Business 301: be sure they can deliver

This isn't about business at all.  You have already figured that out, but once we start talking about wealth and possessions we put on our version of a business suit and start thinking like a bunch of MBAs.  This story grabs us right in our wallet, as it should, but let us not stay there. We are talking about the story of the rich man who turns away from following Jesus presumably because 'he had many possessions.'  Mark 10

Perhaps it is good for us to admit how difficult this story is for us.  How crazy we find it.  How we can't possibly give up all our stuff and follow Jesus - even if we wanted to, and we are not sure that we want to.  I believe that wrestling with this story is am important part of our spiritual development.  It seems that it should lead us into some serious conversation with God, good and necessary conversation.

Yet there is this.  The rich man asks, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?"  What must I do?  Have I done enough?  Have I forgotten something?  Have I concentrated too much on this when I should be doing that?

At some point we have asked the same question.  What must I do to satisfy God?  (for Lutherans reading this, that is the perpetual question of the Law and it drives us to confession)  We really can't help ourselves.  It's what we know; what we have been taught.  For each phase of our lives there is a checklist to be completed.  The question has been asked with every tone of voice from incredulity to earnestness; from entitlement to frustration; from humility to hubris.  What more do I have to do?

Getting it right is critical in many situations.  To perform surgery we need to prove we are qualified.  To drive a car we must pass the test.  To buy a house we need to qualify for a mortgage.

But not with God.  It's not about what you do.  It's about who God is and how much God loves those God created.  God reached out to us through Jesus; God invites us into a new life through Jesus.  God defeated death in Jesus.

Or, to quote the story  'and Jesus, looking at him, loved him.'  Knowing that this rich man would not be able to leave behind the glory of this world for the promise of another, Jesus, looking at him loved him....as he walked away, as Jesus died on the cross, as the days or months passed.  Jesus loved him, and continually invited that man.........and each one of us...........to leave behind the stuff that only leads to death.  Put it down.  Come to me.

In the end, this gracious, life-giving love will be worth more than anything to which we cling in this lifetime.  The love of God costs us nothing, it is freely given.  Yet it is the gift for which we will give everything we have and we are.

Bonhoeffer writes in Cost of Discipleship   "Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will go and sell all that he has.  It is the pearl of great price to buy for which the merchant will sell all his goods.  It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him."

Listen for the Spirit to guide you along this path towards life in the Divine.  The love of Jesus calls you. Today and tomorrow.

When truth is not truth

We live in a time when government leaders tell us not to believe what we read and hear.  We live in a time when 'alternate facts' is somehow a 'thing,' and 'truth is not truth'.  (a quote from attorney Rudy Guliani on national TV).

So we won't find it hard to stand with the crowd around Jesus who is claiming that to eat his flesh and drink his blood will grant them eternal life.  We've heard some outrageous claims in recent history; this is a 1st century whopper.  Yet, Jesus is dead serious as we wind our way through the 6th chapter of John.  "the one who eats this bread will live forever" and "the bread that I give to the world to eat is my flesh".

I don't want to water down this promise of  'eternal life' with some fanciful picture of people with wings living in the clouds.  Our picture of 'heaven' makes for good comics but very poor theology.  I don't want to water this down to 'grandpa is looking down on us' wishful thinking which eases our grief but doesn't provide any vision for living today.

I want us to believe that because Jesus lives, we live too.

.....that, our life, when hidden in the life of Jesus, is likewise hidden in the Divine Creator for all time.

.....that eternal life is not an endless stretching out of days and months and years; it is not a endless succession of seasons but rather it is all time and no time, it is before time and after time, it is eternally now, beginning today.

.....that to abide in Jesus is to enter into the deep mystery of God where our earthly powers of reason and understanding are not useful.

There is nothing out there in the world which will explain this to you.  In fact, I think it is the stuff that is out there in the world that drives us to seek God, to listen for an answer beyond the talking heads and loud politicians.  Hope that is linked to the economy or our personal work ethic or politicians or doctors or even (in this age of rampant sexual abuse) in clergy is hope which will disappoint and betray.  Only hope in a living Lord Jesus will prove faithful beyond this temporary world.

Come to the table to eat and drink.  Come to meet the living Lord.

This bread and wine can be a source of strength and hope or it can be a stumbling block because in this meal we come face to face with Jesus..........

the Jesus who is either strength and hope ..........or a snake oil salesman.

the Jesus who is either full life, all life, with no qualifiers......or he is nothing.

Here there is no compromise.  There is only covenant; relationship; intimacy and trust.

Eat and drink trusting that the living Lord will now become the center of your being, the north star of your life, the one who will hold you and never let go.

Standing at the intersection

Most days we stand at the intersection of "I don't think so" and "We can only hope."  Whether it is a car salesman's claim that this new car gets 50 mpg, or a child's claim that she is perfectly innocent or a spouse's assertion that it was a late meeting with the boss, most days we stand between incredulous skepticism and the chance possibility of our dreams coming.true.  This is especially true when it comes to faith.

So when Jesus says "I am the bread of life" "the living bread" and "whoever eats of me has eternal life," there we are right at the intersection of "I don't think so" and "We can only hope".

You can hear it in the confused crowd who is trying to make sense out of Jesus' words. They are caught between looking like a bunch of fools for believing this guy, and at the same time, not wanting to miss out on an opportunity to be fed forever. It is hard because Jesus is making some outrageous claims.

Some of the folks know Jesus from the neighborhood; he lived right down the street.  They want to deflate Jesus' elevated opinion of himself.  Some of the folk must have thought Jesus was talking jibberish:  I am the bread come down from heaven, and the bread that I give to the world is my flesh.

We are caught at this intersection because we want to believe that Jesus is living bread, that we can taste and experience life eternal, but life has taken us to some deep, dark places were trusting in God is almost more than we can bear.  Did you read about that 5 year old boy whose family was caught in one of the wild fires?  He calls out from the house, about to be engulfed by flames, "Grandpa, come and get me!" as Grandpa stood helpless - in safety but unable to re-enter the already burning home.  This is deep darkness; we must take this reality seriously when we consider Jesus' words.


But what if Jesus is simply speaking the truth?  "I am" he says.  Not 'I will be' or 'I once was' but "I am".  "Whoever eats of me has eternal life"  Has.  Not 'will have' or 'could have' but "has" - the eternal present. The gift of Jesus is not for some distant time but begins the moment you turn towards him. Commit to this Jesus and begin tasting eternal life today.  Who couldn't use a little taste of the eternal on any given day of the week?

So, today, let's begin with now.  Let's believe that today I will taste the eternal; I will see God.  I will experience or witness mercy or forgiveness or grace or love.  I will be given the strength to be mercy or forgiveness or generosity or grace or love to another.  Today.

Today we begin to taste the powerful presence of the eternal in the ordinary.

Suffering, Christ, you, me and the world

How does the struggle and pain and loss and suffering of our day to day lives intersect with our spiritual lives?  Does our spiritual life support us in those times?  Give us some framework of meaning?  Is our spiritual life a source of strength.....and if so, how?

Of the many questions that come to me as a pastor, questions about suffering - the pain that comes from physical hurts, or relationship betrayals or social rejection...are the most challenging for both the one who is asking and for me.  They are the questions and answers that count in the final analysis.

Yes, some folks get all exercised over whether Noah was a real person living at some time long ago.  Some folks draw the line at Jesus walking on water or 7 days of creation.  But the real kicker, the one that really counts is suffering.  Why?  Why me?  Where is God?  When someone cannot find a their way through the haze that suffering creates; when the anger and fear overwhelm them, their grasp of God and God's good will slips away.

One might say that at the cross - the cross that we will all encounter in our lives - our faith is tested almost beyond bearing.  At our cross, the simple almost glib explanations of faith fall away; the discussions about female clergy or gay bishops becomes inconsequential; the Sunday School stories of Abraham or Peter or King David look too much like fairy tales.  

So what do we reach down and cling to when everything else has been stripped away?  
That's the question.  What has worked for you?  What message or practice or image or ritual was the source of strength for you?

For it is in suffering that we are truly challenged to walk with one another.  Perhaps our experience can help us strengthen the spiritual lives of others for that moment when there cross comes into their lives.

Having a manger when it counts

I have written any number of stories around mangers to be a part of my Christmas preaching.  This post is different.

Today, a faithful and faith-filled brother in Christ went on to the glory that God has waiting for him.  He was completely aware that his time on this earth was drawing to a close.  It was of little concern for him because he trusted without doubt that God awaited him in the world to come.  He calmly rested as his body shut down.  The child in a manger was the savior waiting for him on the other side.

That's what I mean by 'having a manger when it counts.'
Rest eternal grant him O Lord; and let light perpetual shine upon him.

John 3.16

Perhaps you've seen the signs at football games.  Someone, somewhere once wondered out loud which player the sign was referring to.  I'm glad I don't remember who that was.  But it is always helpful to remember that what is central in my life is non-sensical to others.

For God so loved the world....notice that God's action comes first, before anything else

that God gave the begotten Son.....next time the idea of generous giving for the sake of God's kingdom comes up, remember this phrase.  Clearly God didn't weigh the world's need next to the cost of cableTV.

so that whoever believes in him......notice how open that invitation is.  Anyone.  Everyone.  It is also helpful to replace the word 'believes' with the word 'trusts'.  It gets us out of our heads and into our hearts and lives

shall not perish.....much has been written on this.  It only makes sense in my faith if I don't take it literally and assume that 'perishing' has a different and deeper understanding than 'dying.'

but have eternal life.....many will translate this into 'go to heaven'.  Not a bad translation but a weak one in my opinion.  'To tap into the fullness of life that comes from the divine' would offer to me a richer, deeper and life-altering experience of the presence of God within my life today and every day.

But don't stop there.  Verse 17

For God did not send his son into the world.....Jesus is then an intentional action of the Divine God

to condemn the world......this wasn't a search and kill mission.  Frankly, the world was doing a pretty good job of 'going to hell in a handbasket' all by itself.  It didn't need God's assistance

but in order that............this phrase is going to point us to the purpose of God's action in Jesus. (that is what 'in order that' signifies)

the world might be saved through him.......Jesus comes so we might know life/ healing/ wholeness.  That is what forgiveness brings to people - a healing of whatever the broken past is that is so weighing us down that we cannot fully live into the future.  Forgiveness gives us a 'do over' a new beginning, or as the gospel of John puts it .....so we might be saved.

Luther (brother Martin) called these two verses the 'little gospel' or the good news in a nut shell. 

But just in case you missed it, there will be those who do not believe, who do not trust, who do not look to God for new life/ healing/ wholeness.  The implication here is these folks will not receive these blessings.  So, either we (the historic Christian witness in the 'inspired Word of God') have distorted God's message in Jesus, or there will be some whose lives will be a 'dead end.' 

Not many 21st century folks believe in a fiery hell, but I am not sure what the implications are for those who turn away.  It doesn't sound too good.  I know that I don't want to go there.