Ruler of Peace

Judges 1
Micah 5:2-5

A lot of times, I struggle with these Advent passages. As we wait for the celebration of Your coming, we read all that led up to Your birth. The miracles of the angel's messages, the coming of John the Baptist, Psalms of praise and rejoicing, and the prophecies of Your coming. Sometimes I struggle with putting all the different readings into one theme. Sometimes, however, I struggle with believing that the passage of prophecy really truly came true.

Look at all of Micah 5:2-5. A ruler will come, and be over Israel, and he will rule them and they will find security. That really didn't seem to happen. The words often used with Jesus (ruler, king, leader) really lend to political understandings. I know that Jesus came and tried to make the people understand differently the words. But, I can see why many people didn't get it. Especially those who were committed to the text. And especially those who viewed the text literally. Because apparently Jesus fulfilled these prophecies about being a ruler without ever really taking the political throne in Israel.

So, I guess what really scares me about all this Lord is: what am I missing? What am I interpreting too literally? Where are You that I have not seen You?

Through all this, the final promise in Micah is that the "ruler" will be the peace of the people. I can see that in You. You do often become the peace in people's lives. And even when You walked the earth You brought peace.

Advent readings, prophecies, doubts, and wonders. But the peace makes You true to me. How can I not praise You and feel at peace when my beautiful son has just turned 2 years old today? How can I not be peaceful while sitting in the bleak mid-winter with my wife who is pregnant with our second child. You are the peace of my life as I sit with my church and talk about how to do things that I'm terrible at (details) and yet the rest of the community comes through for me with great suggestions.

You are my rest in the mornings. Thanks.

When the LORD Listened to a Man

Joshua 10

"There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the LORD listened to a man."

In Joshua 10, Joshua prays to the LORD that the sun will stand still in its place so that the Israelites can pursue their enemies before it becomes dark. And the LORD listens. The sun miraculously stands still, and the enemies are defeated.

But I'm interested in this phrase. There's never been a day like it... Well, I see that as being something true. There has probably never been another day that the sun stands still for a long period of time. Another one is not recorded in the Bible, and I don't really see it happening without Your command. So I get the first part of the statement here in Joshua.

But the second part stumps me. It is apparently not the sun standing still that has never happened before, it is that You listened to a man. Except for, in the rest of the Bible, that happens a lot. Specifically, You listened to Elijah and bring down fire on his bull when he faces off with the prophets of Baal. You listened to Daniel when he prayed on behalf of the exiled Israelites. You listened to Abraham when he bargains for the lives of those in Sodom and Gomorrah. You listened to Moses. You listened to Samuel. And so on and so on.

And even more, it is integral to the modern Christian faith (based on Biblical traditions) that You listen to us and our prayers. It is one of the things that makes Christian faith tradition unique and amazing, that the Creator of the universe will listen to our prayers. It is that relational aspect of your love that I believe (and have taught) is paramount to any other concern.

So, what's going on here in this passage? Why is this a special case? These are questions I would like to have answered. It throws a sprinkle of doubt on one of the reasons that I love You. It flies in the face of what I've experienced.

A couple explanations come to mind. First off, that listen isn't really the best choice of word here. Maybe obey would have been a better choice. Man made a specific, really miraculous, request and You obeyed. However, that is what Elijah did too. He asked for fire to come from the sky. And You sent fire. That takes out obey. But it could still be a weird translation.

More likely, I'm missing something. Some context clue here that changes the interpretation. Something others would have easily understood. Am I missing something? This is where a study would be really useful.

Another option for this? Maybe the author didn't know their history. That's really possible. Maybe the author was only talking about in their story and in their lifetime God never listened like this again. I don't mind this, but then it does call in to question, well, actually this suggestion would erase the idea of inerrancy. I'm okay with that, this isn't a central issue. But I know and understand how people get nervous about that.

So in short, confusing little phrase in the midst of a violent passage. But that's another matter all together. Thanks for the little Bible study today, the raising of questions. I'll see if I can find answers later today.

Provision and Safety

Today I read from the book of Joshua, which if I'm being honest Lord, is really a difficult book to get into after the first couple of chapters. What I'm realizing as I read this year is what kind of books I really like and what kind of books I don't care for. I mean, I'm working through the year on a "Literature Style" plan of reading through the Bible. And what I've found so far is that I am really fond of the poetry, Psalms, prophecy and gospels and I don't get all that excited when I see that it's a day for reading the history books of the Bible.

What do you do with the splitting up of land? How do you look at that hermeneutically? What does the fact that the tribe of Judah was given 29 towns and cities in the hill country do to build up my faith? How can I enact or put into practice the wiping out of everyone who is breathing from the towns that God delivers into my hands? I mean, I'm being sarcastic because these things aren't necessarily here as part of the text for me to emulate, but that brings me back to my original question, what do I do with these texts?

I suppose, after I stop whining, that these passages are about receiving what You have given. And You've been very good in what You have given to me. I have a wife who loves me and a son who ran across the basement last night to give me a hug when he got home. You've given me a home, You keep the heat working, because You know how our old furnace just likes to up and quit every now and again. You've given me a church community that challenges me to grow.

Do I do what I can to protect the things You've given me from spiritual danger? I don't want to spiritualize the text from Joshua too much, but I think the reason they annihilated everyone was to keep the land from being overwhelmed with idols. To keep the land that You had given them "spiritually" safe. What do I do to keep my family and church "spiritually" safe? This is actually a great question, because I can't come up with a solid answer quickly. It's making me think. It's also making think, what am I supposed to do?

Since I have no answers this morning, keep these questions before me throughout the day.

Produce Fruit in Keeping with Repentance (Intro)

Lord, I've continually been wrestling with these thoughts about "preparing the way." I'm sure I've written some of them here before but at times I forget what I've written and what I've just thought. That happens I guess as thoughts swirl around about a hundred million different things all at the same time.

I've been really influenced by what I've been reading lately, one of which is "Sacred Rhythms" by Ruth Haley Barton. It's a book on spiritual disciplines that are often left undone: solitude, silence, lectio divina, praying without words, etc. One of the interesting things that she mentions though is how we as humans and church leaders are always trying to "programitize" transformation, as if human effort, if directed specifically in the right direction or saying the right things, can make people change. But the truth is it can't. Only God and the person needing transformation can make it happen.

"Well, okay..." I think, "then what are we supposed to do? Wait around for the Lord to act? Only pray? Is there anything that we can do?" As I was going through these thoughts about God making the transformation not human effort, I preached on the golden calf and how Israel tried to take God's power and put it into something that wasn't God's will. They couldn't wait and see how God would reveal himself, they chose the way in which God should reveal himself. And God doesn't honor that type of treatment. God chooses, we wait.

But it doesn't seem to be an inactive waiting. That seems ridiculous, by my experience anyways. I think, what am I just going to sit around? Really? That's all I'm supposed to do? Just wait? Same thoughts I've been having before? In my experience it seems silly to only sit around and wait for God when there are things you could be doing. For example, praying that you will find a job when you are not actively looking, putting in resumes, etc. It seems like we have to do our part as well, right? For whatever it is?

So what's the word for doing our part while still looking, waiting, and recognizing when God is doing His part, the important stuff? Well, Bryan found the perfect word when starting to get Advent worship ready for Exodus Community - prepare. Yes, it is God that makes those big steps, that accomplishes the transformation in people. But what do we do to help God? We prepare or make others prepared. That sounds right.

Wow. Okay, so that's the background to coming thoughts. And that's already long. Maybe I should have been blogging in little bits so it didn't take me forever to get the thoughts out there. And I'm running out of time this morning Lord, so I'm sorry. I guess these thoughts will stay with me through the day and we'll post tomorrow. How do we help people prepare for what God is doing?

Therefore...

Lord, as I prepare this week to speak to the others in Exodus Community in a sermon for the first time, I want to make sure (well, I guess every time after this I want to make sure to but, well, you know) that what I'm saying is simply what You are saying. Nothing that is meant to just be shocking, nothing that is just meant to rattle people's cages...unless that's what the truth is. I guess I'm saying, help me speak Your truth and nothing else.

I don't mean to be humble. I don't mean this in the way that I pray a prayer for Courtney or I to get a job or better from sickness just because I feel like if I don't pray then You won't let us get a job or feel better. No I pray this because I know only You can take my words and make something greater of them. Without Your Spirit, the words will fall where they will and continuing being just words. But through You, through Christ, the Word lives.

All that to say, I'm studying one word in particular and I want to make sure that I get this word right. It's kind of the title of my sermon, and maybe I was a little premature in naming it, because I'm finding it really means something totally different than I originally thought. It's the word "go" and it's in the context of Matthew 28:19...

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,"

I thought it meant go, like leave where you are and go somewhere else. Not in the sense of, for example, moving from my home to some place else. No, instead, more in the sense of leave what you are doing right now, the lifestyle you are living right now, the people you are always worried about, the self you are always worried about and "go" to many different types of people.

But I looked the verb up in a Greek dictionary. It's the word "poreuqente" in Greek, a form of poreuomai. Poreuomai has this definition, offered up by www.greekbible.com: to pursue the journey on which one has entered, to continue on one's journey.

To continue...to keep doing what you are doing...that seems totally different to me. It seems like a big miss of translation too. I mean, it makes total sense. Instead of going all over the place and making new relationships all over with the goal of making disciples, work within the relationships you already have established, the places you already know, and make disciples there. Teach and show Christ there. Be Christ where you are at, wherever that is on your journey.

It's very thought-provoking stuff to me. I pray that You reveal to me the truth of this translation and its implications as I continue to study. Then let it be as impactful on others as it is becoming for me.

Room to Speak

First of all, let me just say that keeping up a blog, even if it is supposed to be communication between You and me, is hard work. There just doesn't seem to be that much to talk about, even with You.

But this week, ever since studying Scripture with my pastor buddies on Monday night, Your simple (and simply overwhelming) "I am" statement has been just banging around my head. Not in the gentle, "Hum, I wonder..." type of way but in the sledgehammer strong "I demand some answers!" type of thought. Where better to go for answers than some dialogue with You.

(An honest aside: I've come to not really expect straightforward answers from You, but more questions leading me into different trains of thought, provoking more questions...invigorating maybe, but in some sense making things more difficult and confusing in the end. Another thing I've come to notice is that You end up directing me back to some truth that is already present in my life, just not fully developed, appreciated, obeyed or understood.)

(Okay, another honest aside: I've often heard that confession is necessary to kind of clear the air before you have honest discussions with You, God. Well, I've got a couple of confessions to make up for all the time I've not exactly been talking with You. Number one: I've become convinced that You want to be number one in every one's life, and I know that often You've been pushed out of the way lately by many things. Okay, here's the list: pride, sexual sin, sports, laziness, simple distractions, contempt, disinterest. All those things have become more important to me than You. Clear them away. Help me fast from them for awhile, or whatever works. Number two: I still care more about what others think about me than what You want from me.)

But...

You've got to make it clear what You want from me.

I know exactly what pride wants. It wants me to do everything my way and then make sure I get the credit. Or let someone else do everything their way, shirk the blame, and tell everyone how I could have done it better. It happens to me with the tennis program at school. It happens within our Exodus Community gatherings. Point being, it messes with things I really want to succeed. But, I know exactly what to do to be prideful.

Or sexual sin. It wants to be gratified. Whatever way that takes. Making my wife an object, masturbation, pornography, etc. I know that any of these will do. I know exactly what to do.

Or sports. I just need to be involved. Tape the game, talk to people about, visit websites and get the inside scoop. Lose myself into all the minute details of the Chicago Fire, or French Open Championships, or Bethany tennis. I know what it wants.

So what do You want?

Last week on vacation I asked this question, and it seemed that You gave two vague answers.

1. My relationship to You, and to doing Your will, is to be Your servant. To help in the acts that You are already involved in.

2. My job is often to be still and the go fill. That sounds stupid and pragmatic, but I got to admit that it is easy to remember.

Okay, so I guess I do have some answers...but I don't really know how to use them. Okay, I'm supposed to be Your servant. I was so convinced of this that I told everyone in the Exodus Community that that is what we're all supposed to be. And I believe that. I just don't exactly know what it is that we are supposed to serve you in. And be still...okay, just right where I am? Or go down to the dam? Or sit outside? And what am I listening for anyways? Or am I not supposed to listen, just sit and be still and try to think of nothing (which seems literally impossible)? And then fill...wait, what? And specifically, who? And again, once I've got the who, how?

What I know, what I appreciate, is that You are insanely personal. I know You want to work through this with me. And what occurs to me from the "I am" statement is that "You are" working through this with me. Just never as clearly as I may like.

Well, that seemed to be a bunch of madness explaining little. But after having this little piece of honesty with You, I've said my say. All that's been building up in me is out there. So now I'll end this little piece and listen.

I hope You have room to speak.