The workings of the Holy Spirit

In the mid-fourteenth century the Eastern Orthodox Church was convulsed by a dispute about the whether or not a style of mystical prayer known as Hesychasm was valid.  The prime advocate of this type of prayer, Gregory Palamas "maintained that in such practice of prayer, it is possible to reach a vision of divine light which reveals God's uncreated energy, which is the Holy Spirit." (Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years by Diarmaid MacCulloch, p. 487)  What the mystics of the Orthodox Church were trying to achieve through repetition of the "Jesus Prayer" (Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on me.") was a connection with the Holy Spirit.
Jesus made it clear to his disciples that when he left them the Spirit of God would take his place to teach (John 16:12-15) them, and throughout Acts the Spirit is seen guiding and directing the early Church through men like Peter and Paul.  We know from Paul's letter to the Romans that the Holy Spirit is also instrumental in our prayer as well (Romans 8:26-27). 
In the past two thousand years the Church has come up with a variety of answers to the practical questions of what our interaction with the Holy Spirit could/should look like for individuals, local churches, and Christendom as a whole.  For some people, that answer is a subtle one, a "still small voice" that speaks quietly when we're willing to listen.  For others, the answer has been much more vocal, whether it be speaking in tongues, visions, dreams, or other kinds of communication.
Depending upon the church tradition you're familiar with, it may seem odd, even weird, to experience the other end of the spectrum.  To step into a Pentecostal Church if you were raised Roman Catholic would be quite a shock, likewise to step into a Lutheran Church if you were raised Southern Baptist might be equally surprising.  That same divergent response to the Holy Spirit is mirrored in individuals as well.  For some people, to talk about being moved or spoken to by the Holy Spirit is only natural, for others it seems a foreign concept.  Those of us who are naturally outgoing might find such expression easy, and those who tend to be more reserved might find it uncomfortable.
So who is right?  Which expression of the work of the Holy Spirit is the right one?  They all are.  That isn't avoiding the issue, it's the truth.  The Spirit of God works throughout the Church of Christ.  If we are all followers of Jesus Christ, all of us have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.  That includes the jumping up and down "Hallelujah" shouter and the man sitting in the back praying silently.
Here's a suggestion that might open your eyes, take some time and visit a church that is unlike the kind you're used to; find out the ways in which other Christians are living out their faith, you just might find something that speaks to you.

Sermon Video: "Do not judge" Luke 6:37-42

As Jesus' sermon continues, the ideas of "do to others" and "be merciful" are further developed by adding to them "do not judge", "do not condemn", and "forgive".  The call continues for followers of Jesus Christ to live a higher moral standard.  Why must we not judge, because we ourselves do not want to be judged?  Why must we not condemn, because God is merciful and so must we be.  Forgiveness offers the path to doing away with judgmental and condemnatory attitudes, when we learn to forgive as God forgives we no longer feel the need to elevate ourselves by bring others down. 
Jesus continues by explaining that the blind cannot lead the blind, we must follow the example of our teacher (himself) and learn from those who have become like him.  The final analogy, of the man with a plank in his eye trying to remove the speck in the eye of another shows the absurdity of those who have their own moral failings trying to correct those same failings in others.  Yes, we must help others in their efforts to be Christ-like, but we should do so by first examining ourselves that we may offer help from a position of victory over sin.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video

To Judge or not to Judge, that is the question.

Please don't judge me for borrowing Shakespeare's phraseology from Hamlet, that would make the rest of this post difficult to read.  The text that I'm going to be preaching this Sunday is Luke 6:37-42; it begins with the phrase, "Do not judge".  In the passage Jesus is warning us that the same way in which we judge, condemn, and/or forgive others will be the measure with which we ourselves are evaluated by God.  That certainly is consistent with the teaching back in vs. 31 "do to others as you would have them do to you".  Later in the passage Jesus explains that if we are trying to help others by pointing out to them the flaws in their own character (clearly something that needs to be done in humility) we must first remove the flaws in our own if we have any hope of seeing clearly.
As I write the sermon, I can't help but think about all of the judgments that I need to make each week to do my job.  As a committee member for Mustard Seed Missions, we evaluate need/resources each week as new people are brought to our attention.  How do we decide who we help and who we do not?  As the pastor of this church I need to evaluate calls for assistance that we get every week, how do I decide who to help and who to not, and to what extent?  I certainly also have to watch over this flock, to keep an eye out for troublesome behavior in this congregation and try to stamp it out for the benefit of the whole.  Along those same lines, I need to be on the look-out for false doctrines and harmful ideas lest they take root amongst us and do harm to God's people.
It seems as if my job requires me to be a judge over a great many things and people, yet Jesus' words have to apply to me just like everyone else.  In the end it all comes down to attitudes and the intentions behind our actions.  Do I have the best interest of others and the needs of the community to heart?  Are my decisions self-sacrificial or self-aggrandizing?  The same questions apply to us all in the myriad of decisions (judgements) we must make each day as spouses, parents, consumers, voters, and members of the organizations we belong to.  To remove ourselves from the equation (to not judge at all) would simply hand the decision over to those who have selfish goals in mind.  To sit in judgment gleefully would be an affront to God and the speedy road to our own destruction.
Do you and I have to judge things in life?  Of course, but we have no reason to be judgmental.  Do we have to condemn evil and work towards its destruction?  Certainly, but we have no reason to not hope for sinners to repent.  Do we have forgive others?  That is the most crucial question of all; if we fail to forgive, what hope have we when our own mistakes are brought into the light of day?  Forgive, be merciful, and remember the embrace of your Heavenly Father when you finally returned home.

Sermon Video: "Be merciful" - Luke 6:32-36

As Luke's version of the Sermon on the Mount continues, Jesus further explains the command to "love your enemies" and "do to others" that proceeded this passage by raising the bar of ethical conduct far beyond a simple return of love for love and good for good.  As followers of Jesus, we must love those who do not love us, do good to those who have done no good thing for us, and give to those from whom we expect nothing in return.  Why the drastic moral upgrade beyond basic human tribal behavior?  Because our Heavenly Father has demonstrated that same level of love through his mercy to the world, us in particular.  As we take up our own cross to follow Jesus, we imitate the mercy of Christ and accept the risk that our efforts will be spurned or taken advantage of; the reward is great, to be known, here and now as a child of God.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video

Manti Te'o, online relationships, and real people

Having moved 400 miles away from my hometown after 37 years this past year I value online communication via Facebook and e-mail with those I left behind.  That long-distance contact helps us keep in touch and eases the pain of being away from friends and family.  There's one big difference between those online relationships and the one that Manti was a part of (whether he knew it was a hoax or not); I actually know these people.  I've had conversations with them face to face, we've built relationships over time that have included shared acts of kindness, we really do know each other.
There may be some value to having a purely online relationship with someone, but there's one important thing it will never have; human contact.  The germaphobes may not appreciate this, but handshakes, hugs, and actually talking to someone (while not checking your cell phone every two minutes) are all integral parts of genuinely meaningful relationships.
As the age of electronic communication progresses, here I am "talking" to you on a blog, this will become more and more important to the building of healthy relationships.  The value of taking the time to be with someone and investing in them will only increase as it becomes more rare in society.
This is also an incredible opportunity for the Church to minister.  There are some who worry how the Church will cope with the changes in technology that seem to make our weekly gathering seem obsolete; they're worrying over nothing.  The Church will continue to be the place where authentic relationships happen, where people care about you even before they know you, and where you can get some heart-felt human contact.  People will want to talk to you, they'll offer to pray for you, and they may even give you a hug whether you want one or not.
To a generation yearning for authenticity, needing to feel connected, and hoping to find people who are willing to put in the time to actually know them, the Church can (and should) be a haven, a place of refuge from the 24/7 hurry up world that won't slow down for anyone.  How do we reach a generation that won't respond to anything except a text message, with a warm smile and a hug.

Why Lance Armstrong's cheating still hurts.

If you're like me, you don't watch much cycling on TV, nobody does.  Yet a few years ago I found myself watching the Tour coverage so that I could root Lance on against the world (and especially the annoying French who always hated him for winning their race); it seemed impossible that he had that extra gear, that ability to dig deep when it mattered most.  I admired that drive because I remember it well from my days of competitive running, although I had no more talent than the next guy, I always managed to pass somebody at the end.
And now Lance is going to admit to the world what he's been denying loudly for decades, he cheated.  It seems that everybody in cycling was cheating (Baseball fans may recognize this notion), and he felt the need to join them to have a chance of winning.  I really did like Lance as an athlete, not so much as a husband, but athletes are rarely good role models (as Charles Barkley famously said).  And now this.
Even though I know that putting your faith or trust is another person opens you up to disappointment, I can't help myself.  The theology of it I understand, Paul makes it clear in Romans that there are none righteous, none that we can put on a pedestal, all have flaws.  Certainly the lives of the O.T. saints confirm the need to proceed with caution (everybody's hero David certainly have a dark side worse than most). 
And yet we, myself along with you, find ourselves believing that this person will be different; that this politician, actor, athlete, teacher, pastor, or friend will be different.  They'll never let us down and they'll always do the right thing.  When the inevitable letdown happens, we can't help but feel the disappointment.
So why do we do it?  Why do we keep on believing in people when only God can promise to never disappoint us?  Simple: we need heroes.  This world is too full of moral evil for us to cope with our own struggle against it without having heroes to look up to.  Real people living right now (on top of the comic book and fictional characters we escape from reality with) that can encourage us by their own example.
In the end, that's a good thing; we need to put our trust in people too, we can't simply say that we trust in God because our faith is lived out in this world; it is here that we must make our stand, it is here that we must sacrifice of ourselves to help others, and it is here that we need to believe that a guy can come back from cancer to be a champion, even if that belief hurts in the end...It turns out that it's worth the occasional pain of being let down to find people in life worth believing in; after all, God believes in you, his Son came to prove it.

Sermon Video: "Do unto others" Luke 6:31

This most famous saying of Jesus is an oft misunderstood moral obligation that goes far beyond the typical requirement of laws to do no wrong.  Instead, Jesus teaches his followers that they must actively interact with others according to his standard of righteous living as exemplified by the command to "love your enemies".  Instead of seeking preferential treatment for ourselves, we must be the servant of all.  Instead of indulging in favoritism, we must treat everyone as equals and show to each person in our lives the grace that God has given to us.  The example of Christ is paramount here: he became a servant that he might save everyone who believes.  We too must adopt the attitude of a servant, only then will we truly be able to "do to others as you would have them do to you."

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video