Missional 4

GOD’S ECONOMIC PLAN FOR HIS PEOPLE

Tomorrow, we vote. The longest campaign in recent Canadian history will finally be over when we go to the polls. We have had enough of the mud-slinging and political rhetoric. Let’s end this and see what comes.

            One of the big issues of this campaign has been the economy. Canada has slipped into a recession this year and so the big questions revolve around reviving the economy, creating jobs, managing resources, and taxing the right people. Whatever government is formed tomorrow, blue, red, or orange, their agenda will determine what values Canada will lean toward. Their plan will shape our future, what our society will look like for the next few years. Your vote impacts that outcome in a relatively significant way.

            While the word “economy” makes us think of the effective management of a community or system, it also has a theological meaning. In theology, “economy” is a method of divine government of the world. No matter which party rules Canada after tomorrow, God rules overall. He is sovereign and His economy for His people is the only economy that is the most effective and takes into account the wellbeing of every person.

            What we know as the Ten Commandments, what the Bible rightly calls “the Ten Words” or Decalogue, are the fundamentals of God’s economy. You may wonder at that. How does “You shall not murder” apply to you who has not murdered? Few Christians realize that the Ten Words clearly address some of the most pressing problems of our generation: inequality of wealth, growing refugee issues, consumerism and more. They are a platform for justice, yet society considers the Ten Words as irrelevant.

            In their original context, God’s economic plan for His people, the Ten Words, are a pattern for life in which every person can experience the fullness of life. To show you how this is so, I would like to unpack Deut. 5:6 for you.

1. Acknowledge the LORD who is God

Moses calls the people together to remind them of the laws of God in Deut. 5. Even though the mass of people standing before Moses were not alive when God gave the Ten Words, Moses insists in v.3 that God made this covenant “not with our fathers…but with us.” He emphasizes the ongoing nature of this covenant which God made with Israel.

            With this in mind, Moses recites the Ten Words beginning with this introduction: “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery” (6).

            The first phrase is an introduction. Israel did not know the Lord God as intimately as they could have. So it truly is an introduction. A person might say, “Let me introduce myself, I am ….” God does the same. This was the custom of the person offering the covenant. These covenants were common at that time in the world and were never given by those of equal status. It was always the greater offering the covenant to the lesser, usually the one who lost the battle.

            Here, God introduces Himself as Yahweh (LORD). It was Yahweh who met Moses on Mt. Horeb in the burning bush. It was Yahweh who said to Moses when asked his name, “I am who I am,” that most holy name (Ex. 3:14). It is this Yahweh who says to Moses that He has seen the misery of His people and heard their cries and will rescue them (Ex. 3:7). So even though Israel was not intimately acquainted with Yahweh, He knew them and cared for them.

            Back in Egypt, Israel had slaved for a Pharaoh who claimed to be a god. Not only did he claim to be a god, Pharaoh refused to recognize Yahweh as God (Ex. 5:2). So the bulk of the first chapters in Exodus features a contest between Pharaoh and the true God, Yahweh. Not only does Pharaoh submit to God, all Egypt and Israel see that Yahweh is God of the whole earth.

            The first three commandments, or Words, underline what Yahweh has proven without a shadow of a doubt. “You shall have no other gods before me” (7). Israel came out of a land of many gods; they were about to enter a land with many gods; but their God has shown His superiority over all so-called gods. Why would they want other gods? “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything…” (8). Egypt was known to create images of their gods, so the second “commandment was to prevent such foolishness. To make an image of Yahweh was to rob God of His glorious person. How can you capture the majesty of God in a statue? And “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God…” (11). The Exodus story provided a fresh revelation of divine name and demonstrated its power. No one was permitted to use the power of that name without God’s permission.[i]

            Yahweh is God. To begin to build a community on any other foundation ignores the Creator of life and community. To be a people where fairness and equality and harmony reign begins with acknowledging that the LORD is God.

2. Why we obey God’s Law

When we acknowledge that the LORD is God, we consequently confess that His ways are right and that by living according to His Word we do exceedingly well.

            Yahweh has introduced Himself; now we will look at the context for obeying His laws. We find this in the second phrase of v. 6 “…who brought you out of Egypt…”

            Yahweh delivered Israel out of Egypt. He went down and got His people out of there. “Deliverance” is the motivating theme for the response of obedience.

            How many of us don’t look at the OT as a covenant of legalism? Don’t we sometimes think that the only way to be saved in the OT was to obey laws? We thank Jesus for coming in the NT and saving us from the law, giving us salvation by grace through faith. But that is too simplistic actually.

            Consider again v. 6, “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt…” The commandments were given to Israel, not so they could perhaps gain salvation by keeping them, but because God had already redeemed them. These laws were given to live in the light of that deliverance.

            If you read Exodus with this mind, the majority of the narrative displays the saving acts of God despite the obedience or disobedience of the people. The God of grace is very much evident in the story of Israel, saving them from trial after trial, and then asking them to live a life of gratitude by obeying His laws. And His laws were ultimately and realistically for their own benefit. First God saves; then He gives the Law. Grace is the foundation for obedience, as opposed to obeying the law to be saved.

            Like the Israelites who became slaves of the Egyptians, we became slaves to sin. Jesus said, “Everyone who sins is a slave to sin” (Jn. 8:34). Jesus saves us by His grace and then calls us to discipleship immediately. That means obeying His words. Jesus told the Jews, “If you hold to my teaching you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (Jn. 8:31b-32). In this same conversation with the Jews, Jesus reveals the most awesome truth, that He is the Son of God. They say “no way;” Jesus replies “Yahweh” (Jn. 8:58).

            Grace without obedience is what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called “cheap grace,” getting by on being saved but not living as one who has been saved.

            Why do we obey God’s laws, including these Ten Words? Because Yahweh has delivered us out of Egypt. Egypt represents the land of sin in the Bible, and we are headed for the Promised Land. To live in that Land, God has given us laws so that we can represent Him and be a light to the nations.

3. Laws that create a counter-culture

Israel had been delivered out of Egypt, “out of the land of slavery.” And for Israel, when they came to Mt. Horeb to receive these Ten Words, they had only been out of Egypt for three months. They still felt the scars and wounds on their backs from the whips and rods of their oppressors. The Egyptians had been trying to systematically annihilate the Israelites through forced labor. At one point Pharaoh took away the straw with which to make bricks but ordered the people to make more bricks. He was trying to work them to death. And you know he tried to kill all the male Hebrew babies, which led to Moses’ river journey. This was the context that they knew for so long.

            Now they were free. And how were they to live in community? How do free people live? By doing their own thing? Is freedom a “live and let live” experience? No, God gives them a kind of “Bill of Rights” for free people to live by.

            Consider the context and contrast of Egypt now when you read these “commandments.”

            “Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy…” The fourth commandment to rest on the seventh day, as God did when creating the world, stands in stark contrast to life in Egypt when Israelites never rested. Now God institutes a weekly day of rest for a nation of slaves. What a relief! As part of God’s plan in the Garden of Eden, there was to be a rhythm of work-rest-work-rest. Two reasons are given: 1) To rest everyone including livestock; 2) to worship (see v.15).

            We have slipped out of this holy and healthy rhythm these days. Our worldview values productivity over the need for rest and reflection. Working a 60 hour week hails you as a hero in our culture. Work hard or your fired. Sunday shopping is convenient for some but not if you are the one working.

            With the fifth and seventh commandments, a free society was to be structured around the family household. These laws protected the authority of family (honor father and mother) and sexual integrity.                    

            The sixth commandment “You shall not murder,” though taken individualistically, are spoken to restrain the excesses of powerful people, like Pharaoh. Remember how easy it was for an Egyptian task master to kill a slave whenever he felt like it. The same was true in the South before (and even after) the U.S. Civil War. A slave’s life meant nothing. Now, Yahweh institutes a law that values human life. Where in Egypt, economic productivity was valued higher than human life, God flips the scale.

            The eighth commandment “You shall not steal,” might make us think of the poor man who is tempted to steal a loaf of bread to feed his family, or perhaps the criminal who steals rather than work. But in actuality the command was given to restrain the rich. In Egypt, Israelites were robbed of the benefit of owning land; now, every Israelite was promised a piece of land to produce wealth. Under Jubilee law it could not be permanently taken away (Lev 25:23). Ultimately God owns the land and He gave everyone a piece of it. So the command “you shall not steal” was meant to keep the rich from exploiting the poor, as they had been in Egypt.

            One more example: the tenth commandment “You shall not covet,” shows us that the OT was not about rules, but about the heart. To covet is to want something, even if it disadvantages the other person. In practical terms it looked like this: say my neighbor has fallen into hard times and say he wants to sell me his ox, his only ox, so that he can buy some grain. The point of the 10^th commandment is this: I don’t suck him for all he’s worth. I don’t covet his ox or his money, rather I trade in a way that is helpful to him and generous. If he doesn’t have an ox to sell, maybe I give him grain anyways. The attitude we strive for is mutual care.[ii]

            What the Ten Words point to is God’s priorities for human moral attention: God, society, family, life, sex, and property. Dare we point to our modern society and see that modern culture has almost precisely turned this order upside-down? Our culture has built up its industries and worldview for the sole purpose of breaking the tenth commandment, “You shall not covet.” Every commercial we see on TV or on the web begs us to trade our perfectly good cars to buy better ones so that we can drive to various restaurants at midnight to eat very fatty burgers, wake up early to workout, or barring that, to try the next fat-burning method because we lust after bodies that we cannot and should not have. Is it any wonder that when we call on people to worship no other god, most would claim to really have no God to worship at all?

As I said earlier, the Ten Words function as an Israelite bill of rights. However, unlike modern bills of rights, the document does not protect one’s own rights but the rights of the next person. Each of the terms may be recast as a statement of another person’s rights. We first guard the rights of our covenant Lord, and secondly each other’s rights.[iii]

            What does this sound like? Jesus replied to the Pharisees’ and Sadducees’ question about the greatest commandment. Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God…and love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Mt. 22:37-40).

            So love God and love your neighbor. Don’t worry about the rest, we say. But hold on a minute, how do we love God and love our neighbor? That’s where we return to the Ten Words of Deut. 5 and we understand that God has a carefully thought out program for a new society. Jesus does not negate this program but supports it, because he cannot contradict Himself. Jesus says, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. All men will know that you are my disciples if you love one another” (Jn 13:34-35). The command to love was not new; what was new was loving sacrificially as demonstrated by Jesus on the cross.

            We have been called out of Egypt (slavery to sin) to be a new society (the church) where each person can be built up and loved and encouraged and protected so that we can thrive. To be a missional church in this fashion, we become a light to the world displaying the glory of God’s economic plan.

                                                                        AMEN

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[i] Christopher Wright (prominent commentator throughout this sermon)

[ii] Mark Glanville, The Ten Commandments – God’s Economics

[iii] Dan Block

Missional 2

OUR RESPONSE TO GOD’S MISSION

What is the purpose of the church? Why did God call out a people who believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, to be a cohesive group?

            It is far too easy to get lost in traditions and habits, programs and policies, services and functions, to answer this question. Why do we come to church? To worship God. To hear some teaching. To meet with friends who share common values. To take advantage of the children’s programs. To be encouraged. These are good things. But is there more?

            We naturally turn to the NT church, to Acts and to Paul’s letters to further answer this question. You might be intrigued by those who express a desire to be more like the NT church. Wow, wouldn’t it be great to be part of the church right after Pentecost when the church was on fire? If only we could be like the NT church again.

            Which part? Only a short while after Pentecost the church was in conflict over the unfair distribution of food (Acts 6). Which church in the NT do we want to emulate? The immoral Corinthians, the loveless Ephesians, or the angel-worshiping Colossians? Even the Early Church was made up of flawed people and values.

            Yet, despite these flaws God chooses to work in this community of people with a common faith. The greatest secret of the Christian faith is the community of the local church. There is nothing like it on the earth. But to be the church, the Lord’s “called out” people, will mean a fundamental rediscovery of what it means to be the church of Jesus Christ. For it is in the church, in the midst of a community of frail and fickle people that God has placed His mission. God calls out a people, the church, to be a peculiar people set apart for the mission of fleshing out the grace and truth of Jesus Christ. In us, the world sees Jesus.

            To begin this rediscovery of purpose, we turn not to the NT, but to Deuteronomy.

1. Standing on the cusp

Forty years have passed. When the children of Israel left Egypt, crossed the Red Sea, and were on the brink of entering the Promised Land, they disobeyed God. So God had them wander in the wilderness until all those who doubted His gift had died. Now a new generation stood at the cusp of the Promised Land. They are about to leave the wilderness.

            Deuteronomy comprises Moses’ last words, his final package of sermons, for Israel before they enter the land. Deuteronomy has been wrongly called “Second Law” (Deutero = two; nomos = law). It is in fact entitled “These are the words” in the Hebrew Bible. What scholars call Deuteronomy today is the Gospel of Moses.

            Deuteronomy is the gospel because Moses doesn’t just remind the people of a set of laws; he preaches to them. This is emphasized in the first five verses: “These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel…” (1) and “Moses proclaimed to the Israelites all that the LORD had commanded him concerning them” (3) and “Moses began to expound this law” (5).

            But how could “law” be called gospel? Isn’t the gospel about grace? Yes it is. And look, v. 2 says it takes 11 days to go from Horeb (Mt. Sinai) to Kadesh Barnea; then in v. 3 it says “In the fortieth year…” That’s grace. Wait, what? Consider that when Israel left Egypt they came to Mt. Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments and the covenant to be God’s people. At that moment they were eleven days from the PL, but they sinned – worse, they rebelled. God could have said “Forget it. These people are sick and demented. I will start over,” but He didn’t. Forty years later, God is ready to begin again with this same ethnic people. That’s grace.

            Now Moses is preaching to them that this same gracious God who called them still wants to use them, flaws and all, to accomplish His purposes. Moses preaches the Word of God to them to prepare them to enter into a foreign land, a foreign culture, and face an idolatrous people. On the cusp of the PL they are a people being shaped by the Gospel of Moses.

            To be a missional church, we must be shaped by the gospel of Christ. It was not enough for Israel to enter a culture and make it their own; it is not enough for us to understand our culture. We must be shaped by the gospel so that we can stand in the midst of our community and say, “We are for you but you need to know that our values are shaped by the Gospel.”

2. It’s time to move

People generally like routine. We get comfortable in our ruts and rituals. We don’t want to change or move. Things might not be perfect but changing things sounds like effort.

            The LORD says to the people, “You have stayed long enough at this mountain” (6). It’s time to move. The people camped at the mountain needed to move out of the comfort zone and cross the boundary, enter into God’s mission.

            The thing about Mt. Sinai is that God was known to be there. It feels safe to be where God is. But to move into strange territory is not safe. Staying in church settings and huddling with Christians feels safe. We know though, that God does not want us to dwell on our mountain-top experiences; He wants us to venture out into the world to find Him there. We find more of God when we cross the boundary.

            The LORD’s speech in vv. 6-8 describes His purpose for this people, His mission (read v. 8). When God rescued His people from slavery in Egypt, He had promised them the land of Canaan, which would provide them the context from which they would fulfill their mission. What mission? To be a light to the nations. As they were shaped by the Word of God they would influence the world (see 4:5-6; 26:19).

            In the ultimate purpose of the LORD there was a lot more at stake than Israel crossing the Jordan to take the land. It was not merely getting out of the wilderness. This was a step of obedience; that step would lead to the redemption of the whole world. One small step for man; one giant leap for mankind. They needed to be motivated to take that step to move forward in God’s strategy to be a blessing to the nations. There was a missionary dimension to Deuteronomy’s call to obedience.

            Connect the dots. God’s plan was to call a people – Israel - to take the Land and live in a way that was unique, to be shaped by the truth of God, and to display that life as God intended originally in Eden. Without Canaan, there are no people of the promise; without the people, there is no message of redemption, no prophecy, no law; without those truths, there is no vehicle for the Son of God to enter into our world. One small step into Canaan unfolded the plan of redemption.       Coming to Mount Sinai was not an end it itself. It was the beginning. The church is not an end in itself either. God does not call us out of the world to be a cozy little clique or a “holy huddle.” The church exists to carry on the work begun by Israel when they stepped into the Jordan River – to be a light to the nations, to influence our world.

3. Hesitation may cost us

Moses takes care to remind the people that 40 years ago they hesitated. They can’t make that mistake again.

            Forty years ago, they were in this exact spot. In v. 8 and again in v. 21 they are given marching orders: God has given you this land – go and take it.

            Instead, they hatch a plan. Let’s send spies into the land and check it out. Oddly enough, when Moses first recorded this event in Num. 13 he said that God commanded him to send spies. Here in Deut. Moses says that the people came to him and suggested the scheme. Forty years of hindsight reveals that sometimes what seems to be of the Lord may be our own imagination (?). Using the language “the Lord told me” can get you into a sticky situation.

            There are three ironic outcomes from sending the spies: 1) They went out to gain intel to be used in military strategy but their report focused on fruit and fertility; 2) They reported that the land was really good, but promptly demonstrated that it wasn’t worth the risk; 3) They referred to the land as “the land that the Lord our God is giving us” but refused to accept it from His hand. As a result they grumbled that God’s plan would get them all killed so they sat in their tents and pouted. Forty years later…

            Hesitation will cost us. Moses was guilty of caving to the people too. God said “Take the land – I’m giving it to you” so that spies were unnecessary. Just go! Just do it! Don’t think about it too long. You know what you have to do.

            South of the border lives a people who are very quick in their movements and decisions. It is an admirable quality and one that drives their entrepreneurial spirit. To them, every problem has a solution. This may lead to quick fixes and easy solutions and less of a thought process, but still admirable.

            Here in Canada, we are frozen in analysis. We can see the problems clearly, but we have to examine the problem from all sides while unconsciously attempting not to act at all. We think we’re so smart for not running at the first solution; we’re great thinkers. But the person who doggedly examines and analyzes is a lot like the hurried problem solver. They both find comfort in the fact that at least we’re doing something. Canadians just do it in their heads. Americans act; we think.[i]

            What is God telling us to do as a church? And why aren’t we doing it? Are we hesitating?

4. Go, the LORD goes before us

If the Lord says “go” we must know that where He tells us to go, He has already been. This is the most excellent quality of Jesus Himself; He does not call us to anything except that which He has actually already done (1 Pet. 2:21).

            Moses challenged Israel with this encouragement: “Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The LORD your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the wilderness” (29-31a).

            In spite of the evidence, that God had rescued them from slavery in a most miraculous manner, that a pillar of fire led them at night and a cloud by day, and that God had proven His faithfulness over and over, they could not move forward in faith. But faith was not leap in the dark, but a perfectly reasonable step forward with eyes opened wide to what God had already done in the past and promised to do in the future. God went ahead of them even as He had been behind them.

            We will never know what God has in store for us if we do not step out in faith. To be content with what we have done in the walls of this church, with the status quo, means missing out on the great adventure God has in store for us.

            Mission means “sending” and it is the central theme of the story of Israel, and by extension through Christ, the Church. The question that Deuteronomy 1 asks us today is will we be faithful to the Lord and His love and His promise?

As we study Deuteronomy I cannot help but think of the Gospel of John. First of all, John writes, “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (Jn 1:17). Those two aspects are not in competition: law vs. grace & truth. They are together the gospel. The Law that Moses preached was the gospel for the people of that day and speaks to us even now.

            One of John’s favorite metaphors for Jesus is light. What Israel as a people failed to do, Jesus did – He fulfilled all that God had intended for Israel to do. Therefore, Jesus is the light of the world (Jn 8:12). He is a light to the nations, and whoever follows Him will not walk in darkness anymore. We are not the light but we witnesses to the light; we are not the light but we can point people to the light. We are not saviors but we know the Lord Jesus who is the Savior of the whole world.

            People that we know need to see the light. Earlier I said, “God’s plan was to call a people – Israel - to take the Land and live in a way that was unique, to be shaped by the truth of God, and to display that life as God intended originally in Eden.” That is the beginning of a people shaped by the gospel for God’s mission.

            Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (Jn 14:6). That’s something that shocks people, changes us, and creates urgency in us to share this Jesus.

            To be missional means to adopt the posture, thinking, behaviors, and practices of a missionary in order to engage others with the gospel message.

                                                                        AMEN

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[i] Gary V. Nelson, Borderland Churches, 33.

Missional 1

LEARNING TO SING A NEW SONG

I have a reputation as someone who should not sing. Despite my baritone voice, which I think is quite mellifluous, I have never been invited to sing in a quartet. Don’t sing, I’ve been told.

            This goes against the early childhood training I received from Sesame Street. Joe Raposo wrote a song for the Street in 1971 called Sing. You know this song (show words: 

Sing, sing a song

Sing out loud

Sing out strong

Sing of good things not bad

Sing of happy not sad.

Sing, sing a song

Make it simple to last

Your whole life long

Don't worry that it's not

Good enough for anyone

Else to hear

Just sing, sing a song.

Sing, sing a song

Let the world sing along

Sing of love there could be

Sing for you and for me.

Sing, sing a song

Make it simple to last

Your whole life long

Don't worry that it's not

Good enough for anyone

Else to hear

Just sing, sing a song.

.). I was encouraged by the chorus, “Don’t worry that it’s not good enough for anyone else to hear, just sing, sing a song.” Was Sesame Street wrong? Should some songs not be heard?

            What makes a song good?

            I researched this question (Googled it) and discovered one source that said that there are three things that make a song good. For a song to be considered good…

            It has to have soul – the song has to speak to the listener. Thus Justin Bieber’s Baby, baby, baby does not rate as a timeless classic. No, there must be a relevant message.

            It catches the ear – the song gets our attention. This refers to the rhythms and melody. This kind of song sticks in your mind so that you find yourself singing the words in your head uncontrollably and at times you least expect.

            Its message is bigger than its sound – that means that if you favor country music, the message will get you even if it is from another genre like (gag) rap.

            As Christians, we are singing a song for the world to hear. As a church we sing the song of Christ, but is anybody listening? Are they saying “don’t sing”? Does our song not catch their ears?

            Drastic changes have taken place in the last few decades and today we live in a secular environment that demands that the church rediscover its ministry and mission. It demands that we reconsider the song we sing.

            Psalm 137 offers insight into the challenge of singing a new song in the world to which God has called His people.

1. Can we sing the old song?

The Psalmist is a Jewish exile. He was ripped from the familiar world of Jerusalem and dragged to Babylon in chains. Babylon was a vastly different world; an idolatrous world. There, the Psalmist found new rhythms of life, new and foreign core values, and new ways of looking at relationships.

            For Jews, the land of Israel held out so much hope and promise. The land was a symbol of God’s blessing and favor. Taken out of their homeland they must have felt like God had abandoned them. How do you sing your songs of hope in the land of your captivity? “By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion” (1).

            This is the common experience of faithful people and churches today who want to follow Jesus. Considering how profoundly our culture and its values have changed, they cry out, “How do we do church in these strange times?”

            Like the Psalmist, our elders remember the “good old days.” You remember the revivals and the crusades? How people went forward to receive Jesus? How the churches were filled in those days? Remember when we had Sunday evening services and almost everyone came? Remember when church events were the social highlight of the week?

            Those are good memories. It is good to remember. We need to be mindful that the past always seems better than it really was. There were good things but we forget why they were good, what made them good. It is good to remember but when we romanticize the past we end up using that rod to try and measure the present. Times have changed. If we deny the reality of this change we deny the need to change.

            Can we sing the old song? Yes, but we need to know that not everyone knows the tune or the words. Some songs are best appreciated in context, like the old revival songs that accompanied a great experience in the tent meeting, or the protest songs of 70s, or Twisted Sister in the 80s. Context is best appreciated by those who were there.

2. Is our song relevant?

The Psalmist was discouraged with the strangeness of Babylon. Too much change, too quick. They were so discouraged they hung up their instruments and said, “we will not sing.” But their captors mocked them and said “Sing. Entertain us. Give us something to laugh at.” As the Psalmist wrote, “…our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, ‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” (3).

            The sacred song about the temple in Jerusalem had no meaning for the pagan Babylonian a thousand miles away. It was not relevant. It did not speak to the captor’s heart.

            As I said, our context has changed. In 1955, 68% of Canadians attended a place of worship on a weekly basis. More Canadians attended church per capita than in the U.S. In 2008, 13% of Canadians attended church on a given Sunday. In some cities it is lower than that. Pastors compete with brunch as the activity of choice on Sunday morning.

            The song sung in the 50s was effective in its day. We can call it the Attractional model. I like to equate this model with the movie Field of Dreams. The main character, a corn farmer named Ray, hears a whisper telling him, “If you build it, he will come.” Ray cuts down a huge section of corn and builds a baseball diamond in hopes that his long-dead father will visit.

            The church has long operated on this model. If you build it, they will come. Just build a thousand-seat church and the people will come. In this old paradigm, a preacher could stand in the pulpit and wait for people to come. Back then, assumptions and authority were rarely challenged.

            Attractional churches are seen by the unchurched as existing for the members, maintaining what we have. Stepping into one of those churches is like walking into a tiny café in a small western Manitoba town. Everyone looks at you and you feel like the stranger that you are. You know you don’t belong.

            Is our song relevant for our times?

Just so you know, I’m not talking about hymns vs. choruses. We would be naïve if we thought that people were sitting at home waiting for us to change our worship style. People who are searching for meaning in life are not overly concerned about song styles.

3. Do we sing a song of frustration?

Psalm 137 ends harshly. Frustrated with the strangeness of this new reality, this foreign land, the Psalmist gets angry. He remembers what the Edomites did in v. 7 and curses them. Edom was allied to Judah until they saw that Judah was going to lose the war to Babylon, so they switched sides (Obad. 11). Edomites were the children of Esau, so the betrayal was great. The Psalmist was also angry at the invaders, the Babylonians, for turning their world upside down. This is why he writes, “Happy is the one who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks” (9). How do you like that song?

            Anger can get destructive as these last verses show. Raw emotions overwhelm restraint and we lash out.

            We can feel like this, we – the church. We feel trapped in a foreign world – powerless – afraid. Traditional marriage is being broken down. Sexual immorality rules our culture. We long for the days of modesty and self-control. We get angry.

            The temptation for the Evangelical church today is to stand on a soapbox and speak out in anger against the ills of society. We sound angry. We are angry. Our righteous God is offended!

            As we speak in anger though, we are not speaking in the words of Jesus and in the love of Jesus, who said, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Lk 19:10) and “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him” (Jn 3:17).

            Do we sing a song of anger? Do we speak against ____ instead of for Christ?

4. How do we sing the new song?

The Psalmist asks a question in v. 4 that we now return to, because it is the most important question in the psalm, “How can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a foreign land?”

            Psalm 137 captures the real truth, the humanness of the church’s journey into the 21^st century. We know that times have changed, but we think that the church doesn’t have to. Technology changes faster than we can upgrade our iPhones; we wish we could slow it down. The church must adapt to our changing times. To think that the church experience can stay the same is illogical. Changing our worship style is only cosmetic. The heart of the church needs to change.

            The Attractional mentality of the church must make way for a new attitude and new presuppositions. We can call this Discovering what it means to be Missional.

            What does it mean to be missional?

            To be missional means to adopt the posture, thinking, behaviors, and practices of a missionary in order to engage others with the gospel message. No one can say: “I am not called to be a missionary” and thus do not have to evangelize friends and neighbors. Missional living is the embodiment of the mission of Jesus in us. If we call ourselves Christians, we are to be like Jesus. As the Father sent Jesus into the world, Jesus sends us into the world with His message. This is why the church exists – to fulfill the mission of telling the world that Jesus is Lord.

            Mission is not a program of the church. Mission defines the people who are called Christians.

            In the past, some have said that the church is like a hospital for the spiritually ill. If that were true then the waiting room would be full. The church is not a hospital; the church is a sending station. We are all EMTs sent out to find the sick and the lost and to bring them the good news that will heal them and find them.

            We can no longer consider the church as an institution where outsiders must come in order to receive a product – the gospel. The missional church attempts to take Christ to the lost, each one of us being personally engaged in reaching our community. We are the sent ones:

·         The church is sent by Jesus Christ (Jn. 17:18; Mt 28:19-20).

·         The church is sent with the Cross (1 Cor. 1:18).

·         The church is sent in Community (Acts 2:42-47).

·         The church is sent to every culture (John 1:14; Acts 17:22-34)

·         The church is sent for the King and His Kingdom (Mt. 10:7; Luke 4:43).

These are the five distinctives that form the foundation of the missional perspective.

            This is the new song we must learn to sing.

Perhaps this song does not sound new to you. Maybe you see these things happening in our church already. I do too. In the last number of years I have seen the church leave these walls and engage the community around us. Now we have a name for it and let us pray that it continues. Let’s sing this song louder and with passion.

            What makes a song worthy of the Lord? Remember the three qualities of a good song from the introduction? Consider those qualities:

It has to have the Spirit of God – the Spirit of God is a sending Spirit. The Holy Spirit sends us, tells us to go. This song is not sung in the basements of cathedrals; it sings in the streets.

It catches the attention of the world – It is relevant without sacrificing the essence of the gospel; it captures people’s hearts with its genuineness, its sincerity. The love and singular purpose of the church in action is attractive.

Its message is bigger than the medium – We invite people not to join a club, but to receive Jesus into their lives. We invite them to join the community of those who follow Christ, a worldwide family comprising many churches and denominations.

            This is the song we sing. Will you accept the commission to go and be the gospel to your neighbor? Who is my neighbor? I hope you will accept the challenge to find out and be a blessing to someone today.[i]

                                                            AMEN

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[i] The content of this sermon has been adapted from the book by Gary V. Nelson, Borderland Churches: A Congregation’s Introduction to Missional Living. St. Louis, Missouri: Chalice Press, 2008.

Jesus and Marriage

WHAT DID JESUS SAY ABOUT MARRIAGE?

A judge was interviewing a woman regarding her pending divorce, and asked, "What are the grounds for your divorce?"
She replied, "About four acres and a nice little home in the middle of the property with a stream running by."
"No," he said, "I mean what is the foundation of this case?"
"It is made of concrete, brick and mortar," she responded.
"I mean," he continued, "What are your relations like?"
"I have an aunt and uncle living here in town, and so do my husband’s parents."
He said, "Do you have a real grudge?"
"No," she replied, "We have a two-car carport and have never really needed one."
"Please," he tried again, "is there any infidelity in your marriage?"
"Yes, both my son and daughter have stereo sets. We don’t necessarily like the music, but the answer to your questions is yes."
"Ma’am, does your husband ever beat you up?"
"Yes," she responded, "about twice a week he gets up earlier than I do."
Finally, in frustration, the judge asked, "Lady, why do you want a divorce?"
"Oh, I don’t want a divorce," she replied. "I’ve never wanted a divorce. My husband does. He said he can’t communicate with me."

            When the Pharisees asked Jesus, “What do you think about divorce?” he responded to them by saying, “What do you think about marriage?” Divorce isn’t the issue; marriage is. As Matthew shows us, the Pharisees were not sincere in their asking; they came to Jesus to trap Him.

            Two prominent teachers of that time had two different views on divorce. And the Pharisees wanted to see which camp Jesus fell into and then discredit Him for His choice. Instead, Jesus goes to the real heart of the question on divorce: How do we view marriage?

            What Jesus says about marriage forms the basis of the Christian view of marriage. Jesus saw marriage as a man and a woman committed to one another in a covenant relationship that lasts a lifetime. Until we understand that, we can’t talk about divorce or any other issue regarding marriage. This morning we are going to affirm the Christian definition of marriage through six things Jesus said about it.

1. Marriage is instituted by God

The first reply Jesus gives to this tricky question posed by the Pharisees is that marriage is instituted by God. It is the gift of God to humankind. God designed it; God invented marriage, if you will. Marriage is not a social contract; marriage is not the brainchild of the government to generate revenue. It is not even the product of the church to legislate morality.

            Jesus faces down the Pharisees and says, “Don’t you read your Bibles?” And He appeals all the way the back to Genesis, back to Creation, back to God’s evaluation of the first man’s life. God had Adam name all the animals, and Adam must have noticed that they had mates. But among these animals he found no mate of his own kind. God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him” (Gen. 2:18). In all of Creation that God declared “good,” God said one thing was not good. And He helped Adam to recognize that profound loneliness. Then God created woman.

            Marriage is the gift of God to man and woman. Martin Luther married the runaway nun, Katherine von Bora (Katie), whom he called his “rib.” They viewed marriage as a school of character whereby God uses the hardships of daily family life to sanctify us. Previously, Luther had cloistered himself in a monastery to find God; instead, he found he learned more about life being married to Katie.

2. Marriage was meant to be complementary

Next, Jesus says that marriage is complementary (with an “e” not an “i”). To “complement” is not saying “You look nice. No, that doesn’t make you look fat.” To complement is to complete. Women and men are equal, but they’re different. Equality is good; difference is good too (“Vive la difference”). So being male and female accentuates the difference and emphasizes the value of NOT being the SAME. This is not simply a matter of likes and dislikes (commonalities), gifts and abilities – it is a biological and psychological difference that helps us to be better together.

            Thus Jesus says, “Haven’t you read… that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female…’” (4). Men on their own do not fully express the image of God. Women, on their own, do not fully express the image of God. This part is not just about marriage; the church needs men and women (married and single) to shine the gospel and God’s image. But since we are talking about marriage, God made marriage for a man and a woman. They complement each other better than two male best friends.

            Tim Keller said, “According to the Bible, God devised marriage to reflect his saving love for us in Christ, to refine our character, to create stable human community, for the birth and nurture of children, and to accomplish all this by bringing the complementary sexes into an enduring whole-life union.”

3. Marriage was intended to be permanent

When two people vow to be husband and wife before God, God gives His “Amen” to them. God “glues” them together.

            Jesus continued to school the Pharisees quoting Genesis, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh” (5). The “gluing” comes from that word “united.” Since God does the “gluing” using super glue, to separate what God has joined together is a sin. Now the truth of divorce is that it is a product of sin that has long preceded the break-up. Sin that goes unconfessed and never dealt with produces divorce.

            Remember how James put it? Temptation comes from our evil desires which drag us away – it gives birth to sin – and sin gives birth to death (Js. 1:13-15). That could describe divorce as well. And what does God say about divorce? “I hate divorce,” says the Lord God of Israel (Mal. 2:16).

            The Pharisees tried to twist Scripture to say something different. “Why then did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away”? (7). Jesus caught their perversion of the text and replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard” (8). Neither God nor Moses commanded divorce; Jesus points out that divorce was permitted because humankind is sinful. But that does not change God’s intention that marriage is to be permanent.

            Why does this matter? In Ephesians 5 we see the glorious parallel of marriage and Christ and His church. The sum of these verses is this: “Males were designed to shine the spotlight on Christ's relationship to the church (and the LORD God's relationship to Christ) in a way that females cannot, and that females were designed to shine the spotlight on the church's relationship to Christ (and Christ's relationship to the LORD God) in a way that males cannot. Who we are as male and female is ultimately not about us. It's about testifying to the story of Jesus. We do not get to dictate what manhood and womanhood are all about. Our Creator does.”[i]

            Permanence in marriage expresses the faithfulness of God. One of the most powerful Christian witnesses possible today is the eloquent example of a warm, forgiving, hospitable, united and happy Christian home. But the most ultimate meaning of marriage is that it represents the unbreakable covenant-love between Christ and His church (Eph 5:22-33).

4. Marriage is exclusive

In marriage, the man is united to his wife, the wife to her husband. There is no room for anyone else in the relationship. This is partly what is meant by the Genesis quote, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife…” (5a).

            From day one of the marriage, this attitude must be held by both the bride and the groom. There is no room for flirtation with other parties, no room for regret, no second-thoughts. Jesus said that even the errant thought of other potential partners was adultery (Mt. 5:27-28).

            Josh Harris tells a story that illustrates the challenges of exclusivity by our dating culture. A young bride had a dream that her and her intended were before the minister about to say their vows. Suddenly, a girl stood up and went to stand beside her groom taking his hand. Then another girl stood up and took that girl’s hand. Then another and another until there were a chain of six girls standing with the groom. The bride asked, “Who are these girls?” To which the groom replied, “They’re girls from my past. But they don’t mean anything to me now…but I’ve given part of my heart to each of them.”[ii]

            Marriage is exclusive. There is no room for three or six in the relationship. Marriage is for two – a man and a woman.

            It is tough to maintain exclusivity in marriage when there are competing thoughts and images for our hearts. Not only pornography, but ads, TV, cultural norms, and media force us to compare our spouses to pop icons. Shun these images and influences for the sake of God’s intention.

5. Marriage is nuclear

That does not mean “explosive” or destructive. A boy came home from Sunday school and His Mother said, "What did you discuss at Church?" The boy said, "Marriage"! His Mother said inquisitively, "What did you learn about marriage?" The little boy thought for a moment and said, "Jesus said, "Father, forgive them for them know not what they do!" Not that kind of nuclear.

            A “nuclear family” (coined in the 1940s) is a husband and wife and their dependent children. This is in contrast to a single parent family. Now, again, we are talking about God’s intention for marriage. I would hate to give the impression that one-parent families are outside the favor of God – that is not what Jesus is saying and neither am I. God’s intention was for a family to consist of a mom and a dad and children.

            We look again at this verse “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife…” (5a). They are creating their own family. There is a transfer of allegiance from your own moms and dads when you get married to your spouse. You are creating a new generation, a new family unit. While mom and dad are full of wisdom and advice, you have to rely on each other to make your own decisions.

6. Marriage is not for everyone

Marriage is God’s gift. But gifts are not for everyone. Who can demand a gift? This is a hard teaching for those who would like to have this gift but have not, or will not, be given this gift.

            As Jesus explained the particulars of divorce and what it meant, the disciples grew concerned. “If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry” (10). Jesus replies with a brief word on singleness through the reference to eunuchs. “For some are eunuchs because they were born that way; others were made that way by men; and others have renounced marriage because of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it” (11-12).

            People are single for different reasons. One thing that needs to be said is that just because you are single, and we have been talking about marriage and the male/female reflection of God, does not mean that you are incomplete as a person. Women and men have married the wrong people based on the wrong thinking that singleness is a curse.

            None of us is complete as individuals. Being married does not make us whole, or more whole, than singles. Both married and single people need to remember that our sufficiency – that is, our satisfaction and wholeness – is found in Christ alone (2 Cor 12:9).

            Francis Chan, in speaking to single Christians, said this: Take advantage of this time! We miss out when we focus too much on our next phase of life. When we’re single, we can’t wait till marriage, then we can’t wait to have kids, then we can’t wait till they talk, then we can’t wait till they’re in school, then we can’t wait till they’re out of adolescence, and so on. We can get in a habit of longing for the next step rather than enjoying today to the full. As a single person you have an opportunity to dive deeply into your most significant relationship without as many distractions. If you do get married and have kids, life will get so much busier, and you’ll look back and regret any wasting of your single years. There’s nothing wrong with telling the Lord that you desire to be married, but fight for contentment.

            Chan was told, “Those who are most ready for marriage are those who need it the least.”

           

Martin Luther was not a perfect man, nor was he a perfect husband. Luther, reflecting on the difficulties of marriage once said, “Good God, what a lot of trouble there is in marriage! Adam has made a mess of our nature. Think of all the squabbles Adam and Eve must have had in the course of their nine hundred years. Eve would say, 'You ate the apple,' and Adam would retort, 'You gave it to me.'”

            Katie's patience ran dry as well. She snapped at Luther one time, “Doctor, why don't you stop talking and eat?” Luther snapped back, “I wish that women would repeat the Lord's Prayer before opening their mouths.”

            Martin knew his patience was hard to find at times. He once said, “All my life is patience. I have to have patience with the pope, the heretics, my family, and Katie.” But Martin “recognized that it was good for him.” Again, marriage and family was a school of character.

            Jesus affirmed marriage between a man and a woman when He called up scripture from 2000 years before His incarnation. He did not call on contemporary practice, but on God’s living and always applicable Word.

            Since marriage was God’s idea, and the Son of God affirms His Father’s plan, we need to recognize that our greatest need has nothing to do with marriage. We need a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Everyone, married, single, divorced, remarried. We need the Lord because we live in a sinful world where all of us have made bad choices. We need the Lord of grace.

            To the married or engaged or dating: Every couple needs to have a gospel conversation. We must ask: Are we both surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ? Have we decided to follow Him? Are we willing to sacrifice for Him and for our spouses so that we can truly be Kingdom people? Will you let your spouse serve the Lord?

            I praise God for giving me a wife that allows me to serve Jesus Christ first and who enhances my life.

                                                            AMEN

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[i] Mary Kassian on Complementarianism

[ii] Joshua Harris, I Kissed Dating Goodbye (Sisters, OR: Multnomah, 1997), 17-18. 

Beatitudes #8

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU LIVE FOR JESUS

“Blessed are those who are persecuted…”

            Persecution.

            A sermon on persecution would typically focus on the fact that there are more Christians being persecuted today than ever in the history of the world. It is true.

            I could tell you that each month, 322 Christians are killed for their faith; that 214 churches are destroyed; and that 772 forms of violence are committed against Christians (rape, beatings, abduction, arrests, forced marriages).

            But to all of you who live in Kleefeld, Manitoba, Canada, such statistics are abstract. They are true, but they are not your reality. You should care that our brothers and sisters in the Lord are being hurt for their faith. You should visit Voice of the Martyrs website and pray for the persecuted. But you are NOT persecuted and you and I do not even faintly understand what it means to be threatened for loving Jesus in our North American bubble.

            And yet the world is closing in on us. We may not have noticed it, like the proverbial frog in the kettle. Culture and popular opinion have long influenced the way we think in the church, yet now more than ever the church is thinking like the world. It is safer that way. Living for Jesus is not a safe way to live; Jesus never intended it to be. To be safe is to agree with the world and to disagree with God.

            What happens when you live for Jesus? Paul answers, “…everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,” (2 Ti. 3:12).

            As we consider this last beatitude in Christ’s Sermon on the Mount, we have to ask ourselves here, today, this morning, what place does persecution have in the life of the Christian? The answer is plain: If a Christian lives for Jesus that person can expect to be persecuted. Not just in Iran. Not just in North Korea. But right here in central Canada too. And if you are persecuted for loving Christ – bless you.

1. Why would we be Persecuted?

Persecution is the hunting down and harming of those who have religious or political beliefs that are contrary to society. “Persecution is simply the clash between two irreconcilable value-systems.”[i]

            Why would we be persecuted? Some people believe they are persecuted because they speak up, because they have opinions that are not appreciated. Some are simply paranoid. Some people have too high an opinion of themselves.

Righteousness and Jesus – Jesus makes a specific point of saying that those who are blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness. Not self-righteousness. Righteousness! What is that?

            Consider the structure of the beatitudes. There are two groups of four, each ending with a reference to righteousness. The first ends with v. 6 and those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. The second ends with v. 10 and those who are persecuted for righteousness.

            The three beatitudes that lead to hunger for righteousness describe a holy emptiness. The poor in spirit realize they have nothing; they mourn their condition; the meek trust God for their cause. With this emptying comes the natural hunger for filling. You realize you are missing something and hunger for it.

            The next three beatitudes speak then of fullness. Our hunger is beginning to be satisfied by an overflowing mercy, a pure heart, and power to make peace. That righteousness we hunger for is given in the form of mercy, purity, and peace. This is what ends up being the cause for persecution.[ii]

            A relationship with Jesus is a relationship that surpasses the righteousness of the Pharisees (5:20). This is the only beatitude that is repeated, so we know that righteousness is equated with Jesus (v.11).

Why is righteousness unacceptable? You would think that a people who love God and love their neighbors, who pray for their governments and try to be good citizens, would fly under the radar of hostility. Who has a quarrel with a good person? Why can’t we all just get along?

            The answer is simple: There is a natural enmity between the righteous and the unrighteous, between the godly and the world. This is seen in Jesus’ confrontation with the Pharisees in Luke 16:14-15. Jesus said that no one can serve two masters, God and money, because he will hate one and love the other. You can’t serve both. The Pharisees, who loved money, heard this, and ridiculed Jesus. If you love something that is contrary to loving God you will seek to justify it. When you cannot reasonably justify that object, you will resort to ridicule, insults, slander, and even violence. Your way of life is threatened and you lash out at that which threatens it.

Two responses to a righteous life – If, as followers of Christ, we uphold the biblical view of marriage and purity in sexuality, we will be seen as attacking culture’s love of free sex. If you live a life of self-control, your life will be an indictment of any excess. When you live a life of godliness in your business and in your relationships, there are two responses: persecution or conversion (see John 3:20-21).

            Hearing this you might say, “Neither has happened. Why is that?” One reason may be that you are hiding your righteousness; you are living in shame of the testimony of Christ.

            One writer put it this way: “Approve the world's morals and ethics at least outwardly. Live like the world lives, laugh at its humor, immerse yourself in its entertainment, smile when God is mocked, act as if all religions converge on the same road, don't mention hell, draw no moral judgments, take no stand on moral issues - and above all: don't preach the Gospel to others!”[iii] That is the safe way to live.

            Another reason that you are neither persecuted nor converting your neighbors is this: You are letting your distinctive Christian values show and people are in a state of moving toward you in agreement and possible conversion, or are trying to decide what to do with you since they deeply oppose what you stand for. Truthfully, many people are confused by their own emotions about Christianity because they hate Christ’s exclusivity and claims, and at the same time are attracted to them.

            Righteousness is not something we do but is something we are through faith in the blood of Christ. He makes us righteous. As we confess our sins, turn from sins to Jesus, and acknowledge the necessity of the cross of Christ, God declares us righteous. That alone incites people who don’t believe they are sinners or sinful to hate what we stand for, who we stand for.

2. How are the Persecuted Blessed?

“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” (10).

            How can Jesus say this? Let’s get on a plane and go visit L&D in M and tell them when they are being harassed by Buddhist monks that they are fortunate, that they should be happy.

            My friend, back when I was an assistant pastor in Winnipeg, was kicked out of her home when she gave her life to Christ. Her parents said that she had turned her back on their traditions and way of life. They put her belongings on the front step. I was proud of her. But at that point I could not tell her to be happy for being shunned. She was distressed that she might not see her family again.

            How are the persecuted blessed? First, this is Jesus talking, not some cheerful ninny who sidles up to the grieving and says, “Praise God anyway.” This is Jesus. And he says, “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me,” (11).

            Jesus has the right to say this because he knows that the reward of the kingdom of heaven overshadows any pain and suffering we will endure on earth. Jesus knows heaven and the glory of it. He came from there. And He knows the pain of being righteous in an unrighteous world where darkness hides from His light. This is a matter of perspective, a heavenly perspective, that something better awaits us.

Being heavenly-minded – There is an old expression, “Don’t be so heavenly-minded that you are of no earthly good.” It’s a horrible saying; totally unbiblical. Johnny Cash sang a song with this phrase in the chorus (too bad he got it wrong).

            Jesus calls us to be heavenly-minded. Being heavenly-minded always inspires us to be more earthly good. Paul encouraged this perspective, he said, “Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things,” (Col. 3:12). He reflected the heart of Christ who said to store up treasures in heaven – that’s where your heart should be.

            That doesn’t mean that we forget the matters on earth, the sick and the dying, the poor and the lonely. With our hearts set on heaven we think of them more.

            C.S Lewis wrote, “If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.”

Rejoice in suffering for Jesus – With this perspective in mind we can see where Jesus gets the authority to say, “Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you,” (12).

            Jesus wants us to have our hearts focused on heaven, our hopes based in heaven, our desires aimed at heaven, our joy set on heaven. Only then can we rejoice and be glad when we lose our earthly joys. How can we rejoice and be glad when we suffer for Christ and suffer loss unless we love heaven more?

            Discipleship means allegiance to the suffering Christ, and it is therefore not at all surprising that Christians should be called upon to suffer. In fact, it is a joy and a token of His grace.[iv]

            Some five centuries ago, a believer in England was being burned at the stake for his faith in Christ. As the flames licked at his feet and clothing, he began to sing an old hymn. One of his persecutors picked up a chunk of wood and beaned him on the forehead. The saint replied, “Come on now, you interrupted a good old song,” and he started over. His courage and joy were overwhelming at the thought of suffering for Christ, he could sing while dying.

            The prophets of old were heroes of righteousness. When society and culture were against them, they spoke the Word of God even in the face of opposition. We are called to be prophets in our society and culture too. We are in that line.

Responding to Persecution

If a Christian lives for Jesus Christ, that person can expect to be persecuted. How should we respond to persecution if and, the Lord willing, when it comes?

            There are a number of responses depending on the situation:

1) We could leave: When Jesus confronted the Jews with the truth of His person, that He was the Son of God, they picked up stones to stone Him, but Jesus hid Himself and slipped away (John 8:59).

            There are going to be times when the simplest thing to do is walk away. Just walk away. If you are receiving verbal abuse or ridicule, you can always leave. It’s a free country, so they say.

2) We need to guard against compromise: More importantly, in a time such as ours, we need to beware of taking the easy way out of trouble or avoiding persecution. Paul addressed a situation like this when he wrote to the Galatians: “Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ,” (Gal. 6:12).

            We may find it easier to bow to cultural or societal norms than to hold on to the truth. Rob Bell, author of Love Wins, told Oprah that the Bible is just a dusty 2000 year old document that is out of touch with today’s issues. If the Bible is irrelevant and we are going to ignore certain parts, who decides what parts we do hold to?

            God’s truth is non-negotiable.

3) We need to love our enemies: This is counter-cultural. Why is loving our enemies counter-cultural? Because, generally, when you disagree with someone on social media it invites all kinds of emotion, especially hate. If you don’t agree with me, society declares, you hate me.

            We do disagree with many of the behaviors and practices of people in our world, but that doesn’t mean we hate them. They may hate us for our stand however. Paul said, “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil…Do not repay anyone evil for evil…Do not take revenge…” (Ro. 12:9, 17, 19). Jesus said, “Love your enemies.”

4) Pray for those who persecute you: This too is counter-cultural. To pray for someone is to seek God’s blessing on them when they are looking to somehow curse you. In connection to loving your enemy, Jesus also said, “…pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven,” (Mt. 5:44-45).

            Since all the beatitudes describe what a Christian is intended to be, being despised and rejected, slandered and persecuted, is a normal mark of being a Christian as is being pure in heart. To be a Christian, following Jesus, means that we will suffer for bearing His name. Jesus says that is something to rejoice about.

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose” (Jim Elliot).[v]

                                                            AMEN

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[i] John Stott, The Message on the Sermon on the Mount, BST, 52.

[ii] John Piper, sermon: Blessed are the Persecuted, March 16, 1986.

[iii] Kent Hughes

[iv] Stott, 53.

[v] Adapted largely from John Piper’s sermon with modifications.