Following Jesus by NT Wright

I just finished this short study from a British minister on discipleship and found it surprising. Let me just say that I'm happy that the book was short - I think more Christian writers should take heed...less filler, keep to the point ladies and gents! What I found enlightening was the return to the center of following Christ - His return from the dead. That changed (and changes still) everything. It is the only thing that brings any real hope - for humanity and all creation. He says that as Christians, we are like Sunday (post-resurrection) people living in a Friday (still dead) world (page 61). He also surprised me by mentioning that the most frequent command in Scripture is 'do not fear' - I've got to check that out. Finally, his concept 'being more human' is pretty cool...in that the more we conform to Jesus's way of living, we are actually being more human - like we were created to be. He goes so far as to say that Christ, as the glorified, perfect human, remains in the glorified state and will return in that state - He didn't just vanish back into some 'divine mist' - He's still the glorified 'son of man' that will return. I've got to chew on all this more...

My girl Emma

As I drove my daughter Emma-Anne to school this morning and watched her run off to class, I felt my chest get really heavy. I still remember holding her in my hands - she barely filled them back then. Now she's independent, almost as tall as me, and on the verge of double-digit age 10. She's becoming a young woman - even talking about youth group! I got my start in ministry with being a youth minister - she's almost that age...it's too much for me sometimes. I wonder what she's learned from her mom and I, what she'll remember from her childhood. I wonder who she'll first fall in love with and where she'll graduate from college. I wonder about her future and where she'll live and what she'll be doing. Will she ever know how much her mom and I love her? I've always done this silly little thing with her since she was little...I'd ask her "who's my favorite girl?" I'd then run through random girl names until I would whisper Emma...then she'd say yes! Little things like that will forever be etched in my memory. I find myself praying about her teenage time - Lord, help me have wisdom, love and patience for this next phase of Emma's life...and to enjoy every moment with her!

What the Bible REALLY says…

Ah yes, the big buzzword here is ‘interpretation’. Well, if you read over my lengthy translation vs. version comments, proper Biblical interpretation hinges on having a couple of trustworthy Bible versions handy. I think it also is important to read how other trustworthy Christian teachers have explained parts of the Bible. Interpretation is really just an explanation. The problem with all of this is that we can often be led away from truth by poor interpretation or bad explanations or teachings can’t we? I’m sure God grieves every time His words are misused to divide the church, start wars, and mess up lives. How can we be confident with this whole concept then, of interpretation? This is a deep subject, but in essence, I think that the Bible has a lot of straight-forward, easy to understand ideas. Things like loving your neighbor, trusting in God’s goodness, accepting the grace and forgiveness from Jesus, helping people around us, being thankful, etc. - those are all pretty clear. When it comes to the confusing parts or at least the harder to understand parts, we all must be careful. Jumping to conclusions too quickly is an easy trap. Let’s start, then, with the idea here: CONTEXT IS KING. No more taking a verse or two out of it’s chapter or book and making big conclusions from just a few words…that’s a no no! In respecting context, we’ve got to ask questions like: Who is this written to? Who is writing this part of the Bible? Where are we in history? What part of the story of the Bible are we in? Etc, etc. Second, let’s realize that the Bible should never say what it never said. Look, we’re already at a disadvantage when we read it in English (not the original language) as we sit in our nice clothes drinking coffee in the free, democratic Western world, so, let’s not make it worse by claiming that Scripture says stuff that the first century world would never have read into it…let’s be fair! Having the humility and the patience to put ourselves into the sandals of a first century Christian can help us avoid bad interpretations. Finally, embrace Christian community and find out how the majority of Jesus’ followers interpret or explain it. This is really, really helpful. If you think about it, the Bible has been around for a while – people have been studying it for a while – maybe they’ve found some common ground in explaining some of those hard parts. One final thought…is it ok to have a difference of opinion on some of the harder passages? I should hope so – and NEVER let that be a cause of division. Humility is a key for all followers of Jesus –so, let’s show some with each other!

Translations vs. Versions…help!!!

I’ve been asked this question a lot since I’ve been a Christian. I guess it might be time to actually put this out there. Yes, there is a difference between these two words in relation to the Bible. You see, few if any people I know read the Bible in the original languages that it was written (namely old Hebrew, Aramaic and Koine Greek from the first century). So, most read the Bible in English or another current language. If you stop by a local bookstore, or better yet, a Christian bookstore, you’ll find lots, and lots and LOTS of choices in your search for a copy of the Bible in English. Which one is the ‘true’ English copy – I’ve actually been asked this…well, there is no ‘true’ copy that I know of, except maybe some would say that the first English popular Bible, the old King James (or King James Version – KJV for short). In any case, most all of us need a translation or else we’d need to know the original languages. Since we don’t, we have to choose an English copy. Since each English copy has its root in either a direct translation (the author or editor did the translating him or herself or with a group of translators), or indirect translation (a modern update of an earlier English translation – like the New King James Version), let’s rather talk about versions. There are ‘literal’ versions and ‘free’ versions. The literal tend to stick to the original languages a bit closer making them a bit harder to read for us modern English speaking folk (like KJV, or the New American Standard – NAS). For studying, I like to use one of those more literal versions. Now, the ‘free’ versions are much more readable, but, they tend not to follow the original languages as closely. The editors of these free versions take liberty to give readers more of the ‘gist’ of the original language rather than a word for word reading. Obviously this can lead to the editors swaying the meaning for the reader one way in one version and another way in another version. So, here is what I do, I use a couple of English versions. I use my trusty New American Standard (NAS) for study and my new favorite ‘free’ version, the Message for more of a modern, nice flowing reading text. If there is something I see that seems a bit strange, I check the versions next to each other to make sure I’m able to interpret that part of the Bible accurately. Oops – I brought up that pesky word ‘interpretation’ – that will be talked about in another time! Anyway, the more literal versions would be the KJV, the NAS, and maybe the RSV (Revised Standard Version), whereas the free versions would including the NIV (New International Version), the NLT (New Living Translation), or The Message. Don’t let one editor sway you – check one or two more before you simply settle! Happy reading! If you want more on this, check this little resource out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bible_version_debate

Drawing Near

Once a person admits that there is a God and then sees that Jesus is that God who walked ‘among us’, there is a question…what now? Once a decision is made to follow Jesus, what is the next step? The Bible talks about how the first followers of Jesus not only believed this, but also took steps. Steps like going God’s way instead of their own (repentance is the big word here), and agreeing with God about who they were and are – sinners (that’s called confession) and even admitting their need for God to save (in what Jesus did on the cross). The early followers also did these things in a public setting, culminating in the physical/spiritual act of immersion - totally covered by water (this is that big word baptism). Then, these early followers began a life-long process of becoming more like their savior/rabbi Jesus. This is where the ‘drawing near’ concept hits all who’ve embarked on this life-long process. How do we draw near to God? The Bible promises that God will draw near to us if we will draw near to Him (James 4:8). This comes in the middle of the chapter which speaks of what we as followers ‘do’. Sometimes we can draw near to God by doing what Jesus would do – being about justice, mercy, kindness, gentleness, love, patience, etc. Other times we draw near by listening to God in times of being still and quiet. We draw near by reading the stories of what Jesus did in the Bible – that shows us how he lived and walked and worked. We draw near by making every moment an opportunity to see Him, talk with Him, reflect on Him – act like Him. Drawing near means that everyday we are alive, we do something consciously to grow in our faith. The things we do can be done for God’s sake and He believes in us – we can do it. God promises that if we’re about that in our lives, He’ll reward us with drawing near to us – that’s amazing! I’ll end with the words of King David to his King-elect son Solomon (from I Chronicles 28:9): “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.”

Celtic Christianity – Listing to the Heartbeat of God

I’ve always wondered why some in the Christian church are so enamored with Celtic stuff. I mean, the Celtic crosses, the artwork, the old stone church buildings, the ‘mystery’, what’s this all about anyway? I then read a short little book about Celtic Christianity called “Listening for the heartbeat of God – A Celtic Christianity” by J. Philip Newell and I really connected with this whole Celtic thing for the first time. What really resonates with me is this idea that God is the heart of all creation, and, since He is, when you really dig deep in every human heart, beneath the surface sin and evil, you will ultimately find the good placed there by God. This is counter to the notion which has it’s roots with the early Christian church father Augustine who taught that the human is basically evil and unable to do anything good without God. It was this very view of creation that got the first Celtic ‘philosopher/theologian’ Pelagius excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church. Many more excommunications followed as Celtic monasteries revealed this similar belief in creation and the elevation of women and the marriages of Celtic priests. I also find that I resonate with the Celtic idea of following Jesus in such a way that we spend the time really leaning in and listening to God, rather than the easier ‘do, do, do’ busy Christianity. Even the early Celtic missionary methods resonate with me – in that they sought to show the Britons that their pagan spiritual practices were actually calling for the one true God and that Christ fulfills all that their practices were meant to fulfill. So, instead of violently changing or destroying the culture of the Britons, those missionaries would simply help them see how Christ is the root of all that the human heart has been yearning for all along. There is much more to this, so, I’m really chewing on how this relates to followers of Jesus today…now I know why I’ve always loved ‘St. Patrick’s Day’ – all Guinness aside…

East 91st Street Christian Church – VISION!

My wife and I recently returned from a weekend spent in Indianapolis, Indiana visiting a church which, in my estimation, has incredible vision for people who don’t know God. I was amazed at the 20-30 church planting leaders that flew in for this gathering all representing churches that were started in part by the support and love of this church in Indiana. Hearing stories about people finding faith through all these new churches reiterated to me and Jackie how important new churches are for people who are far from God. We had a great discussion with a couple from the UK who had surprisingly similar stories about the lack of interest in church – much like the Seattle or Northwest region. One of the elder members of the church drove us back to the airport on Monday morning and I shared with him how humbling it is to be used by God in church planting. He then spoke with pride about how each year, as the budget is presented, some church members protest the money spent on planting new churches. He, with passion, told Jackie and me how, as a church, they are not backing down from their commitment to see new churches planted. Wow – now, that is a church deeply committed to the kingdom of Jesus!