Batman v. Superman and the problem of evil

{No spoilers}  You might not expect a comic book movie to delve into one of mankind's oldest and most fundamental philosophical questions, but Batman v. Superman does just that by utilizing Lex Luthor to ask about how an all powerful and all good God can co-exist with evil/tragedy in our world.  In theology, we call this theodicy, or The Problem of Evil.  Evil, both human caused and natural (disasters/disease/death) does indeed exist, only a fool would try to call the inhumanity of man toward his fellow man anything but evil, and only someone who is heartless would not be troubled by the latest drought/plague/volcano, etc. to spread misery and destruction.  Lux Luthor, played by Jesse Eisenberg, shares his belief that God cannot be both all powerful and all good, a conclusion that apparently contributed to his path toward villainy, an assertion that is not met with a response, per se, by any of the movie's heroes apart from their subsequent self-sacrificial actions.  In the movie, Superman's motives and choices are called into question, because of his power, as characters wonder if Superman must save everyone who is in danger, and if he doesn't, is he responsible for that 'neglect'?  Bruce Wayne/Batman does indeed hold Superman at least partly responsible for the destruction caused in his efforts to fight evil {General Zod from the last Superman movie}.
So, what is the Christian response to the problem of evil?  There are three possible choices: (1) Emphasize the sovereignty of God, as typified by the book of Job, with a "who are you to question God?" response, (2) emphasize the freewill of humanity, as typified by the German philosopher Gottfried Leibniz, who maintained that this is the best of all possible worlds that God could have created because human freewill with its accompanying evil is better than a world of automatons, (3) or attempt to meld some combination of God's sovereignty and human freewill.
A foundational belief that is built into Christian theology, which also has a significant impact upon theodicy, is Original Sin.  The idea that the world was created without flaws, humanity included, but that both humanity and the world around us (i.e. disease, natural disasters, etc.) are consequences of humanity's rebellion against God.  The finale of Christian theology, the End Times, as expounded primarily in Revelation, also posits that God will do away with this world, making a new heaven and new earth, one that is free of these causes of pain and suffering, at the same time that he removes the stain of sin, for good, from humanity.
Another aspect of the Christian response to the problem of evil is to consider the relationship between God and humanity within the analogy of parenting.  God often refers to himself in parental terms.  We know full well the warping danger of withholding consequences from our children, some of whom would become spoiled brats given that level of intervention, others of which would be psychopaths.  God must allow humanity to taste the bitterness of rebellion, of independence from him, if only to allow us to learn the value of obedience.
In the end, the problem of evil isn't going away any more than evil itself.  It will still cause skeptics to doubt God, it will still trouble believers (as it should), but the ultimate answer remains the same: Choose to trust in the goodness of God.

Sermon Video: The living hope of the resurrection - I Peter 1:3-5

Hope is a necessity.  It may not sound as necessary as food and water, but we need hope.  The future is unknown, our own deaths are certain, where will we be without hope?  False hope abounds, where can we find true hope?  The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead offers humanity living hope.  Hope that will not disappoint, and hope that is connected by faith to the glories of heaven in the age to come.  Because we, as Christians, have this living hope in our lives, everything changes.  We no longer fear death, we can sacrifice today in service to God's kingdom, and we can share the joy we feel with those around us.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: Why are we here? - I Peter 2:9-10

In this shorter Maundy Thursday message, the focus is on the use in the Bible, both OT Hebrew and NT Greek, of plural pronouns, a trend that we can miss in English because "you" is both singular and plural.  The point is simply this: God's plan has always been to redeem a people to be his own, not a bunch of individual persons.  We have to come to God by grace individually, but our growth, our sanctification, was always intended to be a community process.  We worship together, we pray together, we study the Word together, and we serve together.  Solo Christianity is not a real thing, we all need to be a part of His Church, connected by our common bond of faith, working for the same purpose, to share the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: A Gentle King - Zechariah 9:9-10

What sort of leader do people want?  What personality and character best defines a leader?  Historically, famous leaders have been bold and decisive, often ruthless, in their pursuit of power, many of them men of war like Alexander the Great or Napoleon.  The empire they built were built by the sword, and as often as not crumbled soon after.  In contrast, how does Jesus choose to portray himself at his moment of triumph while he enters into Jerusalem?  Jesus follows the prophecy of the prophet Zechariah and enters the city as a gentle king, riding a young donkey.  Jesus rejected the role of the conquering hero, scoring the easy path of political revolution and religious reform, in order to accept the role that only he could play: savior of the world.

It was through an act of humble submission, to his Father's will, that Jesus went to the cross, and it was unprecedented courage and strength that held him there as he bore the weight of humanity's sins upon his shoulders.  The world may think it wants a leader who will fight for them, but our only hope is that we have a leader who was willing to die for us.

Our hope, as Christians, is never in political or military solutions, for those are only the surface, humanity's true problem is deeper, and beyond the power of any to solve but God alone.  Our hope is in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the gentle king and humble servant who alone can make men free.

Zechariah ends by talking about the future reign of the predicted king in peace.  Our world today is mired in conflict, violence is never absent, war is a permanent part of our experience.  Yet one day that will all change, the Son of God will return in glory, will put an end to the rebellion of Satan, and will rule in peace, a peace that will have no end.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: The fulfillment of God's plan for Ruth and Naomi - Ruth 4:1-22

What is the cost of redemption?  In the climax to the story of Ruth, Boaz and another potential kinsman-redeemer discuss the cost of redeeming the land of Elimelech.  At first, when it seems like a sweet business deal, the other man is interested, but when Boaz reveals that the land will not permanently pass to the one who redeems it because he will also acquire the obligation to marry Ruth and produce and heir to continue the line of Elimelech, the other man suddenly changes his mind; the cost was too high.  Boaz, because of the high value that he places upon Ruth, gladly steps in and fulfills the role of the kinsman-redeemer.  God subsequently blesses, Ruth and Boaz with a son, Obed, who is symbolically placed upon the lap of Naomi to show that he will inherit from Elimelech.  At the end of Ruth, we also learn that Ruth will become the great-grandmother of King David, thus also including her in the line of the Messiah.
Two important lessons jump out at us from the finale of Ruth. (1) The high cost of redemption for Boaz reminds us of the much higher cost paid by our kinsman-redeemer, Jesus, to redeem us from our sins.  Jesus paid it all to redeem humanity, paid with his life, but also gained for himself and for God's glory from among the Lost countless ones who trust in him unto salvation. (2) God was still willing to bless Naomi, even though she had earlier lost her faith.  The will of God was at work in Naomi's life, even if she didn't realize it, even through her darkest moments.  Naomi may have given up on God, but God never gave up on her.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Politics and Dangerous Assumptions

Presuppositions can be dangerous.  We all have them, they’re the foundational ideas that we hold, often without even being aware of them, that underpin our beliefs and belief systems.  There is a presupposition that was once assumed in the American political landscape, even if our nation didn’t always live up to its lofty ideal, yet now it is being directly challenged.  You ought, I hope, to recognize this presupposition, it is after all something we hold to be self-evident: all men are created equal.  The belief in the equality of humanity is directly connected to the belief in God who created mankind.  Because God made us all, we must therefore be equal.  How could any race or nation be valued more, and more importantly, how could any be valued less, if all were alike created by God?  And yet, this idea is under assault in the political discourse today.  It isn’t being directly stated as such, but the assumption that American lives are worth more than non-American lives underpins many of the issues as they are being discussed today, from refugees and immigration, to trade agreements and foreign policy.  It may seem natural for an American politician to value American lives more, after all a Roman politician would have valued the lives of Roman citizens far above those of non-citizens, let alone the “barbarians” beyond the Empire’s borders, but if those same politicians are claiming to be themselves Christians, and are claiming to represent Christians, it must be pointed out that their belief system is built upon an idea that is anti-Christian.  The idea that God’s people don’t have to care about the lives of Syrians, Mexicans, the Chinese, Muslims, or any other group, is a grave insult to the cross upon which Christ died to offer salvation to the world.  That some of those being labeled in political discourse as the “them” that “we” don’t have to care about (and can even hate), are in fact our fellow Christian brothers and sisters, is a grave sin.  If those claiming the name of Christ don’t have love for their fellow Christians, how can the love of God be in them? (I John 3:16-17) Likewise, those of the “other” who are not Christians fall into the second category of people, for in the Christian mind there can be only two, the Redeemed and the Lost.  How should we treat the Lost?  If we treat them with disdain, if we dismiss them, revile them, hate them, how can we possibly share the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them?

Are you a Christian?  Do you care about those living in abject poverty around the world, or is American prosperity more important to you than their suffering?  Do you care about the rights of people who don’t look or think like you?  If you let a politician sell you on the idea that you must choose “us” over “them”, you are walking away from the call of the Son of God to share the love of God.  Politicians love to have villains, it is an age old tactic to make the foreigner the enemy, but it is not, nor can it be, a Christian one, for it was our king who said, “Love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you”, and “take up your cross and follow me.”  There isn’t any room near the cross for the politics of division and hatred.

Sermon Video: Ruth approaches Boaz - Ruth 3:1-18

As the story of Ruth continues in this fourth part of five, Ruth embarks upon a seemingly bold plan given to her by her mother-in-law Naomi to confront Boaz with his status as a kinsman-redeemer and prompt him to make a decision about marrying Ruth.  The plan, though seemingly very odd in our minds, works as Boaz agrees to marry Ruth, a decision he arrives at quickly once he realizes that Ruth is even interested in an older man like him.  Throughout this process, Boaz has shown himself to be above reproach.  We have already seen his kindness in action, in this episode he displays the fortitude that resists sexual temptation, as well as the honesty that resists taking the easy way out (he informs Ruth of the closer kinsman-redeemer).  Boaz is not willing to falsely elevate the pursuit of happiness above the maintenance of righteousness, a character trait we all ought to imitate.  It is possible for God's people to live according to righteousness, in the small things and the big things, by grace; Boaz is proof enough of that.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Is he a Christian? Are you?

Much has been made of late about whether or not someone who claims to be a Christian can be taken at his/her word as such.  Pope Francis even weighed in on this important issue, declaring that an attitude of wall building instead of the extending of love cannot reside in the mind of a Christian.  The Bible says much on this topic, from Jesus declaring that "all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:35) and also, "If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit." (John 15:5)  The question of who really belongs to the Church became important even in that first generation of believers, as evidenced by the primary focus on that question of the apostle John's first letter.  I John contains a threefold test of true Christian faith: (1) Belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, (2) obedience to the commands of God, (3) and lastly, display of Christian brotherly love.  In essence, John is simply repeating the instructions of Jesus himself and adding to it the need to believe in Jesus (which Jesus was assuming by addressing his comments to his disciples, men who had already chosen to follow him).
Where does this leave us, then, when faced with someone who claims to be a Christian yet shows little or no evidence of spiritual growth in terms of obeying the commands of God by avoiding sin and seeking righteousness, nor much evidence of love, first for fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, and then for the Lost whom the Gospel obligates us to pursue with God's love?  If the evidence is lacking, and it ought to be clear enough to leave no doubt because we're talking about the overall direction of a life, not simply one or two moments, then the evidence is indeed lacking.  Without evidence of Christian faith, without fruit of the Spirit, we dare not assume that anyone who claims to be a follower of Jesus Christ is actually a Christian.
Let me put this another way: If there is not clear evidence that the old self, the sin nature, has been crucified with Christ, that the Holy Spirit has brought about a baptism of new birth, and that the person in question is now living as a new creation, then it is foolish to believe that Christ dwells within that individual.  This is not an invitation to be judgmental, nor is it any sort of works-salvation; we are absolutely and without any hesitation saved by grace alone through faith alone, but it is a reminder that we're trying to determine if someone has been transformed by the Spirit of God.  This is not something that can happen without making a difference in your life or mine, it will cause change, for the better, from the old focus on self to the new focus on selflessness.
If there is no evidence Christ-like attitudes and behaviors, then there is no Christian, its as simple as that.  Is he a Christian?  Don't tell me what he says, what does he do?  Are you a Christian, don't tell me what you think you are, how are you living your life?  For those who have been washed clean by the blood of the Lamb, there is never really any doubt, they belong to him, they've taken up their own cross and chosen to follow their savior.

If you want to delve deeper into this topic, I wrote a book about I John's perspective on the question of who is, and who is not, a Christian; it's called Christianity's Big Tent and can be accessed via that link or by going to the page at the top of this website where all of my written materials are located.

Sermon Video: Boaz notices Ruth - Ruth 2:8-23

In this third message, of five, from Ruth, we find Boaz conversing with Ruth after he takes notice of her hard at work gleaning in his fields.  Boaz offers Ruth multiple, small, and ongoing kindnesses in response, he says, for her devotion to her mother-in-law Naomi, the widow of his kin Elimelech.  Ruth responds to these offers of help with humble gratitude, prompting even more steps taken by Boaz to help Ruth (and Naomi) in their time of need.
When Ruth returns home at the end of the day, with much more food than expected, Naomi is awakened from her depression and bitterness that had engulfed her since the death of her husband and sons by the kindness shown to Ruth and herself by a seemingly random neighbor who turns out to be Boaz, a kinsman-redeemer of Elimelech's estate.  Whether or not Boaz will be willing to fulfill his legal obligation under the laws of the kinsman-redeemer remains to be seen, but Naomi at least has begun once again to hope.
The kindnesses offered by Boaz were not, in and of themselves, all that costly to him, nor was he legally obligated to give any of them.  And yet, as a man of God, a man of character, Boaz chooses to go beyond the letter of the law to fulfill the spirit of the law; Boaz chooses to live by grace.

To watch the video, click on the link below: