tabletalk

How to Speak Missional: Present the Implications of the New Reality

Dally suggest this as another part of preaching/speaking missionally. What are the implications of the new reality of the Kingdom of Heaven, being presented to your senses?

Let me illustrate simply. This Sunday I will be preaching on a text from Matthew 9:35-38 - The Harvest and calling out laborers into the field.

A while ago a friend of mine was in Las Vegas and came across the following WWJD banner.

If you can't read the writing at the top of the banner it translates WWJD as "Who Would Jesus Destroy". And then the seemingly inexhaustible list. If you look at only the adjectives like "unrighteous" or "proud" or "haters" or "fearful" or "unbelieving" or "malicious" you'd get it right - NO ONE WILL BE LEFT.

When Jesus looks out at the masses he has two responses: 1 - Compassion for people he sees are aimless and wandering like sheep with no shepherd. 2 - Solution - take healing to them - yes, you yourselves go - be the extension of my compassion. Heal and restore.

The WWJD banner - is the antithesis of Jesus. If we believe Jesus' himself, then one of the implications is that we are asked to be healers and reconcilers. But it begins by adopting Jesus' vision of the world - not as something to be hated and feared but loved and restored. Remember John 3:17 - "For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world but that through him it might be saved."

Remember Lewis's words from his great sermon "The Weight of Glory" "There are no ordinary people. You have never met a mere mortal...But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit - immortal horrors or everlasting splendours...Our charity must be a real and costly love, with deep feeling for the sins in spite of which we love the sinner - no mere tolerance, or indulgence which parodies love as flippancy parodies merriment. Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses."...vere latiat - the truth hidden inside.

The implication(s) of the new reality of God's Kingdom - we are to be compassionate as Jesus is. The implication is that if you adopt Jesus' eyes you will adopt Jesus' posture towards those you see. When we don't, we need to get back with Jesus to see what he sees. And then act in accordance. We don't distance ourselves from others. We engage in compassionate actions. This is what it will take.

So if you want to speak missionally let people know that it will require a different way of seeing and acting. Not merely thinking. Remember, faith is a verb. Act on it.

Beyond Likeness

“The Hebrews through out their history were being constantly headed off from the worship of nature-gods; not because the nature-gods were in all respects unlike the god of Nature but because, at best, they were merely like, and it was the destiny of that nation to be turned away from likenesses to the thing itself.” C.S. Lewis Miracles P.120

Probably the main point of my Easter sermon. The resurrection is unlike anything in Nature. It is the most un-natural of events. If God is a great iconoclast then God wants to undo all of our idolatry. The resurrection is the ultime inconoclastic event. Jesus makes a mess of all our categories, all our thinking, all our boxes of the way things are. He is new creation, new humanity, new life. Whatever we want Him to be like is an idol or an icon, merely an image. Our destiny, like Israel's, was "to be turned away from likenesses to the thing itself." Here is real life. Jesus' resurrected life is no mere patch on an old problem. He is not a fix. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one will come to the Father but through Him. Thank God that he is the Way and has provided a Way for all humanity to live. The most natural of things is death. May we embrace the Miraculous event of Jesus and be transformed in Him.

A glad and joyous resurrection be ours!

Sunday Follow-Up Nov. 13 2005

Yesterday a friend of mine, Jon Moore, who works for Church Resource Ministries (www.crmnet.org), spoke to our congregation. Jon is head of development (i.e. fundraising) for CRM. He mentioned that his job is to help develop people who will make greater contributions to the Kingdom of God. He spoke to the passage from Matthew 5, "Where your treasure is, your heart will follow."

Jon made the following observation. Oftentimes our money is invested in things that we simply don't care about. The truth is that if we are invested then our hearts will follow. I know there are other ways to interpret this passage. But this was a fresh set of eyes for me.

How much of what I put my money into, do I really care about? Am I passionate about coffee? Am I passionate about driving? Is my heart really into __________ ? What is at stake is my integrity. My money and my heart are being invested in things that I don't care about. At least I do not care about them to the extent that I care about God's Kingdom, or justice, or righteousness, or the future of our church.

We end up living disintegrated lives. What I took away from Jon's words were #1: What do I care about? #2: What am I invested in? #3: Do these things match up? #4: Move my investment to match my passion.

We could do this with our time, not merely our money. We could also do this with our emotion and energy as well. These are all resources we spend and invest.

Why do this? Well, at our deepest we desire to be whole. This is a step in the right direction.

Hospitality as Sacrificial Life

Peterson follows up with his discussion on sacrifice and our participation in it with this statement: "The trouble with a word like 'sacrifice,' though, is that it sounds grandiose and therefore easily blurs into generalities."  He suggests that it finds its rootedness, it's concrete real life in "eucharistic hospitality." 

I remember Roberta Hestenes commenting many years ago that what will turn around the decline of mainline protestant churches is a rediscovery of simple hospitality.  At the time it struck me as important and simple enough to do.  But I underestimated how resistent people are to being hospitable.  Oh, people in the South exude a kind of charm that feel hospitable, but just try to break through the good-'ol-boy barrier most hold up.  Here in the West there is an openness and quite disarming friendliness that is a mile wide and an inch deep.  You might meet at Starbucks, but it could be a blue moon or two before you get invited to someone's home for a meal.  Hospitality is practiced better by people who have strangers coming and going in their lives, than by people who are working to build up a safety hedge to keep strangers out. (Witness the growing number of communities with gates and walls!)  These not only keep out undesirable types, but they keep out potential friends as well.  We continually make it harder to get together.

So here is my challenge to all.  Between now and the next time you celebrate the Lord's supper, will you invite someone you don't know well to a meal?  Lunch, breakfast, dinner in your home.  This is the first step in sacrificial living as I understand Peterson.  Breaking down the barriers that exist to keep us from each other.  This is what Jesus' sacrifice does.  This is the work we should be about.

"When we are talking about the salvation of the world, a bowl of rice seems like an insignificant launching pad.  But it wasn't too insignificant for Jesus.  Will we replace Jesus' humility with our grandiosity?  Preparing and cooking, serving and eating meals are Jesus-sanctioned activities that provide daily structure to our participation in the work of salvation." - (Peterson - p.219ff ibid)

Sacrifice

Eugene Peterson in his chapter "Christ Plays in History" says the following: 

"If all things are possible for the Father, perhaps there is another way to do something about what is wrong with the world, a way by which I can help out and make things better other than through a sacrificial life.  In the jargon of the day, we pray: 'sacrifice is not one of my gifts - I want to serve God with my strength, with my giftedness.'  It's a strange thing, but sacrifice never seems to show up on anyone's Myers-Briggs profile.

"For people like us, trained in a culture of getting things done (pragmatism) and taking care of ourselves (individualism), sacrifice doesn't seem at all obvious; neither does it seem attractive...

...But the self-promotion and self-help ways of salvation, so popular among us, do nothing but spiral us further into the abyss."

Sacrifice is at the center of the Lord's Supper, Peterson reminds us. When you read commentators like Tom Wright you begin to understand better that Jesus' way of doing things - sacrifice, is at the center of what disciples are supposed to emulate.  We are to walk in Jesus' way.

When was the last time you made a true sacrifice?  What was the last act that cost you something dear?  Would you describe your life as sacrificial in nature?  Until we do, we're just play acting at following Jesus.

Prayer:  God save us from play acting our faith, grant us the strength to sacrifice our lives to you as you have for us.

Idly Making Idols

This Sunday from my sermon there is a subtle but essential point I want to reassert.  Eugene Peterson in Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places, suggests that there comes a time when we wake up one day and realize that "all things made new doesn't apply to our work" any longer.  He goes on to say that we very slowly change from witnessing God at work around us, to pursuing God to help us with our work.

Here's the rub, says Peterson.  When we move from seeing what God is doing, to asking God to help us with our work, we are making God into an idol.  This is subtle but true.  And idol is a god created to do our bidding.  Our work is to do God's bidding.  We started off doing God's work.  Slowly, we have God doing our work.  What is happening is that we are putting our work ahead of God's work.  We are making our work primary and God's work, well - mere support for our lives.  This is idolatry.  Even if our work is good work and important, it can never supplant what God is doing. 

This happens to all of us at times.  We come to worship seeking help for our agenda.  It is God's intention to recruit us for his agenda.  We come looking for useful tools for living, and we fail to see the Life that is right before us in the risen Christ.  Worship ends up being about us rather than the Creator.

Remember life just isn't about God, it comes from God through his Son, Jesus.  Life isn't rules to be followed, it is the Living God living in us.  Let us not idly make idols of our work or circumstances.  Let us make room each week to welcome the Living God into our lives, surrendering our wants and needs and receiving his life-giving Spirit.

Sundays Away

Today I finished my vacation.  In fact, one of the disciplines I exercised was trying not to be compulsively driven by blog.  As you can tell I succeeded though with some guilt though not much.  It was good to be away.

Today we also went to church at another congregation nearby.  For those of us who preach regularly, it is the only time we get a chance to really experience worship the way "others" do it.  Of course, one of the difficult tasks is to try not to take notes.  I'm not talking about the sermon.  I'm talking about logisitics and techniques and critiques and ideas.  It is a professional problem for all working types.  We go somewhere, see someone doing what we do, and we begin to become professionally interested observors.  This is fine in most professions, but not being a pastor.  We are not called as Christians to come to worship to critique or observe, but participate. 

My church experiences during my vacation this year were all exceptional.  I observed things that I'd love our church to do.  There were things that I'm sure we'll try in the weeks to come.  But the most profound thing that happened to me during worship this summer was that I was a participant.  In the services I went to I was drawn in both emotionally and intellectually.  I was moved each week to examine my life and yield to the presence of God.  The Word was challenging not just as an idea,  but in person, as Christ made his way in to my experience through sermons and sacraments and the people gathered. 

I simply want to thank God for allowing me to see him, hear him, encounter him.  He's not hiding you know.  He is very present all the time.  May we have eyes to see and ears to hear - each day, each Sunday. 

Sunday Follow Up - Jonah's Anger

"The book of Jonah is a unique exposition of a belief that God relates to the nations of the earth in the same way that he relates to his chosen people.  This implies that the chosen ones are not better than the others, but rather that they have a particular responsibility towards the others for articulating the ways of God to the world.  The king of Nineveh was not only receptive to this; he was well along the way of understanding God's ways for himself.  Jonah understood God's ways, but was unreceptive to them." - Rosemary Nixon in  "The Message of Jonah" P.189

This is part of Nixon's commentary on the fourth chapter of Jonah, particularly the first 2 verses. 

What is important for me and us to reflect on is the idea that God has a greater heart than we do.  The privilege of being a chosen people doesn't mean we are "in."  It means we have responsibility to go "out."  Jonah considered himself an insider and could never get outside of his own self-imposed slavery.  Jonah was a slave to his preconceptions of God.  Jonah's God, when revealed as bigger, caused Jonah to get smaller, more narrow, and to withdraw, because Jonah was more a slave to his ideas than he was servant of God.

It is this way with us as disciples is it not?  We love the idea that God loves us, but when we hear we are supposed to love our enemies we are unreceptive.  We love the idea of God's gift of Jesus' life to us, but we are unreceptive to giving up our life for others.  Jesus holds on to nothing but his relationship with his Father, we grab a-hold of so many material things that if we were in the ocean they would drown us because we fail to let go.  (This is in fact threatening our lives whether we know it or not!) 

Re-read Jonah.  Read the above comment by Nixon and ask yourself the question, "What is it about God's ways that I am unreceptive?"  Then pray: "God give me an open heart to care about what you care about, to include those whom you include, to go where you ask, and receive what you give."

Remember, the people of God were chosen to be a blessing not a curse.

Sunday Follow Up - A Repenting God

Jonah preaches the message God gives him and lo and behold, the people of Nineveh hear and respond - they repent.  Upon hearing about this message and the action of his people, the King himself, repents and believes.  In fact the repentance begins with the lowest subjects in the kingdom, the animals, and ends with a royal decree to anyone who still hasn't responded.  Then they wait and hope, that God will see that they have turned from their evil ways.  There are no guarantees - only faith.  This is a grassroots movement that defies logic.  It is a genuine God moment in the story.

Rosemary Nixon makes two comments are the conclusion of the sermon this day. 

1) God turns to those who turn to him.

2) God does not turn away from those who turn from him.

Repentance is not necessarily an admission of wrong doing, or saying you're sorry.  Repentance is turning.  You are going in one direction and you turn.  In Greek the word for repentance means "to change or turn one's mind".  This fits well with Romans 12:1ff.  Repentance requires hearing and doing. 

When the people of Nineveh turn to God, God turns to them.  God attends to them.  God regards the people of Nineveh, takes them seriously.  Isn't this the thing Lewis says in Letters to Malcolm - that we can stand being refused, but not disregarded, ignored?  Calling to repentance means we stop in our tracks and face the one true God.  Wow, Nineveh did this.

The second point is even more astounding.  I get it that when someone hears me call and they choose not to ignore me, then I attend to them.  But if they ignore me, often I shrugg my shoulders and move on.  This is not God's way.  If I turn away from God, God doesn't turn away from me.  One would think God would give up on Jonah, but God is as persistent with Jonah as with the Ninevites. 

In either case, repentance is about taking action, not mouthing words.  It is about believing and belief is a verb - it is not passive. 

What in your life needs to be turned toward God?  Maybe all of you?  Do you believe in God?  Then action needs to follow.  Inaction will only create unfaithfulness. 

Sunday Follow Up - Voce Vida

This last week my sermon came from the opening lines of Jonah chapter 3.  Jonah is called upon by God, to once again go to Nineveh and proclaim the message of repentance to the people.  The first time, we all know Jonah fled from God's presence rather than obey the call.  This time, Jonah has learned at least one thing, you can't run and hide from God.

From the Latin word voce, we get several words: voice, vocative, call or calling, vocation, and many more.  God calls on Jonah to get up and go to Nineveh.  In my sermon I reflected on three of the things that God's call can do.  I'm sure there are also many more than what I raised.  Let me simply go through the ones from Sunday and ask you to reflect on how God may be calling you.

First, God's call can awaken us from slumber.  In my next Narnian Musing I will share the story of "burnt Marshwiggle."  It is about being awakened from an enchantment.  When our youngest daughter was almost three she had heart surgery.  Following the surgery, she was in ICU on a ventilator.  She also had a fairly heavy dose of morphine.  One of the goals was to get her breathing on her own.  The nurses would stop the ventilator and expect her to breathe.  For some time she was so drowsy, she wouldn't take a breath.  Only when her mother or I called her name and told her to breathe would her little chest expand and contract.  In many ways we are like this.  God knows what we need to be alive and when he calls us, we are awakened by his voice for the life he has given us. 

The next observation about God's call is that it has the power to turn us.  Like when someone calls your name and you turn to face them.  Let me suggest that it is the call of God that saves us from going the wrong way.  "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles" has one of my favorite scenes.  When John Candy has fallen asleep at the wheel, the car that he's driving has crossed the median and he is now driving on the wrong side of the rode.  He awakens to a couple yelling at him that he's going the wrong way.  He finally turns to Steve Martin and declares, "How do they know where we're going?!"  - You had to be there.  Point being, God knows where we're supposed to be.  It is God's voice that calls us to turn and come toward him.

The third observation is that the call of God can cause us to life up our eyes.  C.S. Lewis says that the person who spends their time looking down on people and things can never see that which is above them.  We have many ways of keeping our eyes down.  Sometimes it's just being locked into a routine and we cannot see the possibilities that God has for us.  Sometimes it is as Lewis says, we look upon others with contempt or derision and think ourselves to be superior.  In some cases it can be that we are so cautious we can't take our eyes off our own feet for fear of stubbing a toe.  The point is that God is interested in not only having our eyes fixed on him, but also to have our countenance raised that we might see our hope more fully.

How do you need to hear God's call?  How have you heard it?  How have you ignored it?  Like Jonah do you need a fresh start?  God is willing to give it if you will take it.