Desperately Broken

Over the last several months, in addition to serving the poor in our community, my small group has been taking another look at Jesus in the Gospels. Now some of you are probably saying to yourself, “What does he mean by ‘another look’? Is this some progressive theology creeping in to corrupt Christianity?” That’s a fair question, but, if you’re one of the ones asking it, then you’re probably part of the reason that we are looking at Jesus of Scriptures again.

You see, the creeping that you need to be careful of is not so much that of liberalism, but legalism. Liberal theology is very easy to spot and usually attacks the divinity of Christ or the reliability of the Bible. But legalism, accompanied by his twin, self-righteousness, are insidious creatures that slither in undetected. I personally believe that they are given opportunity by an over-emphasis on the writings of Paul, giving him priority over the Jesus revealed in the Gospels. This is a result of our western perspective coupled with modernistic thinking; we prefer epistolary argumentation of facts over narratives. “We don’t have time for children’s stories! Cut to the chase! Just give us the facts (or rules) and we’ll be good to go!” And in this process, we lose sight of what the Bible is. It becomes a rulebook and a way for us to examine God, even manipulate Him. Yet, the mid-eastern perspective is that you allow God, thru His Word, to examine and transform you. But that’s a post for a different day…

So, we were studying this passage together:

Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an evil spirit came and fell at his feet. The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. "First let the children eat all they want," he told her, "for it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." "Yes, Lord," she replied, "but even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." Then he told her, "For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter." She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. Mark 7:24-30

Within the context, this is one of two encounters with Gentiles where Jesus is trying unsuccessfully to remain hidden. And they follow after a passage where Jesus slams the Jewish religious leaders for holding to the traditions of men rather than following after God. This is called juxtaposition, putting two things close together so you can see the similarity, or in this case, the contrast.

Now, when we read this passage, we get stuck. We can’t figure out why Jesus was so mean to this woman who simply wants to find relief for her demon-possessed daughter. “Why would Jesus call her a dog?” We try to soften it by saying, “Oh, the Greek word Jesus used is for a sweet little puppy, not a mangy wild dog.” But a dog is a dog, and to be called such is insulting in that culture. So, what’s going on here?

Well, Jesus is making a point. The Messiah is being rejected by the religious leaders of the day because He doesn’t conform to their traditions. Jesus is demonstrating His power and authority to them but they refuse to see. Yet, the Gentiles are earnestly seeking God; He can’t manage to hide from them! It is the Jewish perspective that says this woman is a dog. In addition to being a woman, she’s Phoenician. If you’re unclear about how the Jews viewed the people of Tyre and Sidon, take a look at Isaiah 23 and Ezekiel 36-38. The Phoenicians were arrogant merchant people who starved Israel while they grew wealthy. But here is a Phoenician woman saying to God Himself, “I don’t need the best that You are giving, Lord. I am willing to lick the filthy ground to receive that which Your Chosen people carelessly discard.”

Have you got the picture now? Jesus is this amazing treasure to be sought after and cherished. And before you start acting like a Pharisee and think this passage speaks to “pagans,” take a long look in the mirror and tell me if you like what you see. How do we treat Jesus day-in and day-out? Behold the picture of desperation and abject humility found in this “proud, arrogant Phoenician.” Any if we’re brutally honest for a moment, aren’t we more like the Pharisees who are so committed to their religious traditions that we prevent people from finding the Lord, starting with ourselves.

I love the comparison here. You have the religious leaders who are demanding that God conform to their expectations. Though they were commissioned to be a light to the nations, they did their best to extinguish the Light. And then there’s the godless heathen who is willing to break all of the rules in order to get the tiniest bit of grace from God. He cannot be hidden from her desperate heart. And you just know that, like her counterpart in vv. 31-37, she proclaimed the glory of God found in Jesus to all of her neighbors.

So, what does your faith look like?

Easy Solutions

So, I shared that our group has committed to reading thru the New Testament. And I also confessed that it was a challenge to stay on task. So, I thought I'd just comment on this a bit. Why? Because the #1 issue in the church today is that Discipleship is not happening. Now, some would argue that Evangelism is the biggest issue. But, if you're making Disciples, then the problem of sharing faith goes away because that's what Disciples do!

The reasons that Discipleship is a problem are basically two:

First, the primary focus of church leadership is on the Sunday morning event. Isn't that what church is all about? Well, no! But this is the American understanding of the faith. Actually, it's what moves us from the realm of "faith" to "religion." Because you can insist all day long that you are saved by grace thru faith, but if you make it clear in your spending that the most important budget items are facilities and salaries, then you don't really believe Ephesians 2:8-9. Don't believe me? OK, but take a serious look at the ministry of Jesus and then at the behaviors of His Disciples after He handed the ministry to them. Then, ask yourself if your organization even remotely resembles any of that. How do you make Disciples (Matthew 28:18-20)? Look at your financials and see how much money goes to Adult Discipleship. Now is a really good time to take a look, since you are either just starting a new Budget Year or half way thru the present one.

Second, Christians don't want to be Discipled. Oh, we might say that we do. But, when it's all said and done, we really don't want to put in the hard work. We say that we are committed to Christ, but we're just not "that committed." We are consumers of Christianity. And we demand that our consumeristic selfishness be fed. Our Pastor has to be an entertaining communicator. The music has to be what I like. There has to be Children's programming that keeps my kids interested so I don't have to fight them Sunday morning. And I want a magic Discipleship solution so that I don't have to put in too much effort. After all, it's hunting season, or golf day, or (fill in your favorite excuse). Look at this cheesy, but accurate video I found:


The bottom line is that we don't want the Lordship of Jesus. We want to have a Get-Out-Of-Hell-Free card and to feel like we're better than those who don't. And we want to take from the Jesus buffet only what we want. Because, isn't Christianity all about me?

So, is assigning a New Testament reading plan to our small group going to Disciple anyone? No! But we get together and talk about it. And we get together in tough, public locations at inconvenient times. Why? Because Discipleship is about learning to shed my me-centered worldview, and discomfort is a great path. And in that path, we find a Kingdom perspective, satisfaction, joy, and, yes, comfort. Because God's wisdom and His ways confound our worldly understanding.

Rumination

My small group has committed to reading through the New Testament together over an 8-week period. That’s a pretty good pace. Honestly, we have a difficult time keeping up with it at times. But we don’t beat each other up, simply encourage one another to not give up and to forge ahead. I’ll admit that it’s tough to set aside the time to read large chunks of Scripture. Additionally, we have been trained to eat God’s Word in small bites. That may be where I have the hardest time in this reading plan; when I read something that seems especially relevant to my life, I want to stop there and ruminate. (Look it up!)

That happened this morning. I was supposed to read 1 Corinthians 1-7. And eventually I did accomplish that task. However, I got stuck in Chapter 4.

Let me set the context. The situation in the Corinthian church was that the congregation was breaking down into factions. The point of the entire letter is to set forth the way that Gospel-centered community is supposed to look, over against what the Corinthians were creating. In Corinth, there were divisions in the church. We’re talking about more than cliques. These divisions were socio-economic and all about establishing superiority within the congregation. Men were lifting themselves up as leaders in the church and exercising privileges accordingly. And look at how Paul addresses this (I have noted key points to help you follow his argument):

So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. Now, brothers, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, "Do not go beyond what is written." Then you will not take pride in one man over against another. For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not? Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! You have become kings-- and that without us! How I wish that you really had become kings so that we might be kings with you! For it seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like men condemned to die in the arena. We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to men. We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. Up to this moment we have become the scum of the earth, the refuse of the world. I am not writing this to shame you, but to warn you, as my dear children. 1 Corinthians 4:1-14

Can you catch what Paul is saying here? Christian leadership is about being a servant, dying for the sake of others. It’s not about lifting yourself up; it’s about being made low. Yet, it’s the sinful desire of our hearts to take the gifts that God has entrusted to us as a stewardship, gifts intended for His glory, and to glorify ourselves. But those who do have received their only reward here on earth.

Are you ready for a confession? I have been wondering if God has allowed the season that I’m experiencing in order to show me the threat of self-serving, self-aggrandizing, authoritarian leadership. I have been asking Him to reveal that in my own heart. I have been asking Him to shine His light of truth into the dark places, driving out darkness. And I have been asking for the grace to release pain (and judgment) to Him.

And, I’m also looking forward to all the ways in which He will be magnified in my brokenness. Otherwise, it’s truly all foolishness…

Resolutions

A new year is upon us once again and with it comes a time to look back over the previous season as we prepare to move forward into the next. For many, 2011 lasted way too long, bringing with it pain and suffering, loss and regret. Others saw their hopes and dreams come into reality during that same time. But neither group is wanting to relive that year, only to move forward into something better. So, after reflecting on 2011, we make new resolutions, things that we are committed to see happen in the New Year. And while I have not been a fan of New Year’s resolutions in that past, realizing that most are cast aside before the end of January, this year is a little different. Having emerged from probably the worst year of my life, I have committed to reflecting on those circumstances for the purpose of learning and growing in my faith journey. So, below are the resolutions that have been on my heart. I share them so that I might be better understood and also held accountable.

Resolve: Discipleship over programs.

The mission of the church is to make disciples and Jesus gave us the example to follow. He didn’t come to create ministries and programs. Rather, He spent time pouring into a few men. Yes, He preached to the masses, but He often did so in parables which He didn’t readily explain. Instead, to the ones who were eager to follow after Him and to listen and to learn, to those He explained all He was doing. He equipped them in about 3 years to take His place as teacher. If we’re honest, there is very little discipleship happening in the church today, not in America anyway.

Resolve: Faith over doctrine.

In the place of discipleship, the church has created programs that better resemble universities than synagogues. The Jewish way of discipleship was one where the One True God was given absolute authority over all areas of life and creation. But we have set ourselves over this God and subjected Him and His Kingdom to dissection and examination. Just like anything else we subject to the authority of science, we believe if we understand the parts, we can comprehend and manipulate the whole. And like the buffet, we take the parts that we prefer and disregard anything that doesn’t conform to our will. But doesn’t the Bible say, “Without proper doctrine it is impossible to please God”? Well, no, it doesn’t. But it does say, “Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6). And this statement is not just about assent to certain doctrinal statements. No, it is found within a chapter of Scripture that describes those who committed their everything, even their lives, to serving God faithfully. They weren’t perfect people, but they were earnest. We need to commit to developing faith in Christ’s disciples.

Resolve: Glory over expedience.

Too much of what we do is because it serves our desires best with the least amount of pain. But that was not the example which Christ gave to us. Rather, He chose to glorify God in all that He did, regardless of the suffering waiting along the path. And I would suggest that without God’s glory being your highest priority, there is nothing sufficient to sooth the pain of life. Don’t kid yourself; the quick and easy solutions that you choose today will have painful consequences, either in this life or in eternity. It is only in a wholehearted commitment to seeing God glorified in your life that you can stand up through the pain. We desperately need something worth suffering for and that is God alone.

Resolve: Strength in weakness.

Everything in our flesh wants to establish and proclaim our power and authority. But, at the risk of sounding repetitious, Christ gave us a model of meekness. He was humble. And like my mentor taught me, humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less. It is taking on the role and attitude of a servant. We can choose to exalt ourselves now before men, or we can choose the Jesus way and humble ourselves now and be exalted by God before all of creation. For some, maybe myself included, we need to release those who have wronged us. The world says that we should retaliate. Your flesh says that you can show them real power and suffering. But the Lord says that He will right all wrongs. We need to come to Him humbly in prayer and allow Him to hold us up, regardless of the strong bulls of Bashan. Meekness is true strength in faith-filled restraint. “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21).

Resolve: Empowering over empowerment.

This last resolution is sort of a summation of all the others. The ministry which the Lord has given and which He blesses is one that equips and empowers others to be His faithful disciples. Biblical leadership is not about power and control. Christian leaders give power away. Ours is a life characterized by the desire to work yourself out of a job. This was the case with John the Baptizer, who proclaimed of Jesus, “He must become greater; I must become less” (John 3:30). It was also the case for Jesus who said that He must leave His disciples so that the Spirit would come in order that His disciples would do greater things than He (John 14:12). Beware, lest you become the person who desires power and position and feels threatened by anyone who appears superior to you. Rather, we are all parts of Christ’s body and the weaker parts are the indispensable ones (1 Corinthians 12:22).