Category: Lent

Lent 2022 | Day 19: Gathered

There has been a lot of conversation in the last couple of years about what it means to be the Church. In this time in history, when much of the world has been affected by a global pandemic, the church has to reflect on what it means to be the Church. The struggle has been around discerning what it means to be the body of Christ. Particularly in light of the rules imposed upon large groups of people by governments around the world.

In the midst of these new challenges, insights have been gained as a result of extended periods of separation and even isolation. In the opening chapters of the Bible God tells the first man it is not good for him to be alone. And an implication is that isolation is not good for anyone!

The immediate context of his declaration is Adam’s discovery that of all of God’s creatures man was without companionship. And so while there is much that can be said about the need for community and fellowship as individual members of society, there is also a lesson about what it means for us to be a community of faith.

In the New Testament, we find the admonition that we should not refrain from gathering together for worship and instruction. There is no prescription as to what that should look like. But there is a warning that we should not keep ourselves from coming together regularly. We should ask ourselves why is this oftentimes is something we have avoided.

The gathering of God’s people is not merely a social event. The community of God exists to foster the kind of growth which leads us to a deeper appreciation of God’s grace.

I think the challenge of understanding the gathered nature of the church hinges on our understanding of what it means to be people created in the image of God. For those of us who hold to a Trinitarian understanding of the Godhead, the notion of divine community makes sense. While we do not fully understand how God exists within the divine essence we can know that God exists in perfect community. The mystery of the Trinity is not something that can be explained. It is a truth of faith that is revealed and must be believed.

This reality of God’s own existence helps us to see that as image bearers we too will find our emotional and communal needs satisfied when we gather together with others who share the journey with us. The gathering of God’s people is not merely a social event. The community of God exists to foster the kind of growth which leads us to a deeper appreciation of God’s grace. Not only are there opportunities for instruction and correction but there are opportunities for sharing in one another’s lives. This sharing includes the celebration of the joys in the distribution of the burdens among those who are doing life together. This is a key element of the community of God.

One of the wonderful aspects of celebrating the season of Lent is this shared experience of reflecting and preparing for Easter morning. All over the world there are countless millions of Christians who in this season slow down enough to remember all God has been doing in their lives. By doing this we give testimony to the grace of God offered to everyone who finds themselves alone. Being grafted into the body of Christ gives us access to a fellowship that fosters our development as the children of God.

And so we gather together not merely to perform religious ceremonies or to receive doctrinal instruction but to enjoy the company of those with whom we share a common faith.

Lent 2022 | Day 18: Endures

The focus of our thought today is the word endures.

This is an interesting word for at least two reasons. First, it conjures in my mind the idea of continued effort. We live in a world where we have instant access to information. Instant access to entertainment. Instant access to new friends made around the world. It would appear that our threshold for patience has been diminishing with the advancement of technology. This decrease in our ability to delay gratification has truly created a circumstance in which people seemingly cannot control their displeasure when what they want is not readily available.

When we as a group of people or as individuals are consumed by our own sense of entitlement we no longer fear or care about harming others in order to get what we want. This may seem like a dark and pessimistic view of the world. But I would disagree. If we accept what the Scripture tells us about the human heart, that is wicked (Jeremiah 17:9), that it is made of stone (Hebrews 8:10), and that it is deceitful we can calibrate our engagement with the world more consistently.

Second, the word endures serves as a reminder that the goal is not just around the corner. It is the difference between the proverbial marathon and sprint. This imagery is often used to describe the need for us to recognize that some goals will take time to achieve. It may seem a bit trite to some, but I find it helpful to remember that most things in life will not happen immediately.

The most important things in life will take time to do well.

In the midst of the daily grind of living, we should not lose sight of the fact that the most important things in life will take time to do well. When we try to short-circuit the process of growing and maturing as individuals we invariably deny ourselves the wisdom that is earned in the process. The longer we cut corners the more difficult it becomes to grow.

The ever-growing tendency that we have to find the quickest and easiest route to where we’re going blinds us in ways we do not always anticipate. Every choice we make has consequences. And every consequence impacts the future choices we will make. This is why it is better to decide more slowly than to make quick decisions in the heat of the moment. When we are deliberate in our decision-making process we create the room we need in order to achieve the goals we have set. This is not a guarantee, but it does improve our chances of success.

In this season of Lent, we are called to a time of self-denial for a period of 40 days. In that time we may find ourselves trying to get out of the burden of it. But if we convince ourselves that this is just an arbitrary activity we will have proven to ourselves that we have not understood what it means to endure. Just because something can be classified as mundane or ordinary does not mean that it cannot have a lasting effect.

As we continue toward Easter morning take this time to ask yourself why you should choose to endure?

Lent 2022 | Day 17: Thanks

In a season of contemplation and reflection, it’s important to stop and remember all the reasons why we can be thankful. Even in difficult times, there is room to appreciate the blessings we have access to, no matter how small. And so in this season of Lent, I think it’s important to look around us and get a sense of all God has been doing in our lives.

Giving thanks can be challenging when we see it has an obligation. But giving thanks is not something we should do because we feel the person deserves it. Giving thanks is what we do when we want to acknowledge what someone is done for us, blessing us in the process. When we give thanks as a response to the kindness of others it is a small token in light of the gift.

I am reminded of the story of the 10 lepers who as they passed Jesus asked him to heal them. Once the healing had taken place they went on their way rejoicing over the change of fortune that they had experienced. But the writer tells us there was one who came back to Jesus. That one offered his thanks to Christ while the others did not. We can ask ourselves why? What was it about this man that led him to make that choice?

When we give thanks as a response to the kindness of others it is a small token in light of the gift.

We will never know for sure this side of eternity. But I think it is worth considering that this man, when he realized what it meant that he could return to his life as he remembered it, was moved by the miracle of his healing. All the memories that sustained him up until that moment would become real again. Not merely distant recollections of a life he thought he would never return to.

While these are just assumptions based on what I imagine would be my response to the same event, I think many of us would confront the same doubts and fears as this man did. None of us ever really knows what we will do in difficult times. We can think about it and conceive of various scenarios of what we would do. But it’s not until we are living in the moment that we know for certain what we will do. This is the challenge of living life for a tomorrow that is known only to God.

As we continue our steady move towards the celebration of Christ’s resurrection we should remember all the reasons we have to give thanks. There may be some who could say they don’t have very many reasons for giving thanks. As difficult as it may be, if you find yourself in that position, I believe it is worth the effort to remember that if the only thing Jesus ever did for us was die for our sin that is enough to provide us entrance into eternal rest.

This kind of perspective is not always easy to sustain. However, it is worth trying to remember, as often as we can, the wonder of our salvation. A salvation purchased by the precious blood of Jesus and secured by the power of the Holy Spirit.

So my encouragement to all of us is to lift our eyes just a little bit higher; to not allow the affairs of this world to discourage us too much, and to put our trust in God to fulfill his word and promises to us.

Lent 2022 | 3rd Sunday in Lent: Celebrate!

As we continue our journey through Lent each Sunday, we have been looking at one aspect of God’s grace. Today we will look at the majesty of God’s grace.

The word majesty is one we don’t use very often anymore. But it’s one that describes a particular attribute of something of great value or of significant importance. One of the easiest examples of where this word is still used is in countries that still have royalty. One of the best examples of those would be the United Kingdom. Whenever referring to the reigning monarch the honorific used is “your Majesty”. This denotes recognition of the station and honor belonging to the person to which you are referring.

I’ve always found it peculiar that you say “your Majesty” and not “my Majesty.” The reason is, that as the speaker, we are referring to the dignity of the person we’re speaking to. That person holds a higher dignity, at least as it relates to protocol and decorum than the person referring to them. It is an acknowledgment of that person’s office in relation to others.

This earthly example of majesty can be helpful for at least two reasons. First, it gives us a point of reference about how we relate to those who have been given or afforded a particular form of dignity. As an American, the idea of royalty is not a part of my regular life. It is a foreign concept and social relationship.

God’s grace is majestic and worthy of our acknowledgment of it because we are not worthy of having been recipients of it.

Second, it reminds us that if there are earthly forms of majesty there are also spiritual forms of it as well. This analogy is not perfect. And it doesn’t have to be. The fact it exists in the world can help us understand, at least in part, how it may work in our relationship with God.

When we talk about God’s grace, there is within it an attribute that makes it majestic. God’s grace is majestic not just because God is the actor. God’s grace is majestic and worthy of our acknowledgment of it because we are not worthy of having been recipients of it.

Grace has been defined as unmerited favor. The idea is it is the reception of something we did not deserve. This is true. But grace is also something we could not earn. And because we did not deserve God’s grace and we cannot earn God’s grace we should acknowledge it with a greater sense of awe.

The word awe is the reaction we should have been something we cannot properly describe with human words captures our imagination. It is a feeling of being in the presence of something beautiful. And sometimes in the presence of someone greater than ourselves. Anyone who has ever met a childhood hero can understand what this means.

As we celebrate the grace of God today, and in particular the majesty of this grace, we should do all we can to never lose this understanding of what God’s grace is or what God’s grace means to us.

Lent 2022 | Day 16: Honor

One of my favorite movies is The Last Samurai starring Tom Cruise. It’s an interesting movie for several reasons. While I recognize that it is not an accurate portrayal of Japanese culture, it does have elements that point to key ideas that are true to the underlying philosophy of the samurai mindset. I base this assessment on reviews that I have seen and read since the movie came out.

But for the purpose of this post, I want to focus on a characteristic that was demonstrated by the other main character of the movie. The character Katsumoto is supposed to embody the ideal of the samurai’s spirit. There is a tranquility about his character that surprises Capt. Algren. So much so that Katsumoto’s demeanor and conduct begin to sway the captain’s outlook on life.

In the movie, the idea that is being played out on the screen is that of Bushido. This philosophical framework is beyond the scope of this post, but a shorthand for why it was practiced by the samurai is the idea of living a life governed by honor.

Sometimes it is helpful to see in other circumstances or events ideas that we are trying to make sense of in our own life. Because of the stark cultural and historical differences portrayed in the film, the idea of honor seems more poignant. And while this is a fictional and overly dramatized story the idea is still easy to grasp.

In a way, honor can be defined as the guiding principle by which the samurai conducted every aspect of their lives. And the lengths to which they went to achieve this ideal were through a complete dedication to those principles that advanced the discipline required to achieve them. We see this in a montage as Capt. Algren is familiarizing himself with the hamlet in which he is held captive. With nowhere to go he begins to see beyond the exterior, and physical expressions of the surroundings, to the motivations of the people themselves.

When we are able to accept the fullness of God’s grace, we honor the sacrifice of Christ by living a life consistent with the Father’s character.

What is the connection we can draw between the example of Katsumoto in the movie and our journey towards Lent? For me, it is that living a life of obedience to the principles and truths of Scripture affords us the ability to become what God envisioned in the creation of humanity.

And so, while honor can be seen most often as an internal conviction that guides how we live, it can also be a choice we make as a way of acknowledging the worth or value of something outside of us. When we are able to accept the fullness of God’s grace, we honor the sacrifice of Christ by living a life consistent with the Father’s character.

And so in this instance, I think it makes sense to see and to talk of honor with this two-pronged understanding.

May we learn to live with honor as we strive to honor our Savior.

Lent 2022 | Day 15: Rested

Over the last several years I’ve had conversations with my friend, Pastor Drew Anderson, about what it means to participate in Sabbath.

Too often this conversation becomes about taking time off or going on vacation. And while this may be a part of what it means to take Sabbath, this is not the primary emphasis for this idea.

I have been struck by the fact that too many in the Western church do not understand what it means to take Sabbath. And I say that including myself into that group. We have become so accustomed to filling every moment with activity. The idea of stillness bothers us. So much so that we can spend hours endlessly scrolling through social media feeds or news aggregators.

But what actually does it mean to take Sabbath? It’s an important question. One we must do better to answer for ourselves. So I will attempt to offer my thoughts on this topic today.

I think the primary focus of Sabbath should not be inactivity or mindless stillness. I think the primary focus of Sabbath should be a purposeful and intentional attentiveness to God. This can include an increased awareness of those things which God has blessed us with. But the idea is not to become enthralled are entangled with what’s around us. The goal should be to look at our surroundings, to consider God’s presence, and then to rejoice in those things.

One way of thinking about it can be of having a holy detachment from the world so we can see what we have around us as the gifts from God that they are.

The primary focus of Sabbath should be a purposeful and intentional attentiveness to God.

This is not always easy. The circumstances of life can cloud our ability to do this. But I think that should give us more reason to try. To try and take the time necessary to consider what God has been doing in our lives. To give thanks to God just because he is God.

Being rested is not merely about getting enough sleep. Being rested is a spiritual state where we are not restless. We are not constantly burdened by the stressors of life.

I’m not saying we act as if nothing is wrong. I’m saying we cultivate a mindset that in the midst of all that is happening we will take time to spend with God. This is something we must do consciously. We have to make time for it. In much the same way God made time for it in the creation story. God declared the day of Sabbath and commanded that we must participate in it. This is not an incidental command because God had grown tired of creating. This was an act of Revelation for our sake.

Therefore, when we fail to take heed of this admonition, we do so to our own detriment.

I would encourage you to find some time tomorrow to rest with God. For many, it is impractical to do it all day. But it would be wise for us to begin with a set time dedicated to being with God. As we do this we will begin to experience a sense of greater peace. Not necessarily because all life’s problems of going away. We will find an abiding peace within us because we know, in a new way, how faithful God has been to us. And when we have a renewed appreciation for God’s goodness, we can look forward knowing God will continue to be good regardless of what happens on life’s road.

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Lent 2022 | Day 14: Labor

The word labor can be used to describe a variety of activities. And I’ll leave that up to your imagination what those could be. But regardless of how you envision what the word describes, at its simplest level it will involve effort in order to accomplish the task.

We live in a world where convenience and easy access to resources and entertainment are all around us. It is becoming so convenient to get what we desire. We can order it in one minute and have it at our doorstep within a couple of hours. Now, this is not true of every place in the world but it is very common in many places. This is not to denigrate those who have access to such conveniences. This is merely an observation.

The reason I make the observation is to ask a question: what impact has this convenience had on how we understand our faith?

My friend, Pastor Drew Anderson, has written several blog posts and two follow-up books that speak in greater detail on the questions of how, in my particular case, the American cultural experience has impacted my Christian faith. And I think it’s a question worth exploring. I bring it up in this conversation about labor to highlight the fact that an integral part of the Christian experience is the work of building vibrant faith communities in those places where we live. This is not some overtly strategic campaign by a local congregation. This is the simple call of discipleship and to discipleship for which Jesus lived, died, and was resurrected.

As Jesus departed from this earth he instructed the disciples to go into all the world and make disciples. This was the labor to which they had been called. And it is the labor to which we must enter in. It is not one we can pass off to those with official titles or organizational endorsements. The call to obedience to make disciples is the work by which we will be judged when we stand before God. Not that it will put our salvation at risk, but it will be a measure of our faithfulness to what God requires of his people.

For some, this may seem harsh or even exaggerated. But I don’t believe that it is. Think for a moment about what Jesus said in Luke 18:8. In that passage, Jesus asks a simple question. It is a question offered after describing the parable of a woman who persisted in seeking justice from a judge. Jesus asked, “when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

When Jesus returns, what will he be looking for? He himself says he is looking for faith. But what will be the evidence that faith has persisted? It will be the presence of his people on the earth. For if they are not present it will mean that his command to make disciples will not have been obeyed. But as long as disciples are made and formed by the people of God the hope that Jesus will find faith endures.

The season of Lent is a good time to draw these various strands of thought together. What does it mean to serve the Lord with our labor? What does it look like to obey Christ in the making of disciples? I think the answer to these questions is simple in one sense and complex in another.

It is simple in that we are called to faithfully declare the gospel of Jesus Christ. This means we point people to Christ for salvation. This means we call all sinners to repent, to surrender their lives and purposes to those offered by God the father. And it means we should not make it complicated for people to understand this message.

This can be complex for a variety of reasons. But I think the one that concerns me the most is when we add requirements to the message of hope and salvation that Jesus never did. Living a life of obedience is hard enough without the added burdens we can impose upon ourselves or others. The Scripture is replete with examples of people doing this. And each time those who initially heard what Jesus said, and those of us who read it now, are admonished to fight against the tendency and temptation.

So as we think about our labor, may we never lose sight that we do not work in our own strength. But we labor according to the strength that Christ supplies us by the Holy Spirit (Colossians 1:29).

Lent 2022 | Day 13: Steadfast

22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
     his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
     great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV

The prophet Jeremiah said in his great lament that the steadfast love of the Lord and his mercies are new every morning.

This is an amazing thing to consider. What does this mean in light of the fact that God never changes? It certainly cannot mean that there is something different in God. So we must consider that whatever is new, is new for us.

It is a common mistake made by many followers of Jesus to believe they have “a grasp” of who God is. This is truly poor thinking on our part. But what do I mean? Only that when we assume we have an extensive understanding of Jesus or of God we are setting ourselves up to get something wrong.

So Jeremiah said that the love of the Lord and his mercies, they never cease, they never come to an end, and yet they are new every morning. I take this to mean that as we journey with God we discover new aspects of his mercy and love we had not seen or experienced before. Each of these discoveries reminds us of how great and mysterious God is.

When we assume we have an extensive understanding of Jesus or of God we are setting ourselves up to get something wrong.

As we continue to grow in our understanding of faith, we should always remember what God is doing in us, around us, and through us is going to expand our understanding of who he is. In a sense, we should be perpetually surprised about what God is able to do. Not because we have called into question his ability. But because we marvel at the fact God could do so much with so little.

This is not meant to diminish us in any way. It’s only to acknowledge the difference that exists between who God is and what we are. When we live our lives with a proper perspective of who God is we will not have to fight against our pride as much. We can lean into a posture of humility before God and with others. We won’t be so concerned with our failures or shortcomings. We will just try to trust God more. To get out of his way so that he could have his way.

The fact God is steadfast should be a source of comfort to us. But I think too often we find that discouraging. And I’m not sure why. It could just be we have a hard time accepting there is anything that is actually unchanging in our lives or in the world around us.

As we continue in this season of Lent I am reminded that I can find comfort in God’s steady and persistent character. May that be something we remember more intentionally in the coming days and weeks. Let us be thankful that God does not change.

Lent 2022 | Day 12: Words

One of the first lessons my father taught me as I was growing up is that words have meaning and that we should therefore make sure to know what those words mean.

This simple axiom has served me well. In many ways, it has protected me from being deceived by those who were ill-informed or had ulterior motives. And it has given me the patience I need to know that I don’t know everything.

In this time in history when almost every person on the planet has the potential access to information, it becomes more important to make sure you know what people are saying. Communication is not a static exchange. It is very dynamic and the nuance and texture of possible meanings can make it difficult to know if we are being effective in our communication.

If we are to take seriously the idea God has spoken, we must then consider that what he has said is the most important thing ever spoken.

This is why when we read Scripture we must take the time to make sure we know and understand, to the best of our ability, what God has chosen to capture on those sacred pages. The fact we have God’s revelation written down means God has chosen to use the medium of human language to communicate his will. So the limitation in our understanding of what God has said is not because God has made it difficult but because we have rushed to reach a conclusion.

Jesus said that the words he spoke were words of life. If we are to take seriously the idea God has spoken, we must then consider that what he has said is the most important thing ever spoken. With this as an underlying assumption and one that would be safe to make, we should engage with the Scripture in a different way. Not merely as the work of human agency, but as the work of God through human agency.

Words have meaning. And it is this meaning that makes it possible for us to have confidence we can understand what God desires. As this confidence grows we become more diligent in our obedience. And as our obedience becomes more regular our passion to serve God increases. The relationship described between desire and obedience and passion is so close as to be the same thing. But they are distinct enough for us to understand how they should relate to each other.

In the season of Lent, the practice of self-reflection and surrender is a call to a deepening awareness of God’s goodness. This goodness is seen in his willingness to declare and codify his promises and prerogatives on the pages of the Scriptures. By doing this God has bound himself to his own word. He has declared that he is not a liar nor is he one to go back on his promises. When God speaks he offers us the conditions by which he will operate and conduct himself with us. This is not a limitation upon God. It is a declaration of how he has chosen to interact with us. We can therefore have confidence that if God has said it he will fulfill it.

Therefore as we continue our march to Easter morning, we do so with the confidence that is born out of God’s character. Not out of a fear that we must sustain this faith in our own strength.

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Lent 2022 | Day 11: Mercy

Mercy has often been defined as not getting what we truly deserve. I find this to be a helpful definition. But it only paints a part of the picture.

The Christian life calls us to look at the world around us through new eyes. It is an intentional effort to re-program our thinking to be more consistent with the character of God. But this can be challenging. Oftentimes in more ways than one. Our past histories and our present struggles can cloud our ability to see what God was doing and may still be at work doing.

This is why we must be a people marked by mercy. We have been the beneficiaries of God’s mercy. We have received that which we did not deserve. And more to the point that which we could never have earned.

It is an intentional effort to re-program our thinking to be more consistent with the character of God.

The grace of God gives us what we do not deserve. And that is only one side of the story. The second side, the side that we are discussing today, is what God has kept away from us. It can be easy to think at times that what God kept from us was not as bad as what we have been experiencing. But the problem is this is not true.

The penalty of sin upon us is eternal separation from God. To be completely and totally outside of the presence of God. And while there are some who would reject that hell exists, they would misunderstand what hell is in doing so. The imagery of the New Testament can be graphic and describe things that are quite horrifying. But the physical imagery of fire and of rotted flesh truly pale in comparison to the idea of being separated from God.

This permanent state of separation is the result of a complete and utter rejection of the salvation God has provided through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. To speak of God as imposing upon us for all eternity a will, a love, a grace, a mercy that we have rejected would be an indictment against God’s character.

God does not desire to force upon us what we do not desire for ourselves. But to then claim that it would be unjust for God to not allow those who chose this separation to have it is somewhat odd. Those who have stepped out of this world and into the next rejecting God are not being denied access into his presence. They are entering into the next life getting what they wanted. To regret that decision once there could be described as suffering from a form of spiritual “buyer’s remorse.”

God has given us ample time and sufficient testimony in the creation and within our own hearts to make a choice as to where we will be. If we heed the call of the gospel in repentance from sin we will not only have God’s grace applied to us but we will experience the mercy of God over us.

The relationship between God’s mercy and the subject of hell has too often been detached and even dismissed. But the reason we need not only God’s grace, which makes us ready for heaven, and God’s mercy, which changes the trajectory of our eternal destiny, is that we could address neither of these predicaments without God. When we receive God’s grace we are redeemed from the effects of sin. When we receive God’s mercy we are restored to a relationship with God from the penalty of sin.

When we understand these fundamental differences and yet related realities we will grow in our appreciation for what God has done to bring us into a closer relationship with him.

In this season may we learn to rejoice for what God has not only promised but what God has accomplished.

For this God who has been rich in mercy has rained it upon us not only generously but beyond our ability to comprehend.

4But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Ephesian 2:4-7 NKJV
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