JESUS, Part 2

When I envision Jesus, I picture something different than the blonde haired, piercing blue eyed figure I see in many of the Jesus movies. I picture Jesus to be much more—how should I put this--Middle Eastern than Eastern European. And I’m pretty sure he probably didn’t have blue eyes. Why do I believe all of this? If you read the Bible, you will see that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. And 2000 years ago, I would venture to guess that you didn’t find an awful lot of Caucasians living in the Middle East.

So who do I see Jesus as? Take a seat, grab a cup (or two) of coffee or tea (and none of this decaffeinated garbage), because it may take a while to show you who I see Jesus to be.

I’m going to be a typical Christian and say that one of my favorite authors has got to be C.S. Lewis. And more specifically, his novels, The Chronicles of Narnia, are my favorite.

In one of these books Lewis infers through the Christ figure of Aslan, that Jesus is not tame. In case you haven’t ever read these books, Aslan is a lion and although he talks and allows the children to pet him from time to time, he is definitely not tame. And that seems about par for the course. Granted, my experience with lions is pretty much non-existent, but I don’t see lions as being very tame, so I will just agree with him on this point. No matter how much we think Jesus is tame, the fact remains that he is not. On the contrary, He is probably quite the opposite. (Continuing with the lion analogy) He is not like your typical house cat. He doesn’t sit on your lap. He isn’t—to my knowledge—litter-box trained. He does not wear a collar with a tag identifying who his owners are.  Jesus is not tame!

To fully understand what C.S. Lewis meant by that, I have to admit that I decided to look up the word tame in my handy dictionary. It means “reduced from a state of native wildness especially so as to be tractable and useful to humans.” Another definition offered is: “to be made docile or submissive (yeah, I had to look up a couple words in those definitions too).

Jesus cannot be reduced. Jesus is not docile or submissive--except to the Father.  You can try all you want to make Him conform and fit in these tidy, neat boxes, but you may have some trouble. We will never fully comprehend Him. We cannot always understand what He does and why He does it. In other words Jesus is not under our control. He defies many of our notions and beliefs about who He really is. Although He may be difficult to understand, that is no excuse to not try.

JESUS, Part 1

Living in South Dakota, we can see snow for as much as six or seven months out of the year. And since I have such distaste for snow and the cold, I have to do something to stay warm during those months (while moving seems to be the most plausible solution, I can’t tell you why I haven’t). I have found the best option is a hot-tub. Although I do not own one, nor have I ever owned one, I have always made it a point to befriend someone that either has one, or has access to one (I know, I’m shallow).

During several of my college years, I fortunately had a friend that worked in a hotel during our breaks. This particular evening was typical for December. It was a cold (more than likely well into the negative digits with the wind-chill) and snowy.  A few friends and I decided to meet up at the hotel and spend the evening relaxing in the hot-tub. One by one, as we showed up, we took over the hotel lobby and began chatting about the new Lord of the Rings movies. I’m not sure what time it was, but I do know it was well after our agreed upon meeting time (I’m a stickler for promptness). As you can probably guess, we were still waiting on one of our friends and his fiancé to show up. We waited. And waited. And we waited some more.

Finally, through the cold, foggy glass I saw the headlights of what appeared to be an unmistakably red Dodge Stealth. As it pulled into the parking lot, I thought it would be befitting of me to meet the tardy couple halfway. As two individuals got out of the car, all bundled up in their bulky winter coats, hats and gloves, and began strolling to the front door, I proceeded to cut them off and so kindly inform them that they were late. As I walked through the door and neared the two up them, I began to, in my most stern voice, inform them how much trouble they were in for said tardiness. Just as soon as I had spoken those words, the couple took their gaze off their steps and made eye contact with me, something profound occurred to me. This couple was not the couple we were all waiting for.  It was then I decided it would be best to make my way back into the lobby, quite red from embarrassment, and keep my mouth shut. Afterall, that was the second time that week I had a case of mistaken identity. The other occurred earlier in during the week at Scheels. The short version is as follows: I had spent several minutes searching the aisles for something that must have been important (reiterated by the fact that I likely don’t have it anymore and can’t recall what it was). Finally, after I had just about given up I spotted a Scheels employee in the unmistakable yellow button up shirt and khaki pants. As I approached said employee and asked where to find this most important item he turned around with quite a puzzled look and informed me he had no clue. Turns out other people in town are highly capable of wearing a yellow button up shirt and khaki pants.

Why did I tell you these stories? I think it was because I was trying to make a correlation with the church and its mistaken identity of Jesus.

It seems to me, the church has confused Jesus with Mr. Rogers. According to the church today, the man on the cross and Mr. Rogers are so similar you almost can’t distinguish between the two. Don’t get me wrong, Jesus can be nice, he can be calm, cool, and collected, but that is only a part of who he is. It seems to me, nobody would have a problem with a Mr. Rogers-esque guy…at least not enough of a problem to crucify him!

Let me tell you why Jesus is not like Mr. Rogers. Let’s start with the obvious, Mr. Rogers is white and whether you believe it or not, Jesus was Middle-Eastern and Jewish. Mr. Rogers always had nice things to say and never caused a stir. And then there is the fact that Mr. Rogers lives in a perfect world made of puppets and trains; a world in which everyone always learns their lesson and takes it to heart. A world where everyday is a “beautiful day.” A world quite the opposite of the one in which you and I live. The world of Mr. Rogers is very disconnected from reality and I can’t relate to it at all. And for that, Mr. Rogers becomes a man I cannot relate to. But Jesus…Jesus is different. He didn’t stay in his perfect world. He took on flesh, became a man, and stepped into our screwed up world, in order that he might relate to us and inevitably save us.

You see, the Jesus I read about in this book we call the Bible, is nothing like Mr. Rogers. Jesus isn’t always prim and proper, like Mr. Rogers (although I have heard rumors about him being an ex-marine with tattoos covering his arms—Mr. Rogers, not Jesus). Well, let me rephrase that…Jesus isn’t exactly like Mr. Rogers. There may be some similarities, but not nearly enough to confuse the two. Mr. Rogers is a nice guy, who wears a blue cardigan (I don’t ever picture Jesus in a cardigan—especially a blue one), always makes sure his shoes are tied, speaks with a kind voice, and always smiles. Jesus may exhibit similar characteristics (with the exception of the shoes since he wore sandals) from time-to-time, but that is by no means the entire picture of who Jesus is.

SABBATH

While there are some questions I have always had about our observance of the Sabbath, this is not a platform I am going to use to debate which day is the true Sabbath. Because, honestly, it doesn't really matter. Deuteronomy 5:12-15 lays the foundation on which we base the Sabbath. If we read these four verses, a very simple understanding of the Sabbath comes to light. The Hebrew word translated as Sabbath literally means "the day of rest." It is that simple translation that gives significance to the Sabbath. It is to be set aside as a day of rest. I know, this is rocket science right? Come on, it doesn't take a scholar to come to that conclusion. Yet, that simple design for the Sabbath still seems to evade most of us.

It's interesting to note here that despite all the warnings about honoring the Sabbath, God himself rarely gives examples of what constitutes 'work.' But, as is usually a given with humanity, we took it upon ourselves to take the place of God by try to define what exactly was meant. Back in the day, the Pharisees were no exception to this rule. They took it upon themselves to take God's original decree 'to honor the Sabbath' one step further. Actually, they took it 'forty minus one' steps further (so there's no misunderstanding, that's a religious way of saying 39). From that one command, they established 39 rules that must be followed in order to maintain the integrity of keeping the Sabbath holy. In doing see today, it seems we came up with quite a burdensome list ourselves. The result has been that today, we inadvertently associate all of these unspoken 'rules' with the Sabbath.

At the heart of Jesus' teaching about the Sabbath in Matthew 12 (along with a few other passages), we find that in the scheme of things, Sunday should really be no different from any other day. Well, I guess the exception to that is that we take advantage of the rest it offers. There is nothing special, sacred, or even holy about Sunday. Jesus himself said no day was more holy than another. When then do we make such a big deal about this particular day?

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying we abandon church, our worship services, or other important things we do on the Sabbath. What I am saying is this: Let's keep the main thing, the main thing! It's time we shy away from making it about appearances. Does God really care if I'm clean-shaven, wear my Sunday best, have the car washed, or heaven forbid mow my lawn? It's as if we think doing certain things or avoiding other things only on Sunday will make us more spiritual. To think that is what is at the heart of the message God has given us with the Sabbath is to miss the point. None of the things I mentioned will make us more or less holy. Nor will they offend God. God will not strike anyone with lightning for mowing their lawn after church...maybe (He is God so I can't give you money back guarantees).

All of these associated rules with the Sabbath might fool ourselves. Shoot, it might even fool a few others, but we aren't slipping anything past God. He will never be fooled with our facades, because "man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart."

During my sophomore year of college, I volunteered at the homeless shelter. On one occasion I sat down to have dinner with one of the men staying there. After a bit of small talk, we started to open up to each other quite a bit. He began sharing his life story and pouring his heart out to me over an overcooked pork-chop, some lukewarm beans and watered down pink lemonade. Over the course of the next 45 minutes, I discovered how he had been laid off from a well paying job several years ago. The short version of everything else that happened is as follows: the income his family depended on dwindled away since he was driven into a state of depression and found it difficult to find work; inevitably his family packed their things up and left him.

Even while all of this transpired, this man informed me that through the whole ordeal, he never lost his faith. He continued to attend church until he began to see it in a much different light. Because of his tattered clothes, unkempt beard, and God forbid the smell, he felt shunned. This homeless wandered no longer fit in at church. You see, he had a job working for Boeing--the company that makes airplanes--that paid quite well. Without that income, he could no longer afford a shower or food, let alone the three-piece suits, fine jewelry, and nice cars everyone else at the church could. The point to all of this is that the Sabbath is not about appearances. God is not impressed by the name brand clothes we wear or the BMW's we drive (yes, that was a jab at myself). It has never been about cleaning ourselves up and coming to meet with God! Instead of striving to change our outward appearance, we should focus on transforming the state of our heart.

Furthermore, we should begin striving to change every other day of the week to look more like the Sabbath (minus that whole resting thing because work needs done and bills need paid). As I said earlier (and to be quite honest, Jesus said it first thousands of years ago) it's time we quit turning the Sabbath into a show. How about we make every other day of the week look more like the Sabbath, rather than struggling to make it different from every other day of the week.

BIBLE

Puzzled by the Bible is our current series at The Ransom Church. So, I figured now would be an appropriate time to address the honest questions I had about the Bible. Actually, my questions have never been about the Bible; rather, they have been about the way we have viewed and addressed this book. Let me begin by stating two foundational premises I hold true and will not even attempt to defend or debate here. The first is that I wholeheartedly believe the Bible to be the inerrant Word of God...period! The Bible we have today is exactly as God intended it to be and has upheld its integrity through thousands of years and numerous translations. Premise number two stems from the first. Because Scripture is the inerrant Word of God, for me, that means it is authoritative when it comes to the truth it speaks into my life. Just because it is true and authoritative doesn't mean I haven't struggled to apply sound Biblical teaching into my life at times. Just like anyone else, I can be selfish and sometimes I have to learn things the hard way.

During my high school career, I was one of those people you weren't entirely sure how you felt about. On one hand, you wanted to envy me; while on the other hand you despised me on an intense level. It wasn't because I was a super jock--I only wrestled for a few years and while I was decent, I didn't overly excel. It had nothing to do with my rugged good looks or my charm--those didn't develop until college. Neither did it have to do with my extreme popularity--that was non-existent for me through most of high school. The reason you both envied and despised me was because I was one of the students that showed up for class, goofed off, never studied, and still wound up with A's. Because school was such a breeze, I viewed class and homework as a waste of my time. Let's be honest, during that period of my life anything that didn't involve partying, chasing girls, or hanging out with my friends was considered a waste of my time. In order to keep my grades up, I did what some people would call cheating. However, I tend to think of it as being resourceful! Anytime I had homework, I went straight to the back of my text-books for the answers. (Either my teachers were not intelligent enough to figure out the randomly assigned problems were answered in the back, or they simply didn't care--for their sake, I will assume the latter.)

Oddly enough, this is the approach many of us (myself included from time to time) take when it comes to the Bible. If there is any way to bypass the discipline and work of diving into the Word on a regular basis, all the while receiving the benefit that comes from within, we will try it! The problem with that is we begin to lose sight of the big picture the Bible has to offer. I’m not sure about you, but I think we have turned the Bible into something God never inteneded it to be.

We treat the Holy Word of God as a text book on life; looking for the answers to all the mysteries of life. Does Big Foot really exist? What happens to everything vanquished from Bermuda Triangle? How does the Nintendo gun know where, on the screen, I'm pointing (it was way ahead of it's time)? Or maybe you have more legitimate questions along the lines of: Which job should I take? Where should I live? Who should I marry? Or, like every man on the face of this planet, you are curious: what do women really want? While the Bible is chalked full of answers, you have likely discovered it doesn't just lay out answers to all of life's questions. At least, not in the way we hope it will. And then there is always the possibility that some things are intended to be a mystery.

Then there are those who view Bible as nothing more than a self-help manual on life. We dust it off, open it's sacred pages and scour the words within to find some great advice from God when we have exhausted all other avenues of help. When finances are in short supply and our financial adviser can't help, to the Bible we go. Relationships begin to crumble and no amount of counseling is making improvements, surely the Bible can fix it. Not sure how to do that home improvement yourself, maybe reading about Noah will provide answers and motivation--this guy built an ark with a hammer and nails of sorts.

When it comes to the Bible, a paradigm shift may be in order. Instead of viewing it in one of the ways discussed above, perhaps it's time we look at it a bit differently. Just maybe, the Bible is a book of stories--I'm not talking Grimm's Fairy Tales, Dr. Seuss or Where the Red Fern grows kind of stuff. The stories contained in the Bible are much more poignant and pregnant with meaning. The stories within the pages of Scripture cut to the heart and lay open our soul. To quote some words within, "For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires." (Hebrews 4:12). Perhaps this quote from John Eldredge better explains my point. "It's overwhelmingly a book of stories--tales of men and women who walked with God." Maybe approaching the Bible this way will change things for the better!

Again, I have to agree with John Eldredge when he says, "Approach the Scriptures not so much as a manual of Christian principles but as the testimony of God's friends on what it means to walk with him through a thousand different episodes. When you are at war, when you are in love, when you have sinned, when you have been given a great gift--this is how you walk with God."

You see, the Bible is a story. But it is not just any story. It is humanity's story. It is your story. It is my story. But most importantly, it is God's story and how I am to play my part in that grand story.

QUESTIONS, Part 2

How about we take this a little further? The only thing we hate more than being wrong is admitting when we are wrong. At least, that's where I have often found myself. Unfortunately, if I am being honest, I’m wrong more than I care to admit. And no matter how wrong I am, I usually try my hardest not to concede. Very rarely do I end an argument with the phrase “You are right!” Even rarer is the occurrence I end an argument with the words “I was wrong!” Even if we know we are wrong, we can argue ourselves into believing we are right.

This has always been the case with religion and politics, because these two arenas are at the core of our being. For the most part, who we are and what we do emanates from them. No wonder it is difficult to admit there is even a possibility we have missed the boat when it comes to these topics. If you don't think that's really the case, look at the history of Christianity! The Church has been responsible for far too many atrocities to mankind. Off the top of my head comes: the crucifixion (although good for us, I’m sure it really wasn’t that great for Jesus). Then there's the whole disagreement about the earth not really being the center of our solar system. That debate didn’t end so well either. And let's not forget two scars most people refer to as The Inquisition and the Crusades. Did the church ever miss the point on those ones? Last, but certainly not least is Martin Luther’s reformation. Now tell me that religion isn't divisive and we hate to concede when individuals take a stand and speak out!

As we begin this discussion, I need you to see why it is essential we question things and seek the truth--no matter the cost. First and foremost, we (rightly so) claim Christianity as the Truth. However, if we are going to be so arrogant to make this claim, it is imperative we know why! The other reason being that many of us, in the Church, have been spoon-fed. Sunday morning has served as an indoctrination of sorts, in which everything spoken from the pulpit has been taken as fact. Understand, in no way am I claiming this is everyone in the Church. Neither am I saying heresy is purposely (or unintentionally) being taught from every pulpit. Nor am I saying we need to debate every idea or principle that comes from those in leadership. But we should, on our own, take the time to weigh things against Scripture. The Bereans did this when Paul (the guy who wrote most of the New Testament) spoke. And God credited their earnestness and sincerity for the truth as righteousness. Shouldn't we be all the more eager to do the same?

I spent four years at a Christian university and was required to go to something like two-thirds--I think somewhere around 50--of the chapel services every year (most of which I enjoyed). I give you this information in hopes you will realize I have heard my share of preachers and I'm not just spouting off about one fortuitous incident. And not to be stereotypical or hate on televangelists, but far too much of what I hear from those broadcasts is the Pepsi One of Christianity; it just isn't quite the same as the real thing. Names will not be mentioned, but some of what I've heard preached from a pulpit or seen proclaimed on television is a far cry from the Gospel I read in Scripture. Hopefully you realize I don't have the market on Jesus or Christianity either--so, by all means, question and research it.

At the onset, I admit some of this, I probably misunderstood. On the other hand, some of the teachings were impossible to misconstrue.

During this particular chapel at college, the guest speaker proclaimed "Jesus wasn't really asleep before the disciples woke him and he calmed the storm." Apparently he was just laying there, half awake, with one eye open waiting for the disciples to come to him for help--even though Scripture says Jesus was sleeping. Now, this does not create some large theological riff, but it simply isn't true. Another interesting thing I heard spoken from a pulpit was that, at the wedding party, Jesus turned the water into grape juice not wine. In my professional opinion, that is no miracle. Give me 15 seconds, a can of juice concentrate, water, and a spoon. Again, this doesn't really take away from the overall message of Scripture, but it could make one wonder how we are to believe the Bible is accurate when it comes to something more sizable like salvation. Of all the ridiculous things I've heard preached from a pulpit, the worst was...well, before I fill you in, make sure you are sitting down. This particular service, the message was concluded with the shocking statement that “Jesus didn't die for you!" No further explanation was given even attempting to clarify his point. That was it! Following the concluding prayer, the shocked listeners ushered themselves out of the service and went about the rest of their day.

Hopefully, I have made my case as to why it is crucial we question things (I reiterate, not necessarily in public--there is a time and a place for everything) and weigh them against Scripture. Even the most well intentioned Christians get it wrong from time to time. I warn you, asking these questions is no easy task. Answering them is even more difficult. But, as Martin Luther said, "Peace if possible. Truth at all costs."

QUESTIONS, Part 1

During my tenure as a youth pastor a while ago, I went to several conferences. At one of these said conferences, in Indianapolis, I was first introduced to Bobble-Head Theater. What exactly is Bobble-Head Theater? It is a series of nine videos in which bobble-heads do what they do best. You guessed it, bobble! Well, that and other things. I’m not sure who created the videos—my guess would be a fellow youth pastor—and posted them on YouTube. Of this I am sure, they are quite comical (I have to warn you that you may find them to be, what’s the word--dumb). In each video the main bobble-head, Davey, learns a somewhat valuable lesson.

Episode six, titled What If You’re Wrong, inspired me (que cheesy inspirational music). This episode would serve as a spring board of sorts for me. After leaving the conference, I began rethinking and retooling some of my beliefs. For years I had just accepted the pat answers as fact. Finally, I was able to muster up the courage and actually do some research to find honest answers to my honest doubts.

This episode involves Davey asking each of his friends (which include Mr. T, The Lucky Charms Guy, and Hank Williams, to name a few) “What if you’re wrong?” about their various endeavors. Like Davey, at the end of the episode, I got to thinking, "What if I'm wrong?" What if some of my deeply held beliefs weren't really true at all? Could some of my beliefs be slightly skewed? How would that change things? Having said that, let me give you a disclaimer: in no way is this an attempt to discredit the church or Christianity! My desire through all of this is only to find the truth!

It is here, I have decided to add to the discussion and raise some questions. Take what you will, from the posts that follow, and discard the rest. Through them, I hope to clear a few wrong theologies that have weaseled their way in, thus making our paradigms either blatantly false or at the very least, somewhat skewed.

Now, I know there are some who just cringe at the very thought of asking "What if you're wrong?" Why? Perhaps it is because you, like me, have been raised to believe it is wrong to question your faith or what the Bible says; but most of all we never question the church. Or maybe it is just easier to go with the flow and not rock the boat. Then again, we may not want to honestly answer the question because pride stands in our way. We are right and that’s it; end of discussion. Or we have been avoiding this discussion because it only goes to show we don’t really know it all. And furthermore, we aren’t as in control as we think or would like to be. There is also the possibility we would actually have to alter the way we have been living our lives. You never know, asking the tough questions might even support and strengthen everything we already hold to be true.

If you care to check it out, here's the episode.

To be continued...

TATTOO: HEBREW

As I have previously mentioned in my blog, I don't just get ink for something to do. Let's be honest, having needles breaking your flesh repeatedly isn't the most enjoyable activity. While some aren't too painful, I could still think of other, less painful, things to do. And in case you weren't aware, tattoos don't come cheap either. Actually, let me rephrase that, good tattoos don't come cheap. For that reason, you don't see me with any tribal designs, some popular brand or logo, or various Chinese characters (no offense if you have any of these). Granted, the aforementioned tattoos can have some sort of significance or story behind them; I even know a few individuals like that. But, for me, there wouldn't be a point to them.

Today, we will pick up with the tattoo on my right forearm. More often than not, this is the tattoo I have random people ask me about. It may have something to do with the fact that it isn't in English. Or maybe it's the fact that most of my tattoos are covered and I don't walk around shirtless. When I inform them it's Hebrew, I get two common reactions. The first is a shocking look followed by the question, "Are you Jewish?" (this one never fails to amuse me.) After they come to the realization I'm not, they usually follow it with something like, "The Hebrew language is so beautiful, isn't it?" Remember, I'm a dude! Getting some lettering because it is beautiful isn't my style. While I want my tattoos to be aesthetically pleasing, how beautiful the letters are isn't in my criteria for choosing them. All of this was to tell you that I took a while to decide on this particular phrase. A lof of time was put into researching this and making sure I got it right. This was something, I needed to be constantly reminded of.

Permanently on my forearm is the phrase 'B'tzelem Elohim.' This Hebrew phrase, used in the creation account, is deep with meaning. Essentially, it is a summation of Genesis 1:26-28 where God turns his attention to the creation of man. When translated, at it's most basic level, B'tzelem Elohim means "created in the image of God." I realize this is a pretty basic truth; however, it's the most basic things we have the tendency to gloss over. Reality is that many of us struggle with this truth on a daily basis. Our understanding of its importance is lacking. And, let's be honest, this is a truth we all forget pretty day in and day out. My thinking, then why not get the constant reminder?

This phrase came to me at just the right time in life (funny how God does that). At the time, I was really struggling with some identity issues. To a point, I was unsettled about how things had been playing out lately. To be completely honest, life wasn't how I had expected it to be at that stage in life. I had been out of ministry for over a year, which was kind of rough for me. Afterall, that's why I went to college. I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted to do through most of my college career. But, this was making me question why I spent an exorbitant amount of money for that degree to just hung on my wall. Over several months, the questions began to surface. Did I totally misread God on my calling? Who am I without ministry? What am I really doing with my life?  Am I making a difference at all? Am I a disappointment to those around me?

Every time I look at this tattoo, I am reminded that none of that matters. What is truly important is the fact that I am created in the image of God. Not just any god, but the God. And my identity is solely defined by that reality. Nothing else! A glance at this tattoo eases the need I sometimes have to perform. It reminds me to take my focus off trying to please others and live in the reality that the only one worth pleasing is the one in whose likeness I have been created. And the funny thing is, because of this amazing thing called grace, that will never change...as long as I'm pursuing my creator.