Size does matter

It is ironic that the many IRS higher-ups claim they "did not (or do not) know" and the Department of Justice has overreached, but the State Department (and White House) suggests what happened in Benghazi could not have been avoided for lack of adequate resources.  Who knew what, when they knew, and how they came to know is not nearly as important, or as revealing, as a government so vast that it cannot be adequately managed or, in the case of Benghazi, that the government is not big enough.  That the President of the United States, the chief executive of the nation, could possibly not have known - or would not have been told - suggests ineptitude, remarkable arrogance as if above the petty details, disdain for the job itself, or all the above.

Now an upper-level "manager" of IRS is under subpoena to testify before the Congress and has made it clear through her attorney that though she is innocent of any wrong-doing, she will nevertheless invoke the 5th Amendment to protect herself from "self-incrimination".  Or is it that she will be seeking to protect other, more higher-ups than she?  The implications boggle the mind especially if it can be honestly stated that she really does not know as much as the Congress needs to find out.  But to be in her position and refuse to answer questions is not her "right"; it is her contempt for those who have every "right" to know what happened, how it came to happen, and who ultimately made it happen.

It is as easy as it is careless and irresponsible for anyone to suggest the president or his staff is corrupt without solid evidence.  This corruption is going to be very hard to prove not because evidence cannot be gleaned but because the only evidence in abundance at this point is sheer neglect, mismanagement, or downright incompetence - by the president himself (sorry, Mr. President, but it all begins and ends with you whether you like it or not).  I do not suggest corruption may not eventually be uncovered; I only suggest at this point that the government has simply gotten too big to adequately manage or even control; and its sheer size makes "hiding places" too easy.  So when the magnitude of such scandals involves departments of the government that affect our daily living in substantial ways by so many who "do not know", we are in very big trouble - especially when the White House clams up - OR - blames anyone else with nothing more than political innuendo.

Benghazi suggests sheer neglect (or total naiveté) of necessary duties by then-secretary Hillary Clinton and President Obama.  Both have demonstrated remarkable contempt for the military in the past and so perhaps failed to address and seek appropriate advice and guidance on what was clearly a security - and military - situation: a direct threat on the sovereignty of the United States, our embassy.  Resources were available but were either told to stand down or were not called upon.  This alone is a chargeable offense against the commander-in-chief of the armed forces! 

The IRS mess and Justice's overreach with AP, Fox, and now CBS suggests a government so vast that it cannot be controlled; thus allowing missteps, mismanagement, and yes, corruption on nearly every level.  Even a few "rogue" agents is no excuse for a situation that is at least two years in the making, possibly longer, without someone in charge stepping up and making necessary corrections AND advising the chief executive of a potential political land mine.  This is much more than a handful of low-level "rogue" agents; this involves a "rogue" White House staff and a "rogue" president who would voluntarily surrender his duties and responsibilities to those who are not accountable to the people of the United States.

No matter how we slice it, this government is out of hand and we've no one to blame but ourselves by demanding more from government than we are willing to give.  From top to bottom, we expect by "rights" that to which we are not entitled.  Yes, the president is ultimately responsible, and this cannot be glossed over.  For the people to suggest we are not complicit on some level, however regretfully, is to be as naive, as complacent, or as neglectful as we accuse the president of being.     

A Thought for Wednesday 5/22/13

“Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.”  Romans 13:10

To be as prominent a word and biblical ideal, “love” is the most misunderstood and misquoted even in this context.  In failing to understand that love of neighbor is “fulfillment” of the law, we have somehow reached a point at which we declare that love negates “The Law”, especially as St. Paul also writes, “We are not under law …”  Translated?  Therefore we do not have to.  WRONG! 

The commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself” is not a strictly Christian ideal; it is a commandment of the Most High God (Leviticus 19:18) and is affirmed by Jesus.  It is not negated in any way except in our complacency and refusal to go out of our way or give in any way that may inconvenience us, but it is also not defined by how we may feel at any particular time.  “Love” is a decision and a commitment to something much greater.  Love God but hate neighbor?  St. John says God is not in that heart even if we may fool ourselves by declaring that “only Jesus knows what’s in my heart”.  Yet the biblical principle is consistent: we love God by loving our neighbor.

Let us also not misunderstand “love”, though.  Do we express our “love” for our children by allowing them to go into situations we know are risky?  Of course not!  We protect them, and we punish them if they go outside established boundaries not because we get to but because we “love” them (even though they may say they hate us, we persevere for their good).  This same “love” is expressed to our neighbor who goes outside reasonable boundaries without a word from us.  We know the risk involved and yet we say nothing because we are afraid of being accused of “judging” them.  Yet it is the very lack of love that allows us to neglect what is good in favor of what is safe.

Jesus did not call His disciples into a life of safety.  It seems ironic that the Lord who protects us and keeps us safe from the evil one is the same God and Lord who calls us into a ministry that does not come without risk.  We need only to look around and see that the dying churches are the churches that are playing it safe and risking nothing.  The vital and growing churches are sticking their necks out.  The dying churches “love” their places and their traditions.  The vital and living and growing churches “love” God and trust God and continually prove their love of God and neighbor by taking risks for God in their ministries to their communities.

Love is all-encompassing and compels us to move outside of ourselves.  Otherwise it is just another four-letter word.

Blessings,

Michael

A Thought for Tuesday 5/21/13

“The Spirit also helps in our weaknesses.  For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.  Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”  Romans 8:26-27 NKJV

Continuing to try and process the devastation in Oklahoma and knowing prayer is a must, there is an important misconception many have about prayer that St. Paul seems to be addressing.  Somehow we have it in our minds that the Lord is waiting for our guidance through our prayers before He will act which, of course, cannot be true; and it is a little too simple to expect that our prayers can somehow sway the Lord’s mind especially if our own desires conflict with His perfect will.  Yes, the “prayer of the faithful avails much”, but there is no real context that says we will get whatever we want whenever we want according to our own personal desires or what we may think is best.

In the wake of the destruction of these past few days not only in Oklahoma but in Texas and across the Midwest, it is ok that we cannot find words.  It is ok that we do not feel compelled to “advise” the Holy Father as to what He should do.  It is not ok, however, to dismiss our need to pray especially as we prepare ourselves to be called forth by the Lord to act as His “agents” in helping the victims of these storms rebuild their lives and, most importantly, restore their faith in our Lord and His Holy Church.

We must give ourselves over to prayer, contemplative prayer, and surrender ourselves to the Lord each day, of course, but perhaps even more so in the coming days as the news jerks at our heart strings and the many charitable organizations compete for our limited resources.  It is only by His perfect will that we will be instructed – and comforted – so that we can help our brothers and sisters move forward with their lives, help them recover what is left of their possessions, and share with them as they mourn the loss of their loved ones.

We are The Church, the Body of Christ, the very Voice of the Almighty God Himself.  We can be no more than Him, but we must be no less.  Consider that as we “wait for God”, He may well be “waiting” for us!

Blessings,

Michael 

A Thought for Monday 5/20/13

“My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?  Why are You so far from helping me, so far from the words of my groaning?  O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer; and by night, but find no rest … yet it was You who took me from the womb; You kept me safe on my mother’s breast.  On You I was cast from my birth, and since my mother bore me You have been my God.  Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help me.”  Psalm 22:1-2, 9-11 NRSV

Watching the news this morning and trying to process the devastation left by yesterday’s storms in the Midwest (and the potential for even more today), this prayer of lamentation crossed my mind.  Though I cannot say I appreciate the news media stuffing microphones into the faces of victims who are overwhelmed by their losses, I could not help but to think of how this prayer, this psalm must have come to be written and exactly what the writer was expressing in his own time; when the writer surely believed his own world was coming to an end, and God seemed so ... absent.

Just as easily as we can see the Lord in the majesty of a glorious sunrise, we can as easily feel the Lord’s absence in the wake of disaster.  We take heart, however, and especially in the season of Pentecost when we remember the Lord giving Himself not only at Mt Sinai but also in Jerusalem … and each day since – as long as we are willing to receive it and offer it to others as it is offered to us: assurance, help in time of need, presence, security.

Our prayers often reflect our own human emotions and when we feel as though we’ve lost everything and there seems no hope, it is easy to believe the Lord has turned His back on us.  Yet when the people of God gather to offer a helping hand to those in the midst of their sorrows, when the people of God gather to share in their sorrows and help with their recovery, then the people so devastated may proclaim, “You have answered me” (Psalm 22:21b).  This is when they see our Lord; when the Church is at her very best!

Let us remember our blessings, however great or small, and recount Jesus’ words to His followers as He reminds us why we are so blessed: “From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded” (Luke 12:48).  That is, we are so abundantly blessed so that we may bless others.  That is “the code”.  It is the Word of the Lord given in so many ways so that it may be given in so many ways.

Blessings,

Michael

Breaking it down

Acts 2:1-21
John 14:8-17

"Deconstructionism" is in many Christian circles a dirty word and a threat to a long established order because the term means exactly what it seems to imply: taking what is (or, rather, what we have come to believe "is"), and then breaking it down to its base form (its beginning) so it can be better understood. 

What is disturbing to many traditionalist, conservative Christians is that the practice and theory of "deconstruction" interferes with what we believe has been long settled.  It rarely occurs to us that much of what was established so long ago was "deconstructed" in the 16th-century Reformation.  What has been offered to us since then as "reconstructed" in the anti-Rome fever of the Reformation has lost, shall we say, some of its "salt" as some doctrines have come under much closer scrutiny and have actually begun to fall apart.  And it's not because of "liberal" seminaries; it is because of a more careful examination of what we think already "is". 

In seeking to elaborate on the "Truth" as we understand it OR to try and make it make sense in a common way OR in the way we most personally desire this "Truth" to express, we are inclined to pile on and pile on fond notions, ideas, and opinions until what we sought to expand on has become virtually unrecognizable, self-justifying and just plain wrong, or completely outside of its appropriate context.  Peter's sermon is such a case in point as he quotes from the prophet Joel and concludes that portion of his "sermon" with "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved".   

True, of course, and not because it is "new" but because it is an expression of our Lord's Eternal Covenant with those who will repent and come forward to be counted among the faithful.  Then, of course, the Philippian jailer in Acts 16 is told by Paul and Silas when he asked what he must do to be saved, and they replied, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household" (16:31).  True also, but there is in verse 32 the part we overlook, the part that MUST ALWAYS accompany the first part: "Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house ..."  Exactly what that "word of the Lord" was is perhaps anyone's guess, but it is a safe bet that in this "word of the Lord" shared with the jailer, "Jesus Christ" became much more than a phrase and even more profound than just a man's name.

There are other instances in which people are encouraged to "believe in Jesus Christ", "receive Jesus Christ as 'personal' Lord and Savior", and many other such phrases developed by human tradition (but not Scripture), but the invitation to "believe" falls short of what Jesus is recorded as actually teaching by His very life - the all-encompassing part of what it means to actually "believe", to go beyond simply acknowledging a "name".  The phrases the Church has developed over time become virtually meaningless because they lack sound context.  That is, we encourage people to "believe in Jesus Christ", but we don't really tell them much about Jesus Christ because we are typically unable to articulate what "Jesus Christ" really means. 

And we don't really know what "Jesus Christ" really means because Christians are too inclined to jump straight from the "Ten Commandments" directly into the New Testament.  It is the deficiency I found within myself as I challenged a Sunday evening gathering recently: Can you tell "The Story" as Moses commanded the people of Israel in Deuteronomy 6:7?  Can you tell "The Story" as Peter did in Acts 2 or as Stephen did in Acts 7?  If we cannot, then we cannot articulate in a useful or spiritually uplifting way what or who Jesus Christ is.  It is often as if Jesus sprang forth from nothing - or worse - becomes a "god" unto Himself.  And if we reduce Him only to a "personal Savior" role without an explanation and full context of "The Story" to back it up, we're saying virtually nothing of any real or lasting benefit to those who may hear us and want to hear more - simply because we have nothing "more" to offer!

It has long been necessary, neglected though it has been, to "deconstruct" in the contemporary Church because of the many who are choosing to walk away from the contemporary Church "in search of the Lord" even though we have excused ourselves from any responsibility because, after all, if "The Message" is good enough for "us", it should be good enough for them.  It has become in too many instances a "take it or leave it" proposition.  If they can't take it, they can leave it.  It's their loss.  Right?  WRONG!  Because what we only think is "The Message" is often so far removed from "The Story" that "The Message" has no meat - only "gravy".  And we cannot live on gravy just as "man cannot live on bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God".  Jesus in the wilderness with the evil one was not anticipating what St. Paul may write in the future!  He was referring to and Being the "Word" as it is already established!

So to paraphrase a popular 1970's TV commercial for a popular hamburger restaurant chain, "Where's the meat?"  This is what "deconstruction" aims to find out; dig under the gravy, remove the bread, get past the lettuce and tomatoes and pickles and onions and cheese and mayo or mustard or ketchup and hopefully find the "meat", the very essence of the burger itself!  The rest of the stuff has the potential to enhance the essence as long as it does not overwhelm the essence, but these are not what we ordered the burger for in the first place.  Otherwise we would have been perfectly satisfied with a garden salad.  Good stuff, of course, but lacking any substantial protein which feeds muscle growth.

So it comes to this.  The Gospel of John refers to the "Word made flesh"; that Eternal Word which always was "in the beginning", long ago established.  Not "Jesus", mind you; the "Word" Jesus came to exemplify and amplify.  So it is if we do not understand the "Word" or know the "Story", we cannot know Jesus the Messiah.  And contrary to popular belief, "Christ" is NOT Jesus' last name!

This is especially important on Pentecost because of what Pentecost ultimately means in the more ancient - and enduring - Jewish tradition of Pentecost, the Festival of Weeks; Shavu'ot.  It is a holy period commemorating the GIVING of Torah at Mt Sinai to Moses.  It is when the Lord gave of Himself to the people of Israel.  The distinction between "giving" Torah and "receiving" Torah is important in the tradition as well because we are "constantly" receiving the Word of the Lord when the people of God are at their best and firing on all spiritual cylinders.  And Messiah Jesus is nothing if not "The Word" come in the flesh.  This is the principle expressed by St. Augustine in how he seeks to describe the Lord as "ever ancient and ever new".

This is what "breaking it down" gives us.  You see, Pentecost did not begin only 2000 years ago with the apostles as is commonly believed among Christians.  Pentecost already is firmly established in Torah and celebrated as the Word of the Lord "given" to the Lord's people, but it is also much more than merely obeying a simple commandment to observe a holy festival.  Deconstruction breaks it down so it will not become so encumbered and weighed down by human traditions that it becomes only a single "event" never again to be repeated.  In a manner of speaking, deconstruction might crumble the foundations of the "institutional" Church in which we have become so comfortable so as to free up the "missional" Church; the "real" Church that was called forth on Shavu'ot, the Jewish Festival of Weeks.  Pentecost.

"This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees Him nor knows Him.  You [already] know Him because He abides with you, and He will be with you ..."

Pentecost is what the Lord our God has already given and promises to keep giving as long as we keep receiving.  It is now up to us to respond not only this day but each day we draw a breath; each day we interact with our families; each day we interact with our friends; each day we interact with our neighbors; each day we interact with a rude store clerk!  We receive what is eternally given as we "keep [His] commandments".

This is Pentecost.  We do not commemorate what has already passed; we celebrate what "is" and what "is to come"; the Word of God for the people of God.  In the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit.  Amen.  

Who's running this popsicle stand?

Long ago I began trying to wean myself from politics because I felt being too immersed in politics would affect my preaching and my theology studies (it was beginning to). Politics is real life and there is no getting around it (even in theology) especially in our representative republic, but the headlines of late have become all too compelling to ignore.  It is especially bad when even Mr. Obama's media apologists and congressional Democrats begin calling out the president.  Even MSNBC's Chris Matthews has finally come to acknowledge what many had suspected even before he was elected the first time: Mr. Obama is not equipped for the job. 

A few short years in a state legislature and a few short years in the US Senate (two of those four years having been spent on the road campaigning for the presidency) is not adequate preparation for what must be the most grueling and all-encompassing job on the face of the planet.  Now, according to Chris Matthews, it seems clear Mr. Obama does not even like the job.  Not the real job, anyway.  The speeches?  Yes.  The traveling?  Yes.  The campaigning?  Yes.  Lecturing the nation?  Yes.  The vacations?  Absolutely.  But dealing with the Congress and dealing with the day-to-day executive work?  No.  This president has yet to step up to the plate and claim the job.  He has been much more inclined to travel the country at great expense (ours, not his) and give speeches telling the nation that the Congress is not doing its job.  Well, we already knew this; too many idealists, however, failed to understand that in those moments of finger-pointing, the president was not doing HIS job!  That is, until now.

The nation has a real problem, and Al-Qaida seems to be the very least of what we must be concerned with presently.  The IRS has gone "rogue", but no one seems to know who is responsible.  The Justice Department seems out of control, and the Attorney General appears clueless.  The State Department under former secretary Hillary Clinton as it concerns the ongoing investigation into what went wrong in Benghazi seems more concerned with removing Mrs. Clinton from any fault, responsibility, or accountability (in preparation for 2016, perhaps?).  In the middle of it all, the best this president can do so far is to "fire" someone who was already on his way out (the IRS interim commissioner).  Now it is claimed these few "rogue" agents were acting under orders from higher up.  How high up, exactly, is the source of consternation especially given the conservative political nature of the non-profit groups these "rogue" agents were particularly concerned with.

As it pertains to the alleged cover-up over the Benghazi attack, more than one has suggested "impeachment" may be on the table.  This is not the first time impeachment has been suggested against President Obama, but this may be the first time such measures may finally become warranted.  Let us not forget that an impeachment is not a declaration of guilt; much like a civilian indictment, there must be articles of impeachment with specific charges and a foundation to back up each article.  Innuendo and political posturing will not do.  Then the trial comes at which time these charges must be proved.  So we should not get too fired up and think impeachment will solve the many problems this nation must face not only with Benghazi but also with Treasury and with Justice. 

And let us also not forget that should impeachment happen and should Mr. Obama choose to resign rather than face these charges, we will then have President Biden and perhaps Vice-President Pelosi.  Are we ready for that one??

Tongue firmly planted in cheek, of course, because we cannot concern ourselves with the political fall-out of what may come.  We must be concerned presently with what "is", and what "is" is not merely a few "rogue" and over-zealous IRS agents "off the reservation"; we have an entirely "rogue" federal government that has completely removed itself from its only source of power to govern: the People of the United States.

The President of the United States is ultimately responsible; and if this particular president is incapable of or unwilling to bring this government in check, then impeachment will become the necessary course of action.  Right now it is clear no one is "in charge".  And that is a much bigger problem than many of us truly realize or appreciate.

A Thought for Tuesday 5/14/13

“Like a crane or a swallow, so I chattered; I mourned like a dove.  My eyes fail from looking upward.  O Lord, I am oppressed; undertake for me!”  Isaiah 38:14

The story is told of a pastor at his new appointment who was standing in his study on the first Sunday of his appointment.  As the congregation waited for the service to begin, the pastor did not come out.  An usher went to the pastor’s study to advise him that it was time to start but found the pastor staring out the window of the study.  When the usher told the pastor it was time to start, the pastor slowly turned and the usher noticed tears streaming down the pastor’s face. 

“Are you ill, pastor?”  The pastor replied, “No.  I was just looking out the window into the alley at these poor, dirty children playing.”  The usher, with his head lowered, quietly said, “I know what you mean, but soon enough you will get used to it.”  The pastor stated, “I know I will get used to it.  That’s why I am crying.”

There are always appropriate times to “look upward” especially when it feels as though our world is crumbling around us, just as Israel must have noticed as their homeland was disintegrating and all seemed lost.  We “look upward” when we cannot find any other means to address the many problems we face almost daily.  And yet there are often those times when we become so self-absorbed with our own problems that we forget there are always others whose problems, real problems, make our own problems seem more like blessings; but because we see it so often, we just become “used to it” so that the real problems our neighbors face become unnoticeable.  We still see, but we do not comprehend.

A dear friend asked recently if I thought I was truly prepared for what may be revealed if I asked.  I thought of the story I share with you and could not help but to wonder if maybe I had already “seen” what the Lord revealed to me but did not notice because the call and claim of our Lord on my life did not look like what I had expected (or desired).  Or maybe I was just too wrapped up in my own life and my own petty problems to notice.

We must not forget Jesus’ claim on Isaiah’s prophecy: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.  He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:18,19).  Now that our Lord has long ascended to the Throne of Grace, we have been blessed by the power of the Holy Spirit to claim His mission as our own, as the mission of the Church not to comfort the comfortable or to give sight to those who already think they see!  It is time for the Church (that’s you and me!) to gain a new perspective and open her eyes to the real world, the real problems our neighbors face each day because Jesus’ claim on Isaiah’s prophecy is Jesus’ very definition and vision for His Body – the Church.

Blessings,

Michael 

A Thought for Monday 5/13/13

“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!  Therefore the world does not know us because it did not know Him.  Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.  And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”  1 John 3:1-3 NKJV

One of the most misunderstood and often misquoted (or rather, misapplied) passages in Scripture are Jesus’ final words: “It is finished”.  It is misapplied more often than not because we have been led to believe that everything is finally and completely settled.  Well, for our Lord and all He set out to accomplish, no truer words were spoken.  Jesus did all the Father had set forth for Him.  For us, however, it is anything but settled, and disciples must never utter such words as “we are finished” before our lives have really even gotten underway.

Discipleship is much more than simply calling oneself “saved”.  Discipleship is much more than worship, fellowship, prayer, fasting, and Scripture study.  In discipleship we participate in the means of grace for this reason: discovery.  We find more of the wonders of the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven with each day and in each encounter with someone and something new.  Discipleship is entirely about discovery because if we are not learning (discovering), then we cannot be said to be disciples (students) of Jesus.  If we think we are “finished” and that we know all we think we need to know, we have discontinued the search and discovery process and have declared ourselves equal to the Most High God!  We get stuck on the “elementary principles” (Hebrews 6), and thus we stop growing.  In this we are not only stunted in spiritual growth, we actually begin to fall backward because the Journey itself continues.  We’ve simply chosen to go no further.

St. John gives his readers something to hang on to (“now we are children of God”), but he also seems to indicate that the “children of God” will be the only ones to whom our Lord will finally be revealed in His most glorious form “as He is”.  HE  already is, but He is “not yet” revealed to us because we are “not yet” there even though we are, as justified before God in Christ Jesus, “children of God”.  This means it is not “finished” for us, but rather has only just begun.  For if we think it is finished for us, our own children will never even get started!

Let each day be a new revelation not in the man-made world but in the natural, created world AND in the Holy Scriptures.  Cast aside everything you think you already know, and open yourselves to the new experience in Messiah.  Our Lord has much to show us and even more to be revealed in His own time.  Let us dare not think we already know, that we are already “finished” for there is much more “yet to be revealed”! 

Blessings,

Michael