resist their neighbors’ gods. It is not so much that Yahweh stinks, but that He isn’t enough. So they hedge, setting up sacred poles, buying a few idols in the market. Maybe, they think, if this god works for the Amorites then it will work for me. And so the Israelites fall in their weakness and envy. They, like us, cannot trust enough in God. They, like us, hedge their bets.

A Reflection on Luke 23

In many stories of the Bible I’m drawn to periphery characters. I wonder what it was like for them to witness the event—to stand still and watch. Here in the chapter on the crucifixion I wonder about Simon of Cyrene. Here was a Jew from a land hundreds of miles away. He had come for the Passover or perhaps on business. He may have heard of Jesus as one hears the town gossip. But he did not follow Jesus. He did not give up all he knew for this man. Jesus limps along to Golgotha, trying to carry a cross. The crowd gathers in for a crucifixion, which is always good spectacle. So Simon watches like everyone else. Taller than most he has a good view as Jesus moves from the fortress to the hill. I wonder what he thought at that moment. Did he feel pity? Did he know that Jesus was an innocent man? Did he care? It was a rough world, with rough justice, and he was keeping his nose clean. Then Jesus passes by. He collapses under the weight of the cross and the world. No Roman would carry a cross and this Jesus guy is too weak, so the soldiers scan the crowd and see a large, tall man. “You!” they yell, “come here!” And Simon knows it is not worth protesting soldiers with whips. So he comes and lifts the wooden beam and is surprised at how light it is. And as the soldiers whip Jesus, Simon follows, carrying the cross.

Some Thoughts on Acts 13

It is easy to forget the amazing fact that Paul went and preached to the gentiles. The Jewish faith was a covenant with God. You couldn’t just open those doors wide open. That is unseemly. Instead, let the interested crawl on their knees to God in the hope that someday they may become Jewish and join God’s blessings.

Yet Paul took that and said, “Bah, the Lord has commanded me to tell the Good News to the Gentiles too.” He understood, like no one else at the time, how drastic the change was that Jesus instituted on the cross. Paul knew that salvation had really come and that it was absolutely nothing like anyone thought. It wasn’t about making Israel a nation again. It wasn’t about just Jews following Jesus. All of humanity had been saved with the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Paul knew this. He was obsessed by this.

Paul often is criticized for his hard line—that he isn’t soft around the edges. And he isn’t. But it took a man like Paul to bring the Good News to all. He wasn’t concerned what the others were thinking. Even Peter was swayed by the “Judizers.” Paul would have none of it. The man, the Pharisee, knew he had been saved. And he knew that that salvation was not just for him. And with the Holy Spirit, Paul would let no power stop the word of the Lord.

Merry Christmas

If you want to know about the Christmas spirit, read this by Rod Dreher. An excerpt:

For some years now, it has been a Christmas Eve tradition in my family for my mother and my sister Ruthie to go to the Starhill Cemetery, the country graveyard near our family home, and light a candle on each grave. A time-consuming task, but a labor of love and communal memory (because they lit a candle on each and every grave, not just the graves of family members) by Mama and Ruthie. I’ve never seen this with my own eyes, because it has been many years since I’ve been here on Christmas Eve, but I could easily imagine how beautiful it was, given the deep night blanketing the graves so far from the lights of town. 

This year, Ruthie lies in the graveyard, having died from cancer in September. My mother was too sad to honor the dead this Christmas Eve, given that her own daughter was now among them. The tradition was to end.

Dying as you Live

In his excellent blog, The Bloggers of the Round Table, Simon Parke writes about the dying of Philip Gould. Unknown to us Americans, Philip Gould was a pollster of much renown who found fame in his use of focus groups. Tony Blair cited him as central to the rise of New Labour. Yesterday he died of cancer and Mr. Parke pulls out this quote, "he'd not have wanted to die the person he was before the cancer."

What wonderful and chilling words. Wonderful, because he had the time and space to realize who he was. Chilling, because as he lived he was not ready to die. The statement invariably turns to a question for me. Would be satisfied to die as the man I am? Do I really live how I want to live? Or do I play the game and say, tomorrow I'll do what I should today. Clean my room, love my neighbor, all that can wait until tomorrow. I have dollars to win and accomplishments to accomplish. Small things like love and sacrifice and simple kindness can wait until tomorrow.

May I be a man who can die today.

Western Civ and Christianity

In a comment to the last post CZF (owner of the excellent blog The Relative Comment) asks in response to DT's post:

Earlier in that post DT says that one of the issues is that Christianity is now a minority position in western world. Would you agree with this statement? I think i understand the sentiment, but can think of nothing that could possibly have replaced Christianity as the majority position in the west, and certainly not in the US? Maybe it is leading in a plurality of options a la Bill Clinton, but I struggle to see it as a minority position.

To which I replied:

I think you are right. It is one of many. And perhaps the biggest of any distinct ideology/point of view/worldview. At the same time the thrust of the western world is strongly anti-christian. I don't mean this in a political sense or moral sense. Rather, the values of the western world--money, power, easy living--are much more in line with Greek and Roman thought than Christian thought. The church, in its weakness, falls prey to the idols of the west. In that sense Christianity is a definite minority...often among Christians.

I do this not to just highlight the excellent comment, but to expand upon my point of an inherent tension in the Western World.

Christianity has a unique place and role in the creation of Western Civilization. Unlike the other great civilizations of the world, Western Civ's primary religion (Christianity) has always stood in tension with it's primary cultural roots (Roman/Greek/and a bit of German). Christianity's ideals and way of life are antithetical to the Greek and Roman understanding of the world. Though Christianity became dominant the Roman and Greek way did not disappear, but became subsumed into the culture. Compare this to India, where Hinduism was part an parcel of the growth Indian civilization. Christianity was (and is) foreign to the Greeks, whereas Hinduism was native to India. (Please note, I understand that this is gross oversimplification.)

This "foreignness" has caused problems for the Church. Too often in an effort to be relevant, the Church has given up its Kingdom building mission and done what it could for power and money and easy living. Even today the Church too often let's itself be and succumbs to easy answers and a narrowing mission. In America this means the church focuses on things it feels confident about, usually some sort of moral issue. But it does not ask the difficult questions that may tip apple cart, such as question our economic system, justice, etc...