Dance

What one word best describes the mood of the world today? I know it is unfair to categorize the whole world by one word.  I guess I am searching for the majority opinion. I started with the angst, the feeling of dread or anxiety. This seems too harsh. Disappointed and overwhelmed are close. I have settled on stressed. People today are stressed out. There is great reason for people to be stressed—money worries, rebellious children, unhappy marriage, health problems, terrorists, and no hope for a better future. This is our world.

Counter wise, I muse the word which best describes the mood of the church of Jesus Christ? Many words may describe the current mood of the church. One word should characterize the church—joyful. Acts 2:42–47, “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. ⁴³ And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. ⁴⁴ And all who believed were together and had all things in common. ⁴⁵ And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. ⁴⁶ And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

When trouble comes many people run away, some stand and fight, most simply whimper. We live in a world of whiners today. When trouble comes to Christ followers, we dance! James 1:2, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18, “Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray without ceasing, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

In Acts 2:42-47 we have a brief description of the first church. They devoted themselves (zealots) to teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread and prayer. These are the pillars of a strong and healthy church. The results of have strong pillars in place are a family of believers, who sense the awesome presence of God in their midst. Wonders and signs are a regular occurrence. The needs of the people are met. The members enjoy a high level of unity, joy and contentment. People outside of the church like what they see inside. So, they come to the church, get saved and become part of the church family.

Have you ever been on the outside of a certain group of people longing to belong? I have. From outward appearances it seems like this group of friends is ideal. They may or may not be. Usually, we don’t get invited into such a group. We are left out. In a healthy church, there is always room for one more. Come join the fun. Come dance with us.

Peace,

SS

Envy

1 Peter 2:1-3 So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. ² Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— ³ if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

Envy is the tendency to evaluate one’s own well being comparatively to others; and to perceive self lacking while wishing a perceived rival to be deprived of their good fortune.

One of the greatest temptations known to human beings is to tear down another to lift up self. We know this does not work and is evil. The real trouble with envy is that precious time and resources are wasted on injuring one’s rival, when effort should be focused on improving one’s own destiny. Envy says, “God owes me!” What he’s given to another he could have given to me.vCain killed Abel and  Esau threatened to kill Jacob because of envy. In John 21 Jesus told Peter that he would be martyred. Immediately he asked what would happen with John. Jesus replied, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?”

James 4:1-2 What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? ² You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.

Usually our real trouble is not with others. More often we are dealing with our own insecurity and self hatred. It is projected out onto others. Envy believes that I cannot be happy without your cooperation. You must do what I want before I can be happy. This is a very flawed belief system. Our solution is to ask God—James 4:2-3 You do not have, because you do not ask. ³ You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. Instead of looking to others to make me happy and fulfilled, we should look to God. Ask God. We ask and do not receive, because we ask after our own lusts and desires. True contentment will be found in seeking God's will for our lives.

There are two passages that will help stamp out envy in our lives. Romans 12:15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Philippians 2:1-5 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, ² complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. ³ Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. ⁴ Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. ⁵ Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus…

Living for God's will and genuinely loving and being interested in the well being of others will destroy the power of envy in our lives.

Peace,

Stan

Clothed with Humility

Many times I have heard "God will humble you." I am not sure that is true. Certainly circumstances have the ability to humble a person. Yet, negative circumstances will not necessarily cause said person to respond in a humble manner. True humility is submission to God and to his ways. To submit is to withdraw and retire from self and to yield to another. Pride is failure to yield to God.

James 4:6-8 reads, "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you." 1 Peter 5:5-9 also states, "...be clothed with humility, for God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon him, for he cares for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whim he may devour. Resist him."

Being clothed with humility is the responsibility of self. Humility allows for the grace of God, his wisdom, strength, favor and blessing, to operate in my life. Pride blocks the same. Pride brings down; humility exalts. Pride is the devil. It must be resisted.

The walls of pride are high and wide

Can’t see over to the other side

BOB DYLAN, "Cold Irons Bound"

Pride (the 7 deadly sins)

What exactly does the word pridefulness imply

lacking humility although everything in your life

was given to you by the one that you still deny

your lack of faith and trust in God

can you not hear him when he cries

some call it a virtue, but man you must be blind

someday your pride will hurt you

and he will be there when you die

but I bet you he still loves you

and he will show you how to fly

but first you need to let him in

first you need to lose your pride  Jillian Keenan

Peace,
Stan

Royal Priesthood-Worship

In Revelation 1:6 Christ followers are refered to as a kingdom of priests. 1 Peter 2:9 the same are refered to as a royal priesthood. This is unusual language. What does it mean to be the royal priesthood? Royal is pertaining to a king, queen or other sovereign. Priesthood refers to priests collectively. Priests are those who conduct worship and act as a mediators between God and other humans.

Aristotle wrote about telos-purpose. He suggested that for humans to floursish we must live telos. In Genesis we are told that humans are created "in God's image." We were given the vocation of filling the earth and ruling over it. God's way of ruling the earth is through his image-bearing people. I believe this is what the philosophers we searching after. What is our purpose? Our purpose is found in virtuous living. Living for the benefit of others and creation itself is our highest calling as people. Of course, very few humans have ever lived this life. Most, if not all, live for self.

Then, Christ entered the world announcing, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven (God) is at hand." Here we have this kingdom talk again. Christ appeared as the ultimate human. Aristotle would have to admit that Jesus is the fulfillment of telos. Apostle Paul in addressing the crowd at Mars Hill in Athens proclaimed concerning Christ, "In him we live and move and have our existence."  Jesus as a human reflected God into the world and reflected the world back to God. He is the eternal High Priest. Jesus demonstrated for us what is the wise rule over creation.

Christ brought healing, forgiveness, peace, joy and love to humanity. This is bringing God's kingdom into the earth. Christ has commissioned his church, his body with this same assignment. God's way of ruling the world is through his image-bearing himans. In order to do this as intended, we must stay in tune with God. Abuse of this authority does not abolish its proper use. Ruling the world as Christ would necessitates our need for worship. In worship our habitual choices are formed. As we allow the Holy Spirit to transform our lives, we demonstrate his fruit to the world-love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self-control.

We are a priesthood, priest collectively. There must be a greater emphasis on the collective effort of the church more than our personal Christian express. "The gates of hell will not prevail against the church" after all. We need to think in terms of litergy-an arrangement of public worship formed by a church. As we worship through the prayers, praise, teaching, fellowship, Sacraments and Scripture reading of the church we form a priesthood. Out of this worship we flow out the the wider world-mission.

Peace,
Stan

Unlikely Women of Christmas

We all know about Joseph and Mary, the Inn of Bethlehem, the shepherds, the star, and the wise men. They’re all part of the wonderful story we remember and tell this time of year. There’s more to the story, though. Obscure and often overlooked, buried in Matthew’s genealogy (Matthew 1:1-17) and leading up to the birth of Christ are four women-Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Uriah's wife (Bathsheba).


Without elaborating with too many details, let me introduce you to these ancestresses of our Lord. Tamar posed as a prostitute and had sexual relations with her father-in-law resulting in the birth of a son. Rahab was the prostitute who hid the Israeli spies in her house before they conquered the city of Jericho. She was the ancestress to eight of Israel's prophets, including Jeremiah. Ruth was a woman from Moab, a despised and outcast people. The Moabites and Ammonites had their origin through the incestual relationship between Lot and his daughters. The daughters plotted together to get their father drunk, so they could sleep with him and produce heirs. The wife of Uriah is Bathsheba, with whom David had an affair. In order to cover his sin, David had Uriah put to death. Bathsheba was the mother of King Solomon.


No only did Christ come to seek and to save the lost, but was also the product of a less than honorable family heritage. In Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Charles Wesley succinctly penned, "Veiled in flesh the Godhead see. Hail the incarnate Deity. Pleased as man with man to dwell. Jesus, our Emmanuel." Christ identifies with all of the human condition, sinner, saint and those in between.


These four unlikely women in Christ's lineage remind us that it does not matter from where you have com. It does not matter what you have done, or left undone. God sought after you and me. When we were at our worst, God gave his best. The true beauty of Christmas is found in the eternal fact that, "while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."


The outsiders have become insiders.
Rejected ones have been accepted.
People who were put down have been lifted up.
Those that were cast out have been brought in.
The forsaken have been embraced.


The fifth unlikely woman of Christ's lineage is Mary, his mother. We no almost nothing about Mary, except that she quite ordinary. She hailed from an ordinary, out-of-the-way place. There seems nothing outstanding about her, other than willingness, obedience and faith. Yet, we know that these qualities are, in fact, extraordinary. In The Magnificat, Mary declared, "for he looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed. For he has done great things for me, and holy is his name."


When God does something on earth, he does so through a person, usually an unlikely person such a you or me. No matter how small you think you are, no matter what terrible things you have done, no matter what horrible things have been done to you, Christ desires to be in your life. He wants you in his family. Christ came for sinners, outcasts, abused and forgotten people.


Merry Christmas,
Stan

Lessons From Mary

A Sunday school class wrote letters to God. On little boy wrote, "Dear God, We had a real good time at church today. Wish you could have been there." During Advent we are doing our utmost to make sure God is here in the midst of our celebration and anticipation. Reader, I invite you to take a few moments to sit at the feet of a young bride-to-be, who became the mother of God-Mary.

In the Magnificat, Mary proclaims, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed." What lessons may we learn from Mary? What might she say to us?

First, I believe she would tell us, "Life is hard." Consider this teenage girl, who is betrothed to be married soon. The anxiety of becoming a bride must have been overwhelming. Then, an angel visited her with an unbelievable announcement, "God has chosen you to bring His Son into the world through your body." She risked her body, marriage, reputataion and her own life in agreeing to this. Her delivery was very difficult. After a long and grueling trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem she gave birth out in a barn.

The difficulties continued in Mary's life. After the wise men came worshipping and bearing gifts, they were warned in a dream to scram. King Herod ordered all of the male children under two years to be killed in Bethlehem. Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus took out across the wilderness to Egypt, where they lived as refugees in a foreign land. Somewhere between Jesus' twelth birthday and the beginning of his public ministry, Joseph must have died. We never hear about Joseph again. Mary's life is hard. The final blow was watching her son die on the cross.

Mary would tell us that life is hard, but that God is good. Mary continues in the Magnificat, "for he has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation."

Life is hard. The effects of sin are severe. God is good. He sent his Son to be our Savior and Lord. God expresses his goodness through us, his church. The church is the expression of the goodness of God. We proclaim to the world the gospel-good news.

On Christmas Eve of 1985 CNN reported on two emaciated young men who had just been released from prison. They both suffered from the affects of AIDS. They were placed in a home established by Mother Teresa's order. Holding the two men in her arms, Mother Teresa was challenged by the reporter, "Why should we care about criminals with AIDS?" She explained that these young men had been created in the image of God and derserved to know God's love.

Life is hard, but God is good.

Peace,

Stan

Christmas Is

Christmas is fun and special. It is for buying gifts. Christmas is noisy and sometimes stressful. Certainly, Christmas is beautiful. Mostly, Christmas is necessary. Humanity, especially me, needs a Savior and Lord.

Throughout human history, we have proven that our ability to run the show has been a dismal failure. If given power and authority, we oppress. If we help people in the wrong way or too much, they stop trying and expect others to be responsible. We lie, cheat, steal, kill, abuse, etc. No government works very well for very long. The whole world system is a mess.

Christ came to earth declaring himself as supreme ruler. His kingdom is foreign to us. We want him to blow away our enemies; he tells us to love them, pray for them and do good toward them. We want him to promote us because we are his faithful followers; he tells us to die to our self-interests and to live for others.

The best human effort is a dismal failure. Perhaps, Christ's way is a better way. Perhaps his kingdom is superior to our ways. We looked for a conquering ruler; he came as a shepherd caring for his human sheep. Isaiah 40:10-11, "Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules from him; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young."

In Ezekiel 34, God promised to send us a shepherd who will search for the lost sheep. He will rescue them from the places where they have been scattered. This good shepherd will feed them with good pasture. He will strengthen the weak and heal the sick. He binds up wounds. This shepherd brings justice to the oppressed. When God came to the earth, he came as a shepherd.

In this season of Advent, as we celebrate what the Lord has done in coming to us, we also look for his coming again. Peter exhorts us in 2 Peter 3:11-12, "...what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God..." As we reflect on Advent and look forward to Christmas, let us hasten the coming of Christ by taking up his mission of tending to the human sheep. In Matthew's gospel, Christ looked with compassion upon the crowds coming to hear him and to be healed by him, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. They were harassed and helpless in this state. Christ made a statement in this moment, "The harvest is great but the laborers are few, therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest."

We, the body of Christ on the earth, are the answer to Christ's plea. Christmas is necessary, because we need a shepherd. Let us observe this season by seeking the lost, healing the sick, binding up wounds and feeding his sheep.

Peace,
Stan