Robot or Human?

The Overstock.com Chronicles: Episode One

As part of our Christmas gifts, Vicki and I got new hiply mispelled (thank you Roe) Razr phones and I scored some ultra cheap headsets on Overstock.com. They are great little devices. I got Vicki and H500 ("Red" edition, remeber the AIDs campaign that lasted like 48hrs?) and myself the H700. Below is my live chat session with Overstock representative "Mario", I am pretty sure that is not his real name... Anyhow, I hope you will enjoy this conversation as much as I did

A few notes: While I was waiting for the "initiate the return", I was able to read a few Lostpedia articles (did you know there were anagrams in Room 23!?!?!, do some eBay surfing , and realized I was hungry for lunch... My final question was apparently a real whollop, it took about five minutes to get a response. I suppose they have other clinets on the line or something. I was most unhappy however that I would have to wait about two weeks to get this settled from start to finish. I'll be sure to update this issue as it develops!

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Welcome to Overstock.com's Customer Service Live Chat! You will be joined with a chat representative as quickly as possible. (Less than 2 minutes)
Chat InformationWelcome to Overstock.com Customer Service, you are now chatting with Mario.
Mario: Thanks for visiting Overstock.com, this is Mario, how can I help you?
you: Yes
you: I purchased an H700 headset and might be having problems with the device
you: It was a refurb, what should I do
you: https://www.overstock.com/orders?inv_id=XXXXXXX
Mario: I'll be glad to check that for you.
Mario: May I have your order number or email address please?
you: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
you: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Mario: For security purposes, can you please verify the name and billing address on the account?
you: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
you: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Mario: Thanks for verifying the details.
Mario: Are you referring to the ''Motorola H700 Silver Bluetooth Headset"?
you: Yes
you: It crackles almost constantly when I am using it
Mario: Thank you for confirming the item.
Mario: To help you better ca you be more specific about the issue?
you: Most of the time, when I am talking on the deadset, there is a "crackling" noise.
you: It is the sort of sound you get when you walk too far from the phone or the battery is dying, but I get it about 70% of the time I use the device
Mario: Thank you for the information.
Mario: I understand that you received the item as defective.
Mario: Am I correct?
you: I am really not sure what is going on.
you: That is why I contacted you guys.
Mario: I'm really sorry that you have received this item in a defective condition.
Mario: I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused.
Mario: Since you've received a defective item, I'll initiate a return for replacement.
Mario: Is that okay with you?
you: Wow
you: What does that entail?
Mario: Please be online while I initiate the return and give you the return instructions through this chat.
you: Are you still there?
Mario: Thanks for being on hold. I appreciate your patience.
Mario: John, I have initiated a return on your item for a replacement.
Mario: Your Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) number is XXXXXXXX.
you: What should I do next?
Mario: The RMA number is necessary for the appropriate processing of your return, so please do not send items back without the RMA number.
Mario: We will email you return instructions and a free return shipping label. The email will arrive in 1-2 business days and will include instructions on how to print the label.
Mario: Simply tape the free shipping label on the outside of the box and ship it back to our warehouse.
Mario: To qualify for a replacement, please send the item back to us with the original packaging, manufacturer's container, documentation, warranty cards, manuals and all accessories. Do not mark or deface original manufacturer containers in any manner.
Mario: I recommend you to get a receipt or a signature when you drop off your package at an authorized shipping service.
Mario: All returns must be received back in the Overstock.com warehouse 30 days from the date initiated.
Mario: Your replacement order will be sent to you under order 41346645 once your returned item reaches our warehouse and our certified technicians have tested the item.
Mario: It takes 2 business days from when we receive the returned item at our warehouse to process it. Your replacement order will be shipped out within 1-3 business days after processing.
you: The item only came in a bubble envelope, there was no cardboard. Is that a problem?
Mario: This replacement order will take 5-10 business days to reach you, once it has been shipped.
Mario: Please return the item as it was sent to you.
Mario: Did I explain the return process clearly to your satisfaction?
you: If your technicians deem that the item is not defective, then what happens?
Mario: Our specialized representative will decide on that.
Mario: Is there anything else I can help you with today?
you: Um, that does not really answer my question.
you: So then, it take about two weeks for the exchange process to be completed?
Mario: Our specialized representative will decide on that and see whether the replacement order could be sent to you or not.
Mario: If the does not qualify for the replacement they will contact you again via email or phone.
Mario: Did I explain the return process clearly to your satisfaction?
you: Will they simply return my device then?
Mario: I do understand your concern.
you: I will just wait for the return package to arrive.
you: Thank you
you: for your help.
Mario: However, I would like to tell you that since the returned item is only inspected by our specialized representative they will contact you with the detail information if the item is found to be not defective.
Mario: You are most welcome.
Mario: Do you have any further question for me?
you: That will do for now.
Mario: We look forward for your continued business with us.
you: God bless and take care
Mario: Happy New Year to you and your family.
Mario: Thanks for visiting Overstock.com. Your feedback is important. Please click 'Close' and complete the brief survey which appears. It takes less than one minute.

Holiness?

Is there any difference between "holiness" in the NT and in the OT. It would seem that at bottom, they are the same; but Paul and the author of Hebrews throw a few curve balls about how the sacrificial system and purity codes fell short until Christ fulfilled the Law.

One of my friends made a point that holiness is more about being connected to God than being separated from the world. Tell me, are there any persimmons up that tree?

JP

Burn Out

So, you're sitting in your office and you're wondering... "How could I possibly still feel burnt out after a week long break?"

Don't Mess With Jesus, He's a Good Shot...

Unless you have been living in a cave the last few days, you surely have heard about the tragic shootings at a Youth With A Mission center and finally the New Life Church in Colorado Springs CO (where Ted Haggard was pastor). The situation is tragic and difficult, but raises some serious questions that we have to grapple with.

As a pastor I have seriously mixed feelings about this episode, primarily because of the message that it sends. Do we want people to look at this and say, "Christians aren't wimps"?

Years ago, a Baptist pastor by the name of J. Frank Norris shot and killed a man in his office in what he called self defense. His justification was that the visitor went for something his inside coat pocket during an argument. The "assailant" turned out to be "armed" with papers from his lawyer.

On one hand, you have the Exodus passage exonerating one from blood-guilt if you kill in self defense. On the other hand, Jesus didn't have a security detail.

As a pastor/father, it is one thing to allow myself to suffer harm, but what am I to do when others suffer at the hands of evil men. For years, I was a strict pacifist until I ran into an ethical brick wall called The Holocaust. Should the lives of others be snuffed out meaninglessly if I can stop it? Yet at the same time, when this young man was killed/killed himself he was most likely sending himself into eternity without Christ. A similar thought has crossed my mind in the war in Iraq/Afghanistan. Every Muslim that we gun down spends an eternity in Hell. Is that the cost of freedom?

So, what would I do? I honestly don't know, all I can say is that I hope to God I would do the right thing. But in this case, I am most concerned about the message that this sends.

Lastly, I fear that this congregation is under assault from the Enemy, or perhaps they are experiencing the inevitable entropy associated with the Mega-Church movement. Perhaps only time will tell. Either way, we should be praying for them and the families involved in this terrible event.

THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT JOSEPH

First Week of Advent: The Announcement IV

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child, by the Holy Spirit. 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. 20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 "She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." 22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 "BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD, AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL," which translated means, "GOD WITH US." 24 And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25 but kept, her a virgin, until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.
Matt 1:18-25 (NASB)

Joseph and Mary’s culture was so intensely honor bound that we have to reach a bit to fully comprehend his dilemma. In our day, when single starlets boast to Oprah about their latest love child with a Scandinavian super-hunk, it is easy for us to lose the “scandal” of a pregnant teenage girl in first century Palestine; much less one who was engaged to be married. For them, an engagement was as binding as a marriage. Mosaic law permitted a man to reject his wife if she was known to have “known” someone prior to their completing (read: consummating) the ketubah. Joseph being a devout man is pulled in a few directions. His honor, her honor, the lex taliones (eye for an eye) which could permit him to have her stoned for immorality, and, if I may read into the situation a bit; one might suggest a commandment about “loving your neighbor as yourself” or “doing unto others” was floating around in there somewhere… So what was he to do? We are told that he “decided to put her away quietly”, in other words, to find a way for her to slip out of town or whatever it would take for them to move on with their lives. Afterall, Joseph’s heart must have been broken, one could only imagine how the dreams that the betrothed have would have evaporated the moment he heard what had happened. We don’t even really know how he found out. Maybe he was at the coffee shop, or the barbershop, or Matza-Mart, maybe it was the matchmaker (if there was one), or his family that told him. Whatever way, could you imagine. But not only is there something about Mary, there is something about Joseph. Notice what his primary concern seems to be, not Joseph, but for Mary. That tells me something about his character, as does the next event in the passage.

Many righteous people are recorded as having dreams by which God reveals significant truths to them (Jacob, while not particularly righteous at the time; Joseph, Solomon). Others have angelic appearances (Gideon, Daniel, Elijah). While it is noteworthy that not everyone who sees an angel is righteous, to me, this is further evidence that Joseph was also “highly favored”. Joseph having both a divinely given dream and a communication form an angel (angelos, or “messenger”) would seem to highlight both the character of the recipient and significance of the event.

As it is though, we don’t know much else about Joseph. Almost like a minor character in a play, Joseph seems to disappear without explanation, the ends of his story are completely frayed. He is conspicuously absent for instance at the Cross, possibly indicating his death prior to the ministry of Jesus and is never mentioned outside of the Gospels. Unfortunately, ancient biographies don’t always pay attention to the details which inquiring minds want to know.

What we do know of Joseph demonstrates his love for, and incredible trust in God. His character was such that God chose him to watch over his only Son. All I can say is that Joseph must have had his heart in the right place.

So what are the best parts of our story?

First of all, its all true! It is far from a myth meant to comfort the feeble and frail in the midst of a wicked generation. It is the announcement of the dawning of a “New Deal”, the consummation of Israel, of the Law, the doorway to Heaven will be flung wide open, but not how we expected it to be (but that is another sermon).

Second, it includes us. Notice how God uses the un-fantastic; a teenage girl and a blue-collar carpenter, to bring about the incredible. Although I would argue that Joseph and Mary were individuals of exceptional character, I have to ask this question: “Where they chosen because they were highly favored, or highly favored because they were chosen?” If you ask me, I will go with the former option.

As much as we want God to love us more because we are good and love others less because they are bad, the fact remains that God loves us all the same. Joseph and Mary were not chosen for any reason other than that they were chosen. Just like Elijah, they were normal, yet God-fearing folks through who worked a miracle (cf. Jas 5:17).

Third, its not over yet! The story of the announcement is the story of two people who demonstrate incredible trust in God. But moreover, it is a story of light being spoken into a dark world. Sound familiar? It should, because it is the same hope we have today, not as we await the Advent, but as we await the Second Coming.

With that in mind, Merry Christmas and have a wonderful season of Advent.

THE (SAME) OLD STORY

THE (SAME) OLD STORY
The First Week of Advent: The Announcement III

As mentioned before, the expectation of Messiah goes way back, some say all the way back to Genesis 3:15, the so-called “protoevangelium”. (If you can fit that on a Scrabble board, I am pretty sure you would win.) This is considered the first prophecy of Jesus Christ. The seed of the woman, Jesus and the seed of the serpent, presumably Satan and the powers, will bruise His heel at the cross and later at the resurrection He will crush the serpent’s head; at the Second Advent the crushing will be complete, as Paul says, the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.

Yet without question, the most significant statements about the coming Messiah are found what many Christians have come to consider an advance copy of the Gospels, the book of Isaiah.

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14 (NASB)

Before all of Dr. Bayer’s students have a longhorn; I readily concede that yes, this does refer to king Ahaz (Is 8:1-10). The study of the Hebrew alma is a great Excursis of “semantic fields” for Hebrew and LXX nerds. In the 60’s, scholars nearly went to fisticuffs about the translation of this word: should if be young woman or virgin? The RSV was doomed to the pejorative “liberal” for all time because of their choice to render the Hebrew literally, however, we know that the Gospel writers had nary a worry claiming that this text points to Jesus (Mt 1:23), so neither do I, and neither does Dr. Bayer or any other orthodox Christian. So, you may translate it “young woman” if you will, since we know that the birth in Isaiah’s time was not immaculate, but we know that when it applies to Christ, there is no problem.

Here is the fantastic thing! His virginal conception was foretold, but so was His place of birth, the details of His life, the mode of His execution, and details right down His burial and that He would raise up again on the third day! Talk about detail.

A mathematician conjured up an example to help us grasp the immensity of this:

The chances of any one person in history fulfilling only EIGHT of the approximately 300 prophecies concerning the life of Jesus could be illustrated by covering the State of Texas with Silver Dollars, 2 ft. deep. Mark one Silver Dollar and place it in the pile. Take a second person and blindfold them and give them one chance to pick the correct Silver Dollar. There you have it.

And to quote Dr. Bing Bayer, “He told us to look for Him in there [the Old Testament]”:

"These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you--that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled."
Luke 24:44 (NRSV)

You see, when you come right down to it, the entire Bible is really The Jesus Book. W.A. Criswell (who was born in Eldorado, OK if you can believe it) spoke of a "scarlet thread of redemption that runs from Genesis to the Revelation". This is so true. All of human history hinges upon the ministry of Jesus, so much so that his life split time in two (BD/AD: Before Christ & Anno Domini "The Year of Our Lord. It all points to Him.

THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY:

THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY:
First Week of Advent: The Announcement II

Before we move on, let’s pause to think about Mary. As CS Lewis noted in Mere Christianity, when people talk about Mary the air can get thick very quickly. Protestants, wary of idolatry, tend to downplay her importance when they mention her at all. As such we can miss her significance altogether. Catholics, who may sense that she is not getting proper respect can feel much like you’re talking their mother down, and we know how it is when a man feels his mother’s honor is on the line…

So where should we land? With all do respect, I would argue that Mary has taken far too much prominence in Catholicism. But on the other hand, I want to stress that mentioning her once or twice a year, and that almost parenthetically, is shameful.

If we can squeeze her in between the Christmas program (at church and at school), the cantata, the shopping, trips to the air port, and the office party (whew!) we might come to terms with the reality that of all the women on the earth at the time of Christ’s birth, before or since, God handpicked ONE to bear the Son of God! Her name was Mary. And what is said about her? “Hail, favored one!” says Gabriel, and Elizabeth adds, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.”

She must have done something right! But again, one reason that it is so crucial that we understand Mary is the significance of God using one of US to bring about his forgiveness. Did you catch that? I hope you did. Beyond that, we should see her example as a willing bondservant, And Mary said, "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.” Luke 1:38 (NASB), WHATEVER YOUR PURPOSE, HOWEVER IT MAY COME, SO BE IT. If only we had such faith!

Dark Days: First Week of Advent: The Announcement

THE ANNOUNCEMENT

I. DARK DAYS
Advent (from Lat. adventus "coming" "arrival") Advent begins on the Sunday nearest November 30 and lasts until Christmas Eve. It is a celebration and remembrance of the first coming of King Jesus practiced to help us keep a proper focus during preparations for the Christmas holiday, keeping Christ in Christmas for ourselves.

Consequently, I am surprised at how much noise Christians have made over the last few years about companies, organizations, and governments taking Christ out of Christmas. Most of us will roll out of bed on Christmas day, open our presents, sit down to our new things and not open the scriptures once to share with our children why we do any of it in the first place. So, just in case we have forgotten, why do we celebrate Christmas? The story begins, like most great stories, a long time ago in a place far away under the reign of an evil king…

The people who walk in darkness
Will see a great light;
Those who live in a dark land,
The light will shine on them.
Isaiah 9:2 (NASB)

There are few periods in Israel's history as dark the time during which Jesus' birth was announced. Israel was under the authority of the Roman Empire, who by then was well established as the world power. Although the Jews were granted an exceptional amount of autonomy under Rome, there remained a constant "cloud" of oppression, the simple knowledge that they were not entirely free. Being under any authority has its ups and downs, but for God's chosen people to be under the heel of a gentile nation… again…

The Jewish people had waited in hope for the coming Messiah, the one promised to free Israel, set them up in their rightful place and redeem the world… but this promised Son of David had not yet come.

It was in the midst of this darkness, that an angel appeared to a young woman, probably not much older than a sophomore in High School, engaged to be married to a good and righteous man, in a village about the size of Rockville, MO; and he brought staggering news. The most important event in human history was about to take place… THROUGH HER.

26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. 28 And coming in, he said to her, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you." 29 But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. 30 The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. 31 "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end." 34 Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin,?" 35 The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God. 36 "And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. 37 "For nothing, will be impossible with God." 38 And Mary said, "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.
Luke 1:26-38 (NASB)

Heaven on Earth

Kingdom Come Pt I
Matthew 6:10

In his book, A Genuine Faith, Rodney Reeves offers the following quote from Henri Nouwen:
"changing the human heart and changing human society are not separate tasks but are as interconnected as the two beams of the cross."

Another of our good professors at SBU, Mike Fuhrman, offers the flowing wisdom:

Jesus gave us both the Great Commission and the Great Commandment, you can't have one without the other.

Throughout history humanity has made countless shots at creating a perfect world. Perhaps going as far back as Bale, countless "ists" and "isims" have attempted to birth a utopian society and have consistently miscarried. Communities both secular and sacred have been founded in hopes of "getting it right this time." But the question must be asked what does Jesus intend when he teaches his disciples to pray for a Kingdom on earth as it is in Heaven? Does he intend for them to have a Heaven on Earth? What would that look like, how would we know that it was here?

God lead Israel out of captivity in Egypt to establish a kingdom in a promised (yet unseen) land. In the same way, Jesus redeemed us to a Kingdom and for a Kingdom that we have only had a foretaste of. We live between Advents. Yet Jesus talked about the Kingdom as something that is and is not yet (more on this tonight).

Once Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and he answered,

"The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed; nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or 'There it is!' For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among you."
Luke 17:20-21 (NRSV)

As far as Jesus was concerned, wherever He was, the Kingdom was there. Lets chew on that for now.

Our Father PtV: Hallowing the Name

IV. Hallowing God’s Name

Hallowing God’s name means more than never taking it in vain.: However, this is where I will sound like a prude. We have drastically lowered our standards here. We my not drop the dreaded curses to or in God’s name; but we often in casual conversation say “Oh my God” or “Lordy, Lordy” etc. This shows disregard for the name that the Hebrews would not even write or speak; they instead substitued their word for "Lord", "Adonai" (this is he "LORD" in caps in English Bibles). To this day, no one really knows how to pronounce the name of God. That name is only the name He gave to us (Exodus 3), “I Am That I Am”.

Consider for instance that Methodist commentator Adam Clarke (1700’s) is stunned by the use of the phrase “My Heavens” among Christians. This innocent phrase, as well as "By Jove" etc. was considered as inappropriate as what we’d “bleep” out today. However, I will never quite understand how the F-word is bleeped from prime time but God’s name is thoughtlessly dragged through the mud for profit every single day on our TV’s, radios, blogs, and around the water cooler…

We profane His name when we forget that we wear it wherever we go: We can’t add to or subtract from the actual holiness of God (immutability?). But we can sure effect his reputation. The Bible refers to us as His ambassadors, as living epistles, as witnesses. We are to be the salt of the earth, a city on a hill. Often times were are more like a failing night light.

Paul told the Corinthians, "If you want to know what it means to be Christian, follow me because I'm following Jesus" (1 Cor 11:1). In fact, once we have been identified as Christians, in everything we do God’s reputation is on the line.

Hallowing God’s name is about hallowing God: Hallowing, fearing, revering, honoring.

What’s in a name?: A name precedes us. It can protect us. “Tell them “X’ sent you and you’ll get a discount.” Oh, they are a “Williams”, we all know about them… Recently I heard (from the source) a story about a man who was saved by a name. While he and a friend were wasted and broke they hit up a few liquor stores. They were arrested and only afterward found out that one of the businesses happened to be owned by the mafia. While in jail, two men who the thieves recognized as being "connected" showed up in jail with them. Knowing what the men were there for, one of the robbers took one of the hatchet men aside and made this plea, "Call your boss, and tell him that "so and so's" son is the one you are here to take care of." The man made the call, and the next day they Mafiosos were gone and the men's lives were spared. Lucky for him, the pleading thief's mother was one of the Mobsters' biggest legitimate business clients. It would have been pretty bad business to kill her son.

Hallowing God’s name means we look to a time when all men will know Him: Wright says that to pray “hallowed be your name” means “…may you be worshiped by your whole creation.” May your name be hallowed, feared, made known to be sacred and powerful, and potent and supreme.” The Bible talks about a time when all Creation will praise God, even the trees will clap their hands (Isaiah 55:12) and every knee will bow (Phil 2:10), and as the last Psalm declares “everything that has breath [will] praise the Lord! Ps 150:6!

Let that day come soon Lord Jesus.

NEXT: Your Kingdom Come

Our Father Pt IV

Are We All God’s Children?


Even though all are God’s creation, we are not all God’s children. We are neighbors, but not brothers and sisters. Jesus made this perfectly clear to the Pharisees. Those who do the will of his Father in heaven are called children of God. Those who oppose the Kingdom’s advance are children of the Devil. As our favorite theologian Bob Dylan aptly stated, “It may be the Devil, or it may be the Lord, but you’re gonna have to serve somebody.”


Before we can continue, we have to make a point however. Perhaps you might recall that at different times, “Christians” have used this to justify shameful treatment of others. Two standouts are the justification of the American slave trade and the Crusades. Perhaps these currents even run in the current war in the Middle East. The idea that “those rag-heads” are lesser human beings due to their social, political, or religious orientations or the view of radical Islam, or the phrase never quite caught on, “Islamo-Fascism” (a phrase certainly destined for the 2008 banished word list) holds the world view that anyone who does not think like them deserves to die. Dangerous ground all around friends; deadly ground.


Christ demands equal love, respect, and treatment for all humanity. Francis Fenelon wrrote, “All wars are civil wars because all men are brothers.” We are all equal parts in the human family, yet, in our spiritual kinship we may be very different. Confession, belief, and repentance lead us into the family of faith through the sacrifice of Christ. If there was any other way, Jesus would not have died and rose again. Paul taught that, “If Christ is not risen, then my faith is in vain.” I would have to argue that if the resurrection were not necessary, it would simply not have happened.


Therefore, when we declare God as “Father”, we are proclaiming our self as His child. So then, and we must embrace this: if we get the privilege of birthright (loving-kindness), then He gets the privilege of Fatherhood (that is authority). Please consider this a moment.


The ancient church father Cyrpian wrote, “The new man, born again and restored to his God through His grace, can say “Father” at the beginning, for he has now begun to be a son.”
(Cyprian (c.250, W) 5.449)


When we earnestly say “Our Father”, he no longer is in Heaven alone, but he now dwells within us. The God in the burning bush, in the pillar of cloud, in the pillar of fire, in the Holy of Holies, now dwells within us. We become part of the Temple of the Living God, of the building up of believers:


For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field , God's building… Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
1 Cor 3:9 & 16 (NASB)


Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God , and that you are not your own?
1 Cor 6:19 (NASB)


The beauty of it is that God condescends, to dwell not only among us, but in us if we will only abide in Him by abiding in His grace. What a great God we serve.

Our Father: Pt III

III. The Confession
“Calling God ‘Father’ [is] not simply comfortable or reassuring. It [contains] the ultimate personal challenge.” When we declare that God is our father, we are declaring our desire to live under his Lordship. Under the authority of God.

Three times in the last two weeks I had the same conversation concerning atheists/atheism. In essence, atheism is the denial of the reality that one has a Father/Creator. On this subject I have to persist in one thing, namely, that I don’t believe in atheists. Atheism is a myth.

First of all, what most people mean when they say “I’m an atheist” is that they hate Christianity as they have seen it represented or God as they have heard him told. Second, the Bible states that God has “set eternity in our hearts”. This means at least two things:

1. That the things of this world cannot satisfy because they were never meant to. “You cannot have peace and happiness apart from God because it is not there, there is no such thing.” (CS Lewis)

2. God has given us all a spiritual GPS that points us to Him in times of trouble. However, much like any map, it does us no good unless we follow it.

What I am talking about here must not be confused with the conscience (which can be silenced and seared). This is something more deeply rooted than our DNA. And every one of us knows that He is there, even if we don’t know what to call upon Him, even if we are afraid or too defiant to call out to Him, or even if we call Him by another name. We know that He is there. This is intrinsic and inseparable from our humanity. It is evident in our desire to worship (i.e. sporting events, concerts, cars, movie stars) and in that longing for something unnamable and more massive than ourselves. As it has been well stated, “We’re all born remembering but few of us will know.”

Furthermore, the average “atheist” means by this that they are either belligerent because of a wrong they have suffered at the hands of the God they do not believe in, or they know that confessing Him will be just what I have said it means, that to embrace his Fatherhood means to submit to His will.

I recall a good friend of mine who for many years struggled with the reality of God from two of these points. Firstly, she desperately wrestled with the concept of a good Father in Heaven because she had lackluster examples here on earth. Her relationship with her father had been one of abuse and neglect and eventually abandonment. It is easy so see how hard it would be to see any father, earthly or otherwise as being capable of good after such experiences. Furthermore, she downright told myself and another friend who bore most of the brunt of debates that she was unwilling to accept a God that demanded her to obey him, she did not want anyone or anything telling her what to do, especially not God. After many discussions and much prayer, she made her peace with God and to this day is learning more and more about what a Father can do in a willing heart… He can change everything. He can heal everything. He can be everything you’d ever wanted but were afraid to ask.

Our Father: Pt II

II. THE ANTICIPATION

Because of the freedom we have in Christ, the declaration “Our Father” should mean as much to us today as it did to the Jews under the tyranny of the Romans. It simultaneously recalls a past deliverance and looks forward in hope to a new era where Messiah sits on a throne in the here and now. But is this only a future reality?

This world suffers greatly from the tyranny of the Devil even though it is ultimately under the reign of God. We only need to open our papers, watch the CNN ticker, or read our RLS feeds to see that the Devil is alive, and well, and active in our midst. Recently I received word from a friend of mine in SE Asia that painfully reminded me how much this world needs the freedom of Christ. Every single day this man and his wife struggle against the powers of this age and the powers of darkness. The more I observe these forces (natural and supernatural) the more I see them working hand in hand, at least by default if not by design (cf. Is 14).

On the lips of a first century Palestinian Jew, “Our father” was the longing for a new and different world. For Christians behind the iron curtain it was a longing for the fall of a government that forbid the most basic expressions of faith. For Christians in China, it looks to a day when evangelical churches will be able to come out from the underground. To those in the Sudan and elsewhere, to a day of freedom from fear of their children’s lives being taken because of their faith. Likewise, the rulers of the ancient near east often referred to themselves as fathers, as benefactors, but at bottom they were tyrants. Jesus told his disciples that God was their Father, their benefactor. In “our father” we are reaching toward that Second Advent.

However, we must continue to declare “Our Father”, not as a child chanting to themselves, “I’m not afraid of the dark! I’m not afraid of the dark!”; but as a declaration into and against the darkness that “Help is not just on the way, but He is already here!” It is for us, and for all who have ears to hear. The Jews were looking forward to a final Exodus. We look to the Second Advent. This is when the Kingdom will come into its full inauguration. Heaven and Earth will become one with the New Jerusalem as its principle city. Tyranny of all kinds will flee and fall before the only true King.

“We live between advent and advent” The whole of the Christian life is lived in the tension between the first and the second coming. As we pray this prayer as believers, we look forward from the first advent to the paruosia, the Appearing. But until then, we beat back the darkness with the declaration of our adoption and hold out the hope of Christ to all who will receive the good news.

Our Father: Pt I

I. THE DECLARATION

First off, let me say that we must move beyond the sentimentality (or for some, the struggle) invoked by thinking of God as “Father” literally. Wright and others have noted the popularity of making more of the reference of abba as “daddy” than is necessary. True, we do serve a relational God, but He presents Himself as Father because we can “get that” and it helps us to get to a deeper layer of meaning. He relates to us, at times, in terms we can understand. However, we must beware of the temptation of attempting to bring God down to our level when what we intended to do was bring him nearer (think Lewis’ “senile grandfather” analogy). God is immense, far “bigger” than we could ever realize.

“[The Our Father] contains within it not just intimacy, but revolution. Not just familiarity; hope” (Wright, p.15). The first time God is referred to as “Father” is in the Exodus from Israel ( Ex 4:22-23) where He is calling slaves to be sons. When the Jew said “Our Father” they were coalescing their calling as an elect people and their testament of their deliverance from Egypt (Wright, p.14f). When we as Christians make this proclamation, we are stating recalling our adoption and our own Exodus from Egypt (the land of slavery/sin). The Jews were saved from slavery through Moses; and by this I mean Moses was the tool used of God. As Christians we were saved from slavery (think Galatians) by Jesus; and by this I mean by God Himself. Moses marched into Pharaoh’s court and said, “God says, let my people go!” Jesus stepped into this world and said, “You are free.” This call was for the Jew first and then for the Gentile (Rom 1:16).

It was true that Israel had been set free from Egypt, although they had been repeatedly enslaved over the centuries by other nations, but the declaration of freedom was not from the Romans, but from themselves and from the Devil (we will cover this more in the Kingdom Come next week). The people had a hope that was persistently frustrated by their circumstance. They were not able to see the work of God in their midst; not because it defied their expectations but because it did not meet them!

While religious Jews fasted in repentance, Jesus feasted. Jesus acted like the Kingdom had already come, and it had (more on that later). For the first hearers, and for us today, to say “Our Father” is a declaration that we have been freed from slavery by the very hand of God moving both in history and in human hearts. Once we have made this declaration, we can enter into an anticipation and the Our Father takes on even greater meaning.

Our Father : Forward

Okay, I know that it is not exactly customary to have a Forward to a blog, but this next series of posts represents something of an opus for me (hence the change in avatars . With the exception of the birth of my son; I may have learned more about myself and about God in the last few weeks than I have all year, all through reflecting on a prayer that most people have in their minds (memorized) but seldom have on their minds. I don't pretend to be an author, a theologian, or a scholar... just a journeyman trying to make sense out of the life that has been chosen for me and the God that I have given that life to. So read on if you will, and may God bless you.

'Our Father…” Mt 6:9a

What satisfaction must it be to learn from God himself, with what words, and in what manner, he would have us pray to him, so as not to pray in vain!

—Adam Clarke

According to Luke’s gospel, Jesus is seen praying by the Disciples and they ask, “Lord, can you teach us how to pray?” This question was expected. Many great teachers (rabbis) had encapsulated their core beliefs in a prayer. Jesus accommodates them, almost as if He has been anticipating the moment (most surely He had been) and the result we have is referred to as “The Lord’s Prayer”. Yes, of course I know that “technically” the Lord’s Prayer is found in Jn 17, and that this is more properly called the “Disciple’s Prayer”. But that is not at all as important as people like to make it out to be. If anything, it makes us feel important that we can point out a technicality, and that makes us into Pharisees if we are not careful. But that is another sermon…

I will rely heavily over the next few weeks on the writing of NT Wright in his book The Lord and His Prayer. Wright’s book is insightful, helpful, and informative without being academic or resorting to the approach of spiritual junk food. If you have a chance to pick it up, I would recommend doing so.

Another note: these posts will be slim on the “how to” and will concentrate mostly on the spiritual posture we are to have before God and the implications of words that I myself said over and over again thoughtlessly and heartlessly but have recently acquired such a profound meaning to me that I am ashamed I have ever uttered them otherwise. It is my hope that as I try to convey what God is teaching me though this journey that you will be blessed as well. I do not offer what I consider to be the ultimate truth on the Lord’s Prayer, only what God has revealed to me through men more learned than myself, prayer warriors more fervent than I ever hope to be, and ultimately by the Spirit of God as I humble myself before the Almighty and ask Him to teach me how to pray.

An Audacious Claim

“We don’t have the right to say this prayer” because we do not fully believe it, and we are not likely to want to see its assertions realized. It is recited almost mindlessly without much consideration of the powerful connotations behind it. I can remember that for years growing up I would say the prayer with my mind on anything else but God. Maybe I was thinking about warp points on Mario Bros, how good looking the girl next to me in church was (who is now my wife!), what I would be having for lunch, or even asking myself questions like, “What the heck does ‘hallowed’ mean!?”

NT Wright notes that the declaration “Our Father” “represents the goal towards which we are working, rather than a starting point from which we are to set out.” (Wright, p.12). For me, that meant, and means, getting a clue that “Our Father” is a huge declaration. These two words are truly pregnant with significance. Within them, I now see these three things: a declaration, an anticipation, and a confession.

We will first deal with the declaration.

The Zombie Song

I wanna hide beneath the pretty paint
I wanna be okay with everything
I wanna be transformed and stay the same
I wanna be dry in the rain

-Cool Hand Luke: The Zombie Song

This Means War

Last night we had some kids go ape (cursing binge in my face included) during youth.

One of our kids ran away and was found this afternoon.

Two lost people were in a near fatal wreck on HWY 71.

Satan, you want a war, youvre got one.

Rev.
Eph 6

All I Can Say is WOW

Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,
And marked off the heavens by the span ,
And calculated the dust of the earth by the measure,
And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales?

Isaiah 40:12 (NASB)

ANGER Pt VI

VII. Righteous Indignation:

Although the scriptures do not teach that all anger is sinful or leads to sin, it also warns us that it risky business. The Bible places some “firewalls” on anger and insists that our life must not be characterized by anger and that we must be free from malice, fits of rage etc. But are there times when being angry might be a good thing? Can anger be a gift?

There are times when something needs doing and we won’t get around to it until we are angry. On a real “down to earth” level, I think about my garage. One day I head out to the garage and there is a tricycle out of place, or toolboxes I did not put away properly, maybe a box of old kids toys. I don’t think much about it. Another day I notice a few more items have cluttered the floor. Then finally, the day comes when I trip over the tricycle, stub my toe on the toolboxes and a box of kids toys falls on me. What follows (after a string of euphemisms, “Friggin! Shoot! Dangit!”) is what I like to refer to as a “cleaning rage”. We’ve all been there when taking a sweater out of the closet makes the rod fall out or the sink is so full of dishes that the plate we put in slides out and breaks on the floor (although we are mildly happy then because there is less to do!). In this instance, I get to cleaning, I throw away junk that I should have gotten rid of long ago, in the end if I play my cards right, my garage is better for it. My frustration led me into doing something worthwhile.

While in exile under Artaxerxes, Nehemiah hears the cry of oppression from his people. Not at the hands of the Persians, but indeed from their own kinsmen. The loan sharks have charged interest to their brothers (which is forbidden among the Jews by Ex 22:25, Lev 25:36, Dt 23:19-20) and this has caused both a spiritual and economic crisis. Read Nehemiah’s response:

⁶ Then I was very angry when I had heard their outcry and these words. ⁷ I consulted with myself and contended with the nobles and the rulers and said to them, "You are exacting usury, each from his brother!" Therefore, I held a great assembly against them. ⁸ I said to them, "We according to our ability have redeemed our Jewish brothers who were sold to the nations; now would you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us?" Then they were silent and could not find a word to say. ⁹ Again I said, "The thing which you are doing is not good; should you not walk in the fear of our God because of the reproach of the nations, our enemies? ¹⁰ "And likewise I, my brothers and my servants are lending them money and grain. Please, let us leave off this usury. ¹¹ "Please, give back to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive groves and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money and of the grain, the new wine and the oil that you are exacting from them." ¹² Then they said, "We will give it back and will require nothing from them; we will do exactly as you say." So I called the priests and took an oath from them that they would do according to this promise. ¹³ I also shook out the front of my garment and said, "Thus may God shake out every man from his house and from his possessions who does not fulfill this promise ; even thus may he be shaken out and emptied." And all the assembly said, "Amen!" And they praised the LORD. Then the people did according to this promise .

Nehemiah 5:6-13 (NASB)

In the gospels, there is the famous (and often misunderstood) account of Jesus turning over the tables of the moneychangers. I mention this reluctantly because I no longer see it as a holy temper tantrum, but I now see it as an act of retribution from the physical hand of God. Furthermore, I am not so sure than when the Bible describes God as angry, that it is anything like what we could really understand. I am suggesting that just as God is described as having a nose, and arm, wings, etc. he is also described as having emotions. God’s ‘feelings’ are a metaphor for something incomprehensible to us.

However, there as times when Jesus gets hacked off, this instance is very informative if not representative:

¹ He entered again into a synagogue; and a man was there whose hand was withered. ² They were watching Him to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. ³ He said* to the man with the withered hand, "Get up and come forward,!" ⁴ And He said* to them, "Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?" But they kept silent. ⁵ After looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said* to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. ⁶ The Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.

Mark 3:1-6 (NASB)

Notice, what makes Him mad? What makes Nehemiah mad? “What Ticks God Off” as Bruce & Stan so aptly have stated? Injustice. Injustice, and the hardness of mens’ hearts. Sure, God hates sin, he hates drunkenness, immorality, gossip, he hates both our respectable and our despicable sins but injustice chaps God’s hide. Jesus could not stand the fact that these men would seriously think it right to let a man suffer another day because it was the Sabbath.

So if that is what motivates God to anger, and that anger motivates him to action (although we can be sure, Jesus intended to heal the man before He was angry) then we have a compass for anger. Anger at injustice, which motivates us to action to advance the Kingdom agenda, is righteous anger. But we must exercise great care here because, as the church sign zinger states: “Anger is one letter away from D-ANGER”.

So that wraps up my posts on anger. Next up? We’ll see.

Jesus is the Question

"Jesus is the question to all your answers."
Dan Cochran

____________________________________

Final installments of Anger Monday and Tuesday.

ANGER Pt V

Solutions From Scripture & Common Sense:

· Pray and Praise: 2 Chr 20 (Jehosephat): When the people of Israel had their back to the wall, Jehosephat sent the praise team ahead of the army, and victory came. Often times anger is the result of being wrapped up in ourselves. Beware of becoming a spiritual Pollyanna; however, know that accentuating the posititve can make a huge difference. In this case, praise of God can chase away the Devil's scheme to submurge you into sulking anger. As Tony Evans aptly put it, "Praise is an allergen to the Enemy, he flees at the first sign of it!"

· Study the Word: Heb 4:12: There is nothing in life that the Bible does not deal with at some level. Turn to the word when you are angry, you might find comfort; you might even get more angry when you look in the mirror of God's word. But in the end, you will find solace there.

· Repent of your anger.

· Get a punching bag/ take a hike: It helps more than you might think. Pillows work too. :)

· Find something constructive to do: clean the garage, paint a fence, heck... build a fence, something to give you time to simmer down. You have all that adrenaline anyway, why not make use of it!

· Don’t Allow it to Fester: Eph 4:26: Do all that you can to resolve your frustrations in the day they happen. You may not be able to sqaure up with a person who has upset you, but you can square up with God on it. Do all you can not to go to bed angry.

· Talk it Out: Unresolved conflict hinders the ministry of the church: "If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. Matt 18:15 (NASB) Do all in your power to reconcile, but know that sometimes you have to stand your ground. To quote Mark Morey, "When you're in the right, you're in the right..."

· Take it Easy: A fool shows his annoyance at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult. Prov 12:16 (NIV): Sometimes, what has upset you was purely accidental. I recall innocently telling a joke that had deep racial connotations,; I really hurt someone but was completely oblivious to what I had done until someone told me that I had inadvertently used a racial slur. On the other hand, I have been 'certain' that someone was running me down when I was really misinterpreting them. Either way, getting bent out of shape over it is foolish. Try to give people the benefit of the doubt whenever possible.

· Starve It! Just like any sinful behavior you can starve it to death. Don’t feed it with angry music, or angry people etc… For lack of wood the fire goes out, And where there is no whisperer, contention quiets down. Prov 26:20 (NASB).

· Think Before You Speak! He who gives an answer before he hears, It is folly and shame to him. Prov 18:13 (NASB)

· Obey God: "If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it." Gen 4:7: Anger lurks as a predator, but you can master it. If you are seeking God first, you are likely to find it easier to deal with the frustrations of life. It makes it more difficult for the Devil to find a foothold when you are on guard.

ANGER Pt IV

Sources of Anger:

· Pride: “They can’t do that to me!” It may be the case that all sinful expressions of anger have their root in the sin or pride. There is a perpetual tendency for most of us to think about ourselves before others. If we can change that, we will lessen our propensity toward anger.
· Injustice: either to us or others (see Righteous Anger, below). There are times when anger motivates us in positive ways, but all too often, when we react in anger, we do so rashly and cause more harm than good. An extreme example are cases of pro-life individuals murdering doctors who perform abortions. Way to get out the pro-life message folks...
· Favoritism: think Joseph (Gen 37 ff) Parents (as well as teachers, bosses, etc.) must always be on guard against favoritism. The end result is almost always resentment on the part of the less favored.
· Unresolved Issues (Transference): “Whoa! Where did that come from?”: "Can" your anger and you will be like a shaken soda can. You have to resolve issues in your past (be them recent or distant) or you will find yourself unloading on innocent people.
· Lack of fulfillment of Real (or Felt) Needs: First off, be careful to discern between real and felt needs. Then, if they are not being met, keep your cool and try to resolve the situation before you fly off the handle. Often times, people who are angry for these reasons have not even bothered to vocalize the need they are angry over. Many times when they do, they find the situation resolved.
On the other hand. In a situation such as employment, it is worth noting than inadequate compensation or workspaces, lack of encouragement or recognition, etc. can breed animosity. In other words, when someone is working for beans, they aren't likely to take much guff from you.
· Unrealistic Expectations: of your self or others: this ties in close the the point above. However, it can also be self-inflicted. If you often catch yourself being critical to your kids, or your mate, or yourself, maybe you just need to lower the bar a rung or two.
A good friend of mine once had a "first shirt", a general, who rose at dawn each day and put in something like 12-14 hours. He expected everyone in his command to do the same and would become downright irate with those who would not. This is an extreme example, but you may have given or received varying degrees of this attitude to/from others. The bottom line: cool off, and ask honestly, "Am I aiming too high?"
· Misplaced Priorities: “chasing the wind”: When we take our eyes off of God and put our efforts into seeking after material and temporal things, the end is most often frustration. God has "set eternity in our heart" and it is only in Him that we find true satisfaction.
· Lack of Reliance on God: Taking on things we weren’t meant to: Thinking back to the person who blows their top all the time that we cover for. There was a time in my life where my chivalry had me immersed in so many peoples' problems that I was no use to any of them. I found myself constantly frustrated with them, and myself. This is a good sign that I am operating on my own strength and or out of God's will. When you are in a situation like this, you might have to turn off your cell phone for a few days and prayerfully consider your investments. You can't help anyone if you are a wreck. Period.
· Life: Just living can put is in situations where we are angry: We just have to watch it. Life happens and there is very little we can do about it. Learn to let go and let God (possibly the ONLY evangelical platitude I still use, and only because it is right on).

Tomorrow: What to Do: Common Sense & Scripture
Friday: Righteous Indignation (A Dangerous Business)

Anger Pt III

V. Some of What the Bible Says About Anger:

1. Unchecked anger is one of the fruits or deeds of the flesh contrasted with the fruit of the Spirit:
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions…
Gal 5:19-20 (NASB) (cf. 2 Cor 12:20)

In other words, outbursts of anger are on the same list as sorcery and lusciviousness (lust).

2. It is forbidden by God:
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; do not fret, it leads only to
evildoing.
Psalm 37:8

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice
Eph 4:31 (NASB)

But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth.
Col 3:8 (NASB)

I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.
1 Tim 2:8 (NIV)

Paul urges us over and over to not allow anger to hinder the work of the Gospel. The solution? It is hard to strangle the guy next to you when you both have your hands raised in praise.

3. It causes us to act foolishly:
A quick-tempered man acts foolishly, and a man of evil devices is hated.
Proverbs 14:17

Quite simply, you do things when you are mad that you would not normally do. This is why when you have a tiff with your spouse on the way to work, you get overly hacked that the water cooler is out of "wax coated sleeves". You don't really want to kill the intern (at least not for this). Its just that you were hovering at a "7" by the time you got there. Keep your cool.

4. It brings you into trouble:
A hot-tempered man must pay the penalty;
if you rescue him, you will have to do it again.
Prov 19:19 (NIV)

There are times when you simply cannot help someone. When the Bible talks about "fools", it is useful to note that this designation is packed with more meaning than it is in the West. Someone who is a fool has abandoned all reason and chosen to deliberately walk a path that leaves destruction in its wake and ultimately will destroy them. They can be warned, but they may not be able to be helped.

As for us, we are told to warn folks in this situation (Ez 33, Prv 24:11), but eventually they have to choose to change their mind (repent).

This caution is espescially relavant to the friend or family member who is constantly making excuses for someone who can't keep their cool, "Oh, he's really a nice fellow... you just pushed his buttons... when he's not drunk..." and so on. This may be hard to hear; and I am not implying that this person is beyond redemption. I am simply saying that for some, they need to lay in the bed they have made. In so much as THEY become the one who receivies the brunt of their poor choices, perhaps then they will turn away from them.

5. It’s hard to watch your mouth when you’re angry: (ever said something when you were mad that you wish you could take back?)
There is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword, But the tongue of the wise brings healing.
Prov 12:18 (NASB)

Unfortunately, words have staying power. Long after you have called someone 'stupid' that person is feeling the effects. You can apologize, you can backpeddal, but in the end you said what you said whether you meant it or not. The point is this, think before you speak. Your words can be either the thursts of a sword (destruction) or the incisions of a scalpel (healing).

May your words be soft and sweet, for tomorrow you may have to eat them.
-Navajo proverb.

6. It keeps us from the kind of life God desires:
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.
James 1:19-20 (NIV)

As it has been aptly said, "God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reson."

He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city.
Prov 16:32 (NASB)

If we let the context of this passage sink in, the effect is tremendous. The siege of a city was a lenghty and grueling ordeal. It was the art (if you will) of starving a city into submission or gradually driving its knees, or to the ground; whichever came first. The siege of Jerusalem by Titus in 70 AD would take six months, other sieges could last for years. To say that someone who keeps thier cool is greater than one who sieges a city is to say that they are better than the likes of Nebuchadnezzar, or in contemporary terms, Douglas MacArthur or "Stormin' Norman".

ANGER Pt II

III. It’s Killing Me
Not only can anger affect others around us, it can hurt us.

A tranquil heart is life to the body, But passion is rottenness to the bones.
Prov 14:30 (NASB)

In Hebrew, “passion” is qinah and is also translated as anger, envy, jealousy, rivalry, etc. Anyway you slice it, you can get in trouble.

Anatomical research has shown that our body is designed to release certain chemicals (i.e. adrenaline) en masse when we perceive that we are in peril. Anger releases similar chemicals in doses that can be harmful to our body when they are not “burned off” (like, by running away from a lion). A search on www.WebMD.com brought up 700+ articles dealing with anger. Research demonstrates that excessive or prolonged anger can have serious health effects and shorten your life span due to the stress it places on your body, esp. on blood pressure and the heart. Point of fact, I have witnessed someone nearly die from a heart attack during a fit of rage… they were unfortunately arguing with me.

IV. Backstabber or Stab-Backer?
Much anger in our lives stems from our inability to allow things to roll off. You don’t hold a grudge, a grudge holds you. The Bible urges us:

A fool shows his annoyance at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult.
Prov 12:16 (NIV)

Slowness to anger makes for a deep understanding; a quick-tempered person stock-piles stupidity.
Prov 14:29 The Message

A man's wisdom gives him patience;
it is to his glory to overlook an offense.
Prov 19:11 (NIV)

A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise person quietly holds it back.”
Proverbs 29:11

But I say unto you, that ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
Matt 5:39 (KJV)

ANGER Part I

Over the next few days I will be posting my sermon notes from a message pertaining to the subject of anger. A subject I am regrettably all too familiar with (although forgiven, bless His name...). If you have anything to add, please feel free to do so.
Rev.

***********************

I. A Truly Deadly Sin

This past year, we have seen more than a few notable examples of the damaging and potentially deadly effects of anger in our society. This year alone, there have been TWENTY TWO student related school shootings in America. It seems that not a day goes by where a high profile homicide doesn’t come over the news. This wave of violence has stretched from coast to coast. It is present in our homes, our workplaces, schools, and even in our churches. Just this August, a shooting at a church in Neosho, MO resulted in the deaths of three people. The FBI reports that, over 17,000 people were murdered in America in 2006. 334 murders were committed in MO.

Love is arguably the most powerful force in the universe; therefore, anger may truly be the most destructive.

II. Cain & Abel

It is certainly worth noting that the first sin recorded after the fall was motivated by jealousy and anger:

… so Cain became very angry and his countenance fell. ⁶ Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? ⁷ "If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it."

Gen 4:5b-7 (NASB)

Jesus takes this to the next level, warning us that if we have hatred in our heart toward someone that we are in serious trouble:

"You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' ²² But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca, ' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.

Matt 5:21-22 (NIV)

"Our Father..."

In his book The Lord and His Prayer , NT Wright asserts that the phrase "Our Father" (in Greek/Aramaic "father" is the very first word) is pregnant with theological and personal meaning. Far beyond sentiment, it is a declaration that God is one's Father, as in creator, authority, protector, and all that father-hood implies. It is also the proclamation of the progressively advancing eschatological reality of the "already/not yet" Kingdom of God.

That said, when you utter the phrase "Our Father" what does it mean to you?

Please share your reflections on what it means to call God Father.

Rev.

Were You There!?

Today my wife and I are celebrating our eighth wedding anniversary. Click the link below to see some of our wedding photos featuring vintage pictures of Jared, Darryl, Steve, Dr. Jones, and Cocoa (if you know who that is you are laughing!).

Vicki, I am so blessed to have spent these last eight years with you. I can't imagine life without you. God has added so much to me as a man and as a minister through you. As it has been said, "Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes..." Thank you for your love, support, patience, grace, and devotion, and for my four lovely children.

It's just going to keep getting better!

Love,
John-Paul (Your DH)

http://s226.photobucket.com/albums/dd235/browilliams/

Could Jesus Have Failed?

Ah yes, the age old circular argument of Christology came up in my Bible study last night. When Jesus was led into the wilderness to be tempted, could he have failed?

Britney Spears Loses Custody of Children

That headline beat out terrorism, child rape, John McCain, Nazi war crimes, and scalped Hannah Montana tickets.

Glad to know Americans have a good sense of priorities.

End of line.

Rev.

Turkey

Only one thing stands between me and my Thanksgiving turkey.

October.

Mmmmmmmmmmm. Turkey.

Rev.

Testimonies Pt. I

This past summer at Youth Camp, after a testimony service I had a thought: “Is there any time when someone gets too ‘graphic’ in sharing their testimony?” I was staggered at the number of teens who had made multiple suicide attempts, that night there were at least five. (Reminds me of the old teen movie Heathers… “teenage suicide… Don’t do it!”) One began to wonder who should have been getting the attention, who were the testimonies pointing to?

It got to the point where it seemed to be a competition of who had the most catastrophic life before their conversion.

So, let me ask you…

When does someone cross the line in giving a testimony? How graphic and descriptive can someone be before they have taken the focus off of themselves etc…Furthermore, how much of our past should we discuss when talking about what God has done for us?

Rev.

PS:
If you are ever up for a high context story about the value of a father's love, rent a movie called "The Winslow Boy". It is very, very good. On the other hand, you could go your whole life without ever seeing Hallmark's bastardization of George Orwell's Animal Farm.

THE TYGER : William Blake

THE TYGER (from Songs Of Experience)

By William Blake

Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare sieze the fire?

And what shoulder, & what art.
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?

What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?

Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?

1794

#@%^!

#@%^! #@%^! #@%^! #@%^! #@%^!

Pray for me to control my anger.

And not to say stupid things that I do not mean.

Rev.

A Hearty Guffaw

Tears for Tobey Ticks Me Off…

Not long ago Tobey had a very bad day, his last day in fact. If you are into grisly details you can read about them here. The kids who did this are looking at ten years if convicted, and the outcry is literally world-wide, inspiring (?) a British crooner to pen a song for the mortified mutt. And there should be public outcry, and there should be consequences… but you know…

Not long ago, Scott Peterson murders his pregnant wife and was convicted of “double homicide” for the death of his wife and her “fetus”. More recently, Bobby Cutts Jr. was arrested and charged with the murder of his pregnant wife; and the charges against him? Lets say it together, “double homicide” for the death of his wife and her “fetus”. Finally, and less famously, this story of a man stomping on his girlfriend’s womb (at her request, no less) who was found guilty of homicide… or is it practicing “medicine” without a license?

Point number one: in a court of law, killing a pregnant woman=double homicide. Point number two: killing a “fetus” = murder… UNLESS you went to medical school. Point number three: People seem more upset that someone kills a dog than that someone murders an unborn child.

Vick’s mea culpa, gives us some hope. But the picketing of Vick’s appearances and the subsequent days of tickers brandishing wanton cruelty to animals all over the world (and St. Reznor of PETA) would have you believe that this was a global crisis. People were going insane, malnourished, beating, exposing, or out right killing pets at will. And the outrage! The out cry! The… now wait just a minute! What about the “fetuses”!?

Planned Parenthood alone recorded nearly 260,000 abortions in 2006. (Let that sink in… two-hundred-and-sixty-THOUSAND.) As I have stated before, and will again, I am staggered by how the death of a woman’s “fetus” is grounds for murder while a convenience abortion is considered a legitimate medical procedure. (And don’t get me started on the “my body, my choice” bit.) My point is, a fetus is a baby. An unborn person, not simply a collection of cells. As the old axiom goes, “A Child, Not A Choice.” And I am tired of people protecting the lives of animals more passionately than the lives of the most defenseless among us, namely the unborn.

As I reflect on this, I am reminded of the words of the ancient king Lemuel:

⁸ "Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
⁹ Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy."

Proverbs 31:8-9 (NIV)

Being pro-life is holistic. It is more than being anti-abortion, but this is currently my battlefield. You can count on me speaking out on this issue until it is resolved, or until I die.

End of line.

Rev.

Word to the Wise

If your supervisor asks you to do something and you are unclear on the details, just do what you understand you should do until you are able to clarify or until you hear different.

Rev.

Bearing Burdens

I stumbled across this a while back. It really resonated with me then and continues to do so...
************

For many years I worked in New York City and counseled at my office any number of people who were wrestling with this yes-or-no decision. Often I would suggest they walk with me from my office down to the RCA Building on Fifth Avenue. In the entrance of that building is a gigantic statue of Atlas, a beautifully proportioned man who, with all his muscles straining, is holding the world upon his shoulders. There he is, the most powerfully built man in the world, and he can barely stand up under this burden. ‘Now that’s one way to live,’ I would point out to my companion, ‘trying to carry the world on your shoulders. But now come across the street with me.’

On the other side of Fifth Avenue is Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, and there behind the high altar is a little shrine of the boy Jesus, perhaps eight or nine years old, and with no effort he is holding the world in one hand. My point was illustrated graphically.

We have a choice. We can carry the world on our shoulders, or we can say, ‘I give up, Lord; here’s my life. I give you my world, the whole world.’”

- Richard A. Hasler

Bruce Larson, Believe and Belong

Spirited Away

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Anime (aka, Japanamation), like most other art forms simply does not get the respect it deserves. Cheap thrills ("adult" anime) and cheaply done psuedo Fox Box anime like "One Piece" as well as scads of awful direct videos available at Dollar Tree harm the reputation of this otherwise venerable artform. It is often relegated to the upper escalon of sci-fi/comic nerds (like people whose favorite game is still Battle Toads) or worse, the pervs who Google naked drawings of Sailor Moon.

As such, the unfortunate consequence is that some fantastic films get overlooked. Allow me to insert a disclaimer, I do not maen to say that the following films are up to par spititually, simply that as art goes they are staggering for their message and their media.

My first exposure to anime was, like any 80's kid, Vultron and Transformers (oh yeah, and the Snorks and Smurfs, Go-Bots, M.A.S.K., and the ever lame Thundercats...) . However, over time I lost most of my interest. One movie (that I can't even track down), called Orion, kept my interest though and the original Transformers movie, which I have probably seen over fifty times is still a perpetual favorite.

in high school, I rented what is one of my all time favorite movies on a whim, it is called Akira. If you do not know what this movie is then you are not a nerd. For some, this is good, for the others, you should be ashamed of yourself. The movie is stunningly animated and the message incredible, "if you play God, you will get what's coming to you." A message as intensely relevant to me as a Christian as it ever was as a sci-fi geek hiding out in my room.

Another classic anime is actually a collection of short films called Neo-Tokyo. One of these shorts, "The Running Man" was propelled into pop culture thanks to MTV. It features a man driving in an F-Zero style contest tormented by the spirits of those he has crushed to get to the top. Again, a rich and relevant theme.

So, finally, to my final recommendation. Vicki and I watched one of the most incredible movies I have ever seen last night. It is called Spirited Away. The film made such an impression on the founders of Pixar that they begged Disney to make release an English version and thankfully they did. Man, what a feast for the eyes! The film also, as you guessed, has a driving plot and powerful message. I hope you will take time to see it.

Hear this, anime also has its dark side. Many of the films are loaded with gore and perverted sexual theme (and I am not using those terms lightly). Yet there are a few nuggets in the mine. A few others you might check out are Castle in the Sky, Metropolis, and, if you are feeling dopey, The Last Unicorn.

Anyhow, hope you will enjoy some of these movies. They can be provocative, even disturbing at times. They are not for kids to be sure. But they can be truly riveting.

Rev.

Word of the Day

"depotentiated" -to be removed from a position of authority.

That's what you get when you are reading theology!

Rev.

The Clock

The Clock

Life's clock is wound but once
and no man hath the power
to know where the hands will stop
at late or early hour.

To lose one's wealth is sad, indeed.
To lose one's health is more.
To lose one's soul is such a loss,
that no man can restore.

Today, only is our own.
So live, love and toil with a will.
Place no faith in tomorrow,
for the clock may soon be still.

1932, 1982

Robert H Smith

The Printer v. the Papyrii

To continue my musing on technology:

My aunt would not use e-mail until about five years ago. Her rationale? Not fear that a supercomputer in the Netherlands was tracing her e-mails. No, she was a writer.

When I say writer, I don't mean that she was an author in the traditional sense, but that she involved in two art forms that I fear are in jeopardy with the advent of e-mail and blogs; namely journals and letters.

People have all but stopped writing letters. I can't think of the last time I received a hand written letter from someone other than my aunt or someone in jail. Point of fact, a few years ago, the French were so concerned about the impact of e-mail that their culture ministers demanded it be dressed up as "courrier électronique" to make it more classy. It was seen as a threat to society. (And before you get onto the French/Freedom Fry thing, you might recall that they won the Revolutionary War for us and gave us the Statue of Liberty, so there, and that's coming through my gritted Kraut teeth...)

Now, I know that it is nice to use a computer for the mass Christmas letter, etc. but you know, there was a time when people would receive hand written replies from folks, even actors, authors, and politicians. Wow, could you imagine? A letter form say, Babe Ruth, ol' Clive Staples, or Abe Lincoln? Way cooler than a MySpace comment or a signed photo.

Speaking of Abraham Lincoln, one of his lasting legacies was his reputation as a prolific writer, especially of letters. You might recall the one that was read at the beginning of the film Saving Private Ryan, "I cannot assuage your anguish... your sacrifice upon the altar of freedom..." WOW. That sure has more punch to it than, "TTYL BFF". By the way, Lincoln also wrote a drawer or more full of angry letters to people like George Meade; the guy that could have ended the Civil War years earlier if he had pressed his advantage at Gettysburg, that were never sent. He just needed to get it off his chest. A good practice I might add.

There is something cathartic about sitting down with a pen, paper, and a cup of caffeine and pouring your heart out. Which brings me to the next endangered art. You see, my aunt also gave me a journal.

There are times in life where the only 'person' you can talk to is God. Other times, it is your journal. There are nights when I can't sleep until I write. Days that I can't work until I write (like today) and beyond that do you think blogs will last forever? One day, when their commercial viability has passed, sites like MySpace, Xanga, and yes, even the Google's beloved Blogger will be shut down. Their server farms could be damaged, virus ridden, or someone could spill their latte on the mainframe. Why does this matter? Because I believe that our letters and journals are our history.

In other words, I fear that if we are not careful, there will be a generation whose only history will be what CNN (gasp) and Fox news (shudder) sound-byte for our grandkids. What we thought, dreamed, hoped for, could be lost in a sea of ones and zeros.

Just some thoughts.

E-mail me for my address if you are interested.

End of line.

Rev.