The Message of the Gospels Isn’t Good News, It’s GREAT … AND It’s for RIGHT NOW

I’ve basically been a Christ follower my entire life. Interestingly and helpfully, for the first large chunk of it I was pretty (or really) conservative in my reading of the Bible and understanding of God, life, and the world. Life, experience, and (in my mind) transformation, though, have led me to more “progressive” (for lack of a better term) views in recent years. As you might be able to imagine, this has led to some tension and conflicts with my friends and family who are still on the conservative side of things.

 

With this in mind and during a wonderful, slightly heated, but incredibly loving and grace-filled conversation, one of my best friends invited me to read the Gospels and the Book of Acts to really listen for the essence and heart of Jesus’ message and life. While I can’t share everything I found in a blog, I’d like to briefly relate to you the big things that stood out to me. In short, my discovery was the Gospel isn’t so much “good news” (the literal meaning of the word) for after we die, as GREAT NEWS for RIGHT NOW.

 

Now for some details of what I noticed. 🙂 First off, Jesus was harsher than I remembered. I was struck by how frequently the Christ got frustrated with people, said they were on the path to destruction, or spoke woes. That said, here’s where an understanding of history and context stepped in to elevate these potentially unsavory moments to instead be part of the Great News proclaimed, enacted, and offered by Jesus.

 

The first thing to remember here is Jesus was a Jew who lived in Israel, which was a conquered province under the rule of the Roman Empire. Imagine if you lived in occupied territory … would you be happy about that? Would you be naturally favorable or unfavorable toward your conquerors … especially when one of their favorite ways to keep you in order was to brutally, slowly, and tortuously kill any of your country mates who opposed them on a cross?

 

As you can imagine, the going in attitude was for Jews to dislike the Romans and vice-versa. Now, add in to this mix that there were three primary factions within the Israelites: The Pharisees, Sadducees, and Zealots … who were in many ways at odds with one another. Enter Jesus, whose harshness was largely (if not entirely) with these four opposing factions. In fact, I think you could accurately say the Messiah was really being severe with ALL the people who were opposed to and were at odds with others. Further, I read nothing but tenderness and care from Jesus when it came to hurting, repentant, or marginalized people. Now, let me unpack that some so you see what I mean.

 

The Pharisees were a religious group (which in those days also meant they were political) convinced the best way forward was to live perfectly moral lives. They wanted everyone to be more religious and to try harder to be perfect people. They were scrupulous keepers of every tiny aspect of the Law, so much so that they wrote laws around the laws, if you will, to make sure people didn’t even get close to breaking the law. For instance, Jewish Law forbade “work” on the Sabbath and included some specifics about this (such as not walking more than 960 meters outside of a city), so Pharisees would fashion further prohibitions just to “make sure” no one worked on the holy day of rest. They were so passionate about keeping the Law they believed the Messiah would come and restore Israel to greatness precisely the day when EVERYONE followed the Law perfectly.

 

The Sadducees were also a religious and political group, but they were more practically oriented. The Sadducees acquiesced to the Roman government and culture, because they were basically realists. While the Pharisees passively opposed Rome, they welcomed and accepted them because it was the practical thing to do. In fact, Sadducees were so practical they didn’t believe in life after death, angels, or demons.

 

Conversely, the Zealots were adamantly and violently opposed to the Roman Empire. They advocated and frequently enacted violent revolts so as to free Israel from their oppressor’s clutches.

 

Likewise, the way of Rome was also violent. The Empire brought “peace” through military might and economic oppression.

 

This leads me to another of my biggest revelations while reading the Gospels and Acts: I was struck by how the Way of and belief in Jesus is nearly always tied to healing, care, feeding, and the like, while the “opposition” (Pharisees, Sadducees, Zealots, and Roman government) is linked to riots, violence, trials and death. As I read I noted how over and over and over again it says Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God to people, and hand-in-hand with these announcements was healing of the sick, caring for the hurting, feeding of the hungry, understanding for the marginalized, and the like. It was as if the Reign of God and the proclamation of Jesus are intimately and inextricably linked to tangible acts of love … in fact, I’d actually say they are.

 

This allows me to sum up and conclude my observation of Jesus being harsher than I recalled like this: While the Pharisees thought joy could be found by rigidly obeying the Law, living perfectly and doing things “better”, the Sadducees were pessimists and realists who thought the “best” life had to offer was to settle with the status quo. Meanwhile, the Zealots thought the only route to happiness was to violently overthrow the Romans, who sought “peaceful” and prosperous lives by oppressing and killing others. Jesus’ Way, however is LOVE, which is flexible, hopeful, and actively caring for others with NARY a trace of violence.

 

Speaking of Jesus’ Way, I think it’s both interesting and important to note the first generation of followers did NOT name, nor really call themselves “Christians” (the term is barely in the Bible at all). They said they were followers of The Way. Over and over and over again, Jesus invited people to “come and follow me.” What does that mean though? What does it mean to “follow” the Christ?

 

Hmm, having typed that I’m now very aware there’s no way I can fully answer that in a small part of a blog, still I’ll take a stab at a quick and helpful answer. I think following Christ primarily means two things: (1) to be in relationship with Jesus and (2) to do what Jesus does … and the long and short of both of these is LOVE. Love where we lay down our lives in big and small ways for the physical, emotional, and spiritual healing, thriving, and flourishing of others. When we do this here and now we are bringing heaven to earth, we are experiencing and letting others taste the Reign of God on earth as it is in heaven.

 

This takes many forms: It can be healing someone’s wounds. It could be listening to a person’s problems and struggles. It might be fixing a friend’s car. It can show up as treating an acquaintance to a meal. Along those lines, naming Jesus “Lord” comes up a fair bit in the Gospels, so what does that mean and is it important? Yes, I think it’s vital to confess Jesus is Lord … and I wonder if ANY act of laying down our lives for the benefit, gain, and joy of others and/or trusting in or surrendering to the goodness of the Divine is a proclamation of Christ as Lord? Being a Western Christian my whole life, my experience has been one where a mental and internal belief that Jesus is Lord is the key. I’m not saying that’s not helpful, but after reading the Gospels it seemed to me Jesus cared more about our actions and less about our intellectual furniture, so to speak.

 

This leads me to one final point/observation. I think following the Way of Jesus is key to having an amazing life right here and right now. The Christ came to bring life and life to the fullest, or more abundantly (John 10.10). My point in saying this is it seemed to me that very little of Jesus’ “heaven” or “hell” talk had to do with a future, post-death reality. Instead, reading the Gospels with history and context in mind, it appeared to me the Christ’s key concern when it came to our lives wasn’t whether we’d go to heaven or hell after we died, but what quality of life we have right here and right now.

 

I say this because over and over and over again Jesus talks about rich, vibrant, and joy-filled experiences and/or (more frequently it seemed to me) incidents that led to weeping, gnashing of teeth, violence, pain, and the like. Here’s the thing, though, as I read these passages I noticed that quite frequently Jesus coupled the experience with “this generation” and/or context seemed to clearly indicate the Messiah was talking about present or short-term realities.

 

Here’s where having some knowledge of history becomes helpful. I noticed many passages that I’d traditionally thought or been taught referred to hell as a post-death experience, actually seemed to more clearly and literally apply to life here on earth for people who chose the NON-Jesus Way. Relatedly, “heaven” talk, or a rich, full, and amazing life, also seemed to apply more to the here and now. I say this because the audience Jesus addressed would, in fact, experience the destruction and violence the Messiah spoke of here on earth when Israel later revolted against Rome. The result was quite literally weeping, gnashing of teeth, destruction, dispersion, and pretty much ALL the warnings Jesus gave about “hell”.

 

That said, I’ll attempt to land the plane so to speak. When we follow the way of the Pharisees (legalism, perfectionism, and exclusion), Sadducees (pessimisms and settling), Zealots (violence), or Rome (violence and oppression) we run counter to Jesus and experience hell here on earth. That said, when we follow the Way of Jesus and freely and fully give our lives to take care of each other physically, emotionally, and spiritually. When we love and allow ourselves to be loved, we realize heaven here on earth.

 

I could say much more, but I think that’s a good stopping point. I hope this helps you on your journey and PLEASE comment and share your thoughts.

 

If you enjoyed the blog you can sign up on the right for email notifications for future blogs I write, or check out the most recent blogs here.  Also, I have a Facebook site named “Beautiful and Broken Becoming Beautiful” where I post encouraging words on living love that I’d love for you to “like.”

Grace and peace,
Lang

The Power of Perspective: A “Simple” Way to Change Our Days, Relationships, and Lives for the Better

While I was walking home the other day and gazing in front of me at the hard, grey, and lifeless sidewalk I was feeling a bit sad and out of sorts.  There wasn’t any specific reason for this, it just was.  Then, as if I heard a voice whispering to me to do so, I stopped and looked up at the sky.  Staring in wonder at the big, bright, and beautiful blue sky my jaw dropped and I thought “Wow!  What an amazing, crazy, huge, and beautiful world we live in.”  I smiled and continued on my journey with a lighter/brighter heart, while reflecting on what a big difference a change of perspective can make in our lives and relationships.

Now sidewalks are fantastic.  In fact, I’m a big fan of them as I walk to/from most places.  Still, isn’t there something cold, lifeless, and downcast about their hardness and grey uniformity?  As I was walking and looking at the sidewalk my perspective was both literally and figuratively one of a boring and sad sidewalk.  Then, with the only a minor movement of my head, my whole world changed.  A gorgeous blue sky over thriving green trees filled my view.  As I literally beheld the enchantment and sacred nature of our amazing world, my soul was filled with the wonder and awe of life.

Now perspective isn’t everything or a magical cure all, it won’t make abuse, discrimination, and other forms of harm good or even okay (though you can use it to create beauty from brutality), but it is often a quite powerful tool in our journeys.  A “simple” (though perhaps difficult) change of perspective can allow you to love and be loved more fully and effectively, break the cycle of perpetual fights with someone close to you, quiet your inner-critic, avoid or interrupt a conflict, and communicate more healthily.

For instance, when it comes to relationships changing our perspective to that of the “other” is often a complete game-changer.  Personally I don’t do this as often as I’d like, but when I do it leads to greater compassion, understanding, and love of a friend or family member.  Sometimes it’s easy and sometimes it’s hard to put ourselves in the shoes of another person, but it’s always beneficial.  More than once I’ve jokingly said harmful things to a friend with no ill intent.  Speaking from my white, middle-class, male perspective they were nothing more than funny and/or passing/throw-away comments.  Yet, when heard from her different perspective they were harmful.  With that in mind we’ve had healthy and helpful conversations about her perspective, which allows me to put myself in her shoes and thus better speak life instead of hurt.

Another place I’ve seen the power of perspective in relationships is in the context of conflict and the cycles we get stuck in.  You know how spouses, best friends, parents-kids, etc. seem to argue about the same issue over and over and over again?  We get trapped in cycles that repeat over and over again.  Two perspective shifts have been particularly helpful in my journey here.  First, is the aforementioned looking at things through his/her perspective.  This means wondering, why is this a sore subject for her/him?  What’s the goodness and beauty in her/his point of view that I can applaud, focus on, and learn from?  Is there a deeper issue at work here?  Is there a thing behind the thing?  Is it really dinner that we’re “always” arguing about or is it really a cry for me to pitch in and help more?  Second, is clearly communicating my hurt in the conflict or issue as being from my perspective, as opposed to blaming him/her.  I don’t know about you, but when I’m feeling hurt in a relationship my natural tendency is to say: “Why did you do this to me?  How could you be so _____?”  And when I make it the issue about him/her, then I’m putting her/him on the defensive.  Conversely, (and I learned this from my therapist) when I say: “Honey, I know you mean well and I’m probably being silly, but I’m feeling hurt and neglected.  For whatever reason I like it  when you _____, so I’m feeling ____.”

I’ve also found changing perspective very helpful when it comes to my inner-critic.  Having gone through two divorces, losing my career in the Air Force after a freak accident, and still being in the long and messy process of putting life back together again (though, perhaps that what “back together” actually is? But I digress) some days the voice in my head decrying my worth, value, and belovedness can get pretty loud.  In moments like those, when our inner-critic is roaring, a change in perspective is so, so, so life-giving.  Reminding ourselves how valued and loved by friends, family, co-workers, and others (ESPECIALLY BY GOD!!) can make all the difference in the world.  Additionally, this is also a place where I’ve witnessed the power of gratitude.  Something as “simple” as keeping a gratitude journal or posting 1 thing you’re grateful for a day on Facebook can retrain our brains and quiet our inner-critics.  When we focus on the positive and good things in life it literally changes the chemistry in our brains, accentuating the positive and eliminating the negative if you will. 🙂

Which brings me to one change of perspective I’d like to end with.  Jesus came preaching and living the Gospel, which means “Good News.”  While there’s more richness and depth to Jesus’ Good News than what even a book can explore, I think a change of perspective is a key portion of it.  Jesus’ life and teaching show us our enemies AREN’T other people or ourselves.  We are ALL (as in all 7+ billion of us alive today) in this TOGETHER and ALL of our true enemies are greed, hatred, violence, discrimination, materialism, religiosity, racism, exclusion, harm, oppression, consumerism, sickness, death, and every other system, structure, and way of being that takes life from people and the world.

What do you think?  How has changing perspective led you to more love?  How has altering your point of view given more life?  How could it lead to more thriving and flourishing today?

If you enjoyed the blog you can sign up on the right for email notifications for future blogs I write, or check out the most recent blogs here.  Also, I have a Facebook site named “Beautiful and Broken Becoming Beautiful” where I post encouraging words on living love that I’d love for you to “like.”

Grace and peace,
Lang

A Dave Matthews Band Concert is Like the Kingdom of Heaven

 Hi Everyone!

I hope you are having a beautiful day.  Recently, my girlfriend and I got to go see Dave Matthews Band play at the Gorge Amphitheater (a pretty spectacular venue).  Wow!  It was a crazy fun time and quite a beautiful experience in a variety of ways.

As I reflected on the multifaceted goodness of the experience, it occurred to me a Dave Matthews Band concert is a lot like the Kingdom of Heaven.  Now, in the Gospels Jesus frequently “describes” the Kingdom of Heaven or the Kingdom of God (synonyms for the same thing).  Yet, these pictures aren’t given as straightforward descriptions.  Instead, the Christ usually tells parables/stories to illustrate to people what the Kingdom is like; in other words, Jesus uses lengthy and multidimensional word pictures to imaginatively allow people to grasp some of what it is like to live in/experience the Kingdom of Heaven.  Ironically, the disciples often didn’t understand the parables, so after the crowds left they’d ask Jesus what the tales meant!  With these in mind, I thought it’d be fun to tell a story about the Dave Matthews Band concert, and then say a bit about what I mean. 🙂

 

There once was a crowd that gathered near the Columbia River in Eastern Washington.  On a warm, but not too warm, summer day, car after car after car full of people pulled into the parking fields of the Gorge Amphitheater.  As a man and woman made their way toward the impending concert, they noticed joyful music pouring from any vehicles.  Around these gathering points various people assembled, eating, drinking, dancing, laughing, singing, and talking.

 

“Hi!” cried one of the concertgoers as the two passed by, “would you mind taking a picture of us,” she finished with a smile.  “Sure,” the lady quickly said.  The group of fifteen then assembled for their Dave Matthews pictorial moment, with grins, drinks, and songs in hand.  “Thanks so much,” the requester said after the moment was captured, “would you like a drink?”

 

Inside the venue, the fellow waited for drinks at the magical stand of drink giving. 🙂 In his midst strangers began striking up a conversation about where they were from and their journeys to the concert.  One lady recounted how she had come all the way from New York.  “Yeah we took a five day road trip to California on the way to coming here for the concert!”  “Sweet, that must have been fun,” a guy replied, “my buddy and I came from Chicago.”  “Just for this?” she asked.  “Yup!” he said in response.

 

In another line (which definitely is NOT in and of itself like the Kingdom of Heaven :), the fellow waited while looking at all the excited, polite, and joyful people around him.  “Nice shirt,” came a voice from in front of him.  “Thanks,” he said, while looking down a bit and noticing the inquirer wore the same Dave Matthews Band (DMB) t-shirt.  “Nice!” he added, “what are the odds?” he chuckled (note, there actually are hundreds of different DMB tees).  “Did you get it from concert in Chula Vista?”  “Nah, I got this one at the online store,” he answered.

 

When the man and lady (who may or may not have been Melinda and I 🙂 reconvened, she observed: “These people here are crazy and awesome in the best way.”  Together they observed person after person after person laughing, grinning, singing, and dancing while they walked or stood nearby.  Not to mention quite a few outrageous outfits (think rainbow colors, furry stockings, and fuzzy boots), which they totally rocked!

 

When Dave Matthews Band took the stage the joy only increased.  The dancing and singing was contagious, in fact so many people were singing Dave’s songs in unison that the couple could here their voices alongside the band’s!  Dave Matthews sang about love, sang about sorrow, sang about the injustice in the world, sang about partying, sang about joy, and many more things.  And it was all done with passion.  Dave sang from his deep within his heart, while the band played and crowd responded likewise.  He/they desire and passionately crave love and goodness, while he/they deeply desire an end to injustice and wrongs in the world.  People connect with Dave because he sings with conviction, he sings from the wellspring of his heart.

 

Whether at their spot in the concert, walking to get food/drink, standing in line, or entering/exiting the amphitheater, the guy and gal encountered nary a frowning face.  In fact, close to (if not) everyone was smiling, laughing, and exhibiting courteous, curious, and loving attitudes that were far in excess to other large gatherings of people.  There was no hurrying, pushing, jostling, or belligerent intoxication.  There was basically only joy, conversation, food/drink, dancing, curiosity from strangers, and love.  And THAT’s what the Kingdom of Heaven is like.

 

Possibly this begs the question … what exactly do I mean by that?  Great question! 🙂  First, a brief word on the Kingdom of Heaven.  The Kingdom, in my understanding, is present any place/time/person where the reign of God is manifested.  And the reign of God looks like us living from/out of our deepest passions and desires, living with joy in our hearts and actions, living in relationships that reflect both diversity and oneness, and doing all these with love.  This list isn’t complete, nor is it meant to be, and I think it hits some high and key points of the Kingdom.  In my mind and experience, Dave Matthews Band concerts are events where these are embodied in pretty cool ways.  If you don’t mind, I’ll break it down for you a bit (briefly).

 

Passion/Desire – Recently, I thought to myself: “Self, why do you like DMB so much?  What is so appealing about them?”  And it occurred to me that perhaps the number one reason why I think Dave Matthews Band is the best band ever is because their lyrics, singing, and music have such deep and great passion and desire.  For instance, their song “Don’t Drink the Water” passionately and beautifully (IMHO) expresses the wrongs Europeans and White Americans did to the Native American peoples and natives of other countries during the colonial era.  You can check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psIuidkkLjI  Dave sings with great passion about a variety of topics, which reflect his deep desires: love, women/his wife, family, and injustice being prime examples.  In my mind, God makes each of us with similar good passions and desires, and when we live into these, when we pursue them, when we bring them into the world we are living in and showing others the Kingdom.

 

Joy – The people at the Dave Matthews Band concert were, as a group, some of the most joyful people I’ve met.  And joy, my friends, is a hallmark of the Kingdom.  I think happiness and sorrow are real and relevant … and they are fleeting.  Joy, however, is more durable, deeper, and longer lasting.

 

Diversity and Oneness =  The pictures of the Kingdom of Heaven in Isaiah, Revelation, and elsewhere all paint the same picture when it comes to “who” is in the Kingdom.  Time after time after time the Bible’s authors write about all nations and all peoples coming together to celebrate with God.  What is more, Jesus’ longest recorded prayer is filled with a desire for us (as in anyone and hopefully everyone who follows Christ) to be one people, a oneness that comes from love (John 17).  It’s important to note oneness and unity doesn’t mean similarity, it means we come together and become united IN our diversity.  The Dave Matthews Band (DMB) concert was a pretty cool approximation of this.  It represented different people who came together as one, united by our love for DMB.  While the oneness experienced at the concert only lasted for a few hours, there is a greater, more enduring Kingdom oneness that is available to us from God.  As Richard Rohr writes: “The only solid and enduring foundation for recognizing human dignity and protecting human rights is not the American Bill of Rights or mere pluralistic thinking, but frankly, it is God! Those who know that we all came forth from the same God are most prepared to overcome racism, sexism, nationalism, and homophobia. And if God chooses to love me (and I know how silly and sinful I am), I am the best prepared to grant you the same compliment!”

 

Love – The acceptance, embrace, curiosity, and giving toward each other (especially strangers!) was a tangible and awesome example of love at the DMB concert.  It would have been incredibly hard to go to the concert and not be filled with joy, harmony, and good-will toward others, in other words love was in the air and it was contagious!  As the Kingdom is where God’s reign shows up and God’s essence/nature if love, I believe the Kingdom is first and foremost marked by love.

 

I think the Dave Matthews Band concert was an experience of the Kingdom of Heaven in several important ways.  Where have you experienced the Kingdom?  What does it look like in your view?  What do you think?

 

If you enjoyed the blog you can sign up on the right for email notifications for future blogs I write, or check out the most recent blogs here.  Also, I have a Facebook site named “Beautiful and Broken Becoming Beautiful” where I post encouraging words on living love that I’d love for you to “like.”

 

Grace and peace,
Lang

Forgiveness = the New Benjamins … In the Kingdom of God’s Economy Anyway

Hi Everyone-

 

I pray today finds you spectacular.  I’m off to school for an intensive, so will be surrounded by lovely people … and I got to kick off my day with some yoga, so that’s pretty sweet.

 

I don’t know about you, but in my experience the Spirit regularly hits me from a variety of angles with a message when I need to hear it.  Is it just me?  This week it’s been forgiveness.  A friend asked me if I’d tentatively like to preach at his church next summer (that’s planning ahead!  Nice 🙂 on a passage about being filled with the Spirit and forgiveness.  Previously I’d read Sara Mile’s Jesus Freak (which I highly, highly recommend) for my thesis, and it only has like five chapters, one of which is on … yup you guessed it, forgiveness.  Then, I listened to a podcast sermon that was a crazy inspiring message on people who do you wrong getting what they deserve … just kidding 🙂 it was on forgiveness too; and makes me wonder if maybe I should just read it if I preach at my friend’s church … AND last week my friends and I at Wine and Wisdom (the small group/house church/missional community/night of awesomeness I lead every Wednesday) talked for a good bit about how important it is for our own health to forgive others.  So, I figured I’d share some of what I’m learning with you…

 

In the economy of God’s Kingdom one of the primary currencies is forgiveness, as the kids say it’s the Benjamins in God’s Land.  A lot of times, in my experience, this message starts with: “You (as in all people) are evil and bad and God forgives you and loves you anyway.”  While there are some truths embedded in this message, I think it doesn’t sound very much like Good News.  I think a more useful starting place is that can we all agree that we’ve all had others do wrong to us, we’ve all done wrong to others, we’ve all done wrong to ourselves, and we’ve all done wrong to the Divine.  Which means, we all need forgiveness from each other, ourselves, and God.  Jesus gets at this in a powerful conversation with Peter that comes on the heels of already talking about the need for us to make things right (i.e. forgive and ask for forgiveness) with each other:

 

²¹ At that point Peter got up the nerve to ask, “Master, how many times do I forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?”

²² Jesus replied, “Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven.

^23-25 “The kingdom of God is like a king who decided to square accounts with his servants. As he got under way, one servant was brought before him who had run up a debt of a hundred thousand dollars. He couldn’t pay up, so the king ordered the man, along with his wife, children, and goods, to be auctioned off at the slave market.

^26-27 “The poor wretch threw himself at the king’s feet and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ Touched by his plea, the king let him off, erasing the debt.

²⁸ “The servant was no sooner out of the room when he came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him ten dollars. He seized him by the throat and demanded, ‘Pay up. Now!’

^29-31 “The poor wretch threw himself down and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ But he wouldn’t do it. He had him arrested and put in jail until the debt was paid. When the other servants saw this going on, they were outraged and brought a detailed report to the king.

^32-35 “The king summoned the man and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave your entire debt when you begged me for mercy. Shouldn’t you be compelled to be merciful to your fellow servant who asked for mercy?’ The king was furious and put the screws to the man until he paid back his entire debt. And that’s exactly what my Father in heaven is going to do to each one of you who doesn’t forgive unconditionally anyone who asks for mercy.” (Matthew 18:21-35, The Message)

 

A few things stand out to me about this passage.  First, Peter wants a fixed limit on how many times we should forgive others.  But, Jesus, in saying seventy times seven, says to forgive as many times as possible, forgive always.  A very understandable and normal initial response is: Really!?  I have to forgive him/her over and over?  That’s ridiculous and impossible.  I think it is impossible, but more on that in a minute.  More to the point, what if we think about how many times others should forgive us?  Well, always right?  Others should always forgive me for the bad words, inconsiderate actions, harsh tones, and shameful remarks I make.  Do we ever think we don’t warrant forgiveness from others?

 

Jesus then tells a story above to illustrate this.  The Messiah describes how God, at the snap of a finger, will forgive us outrageously.  Sadly, though, our impulse is not often the same.  We get forgiven and then turn around and demand to hold others accountable for every “penny” they owe us.  When we do this, though, I think we actually reject the forgiveness we’ve already received and so then live under the weight of all the ways we’ve wronged others, ourselves, and God.  In that light, I don’t read the story as God so much imposing a punishment on the ungrateful servant as the servant, by not forgiving his sisters and brothers, is actually rejecting God’s forgiveness, and thus experiences the weight of his wrongs.  To put it differently, God invites us to live in the Divine Economy of Forgiveness where God forgives us and we forgive each other, but we can reject this invitation, and when we do, we live in the human economy of tit for tat, eye for an eye.  When we experience forgiveness the natural response should be to forgive others, and if we don’t we stop experiencing the forgiveness we’ve received.  In so doing we become bitter, angry, and turned in on ourselves.  We actually experience the relational judgements we hold over others (he called me a “blank” so his girlfriend should dump him and such).

 

Yet, forgiving others is often really hard … especially doing it all the time like Jesus says.  In fact, for us humans I’d say it’s impossible.  However, with the Spirit I think we can.  I believe we see this when Jesus first gives the gift of the Spirit to the disciples after the Resurrection:

 

^22-23 Then he took a deep breath and breathed into them. “Receive the Holy Spirit,” he said. “If you forgive someone’s sins, they’re gone for good. If you don’t forgive sins, what are you going to do with them?” (John 20:22-23, The Message)

 

I think it’s the Spirit that gives us the strength and ability to forgive each other and ourselves over and over again.  Please note that forgiveness doesn’t mean we stay in abusive or violent situations or that we don’t let courts convict and imprison someone who steals from us.  What I think it does mean is that we forgive the relational debt that others incur toward us when they wrong us.  This means a lot of things, a few that come to mind are we wish the best for the person instead of pain and struggle, we think of them in positive instead of negative ways, we speak to them in healthy/positive/encouraging ways instead of in a judging/angry/hostile manner, we smile at them and nod instead of frowning and shaking our head, and the like.

 

Something I’ve mentioned in passing several times is forgiving ourselves.  For some of us it’s really hard to forgive others, especially if we’ve been abused, betrayed, or cheated on.  For others, though, it’s really hard to forgive ourselves for letting our kids down, neglecting our spouse, leaving our friends, etc.  God’s economy, however, includes forgiveness for all: one to another, God to us, AND ourselves to ourselves.  This, I believe is a huge part of the Good News that Jesus brought/brings.  And I think it’s why when the Messiah first breathes the Spirit on the disciples that He immediately equates it with forgiveness.  With that in mind, I think a key part of us sharing and living the Gospel is to show and give forgiveness to everyone. … It’s like handing out $100s to everyone you meet! 🙂 (but please make sure you still leave big regular money tips to your servers at restaurants :).

 

What do you think?

 

If you enjoyed the blog you can sign up for email notifications on the right, check out my website resource on living love named Beautiful and Broken Becoming Beautiful, and “like” it’s Facebook page where I regularly post helpful thoughts, quotes, ideas, blogs, etc.

 

Grace and peace,
Lang

Would Jesus Still Say “Kingdom” Come Today?

Hi Everyone-

I hope you are having a blessed day.  As I write this the sun is shining and I’m about to embark on a day of getting to know people and talking about joining God in displaying His Kingdom in exciting ways.

 

This begs an interesting question though I think.  If Jesus came today would He still talk so much about the Kingdom of God/Heaven?  Would the Lord’s Prayer center around “Your Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven?”  I wonder if instead, today He would preach and tell parables about the Culture of God and pray for “Your Culture to come on earth as it is in heaven.”  Why do I say that and what does it matter?

 

First, I would like clarify that I am very Kingdom-centric.  It is vital to my understanding of what God is about and doing in the world through Jesus.  That said, the way I perceive Jesus to enact, teach, and show the Kingdom is in what we’d view today as a very cultural manner.  The Messiah was supposed to bring and rule a physical, worldly kingdom with tangible boundaries, armies, etc.  AND even after the Resurrection the disciples were still waiting for Jesus to do this, as seen in Acts:

6 So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ ⁷He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ (Acts 1:6-8, NRSV).

 

I think we see that the Kingdom that Jesus has already brought is one not of earthly power, but of the Spirit’s power.  The Spirit’s power is “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). These traits were counter to the Roman Empire, their kingdom, which preached power over, control, ,military might, buying and building bigger and better things, achieving higher and higher political/social positions, and such.  The Kingdom of God preaches power under, a power that loves and serves others.  The kingdom of Rome preached power over, power that rules and controls others.

 

Likewise, in my opinion today Jesus’ “Kingdom” ways are more akin to cultural attributes which are very counter to our culture.  Our culture is one of buy, save, acquire, get, spend, look better, achieve more, win, and be the best.  God’s Culture is one of give, love, joy, and service.  This is why I think if Jesus came today there’s a good chance He’d speak of the coming of the Culture of God instead of Kingdom.  Father, your Culture come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

 

What do you think?

Grace and peace,

Lang

 

Two thousand years ago the Roman Empire was won of power, military might