Jesus in an MTV World
The "Live 8" concert last summer made me wonder, 'why didn't God wait and put Jesus on the scene at this time in history - in the 21st century?' With all of our high-speed communications, think of the exposure Jesus and his message would have received.
Would Jesus' message have been a series of sound bites, with all sorts of experts telling us their opinions and interpretations of what he said? Would millions of young people have been convinced, and convicted, to deny themselves, pick up their crosses, and follow Christ? Could a kingdom not of this world have been birthed in the hearts of the masses? Or, at the end of the day, would we have turned off our televisions and logged-off the internet, and wondered to ourselves, 'is this guy for real; is his cause worth giving up my right to do with my life anything I choose? Hey, he's just a person on TV. I don't even know this guy personally.'
Can Jesus Christ be birthed in our hearts without someone we actually know, and trust, telling us about him?
I think Jesus came at the right time. He knew the best way to communicate who he is, and who God is - one on one.
I like rock music as much, if not more, than the average person. I couldn't help but be cynical, though, as I watched the "Live 8" concert. Whose kingdom, and what kind of kingdom, was being promoted?
Anmchara
"On the first day of the week, two of Jesus' followers were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him." Luke 24:13-16
"Now, turn around. See the sunlight. Imagine a friend walking toward you while you're still in darkness, still dancing to hell's music.
Imagine a friend, what the medieval Irish called an anmchara, a person you could trust for a lifetime. They had a saying: 'Anyone without an anmchara is like a body without a head.'
Stretch your imagination. Let this person who enters the devil's dance hall be fluent in SoulTalk, someone who:
thinks beneath, who sees your real battle between the Old Way and the New Way, who knows the difference between the false gospel of religion and the true gospel of Christianity;
thinks vision, who looks at you with eyes brimming with hope, eyes that see your uniqueness and believes in who you could become;
thinks passion, who is self-aware and therefore humble, who is so broken that he is confident in the Spirit, and when you're with him, you catch a whiff of Jesus, and the fragrance is sweet;
thinks story, who patiently endures as you tell your story - as a tragedy, romance, irony, or comedy; someone who listens with transcendent curiosity and therefore can see a soul looking for God in all the wrong places, a friend whose eyes glisten with love as he rebukes and confronts and exposes, whose voice drips with grace as he directs and invites, whose words carry unshakable hope as he explores the story of your soul."
SoulTalk by Larry Crabb, pp. 213-214
It is not good when I live my life in self-obsessed religion, always doing and saying and trying to be the the "right" thing or person. Thankfully, I listened when I met my friend Dorota, and I was able to really hear and appreciate her, and ultimately, God.
Dorota is such a neat young person. But, I would have never known that, or appreciated her, except that for once in my life, I listened. Really listened.
It is my desire to be quiet - quit talking and discussing - and just listen. I have become so self-obsessed with getting everything right that I'm missing the point.
A Struggle
"Follow me." (Matthew 4:18-22); "Be not afraid." (Genesis 15:1)
I was reading a blog entry by "Jane" regarding her feelings about God in the midst of tragedy, as in the case of the miners who died in West Virginia. She is angry at God, and lays out her reasons why. Her thoughts run to there being no God, or if there were, who would want a God that does not come to the aid of innocents. She concludes there must be no God.
I have a few thoughts on this regarding my own life.
First, Christ beckons me to 'follow Him', and to 'be not afraid.' Do I need belief before I follow him, or does belief follow obedience? And, am I afraid of Christ's call? Do I have faith? Is it genuine? I will probably only find out in the hard times. But, who wants hard times? Or suffering? Or rejection? Oh, and then for over 8 1/2 years I find myself in those times. Although now, they feel like regular times - one foot after another times.
Second, Jesus exhorts me to build on Him, on the Rock so to speak, so that when the hard times come, and they will, I will not find myself standing on shifting sand. I thought I was building on rock, but I must have been mighty close to the shoreline. Maybe I didn't ask the hard questions like Jane does before I started off on my little journey. Like the "count the cost" questions.
I am to walk by faith, not by sight. My trust in Christ must be ruthless. Sounds hard, but hey, I'm one of the "few and the proud", at least until I got in this firefight I'm in. Now, every time I get shot at, I'm not sure I want to go back to the front line.
Finally, when the unexplained happens, my first human reaction is often anger and rage - normal human emotions I am told by the self-help gurus. But, are my thoughts and feelings, whether in good times or bad, to be taken as proof of the existence of God, and how He intervenes in my own earthly affairs? Most of the time I would prefer a logical (to me) God rather than a mysterious God whose ways I do not understand.
However, Jane's thoughts deal more with the very nature and character of God versus how we humans deal with tragedy and heartache. Jane suggests that to be human is to ask these hard questions. Well, I am human, and I struggle with these questions. I also struggle against "pat" answers and, like Jane, with the nature and character of God.
I Ain't Much Fun Since I Quit Drinking
The scripture reading at the temple today was good. Moses and the Ten Commandments. Fire on the mountain. Stiff-necked people, rebelling against 'the command of the Lord your God.'
Ever since becoming a Pharisee, I like the Ten Commandments story. Rebellion and God's wrath. That's what got my attention to begin with. I kind of knew deep inside that I wasn't all God wanted me to be. Once I started trying to follow all of the commandments, I began to see how bad people really are. They do things I would never do, at least in public. I knew I was on the right track.
I'll admit, trying to follow all of the commandments, and the rules and regulations that go along with them, is hard work. I'm never really sure where I stand with my superiors, much less with God. Sometimes I wonder what I am supposed to be obedient to; what rebellion I am to squash today. All I know is I don't want to end up like those party animals that made Moses so mad that he threw the Ten Commandments tablets on the ground and broke them.
Larry next door could have really benefited from hearing the story today. He and I talk about these things when I slip over there to taste his home brew. Larry and I went to school together, so I can pretty much be myself around him. But, Larry doesn't get it. And, he's not Pharisee material. You can't be a Pharisee and have as much fun as he does. And, he keeps bringing up this guy he met at a party - says this guy has forgotten more scripture than I'll ever know. That, by the way, is a sure tip-off that the guy, Jesus I think Larry called him, is not on the up and up. Don't get me wrong - privately I don't mind partying, and I sure don't mind quoting scripture, but just don't do both at the same time.
Larry says Jesus is telling people the Ten Commandments, and all of our rules and regulations for that matter, can be summed up by loving God and loving our neighbors. If that's true, I might be out of a job. No more enforcing God's laws for Him. On the other hand, I might be able to go to a party without feeling guilty about having fun. Having the responsibility of always judging others takes away all of the fun.
Like Larry says, I ain't much fun since I quit drinking - in public.
Go Transfigure
There I was, minding my own business, and my fishing nets, when this guy walks by and tell me to "follow" him. It was more like a request than a command, though. There was something about the man that drew me to him.
I followed, and watched, and listened. Crowds were always around us, and I thought that was pretty cool. Me, a mere fisherman, being identified with this miracle worker. I had never felt so important.
Then, he hit me with something I didn't expect. This man, who had called me, began to say that if I were really going to follow him, it would involve denying myself and taking up my cross, whatever that meant, and following him. He went on to say that if I tried to save my life, I would lose it, and if lost my life for him and his story, I would gain it.
I was scared and confused. I kept thinking, 'this guy called me to follow him, and I did. Now things are really getting heavy. Forget about the crowds, and the popularity; I think I'll go back to my fishing nets - sounds safer.'
Anyway, about a week later, he tells me and and a couple of other guys to come with him up this mountain. When we get to the top, all of a sudden this man's clothes turn the brightest white I had ever seen, and these two other guys show up out of nowhere, and....it was all pretty scary. And, here's where I think I may be going crazy - I hear this voice saying this man is his son, and he is pleased with him. Hmmm.
It was as if there was another reality. I mean, I saw my friends, and at the same time I saw these dead people, and we were all alive together at the same time. And, in the middle of us all, was this man I had been following around, shining like the sun.
Somehow, I'm comforted by what I saw. I think I will hang around for a little longer. One minute this man is telling me I'll have to die to really be one of his followers, and the next minute we're up on this mountain, and I see this life that I didn't even know existed.
I know - you probably think I'm crazy. But, who cares? Everyone's been telling me that since I left my fishing nets.
