Salvation: What God Does, What We Do, Part Two

Getting the Story Right

When we speak of “salvation” in theology, we are talking about a rescue: God’s ultimate rescue plan.  But, it is more than simply “fire insurance,” which means it is more than securing eternal reservations in heaven instead of hell.  God’s redemptive work is initiated by God, as we have already discussed, and by grace we are able to respond, though we were “dead in transgressions and sin,” as the Bible says (Ephesians 2:1-5).  

God speaks “first”, meaning that God takes initiative, and then He gives us the ability to respond.  But the work of God does not stop there.  It is not as if God says, “I demonstrated great mercy to you through Jesus and through the calling of the Holy Spirit, so if you now grasp this salvation you can keep it with you until I see you in heaven.”  

Instead, salvation refers to a much greater kind of rescue.  By accepting the Divine invitation to join God in a relationship, we are then given opportunities to allow this relationship to deepen.  The deepening of this relationship with God becomes a deliverance from former ways of living, thinking, measuring, and choosing that once kept us from fully experiencing the love and peace that God longs to give. 

Some versions of the story of redemption go something like this: God used to have a place for us, we sinned, God became angry and even disgusted with us, in His frustration He sent Jesus to take our punishment, and by saying “yes” to Jesus’ work on our behalf we can hide behind Jesus when God looks at us so that God will not destroy us or wish to destroy us anymore. 

This is a popular version of the story, but it is not the story.

The story of salvation/redemption, according to Scripture,  is more along these lines:

•   God, who is always and has always been completely loving created us as a way to share in that great love,
•  We, given the opportunity by God to choose, chose our own way,
•  God, who is always and has always been completely loving, continued, of course, to love us, and therefore reached out in ways that sought to restore our relationship with God,
•   God, in an ultimate attempt to clearly demonstrate His love for us, sent Jesus – God and God’s love “in the flesh” – to reach out to us with an invitation to restore an intimate relationship,

·         Because of the clarity of love we see and experience in Jesus Christ - His teachings, His life, His death, and His resurrection - we receive the clearest opportunity and message of forgiveness. We are therefore able to most clearly respond to God’s quest to share in a loving relationship with us.

Then What?

Sin involves choosing our own way instead of God's ways.  Removing the barrier of sin and allowing us to continually be led by God’s Spirit and reminded by God’s Spirit of God’s ways, we are transformed.  Also, by confronting the resurrection of Jesus – the ultimate example of God’s defeat of death – the fear of death (the ultimate existential angst, as the philosophers have called it!) is replaced by the experience and peace and freedom in God that allows our lives to be motivated by love instead of fear. 

God certainly “sees us differently” in a sense, because of our surrender to His ways as found in Jesus Christ.  But more than that, God continues to communicate with us; to invite us to become more and more transformed into all that God intended for us to be, despite our past (and present and future) failures and weakness.

 

The Rescued Community

We then become participants in a new community: a community of those who also believe and seek to follow God as seen through Jesus Christ.  This group is nicknamed (first by Jesus in Matthew 16) the “Church.”  The Church is a gathering of people, locally and globally, who are on a journey of rescue or deliverance.  We are consistently experiencing and sharing the good news of rescue with each other (worship) and with those who have not yet had this encounter with God (evangelism/mission).  

It is a deliverance from old, self-centered, fear-based ways toward a way of living that is “rooted and established in love” (Ephesians 3).  Along the way, unique and personal moments of awakening and growth occur (sanctification, which I will address in Part III). But even these personal and unique moments are designed to deepen our fellowship with the Church and to bring us into greater involvement in the overall mission of God (missio Dei) in the world.

Salvation: What God Does, What We Do, part 1

More Than a Moment

What we mean when we say “Christian” makes a difference regarding how we actually live.  If “Christian” refers to a moment when we affirmed a basic belief or said a certain prayer, then how does participation in God’s mission in the world factor into the Christian life?  If Christianity is simply a way to avoid hell and punishment for sins, then what happens between the moment we say “yes” to the offer of Jesus Christ and the moment of death? 

Too often we have emphasize the “moment” when we are first awakened to our need for God’s direction and redemption without looking at the further implications of that moment.  In the Gospels, Jesus calls out to his first followers: “Come, follow me.”  He does not simply say “affirm me”, or even “believe all the right things about me.”  For Jesus, the Christian life – the life of being a Christ follower – is about a journey that begins with a commitment but extends through both the peaks and valleys of life. God does something in response to God's desire to extend the fullness of God's love to us.  We are graciously equipped to do something in response to that call.  It is less like jumping on a train than it is agreeing to participate in a treasure hunt.  It is not just about receiving a "thing."  It is more about entering into a relationship.

What God Says

According to the Bible, God speaks first in the redemptive process.  Even as early as Genesis 3, when Adam and Eve fail to follow God’s ways and seek to take matters into their own hands before lying, hiding, and blaming, God is on the move.  His words, “Adam, where are you?” are not a call to punishment, but a call to fellowship.  God speaks first instead of walking by and leaving them in their shame and disobedience.  While there are indeed consequences to their actions, there is also a redemptive opportunity to set things right between God and humanity.  God’s initiative is an act of grace: that means that it is a gift given to us out of God's sincere love.  John Wesley called this “prevenient grace,” or, grace that comes first.  It is the grace-filled initiative of God.  For Wesleyans, this initiative is always at work, always moving forward, and always seeking another opportunity to fully display the love, forgiveness, and fellowship of God.  Here, then, is a God who seeks out the fellowship of others and will not allow our weakness or even our sinfulness to stand in the way.  Just when we thought we were disqualified, God takes initiative to get us back into the plan!

What We Do

Part of this same prevenient grace involves a God-given ability to say “yes” or “no” to God.  Think of this: we, though “dead in trespasses and sin,” as the Bible puts it, are actually given the opportunity and ability to say “yes” to the call of God to an eternal relationship.  This is a great gift.  Furthermore, as strange as it may sound at first, the ability to say “no” – to resist an all-powerful God – is also a product of God’s grace-filled gift.  The God who seems to have the power to force a “yes”, lovingly grants the freedom to say “no.”  That choice is certainly not recommended, since the peace, love, and joy God can provides are unique in the universe and fill the deepest desires of our lives.  However, the option is there, inviting us into a genuine relationship of true cooperation with God.  Again, because this ability is a gift, an act of grace, we are not the ultimate source of our redemption.  God is.  We do not impress our way to God, or even work our way to God.  Instead, using the very gifts of freedom God himself has opted in love to provide, we can, when confronted by God’s redemptive love, say “yes” and enter into the fullness of a growing and eternal relationship with God our Creator.

How and For How Long?

The duration of salvation emphasized in the New Testament, especially John’s Gospel for example, is "eternal.” Eternal life, which is a life in peaceful fellowship with God, does not begin at death.  Rather, it begins when we say “yes” to follow Jesus Christ and His ways.  Both of these aspects - the person and the ways of Jesus - are crucial.  Jesus Christ provides the redemptive means, the evidence of God’s death-defying love for us; and, following Jesus actually means replacing His way of doing and being with the old ways that only lead to death and sorrow.  

Jesus provides the means, and he promises an eternal life that begins while we are still living here and now, only to continue far beyond even death and into all eternity.  Along the way, the same faith – the same believing that allowed us to first encounter the forgiveness and love of God – allows us to actually be transformed more and more into the likeness of Jesus.  We become part of a family of Christ followers – the Church – that seeks to carry out the works of God in the world. We then become greater evidence of God’s initiative in redemption for whoever will subsequently respond to this wonderful call to embrace the grace and love of the God. This is the same God who from the very beginning sought out fellowship with those whom He created. 

Five Dangers for Contemporary Pastors

Every job has its ethical gray areas, even Christian ministry.  Also, every generation of worker, including ministers, faces new challenges due to changes in technology, political climate, training, and other factors.  Being ever vigilant in one’s calling means not only receiving adequate (and ongoing!) training, but also being aware of dangers particular to one’s calling and context.  Here are five dangers hat I believe are the most pressing in current Christian ministry contexts.  I know there are many more.  See what you think.

1. Technology: This is an obvious one for many, but there are various dangers inherent in technology.  The most obvious are probably the misuse of technology.  Misuse of technology occurs in various ways in ministry, including: accessing sites that may be spiritually detrimental and physically addictive (i.e., pornography), substituting technological communication for face to face time with parishoners and family, allowing technology to become a waste of time (i.e., replacing time better spent doing more important things), and making use of the ease of communication provided by technology to fire off an ill-advised e-mail or post a thoughtless reply on social networks.  These abuses have already caused difficulty for thousands of Christian ministers by harming relationships and reputations.  Technology is a tool, and like all tools, they can be misused to the point of great danger.

Having said all of that, the upside of this tool is that it can further the cause of the message of Christ!  So, another danger associated with technology is to completely ignore it altogether.  Churches who fear technology or do not engage members and potential members with technology are failing to speak an important language in our culture.  Just as Jesus used contemporary stories and metaphors to communicate, so too can we as ministers of Christ use the contemporary tool of technology for good.  Moderation is the key, as I stated above, but neglect of this great tool can have crippling effects on the future of one’s ministry.

2. Politics: The rise of technology and worldwide access to ideas and events has brought about a kind of political revolution.  Politics is the key talking point of the day, with people taking their cues from their favorite network and/or political pundits and then spreading versions of arguments (some well thought out, some not so much) all over the web.  Prominent church leaders court jobs at Fox News, Huffington Post, or MSNBC as future career goals, rather than taking more difficult and nuanced stands on the issues of the day as spokespeople for Jesus Christ and His Kingdom.  One’s political positions are much more highly valued among most Christians today than one’s theology, and consequently, the language of politics has often replaced the language of theology in church life.  The danger for the minister is one of falling into a simple political category instead of allowing the message of Christ to do what Christ has always done: transcend and redefine categories!  This is not to say that one’s theology and one’s politics are unrelated, of course.  Our theology should indeed affect and transform politics.  However, the danger remains that in most of American church life, it is politics that transforms theology. As one mentor of mine once said: If you are equally aggravating the Left and Right, you're probably coming close to the message that Jesus wants you to proclaim!

3. Marketing: Like the other two, marketing is really just a tool.  However, when the tool becomes the focus, as has happened in the past 30 years or so in much of American church life, a monster is created that is not recognizable as far as biblical Christianity is concerned.  It is very tempting for Christian ministers to simply do things based upon demographics and personal preferences instead of basing decisions and approaches to ministry upon sound theology.  The results are obvious: hundreds of declining churches and denominations who are dying because the marketing approaches that produced numeric gain produced little if any depth in their theology - or their loyalty!  They lived by the sword of marketing (to paraphrase Jesus) and are now dying by that same sword.  By making parishoners into simple consumers, we have turned Jesus into just another competing commodity.  Again, marketing can be a useful tool if it is used to connect people to the good news of Jesus and to extend the message of Christ’s love further into the world.  However, it becomes a danger when churches are based simply on mass appeal instead of the deep truths of Scripture and of Christ.

4. Neglecting the Marketplace: Being honest about the dangers of marketing does not allow us to neglect the marketplace: the place where a majority of our parishoners spend over 1/3 of their time!  To worship and preach as if the business world and the day to day jobs of working class people do not exist is to miss out on the very mission field we are called to penetrate as Christian ministers.  Learning the language and priorities of business is important in order to demonstrate that we take seriously those who are serving Christ in various professions, whether they be teachers, nurses, entrepreneurs, or construction workers.  By demonstrating that we deem these jobs important in the work of the kingdom, we earn the credibility to assist them in modeling Christlike ways of measuring things like success, wealth, and relevance. 

Of course, if we are busy simply trying to emulate a business model in our churches, we are not teaching or discipling.  Indeed, we are buying into the very dangers that our marketplace parishoners are struggling with.  Demonstrating to them the biblical value of where they are called to serve opens them up to discipleship, which will not only benefit their own sense of satisfaction in the workplace, but will also allow them to see opportunities of service within the local church as connected to what they are doing at work. 

One further word of caution here: if we are going to connect with professionals, we must be professional in the way in which we approach our callings.  I do not mean “professional” in the cold, stereotypical sense of that word, though.  I mean that we must take our sense of calling and work as seriously as they do in regard to our preparation, continuing education, and consistency.

5. Busy-ness: This may be the most difficult danger to address.  Eugene Peterson once wrote that certain kinds of busy-ness is sinful, especially for the minister (see Peterson’s now classic work called The Contemplative Pastor).  This is because, as C.S. Lewis once remarked, it is the lazy person who often becomes the busiest, since he or she becomes too busy because of lack of planning and foresight.  We know from Scripture that too much idleness can be harmful.  However, ultra-busyness is our culture’s new form of idleness!  As backward as this may sound, what I mean is this: Busy-ness is often our society’s means of avoiding more important pursuits and interactions.  Filling our schedules to the brim often leaves out meaningful time for prayer, for service to others, and for deeper interaction with our families and loved ones.  This “idle busy-ness” attacks our health, our creativity, and our relationships, especially our relationship with the God who often says: “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).  This idle busyness may make us appear important, but it actually belittles the more contemplative and relational aspects of our lives and ministries in the long run.

The Remedy

The good news about all of these contemporary dangers is that the remedy for combatting them remains the same as it has always been: Christ-centered, Spirit-led, devoted, theologically-sound service of God.  This puts God’s priorities above all else, whether it is in the use of technology, in politics, in reaching out, in connecting others with the mission, or in prioritizing our schedules.  When God’s priorities become embodied in our approach to ministry and to life, we become His voice to a world that longs for better priorities, fulfillment, and peace.

The Kingdom of God and Ferguson

The Question That is NOT Being Asked

Many discussions I hear and read about the tragedy in Ferguson, Missouri, either begin or end with this question: “What if a large man came at you in a violent way?  Wouldn’t you shoot him if you were armed?”

Let me ask a question that I don’t hear, at least from those of us in the white community: What if your son (or daughter) were walking down the street, was asked to move over, said that he/she was just going to the next block and would be off the street soon, was suddenly confronted with a backed up police vehicle that nearly hit him/her, and then was asked to come over to the car?  And, what if he/she ran in fear, not recognizing the officer, who was of a different race that is prevalent in his/her neighborhood.  Then, what if that officer shot him/her six times and he/she were unarmed?

Both questions make assumptions about things we as of yet know little about.  Both scenarios – an aggressive young man and the overly aggressive policeman – have been presented by alleged witnesses.  Some say the young man who was shot, Michael Brown, was being aggressive and possibly even going for the weapon of the officer.  Other eyewitness accounts say that he was either fleeing or attempting to flee with his hands up indicating he was unarmed.  Still other reports fall somewhere in between those two extremes. 

Many analysts have indicated that there has been a good deal of slanted reporting.  Some are trying to portray Brown, a recent high school graduate who was about to begin taking college courses and was visiting his grandmother in Ferguson, as a “thug”: another black youth caught up in violence, gangs, and trouble.  Some even say that had he lived, he may have been the suspect in a recent store burglary (shoplifting).  

Still others see the slant going against the police officers of Ferguson: they were too aggressive, too racially charged, acting in fear in certain neighborhoods instead of in line with their training, and were too zealous to assert their “control” over an increasingly African-American population.  This version goes something like this: When the black youth was defiant, the officer responded with deadly force, probably out of fear – not just fear of the youth but of the mostly African-American neighborhood. 

Again, there is probably a little (or a lot) of truth in both of these scenarios.  It is likely that Michael Brown, like most teens regardless of color, may have felt resentful or fearful in being stopped by an officer.  It is also likely that the officer was not exactly feeling safe in the neighborhood and was on edge, possibly prompting what appears to many to be excessive: emptying his gun into an unarmed young man. 

What We Know

We have no way of knowing all of the details, especially in regard to the feelings of the two men at that time.  The officer may never tell, and the dead young man cannot tell us. 

If I could, though, I would like to submit a few things that I think we do know.

1. Racial tension, especially between the public and those who are charged with overseeing the public, must continue to be addressed.  Some say this is playing “the race card.”  However, the truth is: The race card is already in play in many communities like Ferguson!  We must address this honestly and openly.  Those in power must be proactive in reaching out.  Those who feel overwhelmed or outnumbered or discriminated against must find ways to listen and to be heard, using methods that hopefully will not escalate the violence.

2. Officers always need more training.  My father was a police officer for many years, and I have friends and other family members who serve in law enforcement.  The training they receive is ongoing and in the words of many of them, the training never covers every aspect of the job.  That is why it is consistent, ongoing, and necessary.  If one of the results of this terrible tragedy is to make sure that officers are better trained in regard to the use of deadly fire, then it will be a glimmer of light in an otherwise sad story.  Furthermore, if it can assist in helping officers and the people they serve increase dialogue regarding expectations in times of conflict, then some good will come from this terrible tragedy.

3. Violence produces more violence.  Jesus said that those who “live by the sword die by the sword.”  American Christians tend to overlook this important nugget of wisdom from Jesus, because we have become a violent nation.  However, the aggressive exchange between the young man and the police officer escalated.  The violent protesters are not the majority of protesters, but they get the most press, and their violence increases the violence from others, including police.  It is a vicious cycle that desperately needs peacemakers.

4. Politics has become the American religion.  Even many Christians I read and talk with have little regard for approaching this tragedy with the words and wisdom and vision of Jesus.  Rather, they look to what conservative or liberal leaders are saying in the media and they take cues from them. Period.  For Christians, this is a form of idolatry that only hinders the reconciliation process.  It is interesting to me to watch how politicians are reacting to this.  Conservatives are usually for “smaller government”, yet many conservative leaders are endorsing the actions of the police (a government entity) and assuming that the police officer was correct.  Liberals tend to lean more toward pacifism.  Yet, many liberal leaders are using terms like “we will fight,” and “fight fire with fire,” etc.  Again, the loudest voices among these groups do not represent all conservatives or liberals, but their reactions remind us that politicians will seek to rally an audience for their own gain.  God, however, seeks the truth, regardless of the audience. It seems to me that those who purport to follow God must choose God's way over the media pundits and politicians.

5. There are no “winners” in this tragedy.  Again, as the son of a policeman, I want to believe that the officer acted with the best intentions and in the best way.  But, having seen a wide range of officers in my life, I know that like in any profession, there are all kinds of people who wear a badge.  And, even those with the best of intentions can make tragic mistakes.  I am also the father of two sons.  Because of this, my heart breaks for the parents and grandparents of Michael Brown.  All kids, whether they are generally good (as Brown’s friends and family say he was) or generally rebellious, make mistakes in their young lives.  As parents and friends, we pray that the mistakes they make will be ones from which they learn and that their mistakes are not the kind that end in tragedy.  For Michael Brown’s family, six bullets ended further opportunities to influence and teach him.  Both of these families – those of the officer and those of Michael Brown – will be forever changed by that fateful day.  We cannot pray enough for both families involved!

Thy Kingdom Come

When Jesus, in the Lord’s Prayer, prayed, “Thy Kingdom come,” He was talking about God’s new way of doing things: God’s kingdom.  He was making a distinction, as Jesus did throughout His life and ministry, between the “kingdoms of this world” (i.e., how political systems normally operate) and the Kingdom of God (how God chooses to operate in the world through love).  Speaking the truth in love is the normative way of communicating in this new kingdom, according to the Bible (Ephesians 4:15).  That means that those who seek to be a part of God’s way of doing things can bring some hope to Ferguson, Missouri, and to other violence torn places in our world.  We can honestly and lovingly remind them that violence only creates more violence.  We can remind them that hypocrisy only leads to despair and fear.  We can remind them that the things that divide us – like race and economic despair – are real and need to be honestly and lovingly addressed.  We can remind them that it is not alright to safely hide behind banners or race, money, or power.  We can remind them that we all have a responsibility to serve, to listen, and to do our best to be part of the healing of our communities.  Name-calling, stereotyping, and raw violence has never solved anything, and it never will.  May God grant His peace to all of us.

My Success I Give You: Taking Jesus Seriously

Different Definitions

I am a pastor.  Before that, though, I am a Christian – not just in name (my last name happens to be “Christian”), but in testimony.  This means I have made certain choices about the direction my life will go: my family values, my vocation, and my definitions.  All three of these are important, but the definition change has been the hardest.  Many people have a high view of family – even people with little or no faith background.  Many people make sacrifices in their vocational choices, not just those who have felt a call to vocational ministry as I have for the past 22 years of my life.  

But the part about changing definitions may be the most distinctive aspect of the Christian life when applied to everyday living.  Following Jesus Christ entails a theological venture in which even familiar words take on entirely different meanings than before following Christ.  This is perhaps among the most radical change that occurs when one seeks to follow Christ.  Examples of this kind of calling are found throughout the New Testament, especially in the Gospels.  We find Jesus changing the definition of “peace,” for instance: “My peace I give you; not as the world gives,” Jesus states in John 14:27 (emphasis mine).  Here Jesus is fully aware of the Pax Romana (the “peace of Rome”) that was pervasive in His day:

·         Rome built roads so that business people and soldiers could promote “peace and prosperity.” 

·         They raised the biggest armies to put down any threats to their version of “peace” (which really just meant keeping themselves in control so they would rest easy)

·         They retaliated with “shock and awe” methods – like mass crucifixion, for instance – if any group or village under their domain posed a threat to their “peace”

·         They gave favor and additional freedoms to the “successful” among the conquered peoples in their domain in order to provide a sort of bridge between themselves and the “common people” who, in their minds, would at least rest easy knowing they have some sort of representation to Rome.  Rome would of course rest easy knowing that they had paid insiders to help them “keep the peace.”

This is the kind of peace that Jesus came to oppose and replace!  His earthly life and ministry actually fell victim to this Roman definition of “peace”, and Jesus was crucified.  Thankfully, though, Jesus’ definition of peace proved to be the stronger and more lasting one, which brings us back to the importance of theology.  More specifically, it reminds us that we should probably take a closer look at theological definitions, rather than those promoted among governments and popular culture.  Too often we as Christians settle for lesser – and by lesser I mean those doomed to ultimate failure in God’s eyes – definitions.  In American Christianity, the most disturbing example of this has come in our definition of “success.”

We Change the Definition of “Success”

Speaking as a participant in a Christian denomination (the Church of the Nazarene) as one of its ordained ministers for nearly half of my life and as student of American religious movements, I can say that in many of our American contexts (including my own) the de-emphasis upon theological study has at times seen a reversion to more secular definitions of “success.”  Popular (secular) definitions of “success” include financial prosperity, personal charisma, and amassing a great number of followers and/or employees.  While there is no doubt that it takes talented people to amass such things, as Christians, we are confronted with a decidedly different definition. 

For Jesus, who amassed relatively few followers during his earthly ministry, faithfulness, integrity, honesty, humility, and even suffering for what is right (see the Sermon on the Mount) are things that are identified with “success.”  In the example of Scripture, sometimes these qualities result in financial prosperity and even amassing great numbers.  Sometimes, however, they do not!  Indeed, sometimes Jesus is most critical of big money, big charisma, and big numbers in and of themselves (see Jesus’ encounter with the rich young ruler or with those who are selling in the outer court of the Temple in Jerusalem!).  When a theological examination – a Christ-centered one – is missing from words like “success”, the default option becomes to simply measure success the way everyone else does.  Unfortunately, “everyone else’s” definition falls short of the longer lasting and more ethical definition of Jesus.

The results in church settings in America have been devastating at times.  People who meet secular standards of “success” have gained more influence in leadership, and shortcuts are taken.  These shortcuts conveniently avoid key elements of the teachings and example of Christ and substitute these for methods that fall short of God’s ideals for His people.  

Consequently, sermons become self-help tools or emotionally charged reflections on the “good old days” instead of prophetic challenges to live out the Gospel of Christ.  Churches become tools for the promotion of political agendas (and candidates!), rather than vehicles of the voice of God to all aspects of those in political power.  Church leaders become more interested in hearing from the latest business guru instead of digging deeper into the rich theological depths of the Bible and of the history of the people of God.  We pastors begin buying books on being better CEOs instead of books on being better at discerning the mind of Christ.  We begin going to conferences on “breaking the 200 (or 1000!) barrier” instead of conferences that help us become better intercessors and incarnational ministers of the good news of Jesus.  We appoint and elect leaders who will look and sound more like the CEO of Microsoft or Apple, so that we can appear relevant and vibrant, instead of selecting leaders who will speak the truth in love, regardless of the short term cost. 

The Rabbi in the Back of the Class

Recently I read an excerpt of a book by a professor who is also an ordained minister.  He said that in his teaching, preaching, and writing, he always imagines an orthodox Jewish rabbi in the back of the room either nodding or frowning.  In his mind, this professor envisions this image of the rabbi as how Jesus himself may have looked, and he says that he carries this image with him to remind him that ultimately the goal is for the rabbi in the back of the room to be nodding in approval, even if the others in the crowd are scowling.  Perhaps we need to carry around a picture of Jesus to place in our conferences, our meetings, our classrooms, and our places of worship.  Perhaps seeing Him smile and nod in approval will provoke some major changes in personnel and in approach for most of our denominations, Christian organizations, and churches.  Just as Jesus replaced the “peace of Rome” with a more lasting and fulfilling peace.  Perhaps we can listen for Jesus saying, “Though I know you are familiar with the ‘success of America,’ and you have functioned under that definition for a long time, MY success I give to you, NOT as the world has given….”

How's Your Filter?

“Let your conversations be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” ~ Colossians 4:6

The Need for Filters

At least once per year I go down into the basement to the air conditioning unit (I probably should do this more often!), and I pull out the filter.  It amazes me that this once pristine white filter is now disgustingly black and dirty.  It is covered with all kinds of things that without the filter would have been blasted into the air of all of our rooms in the house through the vents.  The normal allergies we encounter in our household would be magnified greatly without that rectangular guardian. 

We all know people without filters.  These are people who say what is on their mind without first considering the content and the method they are using to share what they are thinking.  Sometimes this is helpful, of course.  There are times, especially in environments with a repressed sense of communication or with unhealthy co-dependent relationships when raw, blunt, and open communication is a breath of fresh air.  But even in those settings, people whose communication disregards the feelings of others will, over time, lose credibility.  Often people without filters are either ignored or simply tolerated.  At times there are those who see people without any filters in their communication as models to be praised.  However, this praise is usually from those who suffer from an equally unhealthy condition of passive-aggressive behavior and therefore do not communicate difficult feelings at all.  Both ends of this unhealthy communication spectrum can be sources of ill health in communities and congregations.

Seasoned With Salt

The “seasoned with salt” kind of conversation that Scripture calls for is a good remedy for those without filters.  Salt is a preserving agent.  Well-seasoned words – words that come from those who care about the context and method of delivery – are words that help preserve community.  They come from people who are thoughtful – literally “thought full”, thinking fully of others as they prepare to communicate.  The words do not come out raw.  Rather, they come out well-seasoned, well thought out, in ways that not only capture the true feelings of the speaker but also do their best to communicate clearly in their context.  Most unfiltered people are not as healthy as they first appear.  Often they repress loads of anger only to unleash it in ill-mannered and often unprepared ways.  To the listener, their words become the equivalent of eating under prepared food!  They may politely choke down the “advice” from an unfiltered person, but in the long run, they chose to dine elsewhere. 

Examining and Confronting

As Christians, we are people of the truth.  But, as Scripture reminds, we are to “speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15).  When truth is absent from our conversation, we are not really being loving, even if we are saying nice things.  When love is absent from our conversation, we are not really fully exemplifying the truth of Jesus Christ, even if our words present the facts accurately to some degree.  

Unfiltered people should be lovingly confronted by their community.  If their defense is something like, “I just believe in speaking truth,” or “That’s just how I am,” we can help them recognize that though we love them as they are, their words are harmful.  Even though they are seeking to “speak the truth,” their unfiltered methods are actually missing out on the bigger truth of the Christian faith: Christ-likeness.  

We can examine ourselves as well.  Is our filter clogged with leftover dirt from the past? If so, the truth we are trying to convey in our words may be more clutter and even poison than we think.  Reflection, repentance, and sensitivity to God’s leadership can help clear the filter, allowing the truth to come through clearly, giving life and a breath of fresh air to those around us.  

America: Idol?

The Wrong Focus in Worship

Can you picture Israel in the Old Testament walking into the Temple preparing for a special Sabbath gathering, and beginning their gathering with songs praising…Israel?  Thereafter, can you imagine the entire gathering standing and pledging their allegiance to…Israel?  And, at the conclusion of the service, after a brief message is shared about how God has favored Israel, they ask all of the warriors of Israel in their midst to stand and recognized as the “reason why Israel is the greatest nation and the chosen people of the world”? 

I don’t know about you, but this sounds to me like a “wrath of God in the Old Testament” moment waiting to happen! 

Seriously, I believe that if we read such an account, we would likely cringe and expect some sort of divine correction, or at least imagine a prophet rising up in their midst speaking against using the worship time set aside for the God of Israel to praise Israel!

Yet, all over the U.S. this coming Sunday, the Sunday after Independence Day (July 4^th), very similar services will take place.  These services will exalt America, its politics, and its soldiers, and not Israel’s (although these services tend to be occasions when American is strongly compared to Israel as the “Chosen” nation).  Many of the same people – clergy and non-clergy alike – who would be quick to chastise Israel (or most any other country) for taking up valuable worship time devoted to God and use it to exalt a nation, will do just that this Sunday.  These services will receive much praise from many of the congregants.  In fact, many of these services will evoke more hand raising and shouting and tears than most any service of the year.

We know that Israel consistently got in trouble in the Old Testament for their extreme nationalism: isolating themselves and keeping God’s blessings to themselves, even though Abraham’s original calling was to be “the father of many nations” (see Genesis 17:3).  God’s blessings were to be shared with all the world, as Jesus the Messiah reminded His original disciples (see Matthew 28:18-20). 

Yet, nationalism is a tempting idol.  We all long for a strong identity, and identifying with the nation of our birth – especially a nation that has the unique strengths financially and militarily as the U.S. does – is certainly normal, as long as we keep one thing in mind.

Thankfulness, Not Self-Reliance

If we can remember that all we have as a nation is a gift from God, and that God is the one who ultimately measures the success and strength of a nation - not its money, its military might, or even its creativity and hard work – then perhaps our worship services during times of the year when our nation celebrates its own accomplishments and memorials would be less like the worship of idols.  Perhaps they would be more like services of humble thanksgiving to the God who is the giver of all good things.  The emphasis that often characterizes the worship services around holidays such as Independence Day and Memorial Day are often more about how self-reliant and strong America is, and how because we are America, we are free to be Christian (or not).  We thank our military (and we should of course be thankful for men and women who serve) for “dying for our freedoms”, as if to say: “Jesus, you provided a nice example, but if it were not for our military, we would be in big trouble!” 

However, the biblical response would seem to be more like this: “No matter how strong our military and economy may be, without you, Lord, we would be in big trouble!”  This is more than semantics: it is sound biblical theology.  It is the kind of theology that avoids idolizing America, its resources, and its military.

A Different Language

The reason this approach is foreign to Americans, I believe, is that we have throughout our history allowed the language of politics, money, and military to bleed into the language of worship and theology.  We mix these together in what often becomes an idolatrous recipe.  We see our political leaders – especially those affiliated with our own parties of choice – as messiahs!  If only the correct party would win all the seats, if only there were legalized prayer in schools, if only the right man (or woman) were president, then we would be “one nation under God” again!

Here is the real story, though: Every single political party that has been in power in the nearly 240 years of our country’s official existence has had scandals and has done and said things that can easily be shown to go against the ways of Jesus outlined in Scripture.  Even the most pious of our presidents have had at least one skeleton in their closets, proving that they themselves are not “the answer.” 

Also, even in the last 40 years, each of the two major parties has been in power in Congress and in the White House at one time or another, yet we have not achieved the Utopian dream that their supporters (and the folks on the radio and TV) would have us believe would be the case!  Also, our military has done some things to be proud of, but it has also been led by flawed men and women who at times have carried out missions which have placed a dark shadow over the very values we say we stand for as a nation.  Speaking of the values we say we stand for, most of the very men who wrote “all men are created equal” in our founding documents would not affirm the rights of women to vote and owned other human beings as slaves!  Some even wrote that certain men with lighter skin color should not have too much power to make decisions, because they could not be trusted.

The Truth That Brings Real Freedom

That means that on Sunday mornings as we gather to worship God, anything that exalts any nation, party, group, or pledge above our ultimate commitment to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ has no place in a worship gathering.  I am not saying that such declarations and times of honoring have no place at all among Christians.  Even the Bible reminds us that is acceptable to honor our leaders and to be thankful for the blessings of our nation.  However, that does not give any of us the right to set aside any worship time to bring the language of politics – including things like the pledge of allegiance to any flag – into Sunday morning worship hour.  Nor does it give us the right to substitute a proclamation of the Holy Scriptures during the sermon for a (usually very slanted and inaccurate) history lesson proclaiming any nation’s exceptionalism. 

We would be best served exalting Jesus Christ, who is the Truth, and who is the only source of lasting freedom and peace.  Lord knows that with all of our economic and military might and our lofty words we have not yet been able to bring about lasting peace in our world.  In exalting Christ, we can and should take time to thank Him for the blessings that our nation has received.  At the same time, it would be beneficial to engage in some repentance: II Chronicles 7:14 says that the people of God are to “humble ourselves, seek God’s face, and turn from our wicked ways,” so that our nation can be “healed.”  This implies that we are not self-reliant, nor are we perfect.  We are in need of healing, as one glimpse at the neighborhoods of any town or at any TV news program would remind us.  We can express thanks to men and women who serve in various ways, including our military, without stating that our hope is in war and fighting: “Some trust in horses, some in chariots” – instruments of war – “but we trust in the name of the LORD our God,” as Psalm 20:7 reminds. 

We can declare the need for our nation to “return to righteousness” even as we humbly acknowledge that we ourselves as the Church in America have sometimes been an obstacle rather than a help in moving in that direction (often by exalting politics over good theology and acting in arrogance instead of humility). 

An Important Note

Personally, I think I would be considered a patriotic person.  I am glad to be an American, and I have many generations of relatives, men and women, who have served the nation through a variety of venues, including the U.S. Military.  However, over 30 years ago, when I asked Jesus Christ to become my Lord and Savior, I stated that I wanted His ways above all else. I recognized that my only hope and peace would be from Him.  I declared that everything else – even my citizenship as a Texan and as an American – would not take priority over my citizenship in the Kingdom of God, which is a worldwide Kingdom and is the only one that will outlast all of the kingdoms of the world.  For me, that means that I can be a thankful and hopefully helpful citizen of the country of my birth.  I can speak up when my country is doing something right, and I can speak up when I feel my country is doing something wrong (it does a lot of both at times!). 

I can honor those who have sacrificed their lives and their comforts so that others can be more comfortable and have the chance at meaningful lives by thanking God for good examples.  I can seek to be more like those good examples God has sent my way.  I can also, as I do in this article, remind brothers and sisters that ultimately our hope is not found in any nation, no matter how strong or good, but in the One who is the founder and Lord of the Kingdom that will never end.  And He shall reign forever and ever.  Hallelujah.  Try that this Fourth of July weekend, and every Sunday for that matter, and maybe God will indeed continue to bless America.