Wilderness Journey

You cannot enter the Promised Land without first going through the wilderness. Between freedom from slavery in Egypt and the milk and honey of the Promised Land lies the God-intended wilderness filled with trial and testing. It is a character forming time, a character that God desires. Israel had to go through that wilderness. Jesus had to go through that too. In all the synoptic gospels we read that after Jesus was baptized and the voice of God pronounced God's approval of Jesus , he was led by God's Spirit into the wilderness to be tried and tested (Matt 3-4; Mk 1:9-12; Lk 3:21, 4:1-13). Hebrews 5:8 says that although Jesus was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. No matter who you are, if you are a Christian you will have to go through that wilderness of trial and testing. The Bible says that the disciples are not above the Lord. In John 15:20 Jesus tells his disciples that a servant is not greater than the master. Therefore not to expect a better treatment in life than the one Jesus received as the Son of God. But when we turn to the “health, wealth and prosperity gospel” of our culture, I feel that we are saying to Jesus we are better than you. Look you were poor, we celebrate prosperity, you were persecuted we wallow in popularity, you were rejected we enjoy wide acceptance.

Evangelism and Worship

Often the word 'evangelism' is not received well in our society. It is treated by many as a word that implies Christian arrogance, intolerance and superiority that tells people what they ought to believe. And for that reason many Christians shy away from evangelism. However, Apostle Paul viewed it very differently. He saw evangelism as an act of worship. In Rom 15:16 Paul writes, “... because of the grace given to me by God, so that the offerings of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.” Paul considered it a sheer grace extended to him by God when God called him into his service to go specifically to the Gentile (non-Jews) with the gospel and serve them. And he describes that ministry in terms of priestly ministry. A priest's responsibility among other things included making an offering to God. Paul is viewing himself as a priest who through the preaching of the gospel making an offering of Gentile converts to God. In essence Paul views his task of evangelism as an act of worship in which he makes an offering to God consisting of people he brings to God. In Isaiah 1:12-17 we read that God is not interested in offerings of animals or incense but in how God's people dealt with other people. The same is true of Christian worship, the true worship of God includes not merely bringing offering of  money or praise to God every Sunday, but by bringing offering of people whom God loves and people who were lost to God. The true offering that God desires is people reconciled to God. This is the offering that pleases God most. This is why we Christians must evangelize.  

Saved by Grace!

Paul writes in Ephesians 2:8-9, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast." When I attended a Catholic school in India they taught me a lot about what it meant to be saved by grace. This was 30 some years ago. During that time, in that school system if you worked really hard but failed to pass in a test by a few points, the teacher could decide to give you those much needed points and pass you. They called it grace marks. So if the passing score was 70 and you scored 65 the teacher would take a red ink pen write grace mark and give you those five points to pass you. According to Paul, we have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). What Paul means is that we have all failed to make the passing score in God's test in life. Mother Teresa might have scored a lot more than any one of us, but even she ended up with a few points short of the passing mark. Therefore, what you need is the grace mark that God offers through the blood of Jesus. And when you passed in such a way in that school in India you did not go about with a proud face or went home with any sense of pride, but with humility knowing that it was by grace that you have passed. The same is true of our salvation as Paul points out, it is a gift, not our own doing so that no one may boast.

What is lost in the Genesis Debate?

There is a lot of debate going on in our culture about Genesis 1. The Genesis writer was not mainly addressing 21 century scientific questions, but responding to the polytheistic culture of its time. Sometimes in the midst of the heated debate between young-earth and old-earth proponents we lose the beauty of what God is telling us through this beautiful text. Here are some of the things that we can learn if we choose to listen rightly.
1. Genesis 1 tells us that one God created everything out of nothing. It challenged stories afloat at that time about how everything was created. The Babylonian story of Enuma Elish describes discontentment between wild and young gods and older gods. Younger gods are led by an older goddess named Tiamat, the goddess of the primordial sea. Marduk, who led the older gods, kills Tiamat, and out of her corpse constructs the cosmos. Genesis writer, however, tells us that one God is the creator of the universe who created every thing out of nothing. While in the Babylonian story the universe is created from the corpse of goddess Tiamat, in Genesis it is created out of nothing.
2. Genesis 1 also tells us that natural elements are not to be treated as gods. Watery deep in Genesis is not personified as in Enuma Elish (Tiamat). Also the writer of Genesis uses the phrase “greater and lesser lights” to describe the sun and the moon created on the fourth day. In a culture that worshipped the sun and the moon, the Genesis writer wanted to make the sun and the moon seem nothing more than greater and lesser lights. Creation is also described as “good,” but not “divine” as it is in many cultures of the world. Genesis writer wanted to stress the fact that only God, the creator of all things is God.  
3. Also, Genesis 1 tells us that humanity is special. It tells us that on the sixth day God created humanity in his own image. It is well known that in both Egyptian and Mesopotamian societies the king or some high official was regarded as the image of God. Such designation was, however, not applied to ordinary working class people. Genesis however by claiming that humanity is created in the image of God made what was ordinary extraordinary, and made every one equal as the created image of God.  Also it is only after humanity is created that God calls it all not just good, but “very good.” In genesis 1 humanity is given dignity and entrusted with responsibilities and with authority. This is seen as a part of the divine plan. This stand in opposition Mesopotamian mythology that humanity was an afterthought of the gods or that people were created to take over the labor that gods were tired of doing.
4. According to Genesis 1, created order was "very good (31)." The number seven of seven days represents perfection. It opposes other religious ideas such as that of the later Gnostics that matter is bad.

 

No Individual Christianity!

Churches at times might be a pain to deal with, but there is no way of being a Christian without the Church. There is a growing number of people who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ, but claim not to attend Church for various reasons. This is a product of Western individualism. It is not Biblical. Paul calls the Church the "body of Christ" (Rom12:5; 1Cor 12:12-31). Paul says when you are baptized you are baptized into Christ's body (1Cor.12:13). That means that a person through baptism not only comes to belong to Christ, but also to his body, the Church. In Acts 2:43-47, in keeping with the extended family system of that time and culture the Church is seen acting as one such extended family by having things in common. Acts 20:28 talks about God obtaining the Church with the blood of his Son and not just individuals. The Church and not individuals is also defined as the bride of Christ (Eph 5:25-26). Even while writing to a highly dysfunctional Church like the one in Corinth, Paul refers to it as "sanctified and called to be saints (1Cor 1:2)." This is the high priority and value that the Bible places on the Church. Christians need to stick with Churches and strive to make them better. But leaving the Church is not an option. You cannot follow Christ and not be a part of his dysfunctional family. After all, Christ himself became a part of our dysfunctional humanity!

Remembering

In our Judeo-Christian tradition remembering is of utmost importance. Our identity as an individual or as a people is influenced by what we remember about our past and about ourselves. In Exodus 13:3 we hear Moses urging the people of Israel to remember their great deliverance from Egypt. This act of remembering is established forever in the Jewish celebration of Passover, and this act of remembering was meant to be more than just a mental exercise of recalling a past event, but it was meant to shape the Jewish identity and how they lived. As they remembered generation after generation what God did for them, they were to remember their identity of being God’s free people and live accordingly no matter what socio-political situation they found themselves in. The same is true of the Lord's Supper or the Christian reinterpretation of the Passover tradition. In the Lord’s Supper tradition as narrated by Paul in 1Corinthians 11:23-26 Jesus in verses 24 and 25 is heard saying as He breaks the bread and takes the cup, “Do this in remembrance of me.” In essence what Jesus is saying also is, ‘Never forget.’ What Jesus is asking us to remember is his self-sacrifice for our sins, and allow that remembrance to inform our identity and how we live in this world.   As we remember, no matter what socio-political situation we find ourselves in we need to live a life of self-sacrificial love toward God and others.

Prayer

We know that often a lack of healthy communication is the cause of breakdown of a relationship such as a marriage or a parent-child relationship. Counselors tell us that a healthy relationship whether between spouses or between a child and a parent should have a strong foundation of regular communication. Communication is also important for healthy development. That is why, for example, many TV advertisements on teenage alcoholism and drug addictions keep repeating the same mantra: take time talk to your children. Communication is important for a healthy relationship and healthy development. The same is true of our relationship with God. At the heart of that relationship lies also a need for constant communication called prayer in which we take time to listen to God as well as speak our hearts to Him. How healthy our relationship with God is dependent upon the communication we have with Him on a daily or weekly basis. And how healthy our development as Christians is also dependent on our prayer life.

Relevent?

"Is Church relevant?" That is the question many including Christians are asking. Let me ask, "Is water relevant?" In this land of plenty of options we try to make it relevant. We have various types of bottled water. We have fizzy water, sweet water, filtered water.... The list could go on and on. However water is basic necessity. It is needed for our survival. Do you think people in poor countries like Ethiopia care whether water comes in a bottle sweet and fizzy or not. Maybe the same is true of the Church. Maybe the question is not whether the Church is relevant. More importantly, in this land of plenty how can we make people poor and thirsty? Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit….(Matthew 5:3)

Bosating

Theologian Michael Gorman makes an interesting observation as he reflects on 2Corinthians 11:30-33. Here Paul boasts about his weakness in Christ as opposed to worldly boasting about power. And in verses 32-33 he tells his story of escape. When King Aretas guarded the city to capture him, he was let down through a window in the wall. Gorman points out, "One of the great glories of Roman battle was to be the first to climb the enemy's city wall and thereby enter the city. Such courage was rewarded with a golden crown, the "corona muralis" or "crown for the wall." In a stunning reversal of values, Paul claims that he has experienced the power of God in the weakness of going down the wall. This is, for him, a kind of corona muralis (Apostle of the Crucified Lord, 327)." Makes me wonder, as a Christian am I as counter-cultural as Paul? Does my boasting point to a reversal of my cultural values or conformity to them?  Do I boast about the number of people attending my Church or do I take pride in how much my Church is living sacrificially for others for Christ?  

Hypocrisy

New Testament scholar James Dunn describes the Christian life as one lived out in the tension between the old age (age marked by sin/ age before Christ) that is not completely gone and the new age ( age in which Christ reigns/ age marked by righteousness) completely arrived.  This tension is expressed in terms of flesh and Spirit (Rom 7:14-8:17), death and life (Rom 8:10-11), suffering and glorification (Rom 8:17). No wonder Christians are accused of hypocrisy! Without excusing any of it, may be at times hypocrisy itself is a product of that tension. While proclaiming the high and holy standards of God a Christian being human might fail to live up to it all the time. As a result a Christian might run the risk of being called a hypocrite. But as a Christian I would rather risk being called a hypocrite than be a well adjusted sinner before God!

Be a Dad!

As a chaplain it is my job to visit with inmates. I sit and hear their stories in order to place their behavior in the context of their stories. There in their stories sometimes I discover the source of their brokenness, their anger and their pain. One common theme that emerges from most of their stories is the theme of divorced parents and dads missing from their lives. My job as a chaplain is to help them through the power of God to turn their controlling stories (stories of their lives that control them such as that of a missing dad) into transforming stories (stories that they could learn from and be better). Their stories also helped me evaluate my role as a dad. What story will control/ transform my son and my daughter in the future is depended so much on how I play my part as their dad. Scary!!

What Has Christianity Done?

These days sometimes we hear a lot of criticisms of Western Christianity, both from non-Christians and Christians. Some of it might be well deserved. But sometimes, I think, we do not take time to acknowledge what Christianity has done. Christianity has built hospitals such as St. Francis or St. Luke's Medical Center, homeless shelters and great relief organizations such as Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity, established universities such as Harvard and Yale, and then provided hospice care for both believers and non-believers. From the very beginning of life, through life and till the end of life Christianity has been there. I am proud to be a Christian.

The Paradox of the Cross

John and James seeking prosperity for following Jesus requested that when Jesus becomes King that they be able to sit one on the right and the other on the left side of Jesus (Mark 10:37). They wanted to hold sits of power next to Jesus.  Instead of granting them their wishes, Jesus invites John and James to share in his suffering. As Mark points out, at the end the two bandits were crucified one on Jesus' right and the other on Jesus' left (Mark 15:27).  As if they were sharing  places of honor with Jesus as Jesus won victory over sin, death and the devil through the cross. A place next to the cross is where we Christians as sinners like those bandits are called. A place of paradox. A place where victory is won through losing, glory is earned through suffering, life is found through dying.  As Paul reminds us, "If, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him (Romans 8:17)."

Idolatry

Jeffrey Burton Russell, professor emeritus of History at the University of California-Santa Barbara states that Hitler believed that Christianity had weakened the German nation and had led to its defeat in the World War II. Dr. Russell Writes, "To say 'Heil Hilter' was an act of faith commitment. The term 'Heil' was not only a greeting; it also implied salvation. The traditional German word for Christ is 'Heiland,' the Savior."[1]  Instead of Christ, Hitler had established himself as the savior of Germany. We must be careful to whom or to what we say 'Heil.'

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[1] (Exposing Myths about Christianity, 47-48).

Discipleship

Scholar James Dunn in his commentary on Romans states, "If in Greek thought 'to know God' is to perceive God as he really is, in Hebrew thought there was a strong sense of knowledge as an acknowledging, a motivational recognition which expressed itself in the appropriate worship and obedience." That is why the Hebrew word 'shema' meaning to hear (Deuteronomy 6:4) implies to hear with the intention to obey. However It is sad that in some ways our Christian bible study as well our Christian living has become Greek rather than Hebraic, even though we claim to follow the God of the Hebrews rather than Zeus.

Materialism

One morning my five year old comes into my room all excited. She has a wiggly tooth. She wanted me to wiggle her loose tooth. I asked her why she was so excited about her loose tooth. She replied that the tooth fairy will bring her money. From Santa Claus to Tooth fairy, we are busy instilling in our children the value of goods and money through these so-called innocent Childhood rituals. And then as grownups we demand of them that they do not become so materialistic!!

Kingdom News

When I served as a pastor in Pomeroy, a small town of about 500 in Iowa, what fascinated me most is what they had in their news paper. They had news about who invited who for supper and what they served. At first I used to think is this news worthy?!! But now in the midst of bad news of gun violence, government shut down, wars, sickness and death I long for those simple news of people inviting people for a meal. Maybe that is what it would be like in the Kingdom of God. In the Kingdom of God not violence nor war nor corruption will occupy the headlines, but simple news, news of people inviting people and serving!

 

Grace

In the land of "tit for tat" sometimes it is hard to grasp God's grace. Why God died for sinners and why He forgives? After working in jail for now almost a month I am beginning to understand why. God knows our stories.  He sees men and women brought up and caught up in the dysfunctional stories of their lives.  He sees older men and women who committed crimes as young men and women who were bruised and abused. God takes into consideration our inescapable stories that influence who we have become, and not just our crimes. For that reason God offers us a chance, his grace. For that reason Jesus said, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do (Luke 23:34)."