Obscurity

A few weeks ago, our sermon text was Genesis 18:1-11, the story in which Abraham is visited by three mysterious guests.  The text of Genesis is very clear: these were not simply ordinary guests, but in this encounter, God appeared to Abraham.  This is very unusual, because throughout our scriptures, God does not make a habit of appearing to individuals.  When God does show up, it is usually in the Old Testament, and even then the form used in Genesis 18 is unique.  Only here does God reveal himself to someone in the form of three people.

"Abraham and the Three Visitors" by Tissot
“Abraham and the Three Angels” by Tissot

Early Christian theologians jumped on the number “three” and concluded that this was an appearance of the Trinity in the Old Testament.  They suggested that the three men could easily be the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  The History Channel’s recent miniseries The Bible even portrayed this story with three actors, one of whom – though his face was always hidden from the camera – played role of Jesus later on in the program.  (Remember, our church has a DVD copy of this series which you may borrow any time!)  However, finding the Trinity in Genesis 18 is an example of “reading into the text” – that is, making scripture say something that it doesn’t intend to communicate.

Genesis 18 is ambiguous and vague about the identity of Abraham’s three visitors.  This certainly is God visiting Abraham, but the story is intentionally obscure.  What is important to the story is not who the three men are, but rather what the three men are there to do.  (In this case, they are there to make clear God’s promise that Abraham and Sarah would have a son, Isaac, within a year.)

One of my Bible commentaries contains this quote in reference to the Genesis 18 story:

“Obscurity is story’s way of telling us the truth about this God with whom we daily have to do, by reminding us of God’s hiddenness, of the concreteness of God’s revelation, and of the impossible possibilities that are open to all who believe.” (quoted in Victor P. Hamilton, The Book of Genesis: Chapters 18-50, New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Eerdmans Publishing Co.: Grand Rapids, 1995), p. 8)

God is far beyond our comprehension, and yet he has revealed himself to us in scripture and in Jesus of Nazareth.  God is constantly among us through the Holy Spirit, and yet we sometimes have difficulty in discerning God’s presence in times of difficulty.  God has power to do all things, and yet we can ignore what we consider “impossible possibilities.”

I am not theologically thrilled that The Bible miniseries used the actor who played Jesus to be one of the three guests who visited Abraham in its portrayal of this story.  However, I am thankful that, at the very least, he was obscured from our view during that scene.

Let us always remember that we do not have God figured out.  God is a profound mystery, one who chooses to reveal himself to us in specific ways for specific reasons.  Let us lean into the obscurity of the Bible’s stories, because through obscurity we are reminded of how great and mysterious God is.

–Pastor David

Old-Fashioned Hymn Sing

Last night, I had the privilege of leading a unique kind of experience to open this year’s 120th annual St. Louis Campmeeting:  an “old-fashioned hymn sing.”  Pastor Jim Sirks (from Battle Creek) and I played our guitars to accompany a crowd of over 100 that gathered in the old tabernacle on the St. Louis campgrounds.  This event kicked off the campmeeting in stellar fashion, and I’d like to share a few reflections with you about the evening.

hymnal4In the Church of God, we have a diverse collection of songs.  For this event, I selected sixteen of our “heritage hymns,” songs written by some of the earliest people in our movement.  I grouped these sixteen into four groups of four, each group revolving around a different theme:  Songs of Praise, Songs of Gratitude, Songs of Testimony, and Songs of Commitment.  There may be other types of songs in our heritage, but even these four groups reveal a wide variety of songs in our tradition that can be used for any occasion.  (By the way, we sang all the verses of all sixteen songs, and the whole event lasted only an hour.)

In the Church of God, we have people who can sing four part harmony.  The acoustics of the old tabernacle – a small, open-air, wooden building with lots of hard surfaces – added to the musical experience produced by two acoustic guitars and a hundred voices.  These were songs that people knew and wanted to sing.  And many sang the parts (alto, tenor, bass) they have learned and have known for many years.  Singing in harmony is a gift from God, and it does something spiritually to connect people together in worship.  Worship (including but not limited to singing) is a communal activity, something we do together and not alone.  (Remember that electronic amplification is less than a century old – newer than many of the songs we sang last night!)

In the Church of God, we sing what we believe.  In late 19th Century America, church music was an instructional tool that helped people learn the contours of our faith.  So much of our early heritage music contains a tremendous amount of theology.  While we did not reflect on the theology of all sixteen songs last night, I did highlight one hymn in particular:  “The Bond of Perfectness” by D.S. Warner.  One of my seminary professors, Dr. Gil Stafford (previously pastor of East Ashman Church of God in Midland), once said that this was the epitome of Church of God theology in lyrical form, because it blends together our understandings of holiness and unity so beautifully:

How sweet this bond of perfectness, the wondrous love of Jesus;
A pure foretaste of heaven’s bliss, oh, fellowship so precious!

Refrain:
Oh, brethren, how this perfect love unites us all in Jesus!
One heart, and soul, and mind we prove the union heaven gave us.

Oh, praise the Lord for love divine that binds us all together;
A thousand chords our hearts entwine, forever and forever.

“God over all and in us all,” and through each holy brother;
No pow’r of earth or hell, withal, can rend us from each other.

Oh, mystery of heaven’s peace! Oh, bond of heaven’s union!
Our souls in fellowship embrace, and live in sweet communion.

These reasons, and several more, are why I am committed to having us sing at least one of our heritage hymns in each of our Sunday morning worship services.  Which are your favorites?

–Pastor David

Doing vs. Becoming

During today’s Wednesday evening small group meeting, I was reminded of a profound truth about the path of Christian discipleship.  We are studying the devotional book “Extreme Love” which was the centerpiece of the Focus 40 (Lent) season earlier this year.  In one of the daily devotional readings, we discussed the difference between “doing” and “becoming”:  how we as disciples should be concerned more about who we are becoming rather than what we are doing.

photo by banlon1964
photo by banlon1964

Does that apply to your life at all?  We all live incredibly busy lives; I have even heard many retirees wonder aloud how they ever managed to go to work in years gone by.  Our society places a high premium on what you can do, accomplish, or achieve.  But I think there is something meaningful in thinking carefully about who we are becoming instead.  How is your character being shaped?  What changes to your values do you notice?  How does faith in Jesus Christ form you into a new kind of person – even if you have been a believer for years or decades?

And now:  how does this apply to us as a congregation?  It is easy for churches to be wrapped up in programs, ministries, and events – things that we do.  Rather than expend all our energy (and use all our God-given talents) on “doing,” what if we focused on “becoming”?  How is God shaping us as a church?  How is the Holy Spirit moving among us, to create something new among us?  What does our future look like as a congregation?  What are we going to become?

Two reminders.  First, we will have “Mission Conversations” throughout the fall season to address these very questions.  And second, you may join in this small group discussion by meeting with us Wednesdays at 7pm.  Take advantage of these opportunities for spiritual growth!

–Pastor David

The Institution of the Church

What does the title of this article mean to you?  Does it bring to mind any images, people, or customs?  Does it evoke feelings in your heart, either positive or negative?  Or is it a foreign term to you because of the vagueness of the term “institution”?

When I use the phrase “the institution of the church,” I am referring to the necessary structure that develops among Christians of similar theology, history, and practice.  Let me unpack that a little bit:

photo by foje64
photo by foje64
  • “Necessary structure”:  Just as people gather to live in neighborhoods, villages, towns, cities, regions, and nations, so do all human organizations.  Any organization, if it is going to maintain its identity and purpose, must develop some kind of structure to keep itself going into the future.  Over the course of time, the earliest Christians developed a structure to keep themselves afloat in the world; today, we call this structure the Roman Catholic Church.  Even our brand of Christian faith, the Church of God Reformation Movement, has developed structures and systems that support the identity and purpose of this movement.  That development began back in the 1910s and really flourished during the mid-1900s.
  • “Similar theology, history, and practice”:  Christian groups vary widely in these three categories, and perhaps others.  But when believers have these in common, they tend to stick together.  They have campmeetings and conventions; they have unity services and missionaries; they trade pastors and, all too often, church people.  They might even work together on joint projects, like we did in Guatemala with Meridian Church of God earlier this year, and like we did with two other Church of God congregations for the Global Gathering last month.  The structures we develop support and protect our investments (material and spiritual) in our beliefs, our shared history, and our shared experiences.

This is all well and good.  But many people today have been driven away from God because of the problems in the institution of the church – whatever its label.  And this isn’t good.  In our humanness, we create issues that cause people to turn away from God.  We argue among each other; we criticize those who disagree with us on political issues.  We discriminate against those who aren’t like us; we harbor jealousy of those who are successful.  We distrust those in power; we fail to consider the needs of “the least of these.”  And all these things can occur within one particular church group – I know, because I have seen them in the Church of God itself!

Yet I do not run away.  I remain committed to the Church of God (and to the Mt. Haley congregation in particular) because I believe in the Church of God’s theology, history, and practices.  I find the institution frustrating at times, but I also find it incredibly valuable because it connects me to something bigger than myself.  And at the same time, I constantly work to remember that the Church of God is connected to something bigger than itself as well.  We speak openly about salvation, unity, and holiness with Christians in our own fellowship and those in other backgrounds.  We do so because we share “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all” (Ephesians 4:5-6 NIV) and we take seriously Jesus’s prayer that we might all be one (John 17:22-23).

With all this in mind, I invite you to read two more articles, these written by good friends of mine, Joe Watkins and Jael Tang.  They are two of my “people” – the group I’ve mentioned to you before, my seminary friends who form for me a special community of support, inspiration, and challenge.  Please take a few minutes to read what they have to say; I promise it’s worth your time.

Read Joe’s blog here: http://www.noggingrande.com/2013/07/10/three-reasons-its-cool-to-love-the-institution-of-the-church/

Read Jael’s blog here: http://akandatang-luke5.blogspot.com/2013/07/where-we-come-from-institution-and.html

–Pastor David

The Necessity of Gathering

At last week’s Global Gathering, a powerful thought captured my attention:  as people of faith, we need each other to survive.

Sudipta and his family
Sudipta and his family

Pastor Jerry, Connie, and I had the privilege of meeting Sudipta Nanda, the church leader from northern India whose attendance at the Global Gathering our congregation helped to support.  We met Brother Sudipta along with the pastors of our sister churches, Rev. Shannon New Spangler (Harvest Point Church of God, Lordstown, Ohio) and Rev. Jonathan Frymire (Orchard View Church of God, Grand Rapids, Michigan).  Sudipta is a warm and compassionate man with a strong heart for Jesus Christ.  He and his young family are committed to sharing the gospel among the millions of people in northern India.  His presentation showed us many of the challenges he faces:  other religions that are firmly entrenched in his region, social and community problems that oppress individuals and families, and physical needs that face everyone on a daily basis.  As pastor of a congregation and overseer of over 700 others, Sudipta has a tremendous amount of work.

And yet, on many occasions, he expressed his gratitude to us for helping him to come to Anderson.  This experience of gathering with other believers from around the world was a powerful, meaningful experience for Sudipta.

Personally speaking, this Global Gathering served an important purpose for me, as well.  I was refreshed and renewed through rekindling relationships with some very dear friends of mine, including the two pastors mentioned above.  We have always taken the opportunity to spend time together at this annual convention.  Often, we have stayed up late into the night talking about important issues of life and ministry – and, to be very honest, simply having a lot of fun together, too.

But this year, I came away with another impression.  I can imagine how vital it was for Sudipta to come to this Global Gathering; his ministry will surely benefit from his experiences.  For me, I am learning that this kind of connection is indispensible; I would not be who I am today if I did not meet regularly with these important individuals who can speak truth and joy into my life.  Going to Anderson is an annual spiritual pilgrimage, not for the location but for those whom I meet there.

Do you have meaningful relationships like these in your life?  Are there people who help you make sense of life and without whom you would feel lost?  How often do you get to see them, to be refreshed by them, and to be spiritual refreshment in their lives?

Are you fortunate enough to worship in the same congregation with any of those individuals?  How important it is for the saints of God to come together each week for refreshment, nurture, and companionship!

Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:25 NIV)

Global Gathering

During the last week of June, the Church of God came together for a “Global Gathering” in which delegates from 63 countries came to Anderson, Indiana, for a week of worship, celebration, prayer, fellowship, and encouragement.  I was blessed to attend the majority of this gathering, and I’d like to share with you some highlights from the week.

  • The major theme of the Global Gathering was “Standing Together” – a testament to our convictions about Christian unity.  Regardless of our nationalities, ethnicities, and languages, we practiced loving, accepting, and encouraging each other because of our common faith in Jesus Christ.  This too was an important theme through the week:  that Jesus Christ is at the center of who we are as the people of God.  Perhaps the most moving experience of this truth was at the opening worship service, in which all the delegates from around the world entered the convention hall behind their respective nations’ flags, accompanied by a sustained standing ovation by everyone else.
  • Each day, we all came together for three worship services – morning, afternoon, and evening – and each service had a preacher from a different part of the world.  We heard the Word of God preached by individuals from Russia, Zambia, Brazil, Jamaica, Australia, Ghana, India, Paraguay, and the United States.  The diversity of life experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives on life was amazing!  And there are some fantastic preachers in our movement around the world! (Remember, you can watch the services online at www.chog.org/gg-media.)
  • All week long, we gave offerings out of love and thankfulness to our Lord.  Now, in the past, the offerings for the North American Convention have gone to cover the costs of the convention itself, or to support other components of the Church of God structure.  Not so this year.  All of the offerings – every dollar and penny – were given directly to an organization called Water4 (www.water4.org).
    • water4This not-for-profit has the goal of eliminating the current world water crisis.  (There are millions of people on the planet who cannot just turn the faucet and get clean drinking water; instead, many must drink from unsanitary, infested pools located sometimes miles from home.)  Water4 exists to train, equip, and support local individuals as they learn to dig freshwater pressure wells in their own communities using simple, cost-effective materials.  From beginning to end, one well costs just $1,000 through this organization.
    • The goal at the Global Gathering was for us to raise $100,000 for Water4.  An anonymous donor made a challenge:  up to this amount, he or she would donate $4 for every $1 that we gave.  This encouraged us to give even more, and by the end of the week, we had given over $106,000 – meaning that the total donation to Water4 from our group was over half a million dollars.  This will sponsor 500 new freshwater wells throughout the world.  Thanks be to God!

This Global Gathering was a tremendous experience.  I am already looking forward to next year, even though it will be back to our regular North American Convention!

You know, you can come along too, even for just a weekend or for part of the week.  This is our convention!

–Pastor David

Jesus is the Subject

This Wednesday, at the annual national-level General Assembly meeting of the Church of God, we ratified our new General Director, Rev. Jim Lyon.  He will take up the reins of leadership in this movement upon the retirement of Rev. Dr. Ron Duncan later this summer.  For various reasons, I have wavered back and forth in my support of this nomination, but in the past few weeks I have come to see the value and importance of Rev. Lyon’s appointment to this post, at this particular time in our movement’s history.

Rev. Jim Lyon
Rev. Jim Lyon

I’d like to share with you one of the most important pieces of my growing sense of support for Rev. Lyon.  This begins with a concern that many people in the movement have:  the Church of God needs a singular identity, something around which to rally ourselves, a message to proclaim to the broader church and to the world.  (If you participated in the Revelation Bible study on Sunday nights last year, you may remember that this question came up frequently.  That’s because the identity the Church of God had 100 years ago – related to a specific interpretation of Revelation – is no longer accepted broadly today.  However, nothing that strong has risen up in its place in the past few decades.)

After his ratification, Rev. Lyon spoke to the General Assembly for a good half hour.  During this talk, he reminded us that he does not come to this position with an agenda, a crystal-clear vision, or a list of programs to implement.  Instead, he comes with a singular conviction.  As he talked about this conviction, I realized he had written about this in his public responses to questions earlier this year:

To move forward, the unity of our own church family must be cemented. There are factions, subsets, splinters, and tribes within the Movement, all held loosely together but sometimes moving in different directions. All of us need to embrace the truth that Jesus is the subject. The church is not the subject.

When we are in right relationship to Jesus, the church will be fine. If we are not in right relationship to Jesus, no program, doctrine, distinctive, or emphasis in the church will be healthy. Who Jesus is. What Jesus thinks. What Jesus cares about. What Jesus died for. What Jesus calls us to do. How Jesus loves. How Jesus forgives. How Jesus walked and would have us walk. This is the stuff of unity. Focusing along these lines is our only hope to realize our Heaven-sent destiny as a Movement.

The Church of God, perhaps more than any other part of the larger Christian family, is hinged on relationships, grounded in the Word. We must nurture relationships with each other, tethered by this truth: Jesus is the subject. Supremely. When we obey Him, we love Him. When we see Him, we see the Father. When we follow Him, we find life.

My first object will be to bring Jesus into view, to focus, insofar as I am able, the church on its Lord.

Friends, this is good stuff.  I can rally around this core conviction.  It may not be a full vision for the Church of God, but that’s ok – it’s a wonderful starting point.  It’s something that can spark our movement’s quest for identity and purpose.  I look forward to thinking and moving with you and with Rev. Lyon in the days ahead as we reflect on the impact of this truth:  Jesus is the subject.

–Pastor David

Inconsolable

On Tuesday morning, a gentle spring thunderstorm rolled through Mt. Haley Township.  Another round of earth-nourishing rain fell through a cool air mass that had me wearing a sweatshirt on the last week of May.  Storms of varying degrees of intensity came and went throughout the remainder of the day and into the night.  In the midst of all the rain, thunder, and wind, one thing remained constant:

Our dog Jake was terrified out of his mind.

photo by Qualsiasi
photo by Qualsiasi

We added Jake to our family about seven years ago.  He came from a rescue organization in Ohio, and his age and birthplace were unknown to everyone.  Over the years, we have come to believe that Jake may be a “Katrina dog” – that is, a dog who was born in the New Orleans area and survived the terror of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  We believe this because he dislikes getting wet in any way and because he shows signs of extreme anxiety at the slightest rumble:  thunder, gunshots, firecrackers, or anything else that might remind him of a terribly frightening storm.

Yesterday’s storms were no exception:  all day long, Jake whined, paced, yelped, and was generally inconsolable.  By the evening, even the sound of falling rain sent him into a panic, as if he could sense that a thunderclap might come in the near future.

Tara and I tried to comfort him in different ways at different times.  But we have realized that nothing we can do – short of giving him sedatives, which we have never done – will help this poor dog survive the emotional trauma of a thunderstorm.  (Opening day of rifle season in November is another fun day for us!)

Have you ever been inconsolable due to a traumatic event in your life?  Or has someone around you experienced such emotional stress that you could not comfort him or her?  Or have you ever been overwhelmingly occupied by a burden to share the love of Christ with someone around you?

In all three of these situations, the message of Jesus Christ reaches out to us and transforms us.  Take a moment to read 2 Corinthians 1:3-11.  In this opening passage of the letter, Paul writes about the comfort of God available to those who identify with Christ.  Two truths are readily apparent:  any comfort in this world comes from God, and the comfort we have received must be shared with others around us.  Yet a third truth – having to do with enduring suffering for the sake of the gospel – captures my attention today.

Are we afflicted with sufferings for the cause of Christ?  Does our faith in Christ find expression in our lives in ways that cost us something?  Are we in need of divine comfort because we are sharing in the sufferings of our Lord?

Or do we have more in common with Jake, who reacts with fear to the world around him, even though he is perfectly safe in the care of his providers?  Do we merely wait for God to comfort us in our everyday distress?

Surely everyday comfort is important, but I believe it is more important to be in need of divine comfort because of our active participation in the work of God.  Let’s get to work!

–Pastor David

Universal Redemption

This week, the Catholic Church’s Pope Francis gave a brief message in which he made some remarks that have prompted worldwide attention.  In these remarks, he spoke about the common human desire to “do good” – something that unites people of all cultures and faith traditions.

Pope Francis
Pope Francis

Pope Francis’s comments were based on the gospel reading for the day, Mark 9:38-40, in which Jesus says that someone doing miracles in his name should be allowed to continue even though he is not part of the “core group” of disciples.  The rationale?  “Whoever is not against us is for us,” said Jesus.  This led the pope to state that all people, even atheists, are redeemed by the blood of Jesus, because all people are created in the image of God and all people have the God-given command (and desire) to “do good.”

Before we jump to conclusions and responses, let’s remember a few things:  the world is a complicated place, sound bytes often reduce conversations unfairly, and Pope Francis raises a few worthwhile points here:

  • If we consistently “do good,” then we will avoid war, murder, and killing in God’s name – which is against God’s character.
  • God has indeed created all people in his own image.  This means every single person is loved by God and deserves our respect, compassion, and love.
  • “Doing good” in community leads to a “culture of encounter” which breeds peace, not conflict.  Said differently, we are to live in community with each other, not in isolation.

I have been very interested in Pope Francis, his beliefs, and his practices since he was inaugurated earlier this year.  I appreciate a great deal about him:  his call to poverty, his emphasis on service, his humility (even in such a high position), his simplicity.  These are exciting days to have such a pope in the world.

Yet we need to be careful when we talk about how the blood of Christ redeems all people.  It is true that God desires all people to be saved; he does not want anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9).  God did create us in his image exactly so we might enjoy right relationship with him forever.  But even in Old Testament days, forgiveness for sins had to be obtained through animal sacrifices, which individual believers would bring to the tabernacle or temple.  Redemption was not automatic then, and it is not now.

…because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. (Hebrews 7:24-27 NIV)

The most important faith-related question for any person is this:  What will you do with Jesus?  The answer to that question – for better or worse – transforms life, community, and why we “do good.”  Let us faithfully proclaim Jesus as the Savior of the world and encourage those around us to enter into relationship with him.

–Pastor David

What do you want?

We have been spending a lot of time in John’s gospel during our Sunday morning services lately.  At the beginning of that gospel, when Jesus had attracted his first two disciples, this startling question is recorded:

Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” (John 1:38a NIV)

A pastor friend of mine recently told the story of a research student who polled random people in a certain city.  This student asked each individual the same three questions, and all three questions were exactly the same:

What do you want?

photo by zubrow
photo by zubrow

How would you respond to that question?  What do you want?  Perhaps there is a pressing need in your life; perhaps a loved one is ill, or you have outstanding bills that need to be paid.  Maybe you feel pressed for time in your everyday life, and you would like a real vacation – or more hours in the day!  Maybe what you want relates to your work, your home, or your family.  For me, I certainly could use more hours in the day, or perhaps a clone of myself to get twice as much done!

But now think about the question on a deeper level:  What do you want?  What is really most satisfying in your life?  Where do you find the most meaning?  What drives you?  What motivates you?  The things that motivate us reveal what is really important to us.  There are only so many priorities that we can have, and certain events or circumstances just won’t get us to behave, feel, or believe differently.  But other priorities are higher in importance for us.  Personally, one of the (lighter) things in this category is interacting with my dog Jake.  Sometimes, such as just now, I will look over from my desk, see him looking at me, and watch him start to wag his tail as we stare at each other.  Then after a few seconds he stands up slowly – his back hips are getting rusty – and comes over to be petted.  Call me crazy, but this helps me remember something about live and love and family and relationships.

So here’s the third and final question:  What do you want?  What is this all about?  Why do you believe in Jesus (if you do)?  How would you respond to Jesus’s question in John 1:38?  What are we really about?  Why does our church exist?  Why does the church exist?  My answers to this … well, my answers hopefully come through each sermon you hear at Mt. Haley.

This sequence of questions invites us to think more deeply about our lives, our church, and the meaning of everything we do.  The answers we give are probably the most important thoughts we have.

The disciples responded to Jesus by saying,

“Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” (John 1:38b NIV)

My pastor friend commented that when we truly listen to our deepest desires, our answers to the ultimate questions, then we will hear God’s voice leading us forward.  Let us all listen carefully for the voice of the Good Shepherd and find out where he is staying, so that we might stay there with him and learn from him.

–Pastor David