Change of Pace

This week, I decided to change pace a little bit and perhaps relate more to scripture than experience for a little bit. Here is what I would like to explore today: 

"A brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position. ¹⁰But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wild flower.¹¹For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich man will fade away even while he goes about his business."

This passage form James 1 contradicts most of the American lifestyle. I would say that most American strive to be on top of whatever they do because being on top is part of the American Dream. We do not want anyone to be smarter, faster, more athletic, or better in any capacity that we are. I think James is warning us about this. When he says that, "a brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride..." as Americans, we turn off and away from that part. We see that the brother in humble circumstances should work his way to the top so that he can feel better about himself and provide for himself and his family better. We for the most part do not identify with the second part of this passage either, "...the rich man will fade away even while he goes about his business." We see that if a man is rich and still going about his business, he will make more money and be even happier and more comfortable. The image of something passing away after a normal amount of time has also been lost in our culture. We are very reluctant to let something pass away. We preserve our food and plants, we strive to preserve our youth, we preserve our health through strenuous means. Basically, we are not willing to let something pass away in the first place, much less our wealth, fame, power, or position. I think that James is telling us that we should be more content and less attached wherever we are in life. If we do have wealth and power and other resources, we should be good stewards of that realizing for the most part that we are only STEWARDS, not owners. We should realize that like it says in Job, the Lord gives and takes away. Everything is ultimately his, not our own. The flip side of the coin is that if we are on the bottom of the ladder, we should take pride and hope from the fact that God is a God of creation and change. We do not have to stay down forever. God can help us and does help us by instilling his hope and peace. I think that this is not really manifest in our lives as Christians for the most part. Why do Christians still buy into the game of being on top? Don't you think that God can use us no matter where on the "totem-pole" we are?

And the Winner is...

For my final blog on this subject, possibly, I would like to introduce to you the best sign that I could find that describes the intersection of Christianity and Culture as we really see it. It may not be the sign that we, as Christians, were hoping was the most realistic, but regardless of what we think, it is probably the most truthful of all. I hate to say it, but I really think that most of the time Christians leave non-believers staring at the sign as if they had been left there by their mother to find their way home. I think that we definitely do not intend for there to be this much confusion or the feeling of being left, but nonetheless, it happens. I think that sometimes in Bible study or some small group format, the differing opinions of different Christians can lead to a lot of confusion. For me, if I was to be left at this sign, I would have turned right around and gone on my way. As Christians I think that we should strive to be in deep enough relationship with people that they do not see this sign at all, much more, that they are not alone if this is what they see. We need to be walking along side people on their journeys as we further our own journey. You can't walk a road for someone, but you can hold their hand while they walk onwards. The second thing that I think we need to do is simplify. This has been known to be a dangerous word in the church because we think that if we over-simplify, we won't present truth. I think that the same can be true though. Sometimes, the more details and rules and doctrine that you shove down someone's throat, they more discouraged and turned off they will become. I think it is important to remember that the real message is the love story of God for His creation and what He has done to reconcile it to Himself. When we forget that it is all about the love of God shown in Jesus Christ, we trade our simple truth in for some complex, distracting, harmful un-truth. Just like the sign could have simply stated the directions, so too we should be able to tell non-believers what the real moral of the story is. God loves us so much that He sent His son to die for us so that we could live a present and eternal life with Him. Let's not forget what all of the sign really says.

No U-Turn

Have you ever done something that you thought was so bad that you could never be forgiven? Have you had people tell you that there is an unforgivable sin in your life that not even Christians can heal or set you free from? You were right about one thing: "Christians" can do a thing about it; but God can.

When I was a little girl, I had heard that there was an unforgivable sin. I had heard that, but no one had ever told me what exactly that was. I went around asking people, "Is it true? Is there something I can't be forgiven for?" The adults in my life would always say that there was something that couldn't be forgiven, but that was always the end of the conversation. I spent about 4 hours one night watching TV and crying hysterically because I thought that I couldn't be forgiven for something (who knows what!) and I was certain that my fate was to burn in hell away from God. 

Since that night, I have always had a very broad view of forgiveness both from God and to other people. I think that culture would have us believe that there are things that we cannot turn away from and be forgiven. I think that things that are labeled with the words, "sinful" or "addicting" may lead people to believe that they cannot be forgiven; they are blatantly marked with "NO U-TURN" signs left and right. However, the truth is that God loves U-turns. I think they just might be one of his favorite traffic maneuvers. God loves for people to turn to Him. He loves to forgive, even when the culture or churches label things, "unforgivable." He loves to be near to his creation and He loves for them to turn closer to Him. I apologize for all the times that you or someone dear to you may have felt like they can't be changed or forgiven by silly Christians. Just remember, Christians can't do the healing; only God can.

CAUTION! DO NOT ENTER!

Picture this: You are sitting in a room with a group of so-called "Christians." A new believer asks a question. The room falls completely silent as if a one-hundred-year-old glass has just been broken. People shift in their seats and the leader takes a deep-breath. What did they ask? What broke? What suddenly pitted these generally nice people against each other so suddenly? You don't understand and you look to your Christian friend beside you, she says in hushed tones, "Here we go..."

There are some things in the Christian faith that it seems that Christians themselves are not willing to talk about. Some have been burned by these things themselves, some have only heard of the devastation that came from these conversations. People leaving churches, people bashing each other. Most people from the outside see the desention and recognize a group of Christians by that very trait. Issues like baptism (sprinkle vs. immersion), instrumental music, praise teams, and other seemingly unimportant things become great "taboo" phrases among Christian circles. Why is that?

I think that it is because our generation has been hurt and burned and heard the stories from our parents. We are so afraid of these hurtful conversations that we often fail to engage in them in the first place. A major trait of the post-modern thinker is the pluralistic mindset of this generation. Unlike most of our parents and grandparents, we are not afraid to say that more than one viewpoint might just be okay. We are afraid to even admit that though, because that is not accepted by the older generations.

Like a road marked "Do not enter" we flee these issues. I think that we should be more willing to discuss these issues. It is a huge turn-off to non-believers and new Christians when we shut down their questions because we don't like talking about them. Perhaps we need to become even more post-modern in that we are conversational and communal about bring about solutions and truths. Sometimes, as we stand at the intersection of Christianity and Culture, we should not be afraid to go around the "do not enter" sign set by tradition and discover what may lie on the other side for ourselves.

The School Crossing

Have you ever felt run-over by a Christian? Have you ever felt as though, while trying to grasp a theological topic, you were bashed or shut down harshly by someone who has claimed to be "Christian"? I know that I have. The analogy I wish to draw this week has to do with the pedestrian crossing sign, specifically those seen in school zones. 

School zones and pedestrian warning signs are designed to protect those trying to cross a street. They might be going at a slower pace than those in the cars, but their lives are equally valuable, even more so because of their vulnerable condition without a metal cage on wheels protecting them. The children crossing the road are depicted on the sign to specify that the area has a special purpose. It is right to slow down in these areas to respect the children and the teachers. I think we can all agree on that. 

Now, how this relates to Christianity and Culture is a bit more of a stretch. I wish to point out how some times, Christians do not respect the faith of their younger or newer brothers and sisters. As the new Christian or non-believer is stepping out to answer or ask a question, many times they are run over because a Christian thinks they know the best answer. I would submit that sometimes, even though one might truly believe they have the best way or answer, one must slow down and let the other discover the answer. Experiential learning is the best kind of learning. Running people over because they are "slower," younger," or "unprotected" is absolutely wrong. Just as you would slow down for a pedestrian crossing or a school zone, sometimes we must slow down for the discovery of an answer or question to come from somewhere else. 

A Two Way Street

The first way that I wish to present culture is as a two way street. As in the picture, we see that the lanes are going different directions, exactly opposite of each other. I would like to submit that this happens between Christianity and Culture. Let’s look at how Paul deals with the situation in Ephesians:

 

“For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partners with them. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.” Ephesians 5:5-10

             In the context of this passage, we see Paul rebuking and correcting believers because they were not living as though they were changed people. The culture around them was leading them in a different direction than that of Christ. I hold to the conviction that there are some things in this life we as Christians should abstain from because of the life that we now lead. Christ’s message was a sacred and holy blend of love and truth. I believe that most of the time, one is thrown out for the other. We LOVE the sinner to the point of ignoring the sin. I do not wish to sound harsh or rule abiding, but I do believe that God calls us to help people out of these things as He leads us. People in our generation are highly tolerant of sin because we are highly tolerant of other versions of the truth. Our culture’s truth is that people who don’t party, drink excessively and illegally, smoke anything, blow off their parents, or have pre-marital sex are missing out on the “fun” of life. This speaks very loudly in our ears all the time through the noise that we are constantly bombarded with through television, Internet sites, magazines, song lyrics, and movies. I believe in some ways we are as tolerant of the same inherently human problems as some of the first century church was. I am terrified that we are ignoring the sin in our world because we just want to love everyone. We can’t love them if we see them doing wrong and allow it to go on. Some things are a two-way street and we would do well to remember that and in love, as God calls us to, help people and ourselves keep our nose pointing in the “light” direction.