Abram gave his nephew the option: Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right… (Genesis 13:9). Lot chose the more densely populated, fertile plain while Abram stayed in the mountainous region.
Abram surrendered his rights in order to make peace. This displays the character of Abram including his quiet confidence that God will keep his promises. It is also a model for us in relations with our neighbors. Those who are near to us may be dear to us or troublesome to us or both. Often we do good for all parties when we are willing to stop demanding our rights and let the other person make the choice. This is not always a solution, but it is one worthy of contemplation when conflict arises.
Lot is arrogant and greedy. He chooses the fertile Jordan River valley. And it is fertile indeed. In a dry and thirsty land the banks of the river are precious to all. Lot sees an opportunity to multiply his riches, and he takes advantage of his gracious uncle.
Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain and pitched his tents near Sodom (Genesis 13:12). These cities in the plain of the Jordan River have a well-deserved reputation. They are uncommonly wicked cities full of rape and murder and ruinous sexual activity.
New Orleans is not Sodom. God could not find 10 righteous people in Sodom. The church of Jesus Christ is alive and thriving in New Orleans with tens of thousands of committed believers. Many obvious differences could be added to this single but very significant distinction between the two cities.
Some cities are plagued with uncommonly high levels of destructive behaviors. We who live in New Orleans wish it were otherwise and are working to change it, but anyone can do the math. Knowing the moral failures of our city, we seek to protect those most vulnerable and at risk, especially the children.
Sometimes well-meaning people target especially wicked places for their witness and Christian work only to fall prey to the very people they were trying to reach. It is dangerous business pitching your tent near Sodom.
The story of the church of Jesus Christ in and around New Orleans includes worldwide ministries that made terrible blunders. This is not unique to our city, but we ought to note it for what it is. Some of the great churches that have been built in the last half century here have suddenly collapsed. Sometimes financial folly has been the culprit. Sometimes sexual sin has crept into the church of Jesus Christ. Pastors who aimed to live holy lives became victims of the aggressive sin around them. Scandals have arisen and been reported in our media on more than one occasion. And mighty men and women of God have fallen and pulled the church into ruin.
Such temptations come to all Christian leaders. My father taught us about Lot when I was a boy. He said that sometimes it is better to be on the mountain with Abram than to be on the plain with Lot. That is, sometimes discretion and prudence demand that we distance ourselves from evil places and people rather than seeking to be involved in changing them. Christian leaders must find their personal place in the tension between being in the world but not of the world, loving the world and not loving the world.
Lot is not deciding himself to be wicked and cruel as he pitches his tent toward Sodom. In fact he will later be characterized as “a righteous man” (2 Peter 2:7). Just because you live in or near a city does not mean that you endorse or participate in its wickedness. In this age of the internet, anyone who lives in any city, or in a rural setting, has easy access to pornography and depravity. Some people revel in the anonymity which the city affords, that people they know are not always looking over their shoulders. They are maskers without masks, taking forays into sin in the delusion that darkness will forever cover their tracks.
Relationships of accountability are of utmost importance for those called to work and witness in the great cities. Families and friendships must be counted dear and held close. Personal devotions should be meticulously maintained. Ethical boundaries should be drawn tighter rather than looser when pitfalls abound.
The cities have always attracted missionaries and pastors. Paul wanted to carry the gospel to Rome. Timothy became pastor in Ephesus, James in Jerusalem. The great cities are moved by our love and our witness, our prophetic word and faithful behavior.
The population of America has moved from majority rural to mostly urban in my lifetime. Most of the people who need our love and witness now live in cities. Put on the full armor of God, take up the sword of the Spirit, and join a team of believers with white-hot passion to reach the cities for Christ.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Choose Life
A woman came to see me recently who was struggling with guilt about an abortion she had many years ago. She was worried that this might be an unforgiveable sin. She also wondered if current events of great difficulty in her life might be punishment from God for the abortion.
Some things are very hard to get out of our heads and hearts. Some things stay there forever.
An abortion is one of those things that is very hard to get over and get past. It is a traumatic, frightening event fraught with moral quandaries. It often occurs during a woman’s youth or young adulthood. Traumatic events in our youth tend to cast long shadows on our lives.
Going through months of pregnancy and giving a child up for adoption is a difficult, life-changing experience as well. Unlike abortion, however, adoption is life-giving rather than life-taking. While abortion provides no laughs or smiles, adoptions are literally full of joy, as our bustling church nursery with adopted, healthy babies can attest. I held a baby in my arms this past Sunday who is the product of a young woman’s choice to go through pregnancy and adoption rather than abortion.
I have experienced two reunions recently where adults who were given up for adoption as babies have searched for and found their biological parents. In both of these cases significant relationships have developed between mother and child mingled with lots of joy and grief. That is not always the outcome of these reunions, but sometimes it is.
As a matter of moral conviction, I urge young women in crisis pregnancies to choose life. Death is the solitary human experience from which there is no recovery. The law of reciprocity dates from the beginning of human social order. Death brings death.
Does God forgive the sin of abortion? Absolutely and completely. For any penitent sinner, God’s grace is greater than all of our sin.
We think we are boxed in, ruined by bad choices. We think we are walking dead-end streets, that our failures are final and there is no way out. We are full of despair, imagining that our lives are already over. We are walking in the darkness, and we imagine death to be our only choice.
The truth is something else. As long as we have the breath of life, we have new possibilities before us. There are no dead ends in grace. Every breath is a divine gift.
Will the woman be able to forgive herself? That’s another story. Can she get past her abortion? I am not sure she can. We do not really ever get past the impact of great loss. We integrate that loss into our minds and hearts. We work to do this in a healthy way. Sometimes we mature emotionally and spiritually in the wake of sin and death. Sometimes our grief becomes a ball and chain from which we seek liberation but without success.
I have been bouncing babies on my knees for many years, my own children and grandchildren and hundreds of others. I have walked the path beside those dealing with crisis pregnancies and witnessed nearly every imaginable outcome. No path is painless.
I prefer to deal with the mess that life always creates rather than the darkness and sterility of death. In my mind, abortion is another kind of violence that rips up life and leaves deep scars. Life is never easy, but it always deserves our respect and protection and in the end is the best choice.
Some things are very hard to get out of our heads and hearts. Some things stay there forever.
An abortion is one of those things that is very hard to get over and get past. It is a traumatic, frightening event fraught with moral quandaries. It often occurs during a woman’s youth or young adulthood. Traumatic events in our youth tend to cast long shadows on our lives.
Going through months of pregnancy and giving a child up for adoption is a difficult, life-changing experience as well. Unlike abortion, however, adoption is life-giving rather than life-taking. While abortion provides no laughs or smiles, adoptions are literally full of joy, as our bustling church nursery with adopted, healthy babies can attest. I held a baby in my arms this past Sunday who is the product of a young woman’s choice to go through pregnancy and adoption rather than abortion.
I have experienced two reunions recently where adults who were given up for adoption as babies have searched for and found their biological parents. In both of these cases significant relationships have developed between mother and child mingled with lots of joy and grief. That is not always the outcome of these reunions, but sometimes it is.
As a matter of moral conviction, I urge young women in crisis pregnancies to choose life. Death is the solitary human experience from which there is no recovery. The law of reciprocity dates from the beginning of human social order. Death brings death.
Does God forgive the sin of abortion? Absolutely and completely. For any penitent sinner, God’s grace is greater than all of our sin.
We think we are boxed in, ruined by bad choices. We think we are walking dead-end streets, that our failures are final and there is no way out. We are full of despair, imagining that our lives are already over. We are walking in the darkness, and we imagine death to be our only choice.
The truth is something else. As long as we have the breath of life, we have new possibilities before us. There are no dead ends in grace. Every breath is a divine gift.
Will the woman be able to forgive herself? That’s another story. Can she get past her abortion? I am not sure she can. We do not really ever get past the impact of great loss. We integrate that loss into our minds and hearts. We work to do this in a healthy way. Sometimes we mature emotionally and spiritually in the wake of sin and death. Sometimes our grief becomes a ball and chain from which we seek liberation but without success.
I have been bouncing babies on my knees for many years, my own children and grandchildren and hundreds of others. I have walked the path beside those dealing with crisis pregnancies and witnessed nearly every imaginable outcome. No path is painless.
I prefer to deal with the mess that life always creates rather than the darkness and sterility of death. In my mind, abortion is another kind of violence that rips up life and leaves deep scars. Life is never easy, but it always deserves our respect and protection and in the end is the best choice.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Keep Those Resolutions!
Small considerations frequently prevent people from making very important changes.
This truth has been circling in my mind since the New Year began four days ago. Annually, people resolve to do some very important things—the top five or so changes that they want to make in their lives—and almost always abandon them during the course of the year. Statistically, New Year’s resolutions have a short life span.
A study completed recently affirms the truth we all sense. Our bad habits are woven into patterns of behavior. The bad habits give us instant gratification while doing the right thing pays off only in the long run.
Take for instance all those who have resolved to lose weight this year by implementing new exercise regimens and new eating habits. For some, these lifestyle changes have become life-and-death matters. Yet they are likely to abandon these practices in the short term.
Health issues often prompt our new resolutions, but spiritual issues are also at the top of our lists. We resolve to attend worship each Sunday. We resolve to read our Bibles and pray daily. We resolve to give regularly and generously to our church. We resolve to get involved in helping the less fortunate.
These resolutions, too, are at high risk. The new toys we think we need compete with our charitable contributions. The rush of our morning schedule, promoted by hitting the snooze button repeatedly, interrupts new devotional regimens. Those extra minutes in bed on Sunday morning loom large when the alarm goes off.
Someone celebrated yesterday that they had made it through three days of daily Bible readings. I think we must do this. We must celebrate the small victories of our new intentions because the small considerations are the things that stall us, thwart us, and stop us.
My understanding of a holy life comes into play here. I am wondering if you and I can really overcome the desires of the flesh—more sleep, unhealthy food, higher tech toys—by just willing to do so. Is our will strong enough? We all consistently underestimate the power of temptation. We walk into a situation that compromises our good intentions expecting that we shall have the will power to say no. And we stumble and fall.
Holiness begins with a focus on God, not laws or rules. If faithfulness to God prompts us to make lifestyle changes, then we have a good beginning for true transformation. Our faith is powerful and will give us strength to maintain our commitments.
We need to help one another in making these changes. Friends and family members who respect and support our good intentions are less likely to parade the chocolate and ice cream through the den when NCIS comes on TV. If our friends are always dragging us back into destructive behaviors we may need to find some new ones. We are much more likely to secure the new life we hope for when our support group is cheering us on, not ridiculing and undermining us.
And we need to make the little changes that support our new directions. Discipline and will power must be at work from the moment we start our day, not just at the breaking point. Place new items on your nightstand. Change the sound of your alarm. Purge your refrigerator and stop purchasing “for friends” the food you should not eat. Set up automatic drafts for the charities you want to support. Leave the credit cards at home. Pack a lunch.
We establish new goals—or new commitments to old goals—at the beginning of each New Year. We are more likely to achieve these lifestyle changes if our goals are faith-based, supported by friends and family, and facilitated by a full array of small tweaks in our busy lives.
This truth has been circling in my mind since the New Year began four days ago. Annually, people resolve to do some very important things—the top five or so changes that they want to make in their lives—and almost always abandon them during the course of the year. Statistically, New Year’s resolutions have a short life span.
A study completed recently affirms the truth we all sense. Our bad habits are woven into patterns of behavior. The bad habits give us instant gratification while doing the right thing pays off only in the long run.
Take for instance all those who have resolved to lose weight this year by implementing new exercise regimens and new eating habits. For some, these lifestyle changes have become life-and-death matters. Yet they are likely to abandon these practices in the short term.
Health issues often prompt our new resolutions, but spiritual issues are also at the top of our lists. We resolve to attend worship each Sunday. We resolve to read our Bibles and pray daily. We resolve to give regularly and generously to our church. We resolve to get involved in helping the less fortunate.
These resolutions, too, are at high risk. The new toys we think we need compete with our charitable contributions. The rush of our morning schedule, promoted by hitting the snooze button repeatedly, interrupts new devotional regimens. Those extra minutes in bed on Sunday morning loom large when the alarm goes off.
Someone celebrated yesterday that they had made it through three days of daily Bible readings. I think we must do this. We must celebrate the small victories of our new intentions because the small considerations are the things that stall us, thwart us, and stop us.
My understanding of a holy life comes into play here. I am wondering if you and I can really overcome the desires of the flesh—more sleep, unhealthy food, higher tech toys—by just willing to do so. Is our will strong enough? We all consistently underestimate the power of temptation. We walk into a situation that compromises our good intentions expecting that we shall have the will power to say no. And we stumble and fall.
Holiness begins with a focus on God, not laws or rules. If faithfulness to God prompts us to make lifestyle changes, then we have a good beginning for true transformation. Our faith is powerful and will give us strength to maintain our commitments.
We need to help one another in making these changes. Friends and family members who respect and support our good intentions are less likely to parade the chocolate and ice cream through the den when NCIS comes on TV. If our friends are always dragging us back into destructive behaviors we may need to find some new ones. We are much more likely to secure the new life we hope for when our support group is cheering us on, not ridiculing and undermining us.
And we need to make the little changes that support our new directions. Discipline and will power must be at work from the moment we start our day, not just at the breaking point. Place new items on your nightstand. Change the sound of your alarm. Purge your refrigerator and stop purchasing “for friends” the food you should not eat. Set up automatic drafts for the charities you want to support. Leave the credit cards at home. Pack a lunch.
We establish new goals—or new commitments to old goals—at the beginning of each New Year. We are more likely to achieve these lifestyle changes if our goals are faith-based, supported by friends and family, and facilitated by a full array of small tweaks in our busy lives.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Christmas is Revelation
A man hears from God. This is revelation. He responds in obedience and begins to order his life according to that revelation. He writes down the revelation. He builds an altar to the God who has addressed him. He tells his family and friends what he has heard from God. That is the beginning of religion, something which can be described by a human observer about the activities of another human being.
Most people do not want to simply be part of a religion. They want to know that the religion has a divine and supernatural reality behind it, that it is based on revelation.
The author of the Book of Hebrews starts his treatise by reminding the readers of a long history of God’s revelation among them: In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways (Hebrews 1:1). “Hebrews” are the people who sprang from Abraham, the father of the faithful. The ancient root of the word “Hebrew” may mean “to cross over,” referring to Abram leaving Ur of the Chaldees, crossing the Euphrates River, and coming to Canaan. This journey was in response to a word God spoke to him. God told him to leave Ur and go to this new land. This word from God was a revelation to Abram. The God of the universe spoke to him and wanted to be his friend. Abram responded by believing God and doing what God told him to do.
Thereafter followed a long succession of men and women who heard from God and sought to be faithful, people like Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Deborah, Ruth, Samuel, David, Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. Every Sunday these first readers, followers of Jesus, heard readings from the ancient texts of Moses and the Prophets.
The God who had been speaking spoke again. This in itself is not something new. He is the God who speaks as well as the God who acts. This time, however, the nature of the revelation is qualitatively different. In contrast to how God spoke in the past through the prophets, this time he spoke to us “by his Son.”
The long history of prophetic speech is what Judaism is about. It was legal in the Roman Empire to practice the Jewish religion. This business about God’s Son was a new idea. And it was not legal in the Roman Empire to adhere to that religion. The author of Hebrews went right to the sticking point—Jesus Christ, his person and work.
THE NEW REVELATION IS FAR SUPERIOR TO THE OLD ONE: But in these last days he has spoken to us by his son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe (v2)
Anyone would prefer to deal with the Son rather than other messengers. When you are dealing with the Son, you are dealing with the Father. The new revelation is superior in every way to the old one because it is all about what the Son unfolds.
As would be typical with a Father-Son relationship, this Son is both the HEIR and the AGENT. He is the HEIR because the Father is giving everything to his Son. To use a Saints metaphor, this is like Tom Benson passing on the Saints to his granddaughter, Rita Benson LeBlanc. The Son is also the AGENT of the Father’s activity—“through whom he made the universe.” Rita Benson is stepping into the limelight as the new Owner. Everyone is going to have to deal with her now. The Son has been the agent of the Father for all Eternity. This was so even before the universe came into existence. So he holds this position of HEIR and AGENT for time and eternity.
The Son is described here in three other ways (Hebrews 1:3-4):
1. The Son is the RADIANCE of God’s glory. The glory of God RADIATES from the throne room like the sunlight radiating from the sun, and that RADIANCE is his Son. We have never seen anything like this on Planet Earth. We have heard second hand from the prophets. But we have never before heard from the Son himself who is the Father’s very essence.
2. The Son is the EXACT REPRESENTATION of the Father’s nature. We have had glimpses of God in the past. We have pieced together the revelations that came through the various prophets and patriarchs. We have a faithful representation of the God who made us and loves us, but it is done in PENCIL, in black and white, and the resolution is not too sharp.
Now comes the Son. He is the revelation of God in living color, in HD 1080p and Dolby sound. He is the 12 megapixel revelation of God.
3. He SUSTAINS ALL THINGS by his Powerful Word. The Son is the power which sustains this universe and holds it together. The very fabric of being would unravel without the Son holding it together.
This is the New Revelation, far superior to anything that came before, which makes us Christians instead of Jews or pagans or atheists or agnostics.
The Son’s work is described in one half sentence, “He had provided purification for our sins” (v3). This is what the Son of God accomplished. He came to deal with sin.
Then he sat down at the position of power in the throne room of heaven. He sat down because his WORK was DONE. This is the meaning of “it is finished” which Jesus uttered from the cross.
And this is the meaning of Christmas. God has “in these last days” spoken to us through his Son who revealed the very nature of God, died on the cross for our sins, and sat down at the center of the universe having completed the work he came to do.
Most people do not want to simply be part of a religion. They want to know that the religion has a divine and supernatural reality behind it, that it is based on revelation.
The author of the Book of Hebrews starts his treatise by reminding the readers of a long history of God’s revelation among them: In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways (Hebrews 1:1). “Hebrews” are the people who sprang from Abraham, the father of the faithful. The ancient root of the word “Hebrew” may mean “to cross over,” referring to Abram leaving Ur of the Chaldees, crossing the Euphrates River, and coming to Canaan. This journey was in response to a word God spoke to him. God told him to leave Ur and go to this new land. This word from God was a revelation to Abram. The God of the universe spoke to him and wanted to be his friend. Abram responded by believing God and doing what God told him to do.
Thereafter followed a long succession of men and women who heard from God and sought to be faithful, people like Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Deborah, Ruth, Samuel, David, Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. Every Sunday these first readers, followers of Jesus, heard readings from the ancient texts of Moses and the Prophets.
The God who had been speaking spoke again. This in itself is not something new. He is the God who speaks as well as the God who acts. This time, however, the nature of the revelation is qualitatively different. In contrast to how God spoke in the past through the prophets, this time he spoke to us “by his Son.”
The long history of prophetic speech is what Judaism is about. It was legal in the Roman Empire to practice the Jewish religion. This business about God’s Son was a new idea. And it was not legal in the Roman Empire to adhere to that religion. The author of Hebrews went right to the sticking point—Jesus Christ, his person and work.
THE NEW REVELATION IS FAR SUPERIOR TO THE OLD ONE: But in these last days he has spoken to us by his son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe (v2)
Anyone would prefer to deal with the Son rather than other messengers. When you are dealing with the Son, you are dealing with the Father. The new revelation is superior in every way to the old one because it is all about what the Son unfolds.
As would be typical with a Father-Son relationship, this Son is both the HEIR and the AGENT. He is the HEIR because the Father is giving everything to his Son. To use a Saints metaphor, this is like Tom Benson passing on the Saints to his granddaughter, Rita Benson LeBlanc. The Son is also the AGENT of the Father’s activity—“through whom he made the universe.” Rita Benson is stepping into the limelight as the new Owner. Everyone is going to have to deal with her now. The Son has been the agent of the Father for all Eternity. This was so even before the universe came into existence. So he holds this position of HEIR and AGENT for time and eternity.
The Son is described here in three other ways (Hebrews 1:3-4):
1. The Son is the RADIANCE of God’s glory. The glory of God RADIATES from the throne room like the sunlight radiating from the sun, and that RADIANCE is his Son. We have never seen anything like this on Planet Earth. We have heard second hand from the prophets. But we have never before heard from the Son himself who is the Father’s very essence.
2. The Son is the EXACT REPRESENTATION of the Father’s nature. We have had glimpses of God in the past. We have pieced together the revelations that came through the various prophets and patriarchs. We have a faithful representation of the God who made us and loves us, but it is done in PENCIL, in black and white, and the resolution is not too sharp.
Now comes the Son. He is the revelation of God in living color, in HD 1080p and Dolby sound. He is the 12 megapixel revelation of God.
3. He SUSTAINS ALL THINGS by his Powerful Word. The Son is the power which sustains this universe and holds it together. The very fabric of being would unravel without the Son holding it together.
This is the New Revelation, far superior to anything that came before, which makes us Christians instead of Jews or pagans or atheists or agnostics.
The Son’s work is described in one half sentence, “He had provided purification for our sins” (v3). This is what the Son of God accomplished. He came to deal with sin.
Then he sat down at the position of power in the throne room of heaven. He sat down because his WORK was DONE. This is the meaning of “it is finished” which Jesus uttered from the cross.
And this is the meaning of Christmas. God has “in these last days” spoken to us through his Son who revealed the very nature of God, died on the cross for our sins, and sat down at the center of the universe having completed the work he came to do.
Friday, December 10, 2010
And so
You’ve got to get the love.
You’ve got to notice it, perceive it, and turn it over in your mind. You’ve got to get it.
Christmas at its core is about love. The world has gone on off on this theme and tried to own it. What the world does with love is turn it into things. The commercialization of Christmas was inevitable once the world ran with it.
The world gets Christmas wrong because they suppose it’s about our love—our love for our kids and our spouses and our fiancés.
That’s not the love at the core of Christmas. If we make our own love the core, Christmas loses its power and purpose, its hope and its joy.
We do not celebrate at Christmas the limited, flawed, temporary, fickle love that humans extend so feebly to one another. If every kiss really begins with Kay Jewelers, as the jingle implies, then “love” is for sale at the mall. You can get that kiss if you purchase for her a big enough diamond. This is stinking thinking, as someone said. It takes the idea of love, empties it out like an old box, and feels it with wispy nothings.
Christmas has been separated from the love that started it. It is almost unrecognizable now in many homes and almost all stores. You have to dig to find even a hint of the root of Christmas.
Christmas has “Christ” in it for a reason. His love, not ours, is the reason for the season.
We will have opportunities to sit down with various groups through this holiday season. We should consider it our privilege and responsibility to remind others from whence this celebration comes. God demonstrated his love for us by sending his One and Only Son. Especially among our children and grandchildren this truth should be known and reinforced.
God’s mission was to save us by sending his Son. Our mission is to make this truth known at home and around the world. Christmas, properly understood, is the heralding of God’s amazing love.
Join that angelic chorus in proclaiming the Savior’s birth in Bethlehem so long ago.
You’ve got to notice it, perceive it, and turn it over in your mind. You’ve got to get it.
Christmas at its core is about love. The world has gone on off on this theme and tried to own it. What the world does with love is turn it into things. The commercialization of Christmas was inevitable once the world ran with it.
The world gets Christmas wrong because they suppose it’s about our love—our love for our kids and our spouses and our fiancés.
That’s not the love at the core of Christmas. If we make our own love the core, Christmas loses its power and purpose, its hope and its joy.
We do not celebrate at Christmas the limited, flawed, temporary, fickle love that humans extend so feebly to one another. If every kiss really begins with Kay Jewelers, as the jingle implies, then “love” is for sale at the mall. You can get that kiss if you purchase for her a big enough diamond. This is stinking thinking, as someone said. It takes the idea of love, empties it out like an old box, and feels it with wispy nothings.
Christmas has been separated from the love that started it. It is almost unrecognizable now in many homes and almost all stores. You have to dig to find even a hint of the root of Christmas.
Christmas has “Christ” in it for a reason. His love, not ours, is the reason for the season.
We will have opportunities to sit down with various groups through this holiday season. We should consider it our privilege and responsibility to remind others from whence this celebration comes. God demonstrated his love for us by sending his One and Only Son. Especially among our children and grandchildren this truth should be known and reinforced.
God’s mission was to save us by sending his Son. Our mission is to make this truth known at home and around the world. Christmas, properly understood, is the heralding of God’s amazing love.
Join that angelic chorus in proclaiming the Savior’s birth in Bethlehem so long ago.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Ruby Bridges Went to School
Ruby Bridges Went to School
By David E. Crosby, Pastor
First Baptist New Orleans
November 14, 2010
Little Ruby Bridges walked into William Frantz Elementary School in the Upper Ninth Ward the morning of November 14, 1960, escorted by four U.S. marshals. She and Leona Tate, Tessie Prevost, and Gail Etienne at the McDonogh 19 Elementary School in the Lower Ninth Ward were the first black students after the federal court order mandating the end of segregation to attend a previously all-white elementary school.
Mandated integration was a windfall for private education in the South. Thousands of small schools, nonsectarian as well as religious, sprang up in the wake of the court order. De facto school segregation continued in many communities. Public education in the South sunk to new lows through these 50 years in part because white people who sent their children and grandchildren to private schools controlled public school boards and were often highly resistant to any school tax increases and marginally invested in the public school system.
The evident resistance to integration, not only in education but in all aspects of society, has been wide-ranging and far-reaching in its effect. Sunday morning worship continues to be the most segregated hour of the week in America. This reality seems to be changing as a new generation rises in our churches.
Race itself is a dimension of almost every discussion about education, economic development, criminal justice, religion, and medical services in our community though it is frequently unmentioned. As with gender or religion, our ethnicity is so thoroughly a part of our identity that to discuss it is to become intimate with and vulnerable to strangers in the room. Board rooms and court rooms are not generally peopled with good friends and family members. Who wants to open up such portals to the soul among those who do not really know you and probably do not love you?
Finding a vocabulary to discuss race is difficult. We fumble for words because we do not want to offend or deceive the listener, but we seem doomed to do one or the other. If we say what we are thinking we run the risk of broken relationships. If we skirt the real issues we propagate relationships built on mutual misunderstanding. Words have a life of their own once they are spoken. Detached from their context, intimate and heartfelt comments may be twisted and reinterpreted for political advantage. So we fall back into the safety of silence.
We are surrounded by fear. We are fearful about race itself and about the discussion of it. We fear losing ourselves as we open our minds and hearts to new relationships with a broader reach. We fear the loss of traditions and heritage. We also fear the loss of existing support structures and friendships should we step into the discussion about race relations. Words and actions have consequences in all communities.
Half a century has passed since that integration order, and we continue to work on the same problem. We struggle to love our neighbors as we love ourselves, even the very good ones. Jesus’ ancient tale about the Good Samaritan makes ethnicity the centerpiece in the question, “Who is my neighbor?” Our own “Samaritans,” whatever despised ethnicity that might be, we see as villains instead of heroes, subjects of suspicion and fear rather than admiration and respect. We who seek to follow Jesus tumble and stumble in a stuttering effort to obey this Great Command.
We are making progress. Many of our churches are more diverse than they were 50 years ago. The world is gathering at our doorstep, of course, and population trends have introduced new realities.
But attitudes have changed as we have drunk from the same fountains. The end of separate restrooms, restaurants, and schools was a beginning for greater common ground. Closer proximity tempered unreasonable fears and increased the cross-cultural dialogue.
The way forward is in part a personal and persistent effort at friendship, cooperation, and communication that recognizes and values our individual histories and emphasizes the shared concerns of living in the same space. Peace on earth is a dream that happens inch by inch, not mile by mile. Sometimes success is seen not so much in distance covered but in baggage set aside.
Today we acknowledge and lament the terrible injustices and deep wounds of the Jim Crow era. We ask forgiveness for the stubborn prejudices of race and class that plague us all and plague us still. And we celebrate the progress made, such as it is, toward mutual respect and neighborly love.
By David E. Crosby, Pastor
First Baptist New Orleans
November 14, 2010
Little Ruby Bridges walked into William Frantz Elementary School in the Upper Ninth Ward the morning of November 14, 1960, escorted by four U.S. marshals. She and Leona Tate, Tessie Prevost, and Gail Etienne at the McDonogh 19 Elementary School in the Lower Ninth Ward were the first black students after the federal court order mandating the end of segregation to attend a previously all-white elementary school.
Mandated integration was a windfall for private education in the South. Thousands of small schools, nonsectarian as well as religious, sprang up in the wake of the court order. De facto school segregation continued in many communities. Public education in the South sunk to new lows through these 50 years in part because white people who sent their children and grandchildren to private schools controlled public school boards and were often highly resistant to any school tax increases and marginally invested in the public school system.
The evident resistance to integration, not only in education but in all aspects of society, has been wide-ranging and far-reaching in its effect. Sunday morning worship continues to be the most segregated hour of the week in America. This reality seems to be changing as a new generation rises in our churches.
Race itself is a dimension of almost every discussion about education, economic development, criminal justice, religion, and medical services in our community though it is frequently unmentioned. As with gender or religion, our ethnicity is so thoroughly a part of our identity that to discuss it is to become intimate with and vulnerable to strangers in the room. Board rooms and court rooms are not generally peopled with good friends and family members. Who wants to open up such portals to the soul among those who do not really know you and probably do not love you?
Finding a vocabulary to discuss race is difficult. We fumble for words because we do not want to offend or deceive the listener, but we seem doomed to do one or the other. If we say what we are thinking we run the risk of broken relationships. If we skirt the real issues we propagate relationships built on mutual misunderstanding. Words have a life of their own once they are spoken. Detached from their context, intimate and heartfelt comments may be twisted and reinterpreted for political advantage. So we fall back into the safety of silence.
We are surrounded by fear. We are fearful about race itself and about the discussion of it. We fear losing ourselves as we open our minds and hearts to new relationships with a broader reach. We fear the loss of traditions and heritage. We also fear the loss of existing support structures and friendships should we step into the discussion about race relations. Words and actions have consequences in all communities.
Half a century has passed since that integration order, and we continue to work on the same problem. We struggle to love our neighbors as we love ourselves, even the very good ones. Jesus’ ancient tale about the Good Samaritan makes ethnicity the centerpiece in the question, “Who is my neighbor?” Our own “Samaritans,” whatever despised ethnicity that might be, we see as villains instead of heroes, subjects of suspicion and fear rather than admiration and respect. We who seek to follow Jesus tumble and stumble in a stuttering effort to obey this Great Command.
We are making progress. Many of our churches are more diverse than they were 50 years ago. The world is gathering at our doorstep, of course, and population trends have introduced new realities.
But attitudes have changed as we have drunk from the same fountains. The end of separate restrooms, restaurants, and schools was a beginning for greater common ground. Closer proximity tempered unreasonable fears and increased the cross-cultural dialogue.
The way forward is in part a personal and persistent effort at friendship, cooperation, and communication that recognizes and values our individual histories and emphasizes the shared concerns of living in the same space. Peace on earth is a dream that happens inch by inch, not mile by mile. Sometimes success is seen not so much in distance covered but in baggage set aside.
Today we acknowledge and lament the terrible injustices and deep wounds of the Jim Crow era. We ask forgiveness for the stubborn prejudices of race and class that plague us all and plague us still. And we celebrate the progress made, such as it is, toward mutual respect and neighborly love.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Surrender the Center
The center of the universe is somewhere near the Superdome. In fact a big banner hanging from the rafters in the Dome reads, “World Champions.” So there should be no doubt.
My son-in-law is a world champion. He won the grand prize at the Memphis in May barbecue cook-off several years ago.
My brother lives in San Saba County, Texas, the “pecan capital of the world,” as the small wooden sign reads.
We all live in the geographical center of the universe—our own address. And we are all world champions in some way in our own minds. Does anyone make a better biscuit than you? Does anyone understand better how to master video games or paint nails? You’re the one!
This is why we assume the world is coming to an end if our family is struck by disaster—or our county or our country. We are the center of biblical prophecy, and the world cannot go on without us or without things as they are for us.
People in Haiti and Indonesia, in the wake of recent earthquakes and tsunamis, may assume that the final apocalypse is upon us all. The world, of which they are the center, is collapsing.
Citizens of nation-states, including these United States, consistently adopt this egocentric and ethno-centric perspective. THE world is coming to an end if MY world seems to be ending. Most good stories—e.g. Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, the television series Fringe—involve the end of the world. Fringe, as the story unfolds this fall, is not about the edge of things, as the name implies, but the middle of things. If the main characters do not act fast, the entire universe is going to collapse.
You are only being modest when you suggest that you are on the fringe of things. What you really mean is that despite the skewed perspectives of those who may disagree, you are on target and dead center.
Life as we knew it is over, that is for certain. The aging process alone guarantees this. From communication to transportation to social conventions to the passing away of loved ones and heroes, the world I became familiar with as a boy and young adult is gone forever. Conservation and conservatism, political and social, only pertains where things are passing away and wasting away, as they always are.
Age itself is one reason why elderly people are sometimes targets of the false prophets. When funerals begin to dominate my schedule, the biblical warnings about plagues and disease ring louder. The longing to return to the past—the secure and familiar world of youthful health, assurance and simplicity—is strong in all of us. The politicians exploit that longing in order to get elected, the radio hosts to sell advertising. And the false prophets connect with that longing in us in order to find a way to our wallets.
“All men are like grass” (1 Peter 1:24). This is truth about our temporary and transitory sojourn on Planet Earth, and it is our best protection against the falsehood that we stand at the center of it all. If you and I can resist the arrogance that pushes us toward the pinnacle we will be wiser and better and more faithful people.
We are not the center, but we can point to it: “The word of the Lord stands forever” (1 Peter 1:25). Some things do not wither or fade or age. Humility is deference to the transcendent Truth. To surrender the center—this is hope and peace and progress in a world that still brims with possibilities and opportunities. The center of the universe is not half way between a democrat and republican or a liberal and conservative. The center is the Creator God whose spoke it all into being and will one day give the final benediction.
My son-in-law is a world champion. He won the grand prize at the Memphis in May barbecue cook-off several years ago.
My brother lives in San Saba County, Texas, the “pecan capital of the world,” as the small wooden sign reads.
We all live in the geographical center of the universe—our own address. And we are all world champions in some way in our own minds. Does anyone make a better biscuit than you? Does anyone understand better how to master video games or paint nails? You’re the one!
This is why we assume the world is coming to an end if our family is struck by disaster—or our county or our country. We are the center of biblical prophecy, and the world cannot go on without us or without things as they are for us.
People in Haiti and Indonesia, in the wake of recent earthquakes and tsunamis, may assume that the final apocalypse is upon us all. The world, of which they are the center, is collapsing.
Citizens of nation-states, including these United States, consistently adopt this egocentric and ethno-centric perspective. THE world is coming to an end if MY world seems to be ending. Most good stories—e.g. Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, the television series Fringe—involve the end of the world. Fringe, as the story unfolds this fall, is not about the edge of things, as the name implies, but the middle of things. If the main characters do not act fast, the entire universe is going to collapse.
You are only being modest when you suggest that you are on the fringe of things. What you really mean is that despite the skewed perspectives of those who may disagree, you are on target and dead center.
Life as we knew it is over, that is for certain. The aging process alone guarantees this. From communication to transportation to social conventions to the passing away of loved ones and heroes, the world I became familiar with as a boy and young adult is gone forever. Conservation and conservatism, political and social, only pertains where things are passing away and wasting away, as they always are.
Age itself is one reason why elderly people are sometimes targets of the false prophets. When funerals begin to dominate my schedule, the biblical warnings about plagues and disease ring louder. The longing to return to the past—the secure and familiar world of youthful health, assurance and simplicity—is strong in all of us. The politicians exploit that longing in order to get elected, the radio hosts to sell advertising. And the false prophets connect with that longing in us in order to find a way to our wallets.
“All men are like grass” (1 Peter 1:24). This is truth about our temporary and transitory sojourn on Planet Earth, and it is our best protection against the falsehood that we stand at the center of it all. If you and I can resist the arrogance that pushes us toward the pinnacle we will be wiser and better and more faithful people.
We are not the center, but we can point to it: “The word of the Lord stands forever” (1 Peter 1:25). Some things do not wither or fade or age. Humility is deference to the transcendent Truth. To surrender the center—this is hope and peace and progress in a world that still brims with possibilities and opportunities. The center of the universe is not half way between a democrat and republican or a liberal and conservative. The center is the Creator God whose spoke it all into being and will one day give the final benediction.
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