Month: October 2008

In the face of Grief

On By CantelonIn Uncategorized1 Comment
 
There’s a lot of loss swirling around me these days. There are deaths and divorces everywhere I turn it seems. Just a great deal of brokeness. Now of course I realize that as a pastor I see more than most folks in this area but nevertheless these days it seems like everyone is suffering to some degree.
 
My grandfather died when I was 19-years-old. It was hard but I got over it. We weren’t that close. In my life he was the closest person to me who has ever died. My sister died when I was 3 or 4. I really don’t remember it well. My step-father died this year but once again we were not really that close. I’ve never had a friend die. I’ve never had a close family member die. I’ve never even had a close acquaintence die. Death, it seems, has been busy in other folk’s lives and it saddens me to see the grief and the great sense of loss.
 
Divorce I’ve seen plenty. In my direct family alone there have been three. If you include aunts and uncles then easily a dozen divorces. Divorce is a form of death. Once two who have become one are broken by divorce, something new that God has created is killed. This is why there is so much grief and pain and anger with divorce. Why it shares so many of the same emotions with death.
 
I know a number of people are grieving these days and perhaps wondering at the goodness of God in these circumstances. What does God do when confronted with death? How does He respond to it?
 
In the gospel of John Jesus is confronted with the grief of friends over the death of another friend – Lazarus. His response in the face of grief leads us to the shortest sentance in the entire Bible – "Jesus wept" John 11:35. God is not disconnected from our grief but in the face of it He grieves with us. He weeps.
 
But we should understand this grief in context. John 11:17-35 says:
 

On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.

    "Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask."

    Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."

    Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."

    Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

    "Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."

    After she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. "The Teacher is here," she said, "and is asking for you." When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.

    When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."

    When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. "Where have you laid him?" he asked. 
      
"Come and see, Lord," they replied.

    Jesus wept.

Upon meeting Jesus, Mary and Martha confront him with the words many of us would echo in the face of our own grief – "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." We would say "my mother, father, son, daughter, loved one". It is both an accusation and a truth. It cries out in grief "why did you not prevent this God?" God, in His mercy, does not condemn us for our grief but joins us in mourning death. But even as the accusation rings out the truth of the statement bears witness to our faith. The truth is that death flees in the face of God. Death has no power over Him. So when we cry out in grief and proclaim that this would not have happened had God been there we proclaim our faith in Him as Martha does when Christ asks her what she believes and she responds in her grief "I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God who was to come into the world."
 
Ultimately this is the challenge that faces us as we grieve. Do we cry out in an angry empty faithless way and rail against the senselessness of death. Do we grieve, like Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 4:13, like those who have no hope; or do we grieve like Mary? Do we grieve in the truth and certain hope of the ressurection and cry out to God the words of Martha as He weeps with us:
 
"I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who was to come in to the world."
 
 
 

Chairlift Bruises

On By CantelonIn Uncategorized2 Comments
 
I sometime wonder if it weren’t for Apple if I would ever discover any new music these days. It’s not like I hang out in clubs anymore and MuchMusic and MTV don’t really even play music anymore.
 
The latest Apple commercial dubbed ‘Nano-chromatic’ has a pretty catchy song by Chairlift called Bruises. Check it out if you get a chance. They’re not too bad and seem to fit into the musical niche I’ve been attracted to lately.
 
I’ve added it to the media player.

Gossip: Small Town Grapevine

On By CantelonIn UncategorizedLeave a comment
 

gossip

  • noun 1 casual conversation or unsubstantiated reports about other people. 2 chiefly derogatory a person who likes talking about other people’s private lives.

Gossip is verbal poison. There is no better way to describe it. The above definition comes from the Oxford English Dictionary and it is suitable but does not really speak to the human impact of gossip. In a small town gossip is like air – for some folks it is as though without it they would die. We are all guilty of spreading it once in a while. I know to my shame that I have engaged in it.

Not surprisingly the Bible has nothing kind to say about gossip and lists it among some of the worst of human activity. Check out Romans 1:28-32

Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Paul has some pretty harsh words here but not because he was the subject of gossip as much as what he knew gossip could do to the community of believers. Gossip is listed alongside murder and hatred. It is like an acid that can corrode the very bonds that hold community together. Eventually, if left unchecked it will destroy the community. Gossip kills.

I write this not because I am a target of gossip (and frankly I wouldn’t really care if I was) but simply as another of my various observations of life. Gossip is rampant among youth and we do our best to teach against it but on most occassions the youth I have heard gossiping are simply passing on what parents and older siblings have been modeling for them.

An odd thing about gossip is that some people have become so used to doing it that they no longer are aware of when it is happening. It simply has become a part of their personality, their fabric. So I offer a few tips on how to recognize and avoid it:

1. When in conversation with one or more people NEVER speak critically of a person or community who is not a part of the conversation. Never.
2. Before saying anything about anyone ask yourself why it needs to be said. Info for the sake of info is generally useless.
3. Before you raise a person for public prayer ensure you have that person’s permission first. Otherwise pray inwardly – God will still hear you.
4. When in conversation with others beware of sentances that begin in the following ways –

"Did you hear about (INSERT NAME HERE)?"
"Isn’t it sad about (INSERT NAME HERE)?"

5. If you find yourself on the receiving end have the courage to change the subject and tell the person why?

As damaging as gossip is it is relatively easy to avoid. Follow the above rules and I can guarantee you that you will never have to worry about spreading gossip. Smile

On Salvation a.k.a. A Shameless Theft

On By CantelonIn Uncategorized1 Comment
 
I should note right up front that I have blatently and shamelessly decided to steal an html link to a rather brilliant document and post the link here. I make no apologies for this theft but shout joyously – pecca fortiter! Of course I know I am abusing Luther’s phrase terribly and once again offer no apologies and rationalize with the statement "I’m not Lutheran or reformed anyhow so you can’t expect me to do the phrase justice…"
 
At any rate I really appreciate reading the sharp theological minds of AK and his wife KK on their blogs:
 
KK posted the following link to a great document written by Anglican Phillip Cary on the differences between Calvin and Luther’s theologies of salvation and faith (I am over simplifying here). Here’s the link. You should read it and let me know what you think. Really. Let me know.
 
 
 

The Cult of Personality

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As I am reading through Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s classic exposition on Christian community – Life Together, I am beginning to detect a thread in his writings. Bonhoeffer exisited as a practicing theologian and pastor in the midst of Nazi Germany under the rule of Adolph Hitler. He was martyred at the end of World War II just days before his prison was liberated by the Allies for crimes against the Reich. When one reads Bonhoeffer one detects a constant low level warning against the bestowing of too much power on a man.
 
In Life Together Bonhoeffer at one point contrasts human community with the community of the Spirit and he points out that in human community our natural desire to become one with one-another becomes twisted and perverted to the point where power and influence are used to force one or the whole community into your sphere of influence.
 
Again and again in various other writings and recordings Bonhoeffer always manages to warn against this rising cult of personality and to point out that it does not reflect God’s desire for humanity. In a famous radio address Bonhoeffer delivered in 1933 when he was 27-years-old he heavily criticizes Hitler and warns strongly against giving too much authority to one person and setting him up as an idol offensive to God. Bonhoeffer’s radio address was cut short by censors.
 
Community, whether it be church community, work community, political community or whatever, is always in danger of allowing itself to be lulled into the control of an individual.
 
In the Bible, I Samuel 8 relates the story of Israel’s request of God for a king of their own. "We want a king, just like the other nations have," the elders of Israel ask the prophet Samuel. God responds by telling Israel that He is their King and they need no other. Israel persists in its complaints and God ultimately relents having warned them that living under human authority, even authority designated by God, will not go nearly as well as they hope. God tells them that the king will eventually become a tyrant and abuse the authority he has been loaned.
 
In every community this is our broken nature and desire. We are not satisfied to be led by God but rather we constantly seek to set a person in authority over us. That person might be a pastor, or a mayor, a boss, a husband, a wife, a friend, a prime minister. It might even be the divisive head of a clique within the larger community. If we are not seeking to be king-maker then we are usually seeking to be the king. Anyone set into a position of authority over others needs to know that the greatest temptation will be to abuse the power they have…to use it without regard for God or the ones you hold authority over. This temptation to abuse power (usually either through sex or money) will likely destroy the individual but not before the community the individual leads is destroyed.
 
To submit the community to the leadership of God through His Spirit is the one way to avoid this disaster. Bonhoeffer writes that this is not worldly leadership but rather self-sacrificing servant leadership that models healthy relationship to others.
 
I think this wisdom of Bonhoeffer’s was a reflection of another kind of wisdom. The word of God is most powerful in our lives when it comes to us in the context of where we are and not randomly from a disconnected daily devotional. Bonhoeffer synthesized God’s truth within his own context – that of Nazi Germany and what resulted was powerful and life changing.
 
The question we need to ask ourselves is what context do we live in and how does the Word speak to that? Then – how can we speak into the context of our neighbour’s life? We cannot unless we are in relationship with them. It is only through relationship that we come to best understand the context of our brothers and sisters. When this happens then we can speak God’s Word and it is as if Christ Himself speaks to our neighbour. I wrote this in relation to preaching earlier.
 
This is why, as the good news of John 1 says in the Bible’s New Testament, "the Word became flesh and made His dwelling amongst us…" God came came into our context and lovingly related to us and spoke directly to us. The question isn’t whether he spoke effectively but whether we choose to listen.