The Ancient Future Church

Proper 9, Thursday, July 11, 2013

Luke 24:36-53

“Repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations.”

One of the things life should impress upon is that not everyone sees the world as we see it, not everyone experiences the same thing in the same event. We see life through our filter and our filter is unique. I have two siblings. There are only five and half years between the three of us. Yet, if you asked each one to describe family life in our home of origin, the answers would vary greatly and even be at odds with the others on some significant points. This would be especially true in a home that values independence above things communal.

But God says there a condition common to man (read mankind). No filter, however unique, will change it. It is objective. It is not subjective. What is this condition? We are people who need to come about and access real life through the forgiveness of sins.

Common to man? Yes, the message is to be preached to all nations.  It applies to us and applies equally regardless of who we are or where we live or whatever lens through which we see the world filters our data. All nations. To persons in every port!

Come about? Yes, we are to stop and do a 180.  We are not tacking as we beat against the wind. We are meant to come about and sail with the wind. Running over beating is preferred. We cannot live the intended life with our back to God. We must sail toward him. By design there is a lot less resistance in running with or before the wind.

Access real life through the forgiveness of sins? Yes, sin is an anchor. The weight of it will cause us to sink, as in from Smeagol to Gollum, over a long period of time. Gollum is living and breathing but not anything like the Smeagol created in God’s image. Gollum is not what the creator intended.

All life is a pale imitation of the intended life apart from repentance and forgiveness of sins. Subjectively we resist this but our resistance will never change that it is objectively true.

Proper 9, Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Acts 10:1-16

“What God has cleansed, you must not call common.”

The passage from Acts sets us up for the word, “God shows no partiality.” Jews and Gentiles (who eat and expose themselves to things that defile Jews) are made clean. Neither are common. Jews don’t have a leg up. Nor do Gentiles. God says so.

God in Christ is overcoming all categories by which we divide ourselves, then and now. Amazing and disturbing are modern church growth strategies that divide people up. Leaders are encouraged to create target markets. Let’s reach boomers. Start a band. Let us reach marrieds with young children. Start a Disney like children’s program. Let’s reach millennials. Start a band but with younger or younger looking people). Fleeting tastes take priority over abiding truth. Take it to its logical conclusion. Educated should worship with educated. Rich with rich. Poor with poor. Southerners with southerners.

I once heard about a church that because of its location and a few folks love for the lost drew homeless people in droves. The efforts and people that drew the homeless were abandoned by leaders. “We can’t build a church with folks like these.” Really? “What God has cleansed, . .

Proper 6, Friday June 21, 2013

1 Samuel 3:1-21

“Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak Lord for thy servant hears.’”

Samuel thought it was Eli speaking to him. Samuel was operating according to a SOP (standard operating procedure). Eli had to reorient Samuel to listen for the voice of God. Hard to hear him if you have not first imagined he might be speaking.

What SOP keeps us from hearing from God? I am reminded of a classic movie, The Hunt for the Red October. Jack Ryan is trying to contact the red October. But first Jack has to find it. Where is Captain Ramius headed? He learns that tons of Russian ships seem to be looking for Ramius and the Red October as well. But an aircraft carrier commander points out these Russian ships are moving at 30 knots. “At that speed they could run over my daughter’s stereo and not hear it.” To which Jack Ryan responds “hounds to the hunters.” They were driving Ramius and the Red October toward the Americans who would destroy them.

Could it be we are moving too fast to hear from God, so fast as to make it all but impossible? Eli would tell us to change our routine, get out of the norm. Slow down lest we run over His voice.

Could it be the enemy is driving us there, hound to the hunter? The enemy is always prowling around waiting to devour us. Perhaps the evil one is setting the pace of our lives so we will miss the voice of God and race to our demise?

Time to dump the SOP!

F = L to the Third (June 16, 2013)

Proper 5, Thursday, June 13, 2013

2 Corinthians 12:1-10

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

This is so counterintuitive. Wouldn’t it make more sense if His power was made perfect in the powerful. After that is why we higher leaders. Isn’t it?

A famous pastor recently said that as a last resort he pulled the senior pastor card. He jumped up and down and said “I want this to happen.” Basically to the staff he said, “get on board or . . .” Or what? Or I will find people who will? That kind of leadership may work well in the armed forces. May! It does not work well in environments where people have choices and less so in places where people volunteer.

The Lord is teaching Paul that grace, not strength and certainly not perfection, is to animate his people. Paul will actually achieve more, or the Lord more through him, if Paul relies upon grace and makes himself utterly dependent.  Not strength but weakness. Not assertiveness but submission.

And God is making grace the only means available to Paul to advance the Kingdom. He won’t free him of his need for it. In this particular case he will not even free Paul of this thing, whatever it is, that afflicts him. My grace is sufficient for what I have called you to do.

Is this teaching made manifest in the new Pope? Sounds like it when he says the church needs a heart of poverty, not the heart of a business man.

Proper 5, Wednesday, June 12, 2013

“And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure upon me of my anxiety for all the churches.”

What other things? Not much really just fives time lashed, three times beaten, three times shipwrecked, without food, cold and exposed, these but a few among many other challenges. On top of all that Paul has to worry about “all the churches.” When the position of first century apostle opened up, the number of résumés submitted was probably thin to nonexistent.

I wonder what the church would be like today if we all were willing to endure such hardship to see the kingdom advanced. Ministry today is a vocation if not a career. I should know. Personally, I have benefitted from it. For a couple of years I have struggled recently with how much I am willing to give of myself or of my family to see the kingdom advanced. The emotional toll extracted by the institutional church over the years has not been inconsequential. Without much awareness I have found myself reluctant to build something that would cause pain or potentially reject me. So I meandered for a season. Not good for a church planter.

Then suddenly God brought to me back to the churches, not the Church, but the churches and the people in them. “They are so worth it John. Run the risk again. Take some hits.” These are the kinds of things He has been saying to me. And He is, of course, so right. Without acting they, the people in the churches and outside of them, are worth it, of deep and abiding value simply because they are created in the image of God. Then the bonus comes. Offering life to others is to live myself. Conversely, to withhold and meander is to die.

Back in the hunt.  But for the foreseeable future I’m still staying away from ships.

Proper 5, Tuesday, June 11, 2013

2 Corinthians 11:1-21

“And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.”

Wouldn’t it be great if the evil one always came at us in a red suit with pitchfork in hand! We would appreciate the warning and run.

But the evil one disguises himself. Darkness wraps himself in light.

In Paul’s day he came in apparently gifted and charismatic men who were false teachers. Thank God we are too sophisticated to be duped in that way. Hear dripping sarcasm just in case you missed it.

In our day, He comes to us in those close enough to influence us. Not always in bad people but often in ordinary people even friends and family. Sometimes he sits across a candlelit table an offers us the world. More sinister he comes to us in advertisements that invite us to fear or wrongly desire and order our lives accordingly.

The evil one often looks good. But he is always evil. Consequently, we must be vigilant in our discernment.

A Sermon Preached June 9, 2013

Example to Be Lived, Experience to Be Had

4 Lent, Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Jeremiah 18:1-11

Who is the potter in your life?

Just a couple of weeks ago, at a men’s retreat I encouraged men in essence to be good potters. “God has given you a unique mission, a domain given to no other. Be good stewards of the wife and children God has entrusted to your care. I may influence them but no one can shape them like you and that is by divine providence. By design God made to you the husband of ________________ and the father of _________________, ___________________ and ________________.”

Brothers, we are called to be potters. But likewise we are called to be clay, moldable in the hands of God. He has every right to shape us and our circumstances according to our decisions. He will turn from bringing low those who repent. He will turn from elevating those who rebel. He is the ultimate potter and we are clay in his hands.

But are we willing to be clay? Having been called to be potters are willing to be shaped by a higher authority? Do we realize that all of life for better or worse is meant to be lived in the hands of another?  Are willing to live within the tension of being both potter and clay?

It is within His hands that we are made useful to Him and to the lives of those entrusted to our care. Without shape myself I can shape others little. What are you allowing Him to make of you? What kind of shape are you in?

“And he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do.”