Let me just say, Elton John and I go way back. And at first, I was quite fond of him. Our long-distance relationship all started when I was a wee little lad of six. I can remember quite vividly the night I first met him. In fact, it was a "dark & stormy night" in Columbus, Ohio. My sister Tam was babysitting my three sisters, brother and I while my mom and dad were out on a date. An hour after they left we heard tornado sirens blaring and my sister commandeered us all down into the basement. She was a fearless general; but being only novice foot soldiers, the rest of us were terrified. We thought we were going to die. Without skipping a beat my sister pulled out a record player and her brand new 45 single of Elton John's "Crocodile Rock." When she turned that song on, our fall-out bunker in the basement was transformed into a rockin' disco-tech. We forgot about any impending doom because we were too busy dancing to the groovy beat; and most of us kids became instant Elton John fans! Over the years I grew to love his music: "Rocket Man" (a great song to go to sleep by), "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" (a dangerous song when you have two violent sisters that like to hit their younger brother), "Bennie and the Jets" (a fun song for learning how to hit your high notes), "Your Song" (the ultimate first crush song). And on and on I could go... I remember when my brother Don was moving out of the house to work in Tennessee; I took Elton John's "Daniel" and rewrote it to "Donald." I changed the verses around to this: "Donald is traveling to Tennessee, I can see the read tail lights heading there without me...I can see Donald waving good bye. God it looks like Donald, must be the exhaust in my eyes... Donald my brother, you are older than me......." When I sang it it brought many tears to my family. You see, Elton John & I have shared a lot together. Even when my dad bought a brand new 1983 Ford "Thunderbird", he let me take it out for a spin; and when I turned on the radio the first song I heard was, "I guess that's why they call it the blues." All through the years, even though I enjoyed his music, I had questions about the man himself. Let's face it, he dressed a little funny! I wondered to myself..."Doesn't he know he is starting to look like Liberace?" And mind you, looking like Liberace was not a good thing. Liberace was Flamboyant, he talked creepy, and he was...well....I better not say. And then I started hearing rumors: Elton John was...well..I better not say. (If you are wondering, the word rhymes with 'say'). While I still admired the man's song, (I mean who didn't enjoy the Lion King's "Can you Feel the Love Tonight" when it first came out) I began to question his social agenda and sanity. Let's just say, when you go bankrupt because you spent over $55 million in a mere 20 month period of time, you know something is just not right. During his spending binge he spent $450,000 on flowers alone. I like flowers, but, c'mon? Needless to say, I distanced myself from him, and I almost completely forgot about him -- that is, until yesterday. I was reading the daily news on my tablet and came across this in "The Guardian": The musician, who plans to marry his civil partner David Furnish next year in a "very quiet" ceremony, said that rules preventing gay clergy from marrying and requiring Catholic priests to be celibate were "old and stupid things". He told Sky News's Murnaghan programme: "The church hierarchy, the traditionalists, might be up in arms about it but times have changed. "If Jesus Christ was alive today, I cannot see him, as the Christian person that he was and the great person that he was, saying this could not happen. "He was all about love and compassion and forgiveness and trying to bring people together and that is what the church should be about." Wow, Elton is not just a pop-musician anymore, he has become an expert on Roman Catholic Church Polity! While I am not shocked that he is getting married to a man (you had to be blind not to see that one coming), it bothers me how he now thinks he can speak for Jesus. Not only did he reject the church over the years; but in this quote he seems to be claiming intellectual and moral superiority over the church. Seems sort of arrogant and foolish to me? When did he change from being a pop-song writer to becoming the Pope? Elton, while I still like some of your music, I can't join you in this. This is the problem with our fascination with fame: we don't rightly discern stupidity because we are blinded by popularity. Because a man can sing about two cartoon lions falling in love, doesn't make him an expert on the biblical portrait of marriage. All he really is doing in this press release is trying to "justify his decision to marry a man" before the world. We do this all the time - - when we ignore the clear will of God to do whatever we want, we often mock the teachings of the church and the intelligence of God. This is not a good place to be, nor is it a wise way to understand the truth. So while you may enjoy crying to "Candle in the Wind" don't throw your convictions into the wind because a famous man said a stupid thing. Oh Elton...how could you do this to me after all these years?
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If you want to become a thinker you must first think about this.... "I would not give a fig for the simplicity this side of complexity, but I would give my life for the simplicity on the other side of complexity." Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. Most of your average water cooler conversations are steeped in simplicity on "this side." You have heard them, and you have participated in them: - "Dude, who are you going to vote for?" ... "No one man, all politicians are greedy pond scum." .... "Yeah, you're right." - "Debbie, why aren't you dating?".... "Because all men are idiots!" ... "Yeah, you're right." - "Hey Honey, try a bite of my lobster." ... "Nah, I hate all sea-food." ... "Yeah, but you have never ever tried sea-food." ... "So?" When it comes to faith and belief, most people you talk to are thinking on "this side" of complexity. Rarely in your average conversation will you find a person who has evaluated religious ideas with complex thought. More and more these days, thinking is nothing more than reaction. People are trying to make an impression on the listener rather than logically communicating. Celebrities are masters at this kind of "this side" thinking. When asked about Jesus and God, listen to some of these "cool" responses: * Brad Pitt: "I'm probably 20 percent atheist and 80 percent agnostic; I don't think anyone really knows. You'll either find out or not when you get there, until then there's no point thinking about it." * Angelina Jolie: "There doesn't need to be a God for me. There's something in people that's spiritual, that's godlike. I don't feel like doing things just because people say things, but I also don't really know if it's better to just not believe in anything, either." * Elton John: "From my point of view I would ban religion completely, even though there are some wonderful things about it. I love the idea of the teachings of Jesus Christ and the beautiful stories about it, which I loved in Sunday school and I collected all the little stickers and put them in my book. But the reality is that organized religion doesn't seem to work. It turns people into hateful lemmings and it's not really compassionate." Now, Elton John has a point. Sometimes religious people are "this side" thinkers too. And Christians who have never really wrestled with the complexity of what the Bible says, or sees no necessity for doctrine or theology, or sets legalistic rules and standards to control people, can only react. These kinds of Christians are doing a great disservice to the wonder of knowing Jesus. For instance, Elizabeth Gilbert (author of "Eat, Pray," Love") calls herself a Christian. But her's is not a "thinking" Christianity. Just listen... “Culturally, though not theologically, I’m a Christian. I was born a Protestant of the white Anglo-Saxon persuasion. And while I do love that great teacher of peace who was called Jesus, and while I do reserve the right to ask myself in certain trying situations what indeed He would do, I can’t swallow that one fixed rule of Christianity insisting that Christ is the only path to God." So, let's get this straight, she is a Christian but she does not believe anything Christ says about himself (John 14:6)? Does anyone see the contradiction? Before you write her off, you must realize she is listened to and read by millions. In fact, she is going on a speaking tour in October with Oprah Winfrey and Rob Bell. People are being suckered into "this side" thinking every single day. If you are a Christian, learn...to...THINK! In this Sunday's sermon on John 7; Nicodemus says something all aspiring thinkers must take very serioiusly: “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?” In other words, before you come to any sort of conclusion about Jesus, God, or any important issue for that matter; you must work through the complexity to get to the "other side." On the other side is wisdom, genius and maturity. That is why our court system operates with the principle of "innocent before proven guilty." It gives the judge and jury time to hear and evaluate the evidence...and so should you! This is even true when you talk about sports, chick flicks and sea-food. Don't write something off until you give it a fair hearing. This may be one time I completely agree with Jim Morrison of the "Doors": We must do all we can to "Break on Through to the Other Side!" One of the most troubling verses of scripture for me to understand and live by is 1 Thessalonians 4:11-13: "Make it your ambition to lead a peaceful and quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody." I dare you to try to live your life like this?
And if you do I guarantee you will be accused of being a selfish cold-hearted person who doesn't care about your community. You will be considered elitist. And you will be held responsible for not paying for the problems of everyone else. In fact, since you are so selfish, politicians have no problem giving you the IRS shakedown to get you to pay your fare share! You're found guilty for good livin'. What's "good livin'" you ask? Remember when summers seemed so innocent? You played sand-lot ball until 5:00, and came home to eat your mom's tuna fish casserole. Your dad would be there sitting at the table with a loosened tie because he just got home from work, and after saying "grace", he would begin the table talk by asking you what you did all day. And then, after dinner he promised to throw the baseball with you right after he took the dog for a walk. People, back in the day, seemed content with simplicity. You never had to worry if your next door neighbor was a sexual pervert because he was too busy "minding his own business" cutting the lawn or throwing baseballs with his own kids. Those where the days when dad worked hard, saved, and your big vacation was meeting up with your cousins for the weekend in small town Americana. Our cousins lived in Perrysville, Ohio and we would go canoeing for our "big" fun. (No Disney....sad...I know) Nowadays, people have said "good riddance" to that kind of living. In fact, the educated intelligentsia blame that kind of "Leave it to Beaver" living for all of America's problems. It is too clean, too simple, too false. Now, Ward Cleaver is categorized as a male chauvinist and June Cleaver is seen as the victimized repressed & oppressed woman who is enslaved to a life of drudgery in the kitchen. Ward and June are to be ridiculed, despised and mocked. It is argued in the Ivy League Schools of our country, that this model of family is what has really been the true curse of the U.S. What we need is some honest dysfunction & liberation to really be living "true to ourselves." June needs to dump Ward and go out clubbing with her gal pals after working at her career....making a name for herself. Ward needs "to find himself" because he may be gay after all? If you read columns from today's social experts, we should all be ashamed of ourselves for wanting to live in peace and quiet. That is why I now daily walk around loaded down with heavy guilt. Especially as a pastor, when someone has an addiction, or has left his wife; somehow "I know" it is all my fault ; I should have seen it coming or stopped living in my self-centered world and prevented it. It is my fault for not being there. It's my fault for wanting to spend much of my time, "minding my own business" and trying to raise my kids in a healthy home. My foundational failure is my inability to relate to, and constantly care for, the people who are marginalized and at risk because they have not been raised as privileged and lucky as me! It's my fault that I want to be able to keep some of the money I worked hard for. It's my fault people sin. Truly, I feel guilty for being raised right. I feel guilty for wanting men to be men, women to be women, and having neighbors that are not sex fiends. I feel guilty for wanting to spend my free-time with just my family to enjoy a Saturday at the beach without needing to rescue a person in crisis. I even feel guilty that I am a male; and I am ashamed to admit it, but I don't want my son to wear women's clothes. Boys wearing women's clothes is weird, isn't it? Not anymore they tell me, and I should quit being so judgmental of the other boys that do. (Who are "they" by the way?) And the worst guilt I carry above all, is that I am white. I'm sorry, God did that to me... As I look back on my childhood I realize that it wasn't perfect. I did have some difficulties...my sister is mentally retarded (yep, that is the word we used), my dad was a busy traveling salesman and as a result he could only go to one or two of my games a year. My sisters had strange boyfriends. We had to eat leftovers. I even had to get a job in the summer...mean parents! But for some reason, I never felt victimized by the system...and no one owed me anything! In fact I kind of liked having to learn to wait for dinner, it made the taste that much better. Well, those days of simplicity are long gone. With the death of Ward and June, we now have "Modern Family" instead. According to the current social engineers, "Victory has been won!" Sure it is more colorful, hilarious, and it is exciting when no one knows who should be dad, or mom, or even how brother and sister should dress. But don't be surprised or shocked when in real life the 65 year old next door neighbor solicits your children for a sexual hook-up over social media. Or your daughter's camp leader is a 45 year old man who wants to sleep in the girls tent. With confusion comes corruption. Goodbye peace, so long quiet. And welcome to "it takes a village," or more apropos ... "it takes a trailer park." Those rotten Christians! My 8 month old old baby was perfectly fine, and then I put him into the nursery and he came home with the croup. I knew I couldn't trust those Baptist people and their babies..they are a bunch of hypocrites! Sounds silly, doesn't it? But people often use the same kind of reasoning whenever a Christian leader fails, commits a crime or ... acts like the rest of the broken world around them. Last week a prominent Christian radio personality was accused of a horrendous sexual crime, and the vitriol against his crime was both profuse and perfectly understandable. But the spewing of venom & hatred didn't just focus on this one man's aberrant behavior; people used this as an opportunity to indict all pastors and Christian leaders. Listen to the anger... "If you're a parent you need your head examined for letting your kids get anywhere near a church or the clergy. Seriously, all religion is like a drug and it will turn you into some kind of depraved animal. I just don't get it at all." "I grew up in the Christian community. While the regular people who attend church tend to be true believers, almost everyone at the top is a charlatan or a fraud. Christians are continually bilked and used by their leadership." While I can sympathize with the cry for justice, I strongly disagree that Christian leaders are the worst offenders. I am not asking for people to ignore this man's crime, but to be consistent. Crime, evil and hypocrisy are not just a Christian problem...they are universal human maladies. Why did the baby catch the croup? The flu virus. It just so happens when you place your child in a large group with other human beings, the odds are that your child will be exposed to a number of cold and flu virus's. This would be true even at an atheist daycare! In the same way, Christians are humans too. Not supermen, not perfect model's of piety, but broken people in need of saving. Like the flu virus, sin his warped all of humanity. No one is exempt. One of the Homeland Security agents investigating this crime made this comment, "We see violators from pretty much all social-economic statuses and all professions, it’s amazing what we see, so we’re really not too surprised anymore." The deeper issue I think we need to wrestle with is this: "Sure, we all sin, but shouldn't we hold Christian leaders to a higher standard than other people?" - YES, absolutely! - & NO, because you can't hold the whole system guilty for the sin of one depraved individual. The Christian Bible is clear: a man or woman who wants to be a leader needs to meet a set of certain criteria which are summed up by two words, "Above Reproach." (1 Timothy 3:1-13) The church body has a responsibility to examine leaders and hold them accountable; they are not to be rogue agents, or tyrannical kings. On the other hand, the Bible also recognizes that people will sin, including leaders and church members. We are to care for, rebuke and restore those who have fallen (Galatians 6:1-5). And those who desire to come back, we must do all we can to bring them back. Not write them off forever. The Bible is honest about human frailty...but it also recognizes the world is watching us closely, so we constantly need to be on guard and vigilant to be a pure people. What I do find rather odd is how the people quickest to judge the failings of Christians seem to be atheists and agnostics. Aren't they the ones who hate morality being imposed on the rest of us? And even more ironic, is that they judge us by using our standards to do the judging. Why do they even care? Sure, they want to shut the judgmental loud mouthed Christians up - - but even more than that they "secretly" are showing that they live by moral codes too. Deep down in their soul they know what is right and what is hideously wrong. So when they voice their anger and demand for justice, they don't even seem to realize they are hurting their own cause. If they wanted to be totally consistent, they should be O.K. with the strong exploiting the weak. But even a good atheist wants to destroy evil too...while at the same time they adamantly deny evil even exists. Even an atheist hates it when their baby has the croup. As Sting once sang, "I know the Russians love their children too!" Maybe, instead of wondering why a man committed a hideous crime; we should all join together to prevent sin and human fallenness from destroying our very own home and church. Pray for our leaders, and pray for the victims. Also...pray for this broken and depraved man. And one last word: if you are an atheist, the next time you hear about a Christian falling be careful how you react, you may be giving yourself away! You really don't want the world to know that you have a moral heart too! What if Jesus had an agent?
Maybe a savvy negotiator could have gotten Jesus the perfect gigs and nightclub headliners at the Jerusalem Jazz Fest for miracle night or a healing extravaganza? That would attract the big paying crowds, wouldn't it? Man, oh man, if he had a few European speaking tours he could have persuaded the world to believe in him without even needing the cross? Just think: A good marketing plan and a polished mission statement could have saved Jesus a lot of grief… don’t you think? Jesus’ own brothers thought so! In John 7, they encouraged him to really go BIG. In a loose paraphrase, his brothers said something like this to him in verses 2-4, “Why not leave podunk Galilee and take your talents to the big city of Jerusalem? Show the world your stuff and they will love you! If you got it brother, flaunt it!” There is only one problem with this suggestion: this is not why Jesus came! Jesus’ goal was not to “win friends and influence people,” but to DIE! For many modern day Christians, we tend to forget this. Enjoying the show is so much more fun than weeping over our sin; and just like his brothers, we foolishly imagine the best bet for the gospel is “Puttin’ on the Ritz!” We think…”Wow, imagine the various ways Jesus could attract the crowd: he could heal, he could preach with power, he knew how to use edgy and raw props like spittle & mud, and you know he was the first to really sport the anti-establishment post-modern beard? Such possibilities…” People are suckers for Hollywood & Hype…and if the show attracts a big crowd, we think, “all the better for God,” right? I am not so sure…think about it… - Doesn't the incessant need to do anything to attract more and go BIG reveal the god we really worship: the world and their praise? - If we think we need more celebrities and athletes to jump on the Christian bandwagon to legitimize the gospel, and it is important to us to have pollsters confirm that Jesus is still popular; then doesn't that mean God has to keep active and pull out all the stops "to get out the vote" just like any ole regular politician? - If the Gospel is only seen as powerful if it makes someone successful, or worship is only genuine if the hot ladies in church are up front singing, than is it really a message for the common man? Who was the gospel meant for anyway? People like you and me: FAILURES, FOOLS, SINNERS AND SLOBS. And if that is true, than why do we get so excited when Tim Tebow gets signed by a team (because honestly, he is not that good)? Does it mean God is back on top and he can make anyone who believes in him successful too? Or any news of a pop star singing about Jesus like Carrie Underwood, we think the gospel is “winning” once again? YEAH!!! I remember when I first started in Youth Ministry, every teen that could play a guitar had dreams of starting a Christian band. If you were to ask them why, they would tell you, “I want to use my talents for Christ.” But I had this sneaky suspicion that what they really wanted was to dip into the new sea of fanatical followers after seeing all the success of Jars of Clay and Third Day. “Wow, finally, music we could jam too without being embarrassed…and if I hit it big, go on tour, get black eyeliner like Kevin Smith (or is it Kevin Max?), witness to the hardcore group KORN as I headline for them, than I am finally doing something for the kingdom of God. Right? Oh yeah, it would be cool to …’have a limo, ride in the back, and lock the doors in case I’m attacked (anyone remember that song?)’” Nowadays, all the rage is to be a Christian Movie Maker, an actor, or maybe even a script writer. Now that most churches allow their people to go to the theater, this has become the new road to reach the masses with the gospel. My guess, it is also a cool and intoxicating way to achieve fame, glory and big money. Many trendy Christians disguise their desire for success by intellectually arguing that, “story and narrative is what reaches people instead of straight forward proclamation and the need to understand doctrine & theology. The new road for evangelism for the church is to get a film to be screened at the Sundance Film Festival, buddying up with Robert Redford." Individual Christians even convince themselves they need to go to film school because “I know I am gifted with filming and movie making because I was in church dramas and I am also really good at posting You Tube videos.” I remember talking to one person who actually told me that it is O.K. for him to watch all the movies Hollywood ever put out, even the rotten pornographic ones, because he watches them with an artist’s eye! He is a movie expert, so he evaluates them with a trained eye, not like your average novice movie-goer who only wants a cheap thrill. And then he finished his foolish justification by saying: “And let me tell you, I really love movies.” Tell me, “Who doesn't?” Remember when “Passion of the Christ” came out? Churches would buy whole theatre showings because it was going to be a powerful tool for the gospel. Mel Gibson wrote and produced it, Mad Max and Braveheart himself, just think? It made some big money, it was eye catching, it was brutal. . . and the hype only lasted 6 months. “O.K. Mel, what’s next?” Then he went off the deep end. Tell me, do churches still promote the “Passion of the Christ” to reach people? No, it’s “Facing the Giants,” “Fireproof,” and “Courageous,” now. Maybe even putting big studio money in projects like “Noah,” are going to win the world? Russell Crowe for Jesus! (I don’t think so) Am I against movies being made with Christian themes? No, but the desire for fame, making it big, and using Hollywood marketing tactics as a substitute for one-on-one sharing and loving others… I am against. Jesus came to engage a broken world…not to impress a highly competitive world. He didn’t come to win, he came to die. He isn’t here to impress but to bleed. What is interesting, in the same chapter of John, Jesus said that the way you can tell if his teaching is genuine or not is by “doing the Will of God.” He didn't say by “watching.” (picture is taken in the Russian Caucus Mountains, wearing authentic Cossack uniform. While Michelle is taking a donkey ride) So you think you're a history buff, eh? What do these two words mean: "perestroika" and “glasnost"?
If you said "restructuring" and "openness", you may have a chance at being the next Jeopardy champ. Well, in 1985 when Mikhail S. Gorbachev took over the helm of the Soviet Union, he instituted these two policies which quickly led to the collapse of many Soviet regimes throughout Eastern Europe. European history has always fascinated me, and I was fortunate enough in the next few years after "glasnost" to be able to travel around Eastern Europe. I experienced firsthand, the oppressive remnants of the Soviet political grip. Some of the countries I visited and lived in are as follows: - 1992: Dresden, East Germany; Prague, Czechoslovakia; Brno, Czechoslovakia; Warsaw, Poland; Czestochowa, Poland. - 1995-96: Stavropol, Russia (1 whole year) - 2012: Nessebar, Bulgaria In each of these cities, including Bulgaria almost 20 years after the policies of openness, Soviet influence and ideology was still stamped on everything from family life to the local marketplace. As an apple pie eatin' American; I was fascinated by the extreme differences in Soviet culture as compared to the suburban utopia (tongue in cheek) that I was raised in. Two things really stood out to me as profound differences from what I was used to... (1) The role of "Father" and "Dad" in the Soviet system was strategically hijacked by the Government. Nuclear families, where a mom and dad raised their kids and were highly involved in their instruction, were few and far between. There seemed to be either single-moms living in one room apartments, or larger flats housing two or three generations of parents and grand-parents usually run by a controlling grandma. Not only was there a shortage on housing, but people needed to pool all income in order to survive. One man I knew had to work three jobs just to make ends meet; wages were set purposely low, which required women to work as well. So what were they to do with the kids? Government day care, of course. That is where they learned "collectivism" first-hand. All toys are owned by everyone, all kids need to learn how to blend into society, no one is truly special. What you have is really mine...equal, equal, equal. (Translation: Equally bad, and no one cares) (2) The misunderstanding of "profit" and "incentive as motivation." I can clearly remember when we would go to the store to buy bread or meat and the ladies behind the counter would not help you unless you directly addressed them, "Woman, help me here." If you didn't call out, you would get no service. Why is this you ask? Because they got paid the same whether they worked hard or not. In fact, I had a discussion with a Russian who was upset at the Georgian merchants who came to sell their wares. (Note: this is the Country of Georgia, south of Russia). They were upset that the Georgians would try to make a profit; in fact the Russians called them thieves. I once asked, "Why are they thieves?" Answer: "Because they told us they bought the shirt for $5 in Georgia, and they are charging us $8 to $10. That isn't fair, we should only pay what they paid. Equal, equal, equal." I asked them if they understood the terms "profit margin" and "overhead" and "travel expenses" and they looked at me with a blank stare. I wonder if Americans understand that these same two bi-products of the decrepit Soviet system seem to be creeping in here: loss of dad's influence, and loss of incentive to work? I wonder if anyone cares that America is daily becoming more and more centrally controlled just like the vast Communist bureaucracies? I wonder if our politician's naive "idealism" is really driving us down to the dreadful reality of "false equality" and "lack of incentive?" I wonder if anyone cares? Sure we should want to help people, but really, is Soviet collectivism the right answer? Or maybe the old adage no longer applies: "Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day; teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime." One thing to consider, if we wait for the Government to feed us fish, I heard they only know how to catch bottom feeders...so you better like eating catfish! No lobster or perch for you! (this post is dedicated to Jared Doty. The originator of the piece) Do you enjoy the downfall of your rival? Do you delight in saying, "I told you so?" I hate to admit it, but I do; and I often wonder why it tastes so good? After-all, a Christian is supposed to be for everyone, to pray for those who hurt you, and to love your enemies. But still, there is something sweet about watching an antagonist fall...especially when they like to rub their victories in your face. If you have read my blog for any amount of time, you know I am a Cleveland, Ohio native. So when it comes to the NBA, I naturally have disdain for Lebron James...in my mind he was disloyal to the city that raised him. So, after the Heat suffered a humiliating final series against the San Antonia Spurs - - I have to admit it, I experienced a sweet taste of delight. Is that wrong? My personal opinion is that when you play sports you enter into a different kind of arena: competition is the name of the game and if you trash-talk, "Not one, not two, not three, not four,not five, not six, not seven...and when I say that I really believe it. (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYe8B--jrbs)," you better be able to take it when you get destroyed. It is fun to beat your competition...but there is another level of passion and pride that is just not healthy. Danger occurs when you start to hate. This tendency can occur in almost every arena of life; when competition or disagreement turns into internal rage and you start to despise others. And this feeling is more than an innocent case of "shadenfruede," this is vile sin. There is nothing more tragic when you see... - People hating a spouse they once obsessively loved. Divorce & Hatred are too often rotten bedfellows. - When people won't even pray for the leader of their country because they really think he is the Anti-Christ. That's not right, nor is it moral! - When people back-bite and gossip about others in their family or church because they either had an argument, are jealous, didn't show up to an important event, or they have information that you don't want them having. Gossip is hatred packaged as a tasty treat to share. Hatred is wrong, because you are despising the image of God that has been placed on another human being. Listen to how simple Jesus makes it... Matthew 5:43-45 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven." When jealousy rages or I feel the unhealthy urge to compete, I follow the lead of my brother. He has modeled for me of how you should shut your mouth and do something alone with God. He goes running, biking, anything outdoors to expend that passion in a healthy way. Personally, I like to go to the woods and scream. Sounds weird, I know, but it helps. The NBA has a short-shelf life, the finals are over, they will play again in four months and no one will care who won yesterday. But it is the long term rage and hatred that will kill you - - holding grudges for years and never learning how to forgive will shrink your soul. If hatred has gotten a hold of you, you have got to learn to let it go (Spare me the Frozen references). And remember, Jesus paid the price for others, so you can set them free. "Wow, it is hot in the desert." There it is, just over the hill...the lights of Vegas. You and your buddy have 200 bucks to spend; that makes it 100 dollars for each of you to try to win big for the company. Your boss has given you this money to gamble with and you must make a profit; or you are fired. (I know, this would never happen, but just go with it.) As you drive down the strip you wonder what game of chance to play: Slot machines? Roulette Wheel? Maybe Texas Hold-em? Oh look, there is sign out in front of one of the Casino's that reads: "New game, 'The Layup Payoff', if you make a simple basketball layup you double your money each time!" Hmm, sounds fishy, too good to be true. I think I will place my money on the Roulette wheel where I know I am dealing with nothing but sheer luck - - that is what a true Vegas experience is all about! So, you both go to the Roulette wheel, your buddy puts all his money on "Black 11" and you choose "Red 36." Spin, spin, spin . . . "Black 7!" You both lose...you both get fired...you both are fools! Fool: this is the word the bible uses for a non-thinker, brainless ignoramus, a person who acts out of impulse instead of reason. And it also is a person who is willing to gamble on their life without considering the odds. Life is a gamble, and everyone must bet. And your life is the currency you are placing on the table to either "Make a profit" or "Lose it all." It's your choice, so...place your bet! THE WAGER: Have you ever heard of Blaise Pascal? He was one smart dude that lived in France from 1630-1660. He was a genius mathematician who invented the calculator, he wrote the Pascal computer language and he was also a very insightful philosopher back in the day. He also was a Christian who believed sincerely in Jesus Christ as his Savior and God! One of his life goals was to try to convince the brilliant thinkers of his day that faith in Jesus was, mathematically speaking, a better bet than having no faith at all. So he came up with a formula famously called, "Pascal's Wager." (He was a brilliant thinker, so I am going to simplify some of his complex reasoning...this is a blog after all and people don't have much time to think these days. There are things to do, shows on TV, selfies to edit.) He began his argument by proposing: The goal of any wager is to first "determine what is the best bet." You do that by calculating GAIN (probability of winning X the return on the win). If we were playing "The Layup Payoff" calculating gain would be quite simple: More than 80% of my attempts would be a winner. The payoff was good, double my money. If I had 1 dollar and bet it, I would double it by making a layup, $2. And let's say I made 10 layups in a row my earnings would be $512. Not a bad bet! Next, calculate the COST. What would happen if I missed a layup, what would I lose? If I bet a dollar and missed the layup, I would lose a dollar. No skin off my back. If I was up to $512 and I bet all $512 and missed, now that hurts. So as I continued playing, I would learn to hedge my bet by holding some money back while continuing to play. Get the picture? Now after you subtract the cost from the gain, you get your "EXPECTED VALUE." The bet with the higher expected is the logical choice to place your money on. Straight roulette is a terrible bet as compared to "The Layup Payoff." When it comes to gambling on your life there are 5 rules that you must play by. You really cannot bypass them because you want to, or you think you have special exemptions. No, you are a human being living on the earth and you must play by the rules; just like everyone else. Rule 1: You must place a bet. If you are living and breathing, you are betting. You are betting on what is the best way to live now, and you are definitely betting on what kind of life you are going to receive after your heart stops beating. Rule 2: How you live reveals your bet. When you sleep around with people that you are not married to, or when you use the "Lord's Name in Vain," you are betting that God does not see! Or for that matter, you are betting he doesn't exist at all. If you "really" believe he is watching, you will live a clean life. Rule 3: No one has ever seen God, so we cannot say with 100% certainty "God Exists." If you try to argue this with an Atheist he will marshal out facts on his side to prove you wrong; and often he thought about his arguments more than the average Christian. So be careful, he knows how to make the average Christian look silly. So we will play it fair and say the probability on both sides is a 50% chance God Exists, and 50% chance he doesn't. (I know for Christians that percentage seems crazy because you know with a strong certainty he exists. But the Atheist won't buy into your evidence that easily because he will say it is mostly subjective. But don't worry, give the wager a chance.) Rule 4: Determine costs: This will take time, but both sides have to be honest about the immediate losses of choosing one side over the other. For instance: Christians must endure a lot of self denial to their passions and wants, they must embrace suffering as a good thing, they are often thought of as uncool and out of touch, and they are definitely excluded in social gatherings, parties and cultural debates. But Atheists have some real costs too: they go through life suffering without hope, they live without meaning, they are often considered arrogant and snarky, and when people see someone that is only living for self, they are not to be trusted. Think Bill Mahrer...really, who likes the guy? Sure he is witty, rich and is great at mocking people - - but over time his arrogance gets extremely irritating! Rule 5: Determine gains: You must take into account not just short-term payoff, but long-term winnings as well. For the Atheist, all they got to bank on is short-term gain, and when I say short-term, it is really short-term. An Atheist can live with "guilt free" pleasure, but pleasure is fleeting. They have no restraints, they have complete control over what they want to do, and in their mind, they are free, not constrained by a tyrant God and his cold, narrow followers. (I am not entering in the equation at this time the costs of addiction that their "supposed freedom" has given them). But they must also be honest, the Atheist has "zero" long term gain. For the Christian, there is both short & long term gain. They are trustworthy people of character, they have a loving community, they have hope in crisis, they have meaningful answers for their existence, and the list goes on. Long-term, well let's just say "heaven" is a pretty good deal! It really is. The Atheist scoffs and says, "Heaven, c'mon, it sounds too good to be true!" HERE ARE THE RESULTS... After every game of chance, you will have a "Winner" and a "Loser." Everyone knows that! If you are a Christian and you... LOSE: There really is NO MEASURABLE SORROW because when you die, you don't remember a thing. You are decaying in the dirt, you have no emotions, you are non-being and non-being has no mind. You become the stuff a rock thinks about...nothing. WIN: You will experience PROFOUND SATISFACTION for you just gained the whole world! Not a bad deal! You will see your loved ones again, you will walk in a land that is perfect, you will never go hungry, be thirsty, or have sorrow. You will never cry again. And God promises you a perfect body! That seals the deal for me! If you are an Atheist and you... LOSE: You will experience PROFOUND DISSATISFACTION for not only will you be able to consciously realize you were wrong; but there is this little contractual note in the Bible that talks about a place called HELL. Let's just say, "You don't want to go there!" You won't see your loved ones again, you won't be having parties there, you will cry, gnash teeth, and be in utter torment. And you will be completely alone. This is bad... WIN: There really is NO MEASURABLE JOY because when you die, you don't remember a thing. You are decaying in the dirt, you have no emotions, you are non-being and non-being has no mind. You become the stuff a rock thinks about...nothing. And the worst part, even though you win, you can't tell anyone "I told you so!" Sure today you can vehemently argue your point, and in your mind be right, but ultimately no one cares! So go ahead, get angry, prove your point...it doesn't matter because in the grave, "I Can't Get NO...Satisfaction!" In Summary: I only have one thing to say: after considering the odds, the payoff and the return, it is time for you to ..."Place Your Bet!" Teardrops rolling down on my face Trying to forget my feelings of love... Feeling, woo-o-o feeling Woo-o-o, feel you again in my arms "Would you rather have someone love you out of obligation or desire?" Easy, right? DESIRE! I want someone to be with me, not because they have to, but because they want to. I want the ... FEELINGS. What happens when the feelings go? What happens when that person you want gains a few pounds, or develops a few wrinkles? What happens if someone has a debilitating disease or is involved in an accident where they can no longer walk? Goodbye, feelings...woo-o-o feelings! So are you saying you want me to not have feelings? No, what I am saying is that we should not base decisions on the sparkle instead of the substance. True love, biblical love, is born in the will. I make promises to someone based on my convictions about God and the character of the person I want to commit myself to. If love is real feelings will NATURALLY come, but they are never the sum and substance of my commitment to the other. What makes gold gold? The yellow shine or the chemical makeup of the substance (Gold="Au" has an atomic number of 79 for all you chemistry geeks out there)? There is such a thing as fools gold, the technical name for it is pyrite. It has a harder surface than real stuff; but boy does it shine! Isn't the shine all that matters? Not when it comes to love and marriage. True case in point: I will call him Sebastian (not his real name to protect his identity.) Sebastian was an extremely successful young lawyer. In college he was quite the catch, and subsequently he had his pick of women so he married a beautiful blond knock-out. They were happy, they were rich, and above all they were good looking. One day, Sebastian went snow mobile riding with some friends...they were caught in a blizzard...Sebastian's snow mobile hit a parked car going over 40 mph...he went flying over the car...his neck landed on a fence...he severed his spinal column...he no longer could walk and his speech was slurred. How long do you think his marriage lasted after that? 6 months. Fools Gold. We are being ruled and ruined by fools gold these days. Feelings are not just destroying marriages but they are decimating morals across the social spectrum. Did you see the latest Time magazine article, "Orange is the New Black"? It is all about transgender people's rights to choose their identity. Gender is no longer decided by genitalia, but by desire, individual wants, a.k.a. feelings. It's fools gold! Most public policy these days is a matter of feeling, "How do we spin this so the American populace will buy into it? Ahh, people want free stuff, it makes them feel good...and why not promise it? I will get re-elected!" And so goes your Congressman, Senator and President. Most personal debt is incurred from feeling. "Daddy, I don't care how, I want it now!" Over the past decade, two books in particular have driven me crazy because they have sold boatloads of money on "Fools Gold": "Eat, Pray, Love" and "50 Shades of Gray." People actually swoon over this trash. I will never read 50 shades of "porn"; but I did read "Eat, Pray, Love." I mention this because Elizabeth Gilbert's "wonderful & liberating" adventure begins when she leaves her husband simply because she hates FEELING "stuck". One review of this book hits this whole subject of "feelings" nail right on the head: Perhaps this book is a sobering commentary on American life in general — if one has no moral scruples our system can work very much to one’s advantage (provided IQ is above a certain threshold). In fact, it seems at times, despite the frequent admonitions against “legislating morality,” that morality itself has been legislated out of existence, especially where family law is concerned. Our law and popular culture have become so relativist that the concepts of right and wrong have been reduced to whether an act causes a pleasurable physical sensation or sense of satisfaction at any particular moment. Elizabeth Gilbert's husband Michael thought his marriage with her was rock solid. When it suddenly crumbled, his life was set adrift. It took him years of painful struggle after the divorce to finally recover. You see, "feeling' can become a vicious tyrant when it gets you "to want to have things now." It never cares about who it hurts now, or the long term damaging effects it creates later. God has designed life to operate a certain way, everything is meant to take place in its proper time. Feeling doesn't care.
And tragically, "Fools Gold Feelings" often will have us throw a wrench in God's whole process of "working all things together for good," so we can have pleasure for a moment. I wonder sometimes, do you think there may be someone else working on our feelings? Someone with a red suit and horns? Nahhh no one like that exists. The devil is a fantasy. Isn't he? "Chris, don't talk like that to your sister; tomorrow is mass and Jesus is going to be touching that tongue of yours? You want it clean before you eat him!" "Yes grandma, I'll watch what I say to Steph." (actual conversation from back in the day) If the previous conversation sounds crazy to you, then you have never grown up with a Polish Catholic Grandma. If it sounds normal to you, then you may not realize how crazy some of your beliefs sound to outsiders. Communion confusion: are Christians truly flesh-eating cannibals as they eat the body of Christ; or are they somber undertakers conducting the funeral service Sunday after Sunday of a man long dead? This Sunday we are jumping into the bible text that has stirred centuries of controversy: John 6:53-54... So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day." Eat flesh? Drink Blood? Is this really the road to eternal life? There are three traditional views on how to interpret this passage. (The intent of this chart is to get you interested in this topic so you can go back and do research on your own. It is not a comprehensive study of the historical interpretations by the vast array of church fathers and their take on the Lord's Supper. It is a way to categorize, inform and evaluate what Jesus' intent was concerning this text and the Eucharistic meal. Eucharist literally means a sacrifice of thanksgiving.) TWO APPROACHES TO THE MEAL: (1) As Sacrament: Sacrament means a ritual that transfers divine grace, power & blessing to the believer. Concerning the Eucharistic Sacrament, Roman Catholics and Protestant's differ on the specific substance of the elements. "Transubstantiation" for the Catholic, means that during the mass, the "bread and wine" are actually converted into the real true "body and blood" of Jesus. That is why my Grandma said we are eating Jesus on Sunday. "Consubstantiation" for some Protestants, is the belief that the "bread and wine" and "body and blood" are in mystical union, both substantive qualities are alongside one another in the communion meal. (2) As Symbol: To a large population of Protestant churches the Lord's Supper is a very important memorial rite (Ordinance) that Jesus instituted for his church to remember his atoning death. It anticipates the day when we will all be united in his Kingdom and where he will once again share this meal with all believers. It is meant to be metaphorical, an act pointing to the spiritual reality of atonement. (Christ dying on our behalf) A CLOSER LOOK AT TRANSUBSTANTIATION: For most Catholic Theologians they see John 6:55-56 as the key to interpreting the whole section: "This is real food." They would say that if you do not interpret it at face value you are doing violence to the text. A. Richardson says, "This verse asserts clearly that participation in the liturgical worship of the Christian community is the indispensable means of attaining the life of the world to come. The words except ye eat...and drink...cannot refer to anything but participation in the Church's Eucharist." Participation in the Eucharistic meal to the Catholic is critical. Not only is it the avenue of having your sins cleansed (expiated), but the imputation of righteousness (being made holy & worthy of God's acceptance) is a daily co-operative endeavor. God's grace and human obedience must work together in a person's progressive salvation. That is why there is EXTREME danger in not taking part in the Eucharistic meal each and every Sunday. Recently I attended the funeral of a devout Roman Catholic. During the eulogy the priest offered this statement as evidence of the deceased person's eternal security, "Every Sunday she took the communion bread and drank the wine, and as it says in John, if anyone eats this bread they will live forever (verse 51)." Questions to ask about transubstantiation: - If we are to take literally when Jesus says "I am the Bread of Life," are we to also take literally when Jesus says "I am the Door" or "I am the Light of the World," or "I am the true vine?" Does he also become wood, does he light up, and will he produce grapes off his finger-tips? Or are each of these statements a metaphor communicating a deeper reality? - If he tells his disciples to "drink his blood" is he not asking them to violate Leviticus 17:10-16 & Acts 15:20? - Do people really go to heaven just because they ate the communion supper? (Contrast this to John 6:26-27) Personally, I ate a lot of communion bread as a Catholic, and at the time I know I knew nothing of real salvation and relationship. A CLOSER LOOK AT CONSUBSTANTIATION: Consubstantiation is a middle-way, both to respect the physicality of Christ's words while at the same time acknowledging the spiritual significance of faith and believing. Dietrich Braun, a Lutheran theologian, makes this statement about the meal, "What happens in the Lord's Supper can only be known from the witness of Scripture to the Lord's Supper. This witness speaks to us of a real action of Christ with his disciples. Christ connects - however else we want to understand the words 'body' and 'blood' in particular - the disciples with himself, the Incarnate One." Two things to note about this position: (1) There is an acknowledged mystery to the commands and workings of God. The moment we think we fully understand his ways is when we lose the wonder. Don't ever lose the wonder! (2) The sayings of Jesus are troubling: body and blood are meant to be taken seriously. When we treat his word haphazardly we place ourselves above scripture and, quite possibly, even Jesus himself. He wants us to always take him seriously. Questions to ask about consubstantiation: - The same question applies as it did for transubstantiation: If we are to take literally when Jesus says "I am the Bread of Life," are we to also take literally when Jesus says "I am the Door"? - Doesn't scripture constantly bear witness to the truth that belief and faith are the means for genuine connection with Jesus? (John 6:29, Romans 10:17, & Galatians 3:2, 5) Should we not be careful of adding more to the purity of faith; as if by eating bread I can have a deeper connection - - does physical eating and ingesting actually get more of Him? A CLOSER LOOK AT MEMORIAL RITE: For the majority of Protestants, communion is a spiritual act of both remembering and looking ahead. The contextual key of this text for communion as symbol is John 6:63 where Jesus says, "The Spirit gives life, the flesh counts for nothing." Over and over again in this section of scripture Jesus emphasizes the singular requirement for acceptance into the Godhead: belief. Look how specific Jesus is: - John 6:29, "The work of God is to believe..." - John 6:35, "He who comes and believes in me..." - John 6:40, "Everyone who looks to the Son and believes..." - John 6:47, "He who believes has everlasting life..." So why the words "eat my flesh; drink my blood"? I like what Frederick Godet says about the specific use of those words, "The shed blood represents expiation; and "to drink" this blood is to appropriate to oneself by faith the expiation and find in it reconciliation with God, the basis of salvation. The flesh broken represents the holy life of Christ; and "to eat" it, is to appropriate to oneself that life of obedience and love." This Eucharistic Supper is to remember the singular life giving event of the cross: consider his cost, treasure the priceless gift of Jesus' work in saving me. Participating in this is, no more and no less, genuine, God pleasing, worship! "A true sacrifice of praise!" Questions to ask about the memorial rite: - Have we watered down the significance of the meal by treating it as relatively insignificant part to normal church life? Should it be more central to the life of the body? - Isn't God watching us and evaluating our heart as we approach the meal? (Meditate on 1 Corinthians 11:27 - - these are some serious warnings!) One final consideration: Often how theologians get to a specific conclusion in a confusing text is directly impacted by their particular approach to understanding the whole of scripture. There is much debate in how to establish proper Biblical understanding (Hermeneutics: the science of scriptural interpretation). My intent right now is to show you how I think some churches have arrived at seeing the words "bread & wine" as real "body & blood" - - and I believe it is all based on their hermeneutical approach to scripture. (see chart) There is a hot debate that has been raging in theological circles: "What is the relationship between the church and Israel?" Some schools of thought believe the church has directly inherited all the responsibilities and promises that God first gave to Israel. If you note on the chart, where God instituted specific practices for Israel (ie: building a temple, mandating circumcision, establishing a priesthood and listing specific sacrifices that were ongoing), they have now transferred over to the church after Jesus came. This school of thought believes the church is now responsible for continuing the practices just as Israel did. That is why some denominations want you to be reverential in the church building because it is the new temple where God's "Shikinah glory" dwells. Some have actual priests wearing robes, some churches teach the sign of circumcision is now expressed in infant baptism. AND...they believe you need to have a continual sacrificial system to pay for sin. That is where "transubstantiation" (and to a smaller part consubstantiation) comes in. Every mass requires a new living sacrifice...in fact the Eucharist is known as the "perpetual sacrifice" of Jesus' body and blood. It is not mere symbol, it is real flesh and blood. It has to be if the church is going to continue Israel's required animal sacrifices. But the other school of thought (I believe the correct New Testament approach), is to see all the practices in Israel as shadows pointing to the reality fulfilled completely in Christ. The temple is now us because through the Holy Spirit God resides in ME! The covenantal sign is a Holy Spirit heart circumcision (baptism is a public symbol of joining to a local body in community). And, now all true believers are priests serving before God! And... finally...the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross "IS FINISHED." God requires no more blood payment for sins - - Jesus' one payment was perfect! Think about how important that is. And to take his words as "My flesh and my blood" as real, is to forget what he really did for us already! Let us not let the literal understanding obscure the real freedom we now have forever in Christ. So, "take and eat!". . .you better believe it! |
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August 2018
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