Dealing with sheep and wolves

This past week a friend of mine who is another brother in Christ made a facebook post about a popular pastor/writer. He claimed that because this pastor had announced that he supported something my friend disagreed with that this pastor's ministry was false. To support his claim, he utilized an article he found which contained miniature quotes from an interview someone had conducted with this pastor combined with a handful of verses.

I cringed as soon as I saw the post. I cringed first of all because I have seen so many brothers and sisters fall into this trap--and second I cringed because I know the person who made the post truly loves God and was operating in what he felt was a Biblical way--I mean after all, doesn't the Bible tell us to beware of wolves in sheep's clothing? 

BUT...Let's think about this a little deeper. Let's start with what we know...

1. God loves people--not just some people--ALL people. There is not a single person that God is not passionately in love with.

2. God is sovereign--God is in charge of His kingdom and He can use anything and anyone He chooses to accomplish the mission He has.

3. All of us (including pastors) are imperfect. If we were honest with ourselves, we would all admit that there are beliefs and actions that we have that are not perfect. When we read the Bible, these imperfect beliefs and actions affect us.

OK...so then what do we do when we hear a pastor or Christian say something that we feel is in violation to the word of God. 

FIRST--We have to recognize that just because they may have an error in one piece of their doctrine--that does not mean that their entire ministry is false--if that were the case, there would be no true ministries anywhere. 

SECOND--We have to remember that ministry is a deeply, personal calling by God. When we have a problem with something a pastor says, we must be careful not to immediately dismiss his/her calling. Only God has the ability to choose the called--not us! 

THIRD--We must acknowledge that God loves that pastor--we must make sure that while we may disagree with his/her teaching that we respond to them with the heart and love of Christ.

We must approach these topics humbly. We must ask ourselves whether or not we are motivated out of a genuine heart of love or out of our own personal agendas. If we are truly operating out of love we are not going to tear down a leader on facebook or bash their name in public.

If you TRULY do believe a pastor is outside the will of God in his/her teaching--you pray for them. You fall on your face in love on their behalf. You pray for their followers and listeners that they will discern God's message through this person's teachings. Finally, you ask God to reveal the truth of the issue to yourself. You ask Him to purge you of any self righteous judgment.

There is no reason to turn it into a public spectacle because this confuses those who do not understand. Not everyone in the church is on the same level of Spiritual maturity and to bash another pastor over some random issue spawns confusion and when there is confusion Satan will create division. 

...and so I implore all of my brothers and sisters in the faith to think twice before you are tempted to tear down a pastor or teacher. Unless you know that individual personally and can speak to them directly about the matter you have no right to make judgments on his/her ministry. 

 

The truth about "Communion"

Communion or Eucharist or The Lord's Supper has been a traditional part of Christian ritual for centuries. However, recently I have been researching the origin of communion and its meaning and have been astonished to discover that the modern day concept of 'communion' is actually not Biblical at all--and sadly much of meaning is misunderstood. 

To understand what was really going on at the Lord's Supper we have to look at Jewish culture and tradition. For the average Jewish family living in Biblical times, everyday life centered around the family meal. Families would spend hours sharing, laughing, and just being with each other around the table. They didn't have TV or video games to distract them from what was most important--so for them much of their lives was fellowship with their friends and family.

The Jewish meal always began with a custom known as Challa or "breaking the bread". During this time, the leader of the house would say a blessing over the time of fellowship, break the bread, and then pass it around inviting everyone to partake. Wine was often served at meals as well and was used during special occasions to sanctify the meal. 

Now...let's jump to the Upper Room. Jesus is sitting with His disciples during the Passover meal. At the opening of this meal he says something interesting...He picks up the Challa, blesses it and says, "Take, eat: this is my body"--the bread is then passed around. Next, Jesus picks up the cup of wine and says, "Drink of it all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins."

So...what was Jesus saying? He was in essence saying that His sacrifice and death on the cross was the beginning of celebration. The start is gory and painful and agonizing, but once it is accomplished there is reason to rejoice! The brokenness caused by the fall of man is being restored. Jesus' blood has sanctified and redeemed us. The work has already been done--it is finished!

We are then told, "As often as you do this, do this in remembrance of me"

Well, for a good Jewish audience, they would have "broken the bread" every day. So it would have been a daily reminder of what Jesus had done. Every time they gathered together with their family and friends to eat and fellowship they would have broke the bread and they would have remembered Jesus' words. 

Jesus was not starting something new--he was fulfilling something that was already present in their culture.

What does this mean for us? This means that every time we gather in fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ we are to remember that the work has been done. Church should be a place of great joy and celebration not of dead, somber worship! The communion table should be a place that reminds us to rejoice and be exceedingly glad. Yet, so often we turn it into something so solemn and depressing.

The message of the Lord's Supper goes beyond a few hours on a Sunday morning. It should be present everywhere you are. In your family, in your work, in your school--joy! Divine joy because the feast can begin because the sacrifice has been made; the bread has been broken; the blood has sanctified us.

...and as Christians we need to share that with everyone around us. Because we can choose to focus on what was dead and rotten--sin OR we can choose to celebrate what has been resurrected and been made new. The choice is yours :-) 

I pledge Allegiance to...??

The other day I was teaching at a school during the pledge of allegiance and suddenly I felt wrong. As I began to recite the pledge like I have done hundreds of times in my life, the words began to stick out to me and I realized that I could not continue to say it.

For many of my fellow Americans and evangelical brothers and sisters this may seem crazy and unpatriotic--but let me explain.

The opening lines of the pledge read I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands...

This opening portion is in essence saying that I will devote my life and give everything I have for the cause of my country and its political system....BUT as a Christian I have made the choice to devote my life and give everything I have for the Kingdom of God...and as Jesus said clearly, "You cannot serve two masters, either you will hate one and love the other or be devoted to one and despise the other" (Matthew 6:24, paraphrased)

I think that is one of the problems in the American church....we have pledged our allegiance to America's ideas rather than God's. That's why so many Christians are willing to support an unnecessary war in the middle east but struggle to give a few dollars to a homeless guy on the street. 

...and as for our republic...there is no doubt that I love democracy. I think democracy is one of the most beautiful and powerful forces on Earth. However, we cannot pledge ourselves to the voice of the people. Let us not forget: It was the voice of the people that put Jesus on the cross; it was the voice of the people that allowed slavery to continue so long in this country; it was the voice of the people that allowed an entire Native American population to be wiped out and dominated.

I believe the people should have a voice....but I certainly cannot give everything I have to such a thing.

The next part of the pledge reads as follows: one nation under God, indivisible...

In this part of the pledge I am insinuating that my country is in submission to God and represents God's will on Earth. This is not the case at all. How can I say that my nation is "under God" when we so easily kill our own people through abortion and the death penalty? How can I say my nation is "under God" when there are more missionaries sent to our country than any other? No...we do not live in a nation under God. My nation is very far from the heart of God....so I cannot make this declaration.

The pledge then ends with the phrase with liberty and justice for all

Again....this is a false statement. America does not defend justice for all. America is connected to an economic system which allows the few to prosper and the majority to struggle and suffer. America is a nation that has allowed other countries to be stripped of their resources and left in poverty while we sit in our wealth. The socioeconomic gap in our nation is one of the largest in the western world. 

We are a nation that is far from the ideals of liberty and justice for all.

***
The early Christian church lived in an empire where they had to give offerings to pagan gods or be killed. They lived in a world where they had to declare that Caesar is Lord and bow before his image....and they were martyred for their refusal to do so. To me, I see the pledge of allegiance as America's way of saying "Caesar is Lord...bow to the empire"--BUT I cannot bow....the people around me may criticize, ridicule, and be angry with me...but I my allegiance is to the one, true and risen Lord...not America.
***

SO then what do I pledge my allegiance to? I pledge allegiance to a God that embraces humanity in all its forms. I pledge allegiance to the fact that no matter how strong evil is, love and compassion are always stronger. I pledge allegiance to a God that brings life in the midst of death and who calls me to live for nothing more or less than to love recklessly.

Because of the that, I cannot pledge my allegiance to America....no matter how much I love my country. 

...but that is just the humble conviction of an everyday radical. :-) 

DEFEATING ETHNOCENTRIC CHRISTIANITY

The history of America has always been intertwined with what was going on in the church at the time. As much as our nation has tried to separate church and state, we seem to have failed miserably. Over time, this has created a major problem within the American church.

As America has risen in global dominance and become the Hegemon of the world system, the church sadly has come to adopt this idea of global dominance within its walls. We view Christians in other nations as "uncivilized" and that somehow they must rely on the American church in order to adequately interpret scripture. However, the western church has completely lost the heart of the Gospel. 

God's Kingdom is much more diverse, powerful, and beautiful than our ethnocentric mind could ever imagine. While we find ourselves lost in prosperity preaching and theological debates, our brothers and sisters around the world are experience Spirit empowered revival at unprecedented levels. God is on the move around the world and because of our narrow mindedness we are missing it. 

The United States is NOT God's chosen ambassador into the world we live in. When God looks at the world, He does not see America in any more of a special light than He does any other nation group. To God borders are a man-made menace that allows hatred and evil to drive men on a quest for power. God's movement is a movement of unity through diversity. He brings together unique people into one body.

If we ever expect to experience what God truly has in store for us, we have to break out of the window of American Christianity. The American flag and the cross of Jesus Christ are NOT the same thing. I choose to pursue the cross with every fiber of my being and without a doubt that will put me at odds with many of the values represented by the American flag. This does not mean that I hate my country or am not proud of my nation--but it does mean that it will never have my full commitment. 

Eventually, America will fall as every global power has before. America is a temporary concept--but the Love of God for ALL people in ALL places is eternal. Therefore, we as Christians must learn to lay down our American pride in surrender to the ultimate power. Only then can the American church truly experience the revolution and revival God is in the midst of unleashing!