Stand firm and do good – Polycarp
Here’s a challenging passage from Polycarp written to the church in Philippi sometime in the early second century:
Stand fast, therefore, in these things, and follow the example of the Lord, being firm and unchangeable in the faith, loving the brotherhood, and being attached to one another, joined together in the truth, exhibiting the meekness of the Lord in your intercourse with one another, and despising no one. When you can do good, defer it not, because “alms delivers from death.” Be all of you subject one to another, having your conduct blameless among the Gentiles,” that you may both receive praise for your good works, and the Lord may not be blasphemed through you. But woe to him by whom the name of the Lord is blasphemed! Teach, therefore, sobriety to all, and manifest it also in your own conduct. (Polycarp to the Philippians 10.1-3)
I think this would be good for all believers and churches to ponder.
Love Above All
When Paul was writing to the believers in Colossae, he told them how to live as “God’s chosen ones” (Colossians 3:12-15). And, at one point, he writes:
And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. (Colossians 3:14 ESV)
Similarly, when Peter was writing to believers scattered around the Roman empire, he told them:
Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. (1 Peter 4:8 ESV)
Above all… love. Both Paul and Peter write this to some of their readers.
Did they really mean “above all”? Isn’t there some circumstance or situation in which we are not required to show love? Isn’t there some person to whom we are not required to show love?
Or, did they actually expect believers to show love in all circumstances and situation and to all people?
More on serving people
As I’ve said before, one of my favorite bloggers (and storytellers) is “Strider” from “Tales from Middle Earth.” His latest post, “On Finding Water,” goes along well with my previous post “They don’t want cake.” In fact, I was excited to read Strider’s post while I was working on my post a few days ago.
Here’s an excerpt from Strider’s post:
Of course, we love doing humanitarian work. Jesus has called us to love people and in loving them we find that they need two things: a relationship with Him and a standard of living that will enable them to survive. We live in a very poor Country that needs multitudes of things. I hope we choose the things we do by listening to and obeying the Holy Spirit.
In order to hear His voice we pay attention to several things. One, we help people with some of their deepest felt needs. People may need sanitation but if they don’t know this then there is no sense in providing it. We go to a community and asked them what they need rather than provide for them what is convenient for us to do. In following this line we have been asked repeatedly for fresh drinking water. Many people- possibly several hundred villages- need clean drinking water and are suffering greatly with water borne illnesses as a result of not having access to any. Two, we need a project that gives us sustained access. Many teams have come in and dropped off a load of much needed aid, prayed a quick prayer, and then moved on. This is somewhat helpful… sometimes, but a viable church is not likely to result from this. Too often people do aid work which makes them feel better and successful and humanitarian and even spiritual but if we measure success by lives impacted then these kinds of fly by night projects don’t add up to much. We need relationship. So, digging multiple wells in villages has been very good for us. We have spent all summer in a remote village in the south, going down, spending the night, serving and being served. It has provided good ground for great conversation and the opportunity to share much love.
I’ve learned that people know whether or not you truly love them and want to serve them, or if you are just doing something to make yourself feel better.
They don’t want cake
For the last few years, we’ve been attempting to serve some of the residents of a government assisted housing development that we affectionately call “the Neighborhood.” We first started spending time with the residents because we were invited by our friend Cathy.
After speaking with Cathy briefly, it became obvious that there were several great needs in this neighborhood: spiritual (certainly), physical, emotional, nutritional, financial, etc. Our family could not meet all of those needs, so we didn’t even try. Instead, we simply served in way that we could.
But, we also attempted to serve in ways that the people in the neighborhood wanted. For example, because of the nutritional need (this is a HUGE need among people who live below the poverty line), we began to take small bags of fruits and vegetables to the people that we met. We didn’t spend alot of money on each bag… probably only about $10 or so.
Eventually, we found out that some people like watermelon while others like cantaloupe. Some liked potatoes while others preferred squash. Some like beans and some liked corn. Some were happy with anything that we brought them. They were all very grateful.
But, it wasn’t that they were necessarily grateful for the produce. Instead, much more, they were appreciative that we spent time with them, got to know them, and brought them things that they wanted and needed.
We were not the only people who would bring food to the residents of the Neighborhood. But, it seems that we were the only ones who spent the time necessary to build a relationship with them. This meant we had to spend enough time with them that they began to trust us (which wasn’t always easy).
One morning while we were visiting with one of the elderly ladies, another group was going door to door giving the residents food. They gave this lady some bread, doughnuts, and cakes. She thanked them and put them on her table, while the group left and made their way to the next house.
Our friend started laughing. I asked her why she was laughing. She said, “They bring me cakes and pies and doughnuts occasionally. Never ask my name or anything. So, they don’t know that I’m diabetic and can’t eat any of it.” She offered the sweets to us, but ended up throwing most of it away.
Now, the group that brought the cakes and doughnuts and bread meant well. They wanted to serve this lady, but they didn’t know how to serve her. One size does not fit all when it comes to serving people.
Instead, we must spend time with people so that we can know what they want and what they need. Guess what? We made some mistakes early one. We brought some people food that they did not eat. But, we learned, because we kept coming back.
And, most importantly, we always saw the people as more important than our acts of service. We would gladly and quickly change how we were serving someone as we got to know them.
All of our service was for an ultimate purpose, of course. Bringing fruits and vegetables might help them a little. Giving them a ride to the doctor’s office or picking them up at the emergency room may be beneficial.
But, our ultimate goal was to demonstrate and proclaim the love of God and the good news of Jesus Christ. He love is personal, so our service should be personal as well.
Love as Assurance
I’ve heard many passages read and interpreted in order to help people understand and accept that God is their Father and that they are children of God. Usually, this is called “assurance of salvation.” But, I don’t remember anyone using this verse:
We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. (1 John 3:14 ESV)
Are you demonstrating love to your brothers and sisters in Christ? If so, then you are no longer dead in your sins; you are now alive in Christ. (And, remember how John defines love just a few sentences later – see 1 John 3:17.)
And, if you are inclined to think that the second part of that verse (“Whoever does not love abides in death”) is a little drastic… it is. But, it is also a consistent theme in John’s letter. For example, see 1 John 4:20.
Very power passages… and love is a very powerful assurance.
Trusting God’s Love
I love this passage from 1 John:
So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. (1 John 4:16a ESV)
Since I often think of the term “believe” as a mental exercise, I like to replace it with the word “trust”:
So we have come to know and to trust the love that God has for us. (1 John 4:16a)
Do I trust God’s love? Do you trust God’s love? How would our lives look different if we trusted God’s love?
Lifting and Strengthening
Here is an important and powerful passage from Hebrews, written to those who are struggling and suffering about those who are struggling and suffering:
Therefore lift up drooping hands and strengthen weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord, seeing to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled… (Hebrews 12:12-15)
Who are you lifting up and strengthening today? To whom do your paths run so that you can help them heal? With whom are you striving for peace? Whose life are you examining so that you can help them obtain God’s grace?
Missional Stew
Two years ago, as part of a synchroblog with 50 other bloggers, I wrote a post called “Missional Stew.” The purpose of the synchroblog was to flesh out a definition of the term “missional.” For my post, I simply threw in a few ingredients that I think are necessary for a true missional stew. What do you think?
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Rick at “The Blind Beggar” suggested a synchroblog to discuss the definition of the term “missional” (see his post “Call for Missional Synchroblog“). To be honest, I don’t know how much I’ll be able to add to this discussion. I’ve only recently begun to consider the meaning and implications of being missional. However, I’m looking forward to reading the other posts, and I encourage my readers to read and consider what other people are saying about the term “missional”.
When I was growing up, the “regional” airport in a large city near us decided that it wanted to steal some of the air traffic away from ATL (Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport). Over several years, there were studies and consultants and budgets and votes. Eventually, the airport made a huge decision – they decided to change their name from “regional airport” to “international airport” – as if changing the name would change who they were.
I think many followers of Jesus Christ may be attempting to add “missional” to whatever they already doing. But, adding the label “missional” to their meetings and programs does not make them missional. So, what does “missional” mean?
Several bloggers will be posting and defending their definitions of the term “missional”. To be completely honest, I don’t know exactly what it means. Instead of offering my own definition of “missional”, I thought I would throw a few ingredients into the stew (so to speak). In other words, whatever “missional” means or how “missional” is applied to someone’s life, I think it should include these things (not a comprehensive list):
Gospel: “Missional” is dependent upon the Gospel – the good news of Jesus Christ. I’m not talking about a “gospel presentation”. I’m talking about living a life that is reconciled to God through the finished work of Jesus Christ and the continuing work of his Spirit. It means recognizing that just as God has reconciled us to himself, he desires to reconcile “all things” to himself.
Relationship: “Missional” is relational. I don’t see any other way around it. God includes his children in his mission toward other people. It is a relational mission – both relationship with God and relationship with one another and relationship to the world.
Intentionality: “Missional” requires intentionality. I do not see how someone can be accidentally missional. This does not mean that missional activities are always pre-planned – they can be spontaneous. But, spontaneous acts of mission can still be intentional.
Cost: “Missional” is costly. This does not mean that you are being missional by only giving money. However, it does mean that living a missional life will cost you money, time, and energy, among other things. It may even cost your reputation (especially among religious types).
Love: When I originally wrote this post a couple of weeks ago, I did not include “love” as an ingredient in my missional stew. Why? Because I thought “love” was obvious. However, after further thought, I think “love” needs to be a part of any definition of “missional” – both the love of God and the love of others – both the love of other believers and the love of those who are not followers of Jesus.
Like I said earlier, I’m looking forward to reading more posts that actually define the term “missional”. I hope that many of them include some of these ideas.
The Church: The Character of God’s Family
This week, I’m publishing a few posts on “The Church” which explain the basis of my ecclesiology. In the first post, I said that our understanding of the church must begin with God. (see “The Church: It All Begins with God“) In the second post, I continue from that first point by concluding that our relationship with God and with one another is dependent upon God’s re-creative work, not any work of our own. (see “The Church: God’s Children and God’s Family“)
The way we act is defined by who we are. We are God’s children and God’s family, and thus we act as if God is our father. In the Gospels, we see Jesus giving us example after example of what it means to live as God’s children. Since we have been re-created, we have the opportunity and the ability to live as God’s children.
God loves. As his children, then, we also love. We go because God goes and sends. We care because God cares. We give because God gives. We serve because God serves.
When we love, serve, teach, care, etc., we do so because we are God’s children and we have been re-created to imitate our father. We do not become God’s children because we do these things, but we do these things because we are God’s children.
Similarly, we do not do these things (and other things) because we are the church. We are God’s children, and we do these things in demonstration of his character. The character of the family should be a demonstration of the character of the father.
Again, while this may seem obvious, we sometimes delegate this to a side story. If someone goes to another part of the world, they do not go because they are part of the church and the church sent them. They go because God’s cares about the people of that part of the world, and because God has sent them. If someone chooses to take care of a homeless person, they do not do so because the church has a homeless outreach, but because God cares for this person and their concern is a direct reflection of the father’s love.
Finally, this brings us to gathering together. As a family, we gather together. This does not make us family. Instead, gathering together is a demonstration that we are family. We love one another and desire to spend time with one another. That will be the topic for my next post in this series.
Jesus cares more about people than rituals
Three years ago, I took part in a meme called “Five Things I Dig About Jesus.” Not only did I come up with 5 things, but I wrote a post about each one. One of those posts was called “Jesus cares more about people than rituals.” Whenever I think about this, I’m forced to ask myself, “Do I care more about people, or about rituals, structures, plans, things, etc?”
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Jesus cares more about people than rituals
I was tagged by Bryan at “Charis Shalom” to post five things I dig about Jesus. I “dug” this meme so much that I decided to blog through my five things. Number four on my list is that Jesus cares more about people than rituals.
God commanded the Israelites to carry out certain rituals. The most important of these rituals were the sacrifices and offerings. In fact, the children of Israel were required to sacrifice certain animals, food, or drink. But, the prophets tell us something interesting.
According to Isaiah, God did not delight in the sacrifices and burnt offerings. Instead, God wanted his people to “learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause”. (Isaiah 1:17 ESV)
Similarly, the prophet Micah rhetorically asks what delights God:
“With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:6-8 ESV)
Micah recognized that God required justice and kindness toward others before sacrifice.
In Malachi, God accepts the sacrifices of Israel when they do not lie to each other, when they do not oppress the hired worker, the fatherless, and the widow, and when they do not misuse the immigrant. (Malachi 3:3-6)
God cares about people more than sacrifices and offerings. God cares about people more than rituals. The children of Israel could carry out all of the sacrifices and offerings and all of the rituals required by the law, but those rituals were worthless if they were not treating people properly.
What about Jesus? What did Jesus think about ritual? Remember that many of Jesus’ healings occurred on the Sabbath. Why? Because Jesus cared more about the people than following the rules of the Sabbath. Certainly, these rules were man-made, but they were rituals that the religious people kept. Jesus did not keep rituals in order to be religious. He healed people and cared for people.
But, these were man-made Sabbath rules. What about God ordained rituals? Did Jesus put people before God ordained rituals? Jesus told the man about to offer his sacrfice to first reconcile with his brother. To Jesus, relationships came before ritual. In fact, this parallels with what the prophets taught. Sacrifices and offerings are meaningless if people are not treated with justice and kindness. (Matthew 5:23-24)
Remember also that Jesus used the priest and the Levite – those responsible for carrying out the rituals – as negative examples in the story of the good Samaritan. Many believe that the priest and Levite refused to stop because they would become “unclean” and would not be allowed to carry out their ritual duties. (Luke 10:30-33)
Let’s be honest… there are alot of rituals associated with the organized church. Attend on Sunday and Wednesday… sit down, stand up, kneel… Bow your heads and close your eyes… Read this passage, sing this song, pray this prayer… Put your money here… Rituals.
Are there good reasons for these rituals? Certainly, just as there were good reasons for the sacrifices and offerings. But, people must come before rituals.
Jesus puts us before rituals. His compassion for us does not depend on standing the right way, or sitting just so, or bowing our heads and closing our eyes, or singing well. His love for us does not rise and fall with the frequency of our attendance at certain meetings. Jesus cares more about people than rituals.