Random Thoughts and Ramblings

Tag: Jesus

  • Gullibility Is Not a Fruit of the Spirit

    “So then, putting away falsehood, let each of you speak the truth with your neighbor, for we are members of one another.” Ephesians 4:25 (NRSV)

    Recently, I was reviewing the gifts of the Spirit that Paul wrote about in 1 Corinthians. He included such gifts as healing, prophecy, discernment, and several others. However, there were two that I did not see: Gullibility and dishonesty. I say this because I have noticed an uptick in Christians sharing things online that they seemingly agree with and believe, but that are proven untrue with a minimal amount of fact checking. When I see these posts, I just shake my head and whisper a prayer for all of us to do better. 

    And we must do better.

    Bearing false witness (better known as lying) has become an epidemic within the church. I wish I could explain it, but I can’t beyond our human frailty. We see someone express outrage about something that’s supposedly an act of persecution or we see something outlandish about someone we either don’t like or don’t understand and we simply run with it. The outrage of the opening ceremony of the Parish Olympics and the bruhaha over Algerian boxer Imane Khelif are prime examples of people seeing something online that confirms their biases and spreading it like it’s gospel even though the facts don’t back up the assertions made. 

    I intentionally seek relationships with people who have different views than I do, even differing views of faith. What Christians need to understand is that the perception of those outside of the Body of Christ is that Christians are gullible and/or just plain stupid. Unfortunately, there is a lot to back up those views that we inflict upon ourselves. 

    I remind us that lying is a sin, as is stirring up discord among people. The fact is, we need to take a breath, pray, get into our bibles, and stop looking for reasons to be mad all the time. God doesn’t need us to defend Him, especially from threats that don’t exist in the first place. Our job is to love, not to fight. We can’t make disciples of Jesus Christ if we’re always mad and ranting about something. We can’t make people want to love God as much as God loves them when we’re claiming persecution from someone disagreeing with us or from a portion of an opening ceremony that isn’t portraying what someone claims it is.

    Have you noticed that much of this outrage stems from just one person seeing something (that often isn’t even there in the first place) and lashing out online? They go viral because people started sharing the material without giving it an ounce of critical thought. We’re so quick to be mad just because someone says we should be mad. If this is you, perhaps it’s time to reevaluate how you spend your time online. 

    Does this seem ironic given my advocacy for digital ministry? I don’t believe it is. I often tell people that social media can be compared to a hammer. A hammer is a tool that can be used to build houses or smash windows. Likewise, social media can be used to build positivity and make disciples, or it can be used to lash out and rip people to shreds. I’ve had to reevaluate how I use social media, and I’ve changed a lot of my habits because I realized that they were harming my witness. If I can do it, anyone can.

    When you share misinformation, when you lie, when you ridicule people, you’re harming your witness. You’re harming the cause of Christ.

    Misinformation can get people hurt or killed. We saw that during the COVID-19 pandemic and we’re seeing it today with the riots in the United Kingdom that stem from misinformation about asylum seekers being shared online. 

    What if something you shared led to someone being harmed? 

    Christians, we need to do better. We must do everything we can to further the cause of Christ and to stem the tide of our anger. We must tell the truth, even if the truth isn’t what we want. We simply cannot be complicit in this strife any longer. 

    Experience tells me that anything that sounds outlandish typically is. Fact checking isn’t “woke,” it’s ensuring that we are telling the truth. Let’s resolve to do better, to be better witnesses for Christ, and to have the integrity to apologize when we’re wrong.

  • Sermon: The Guardian of the Soul

    religion, faith, shepherd

    More or less, here’s the sermon I delivered at Salem UMC and Pleasant Hill UMC on April 30, 2023.

    1 PETER 2:19-25 (NLT)

    For God is pleased when, conscious of his will, you patiently endure unjust treatment. 20 Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong. But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you.

    21 For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered[a] for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps.

    22 He never sinned,

        nor ever deceived anyone.[b]

    23 He did not retaliate when he was insulted,

        nor threaten revenge when he suffered.

    He left his case in the hands of God,

        who always judges fairly.

    24 He personally carried our sins

        in his body on the cross

    so that we can be dead to sin

        and live for what is right.

    By his wounds

        you are healed.

    25 Once you were like sheep

        who wandered away.

    But now you have turned to your Shepherd,

        the Guardian of your souls.

    In 2006, a movie called The Guardian was released. The film stars Kevin Costner who plays decorated Coast Guard rescue swimmer Ben Randall and Ashton Kutcher who plays a rookie rescue swimmer named Jake Fischer. Kutcher’s character is a young, cocky swimmer bent on being the best. Jake is obsessed with breaking the training center’s records, most of which are held by his lead instructor Ben Randall. Ben spends much of the time as Jake’s instructor trying to knock the chip off the younger swimmer’s shoulder, which turns out to be the result of trying to make up for being the driver of a car that was hit, an accident that killed most of the other members of his high school swim team. Jake asks Ben repeatedly what his “number” is, meaning the number of people he has rescued during his career. Finally, toward the end of the movie, Ben provides an answer: “22.” Jake is surprised that it’s not more and Ben responds, “22 is the number of people I lost, Jake. The only number I kept track of.”

    Like a good person who does things for the right reasons, Ben doesn’t keep track of the numbers that some people may view as important, rather he does his job but uses the tragedies to improve his skills and to fuel his determination. Later, Ben dies during a rescue mission. Later, another mission in the same area is conducted and Jake responds as the primary rescue swimmer. One of the men who’s rescued asks who the other guy who saved him was. Jake smiles at the thought that his friend and mentor may have had a spiritual hand on saving the man’s life. Thus, the legend of the guardian of the Alaskan sea was born.

    A few years ago, I attended a workshop where the speaker reminded us that Jesus is in the rescue business. Indeed, Jesus rescues the sin sick soul from certain eternal death through his death and resurrection. It’s no accident that we talk of people “being saved” when they convert their lives over to the ways of Jesus, because their souls are being saved. Jesus makes this possible. We often look at Jesus as a shepherd and, perhaps, you’ve seen that shepherd theme in our scriptures today (if you’re joining us late online, our responsive reading today was Psalm 23). Today’s gospel reading is John 10:1-10 that records Jesus giving a lesson of his being the messiah being like the gate that separates the sheep from those seeking to harm them. Verses 6 through 9 says this:

    Those who heard Jesus use this illustration didn’t understand what he meant, 7 so he explained it to them: “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me[a] were thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to them. 9 Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved.

    This sounds very guardian-like to me. Jesus, protecting the sheep – that is, his people – from evil. Jesus is the guardian of our souls.

    Remember that Peter’s purpose for writing this letter is to encourage Christians in the Roman world who are suffering under the oppression of the government. We do have some historical records that recorded the kind of persecution the early believers often suffered. I won’t go into all of that today but, suffice it to say, the level of persecution was heavy. No matter how strong and committed someone is to a cause, everyone has their breaking point. Peter knew that some of these folks were getting close to theirs. Perhaps some of them had already caved under the pressure, fearful of death or what might await them on the other side. Perhaps some uncertainty had crept in with some of them. It’s easy to criticize but, when your family is starving because the government says Christians can’t buy the essentials of life, it’s also easy to understand that the temptation to cave is intense.

    Peter is reminding them that they have a savior who has their back, front, sides, and everything else under his protection, especially their souls. Peter is telling them that it’s a safe move to follow the example of Jesus who suffered a human death and everything that came before it. As he points out, Jesus never returned the abuse he suffered at the hands of the Romans with insults or any sort of retaliation. As I mentioned, everyone has their breaking point and there were people who felt that responding to Roman oppression in kind was justified. Peter reminds them that it was Jesus who didn’t defend himself physically and instead let God have the final say. Peter gives us this example to remind us that God can still be trusted to deliver us as well. Remember that final say that God had: That death does not win, the sword does not win, that love wins, resurrection wins, and nothing can beat those facts no matter how hard one wants them to be beaten.

    Peter is so convinced of God’s keeping these promises that he breaks out into song. If you look at verses 22 through 25, see that it’s intended. Indention typically indicates poetry or song. I can’t help but think that Peter is giving us a hymn, praising God’s faithfulness and praising Jesus for being the one who defends us against every evil. This isn’t a lament; this means that we should celebrate and be excited about Jesus defending us with his very life and defeating death for us by rising from the grave even when the enemy tried every trick in the book to keep him in that tomb.

    Note: It was at this point in the sermon that I opted to trust the Spirit and say something prophetic for each church. Obviously, it came out a bit different at each church. To see how it came out, watch the videos on each of the church Facebook pages linked at the top of the post.

    We need to be excited about the fact that we have a savior, a defender, a shepherd, a guardian, who watches over us every single day. Y’all, our guardian has secured the victory for us out of his immeasurable and eternal love for us. Bad things may come our way. Poverty may happen. Any number of things may come our way. BUT GOD… is watching over our souls. Peter calls Jesus the guardian of our souls. Think of what a guardian is – a defender, protector, or keeper. This is Jesus! We can trust him with everything we have and everything we are. If you’re doubting him, let him prove himself to you. He will not let you down. He already died and rose again from the dead for you.

    Don’t worry about what the future holds. Trust in Jesus to guard your soul.

  • Real Revival

    Revival (/rəˈvīv(ə)l/), Noun: An improvement in the condition or strength of something; a reawakening of religious fervor, especially by means of a series of evangelistic meetings;

    Google dictionary

    I continue to dream and pray about a revival of holiness in our day that moves forth in mission and creates authentic community in which each person can be unleashed through the empowerment of the Spirit to fulfill God’s creational intentions.

    John wesley

    I must confess: I’m a bit of a cynic. I realize this is not necessarily a positive trait for a pastor, but it’s how I’m wired, at least when it comes to specific events. In other words, I tend to take things with a large grain of salt. I wouldn’t say I like to reject outright things attributed to God, but I cannot help but be suspicious and curious. I’m very curious about the happenings in Wilmore.

    Like many others, I’ve heard of the revival being reported from Asbury University, which has spread to Asbury Seminary. I’ve even seen posts on social media that indicate others are traveling to Wilmore to witness and take part in this event. In my excitement and hope of revival, I even shared one of the many posts online about the event, but I decided to take it down because of some observations made by some people on the ground and elsewhere. Then, I began to ponder what genuine revival looks like. I like how one of my Facebook friends said: “True revival begins with repentance and change, not warm feelings.”

    You see, revival is only valid if it leads to change and isn’t built upon simply feeling better about one’s spiritual condition. I remind us that Jesus never told the apostles and his other disciples to take their faith in him and hide it from the world, continuing to do what they have always done and to be the people they had always been. No, Jesus called them to work for the kingdom and called them – and us – to a new way of living. The gospel readings from the Revised Common Lectionary have us exploring the Sermon on the Mount, which shows how the Christian community – the church – ought to look. We are only revived when we repent and go the way Jesus calls us. If we continue going about our daily lives as if nothing has happened, then the “revival” has simply been an event that made some people feel good and nothing more.

    I hope the revival at Asbury is genuine. I pray the revival at Asbury is real. I pray for revival to spread throughout the world. I pray that God’s people rise to be salt and light as we are called. I pray that we put aside our desires to keep people away from the church because they don’t fit our molds. I pray that people know how loved and precious they are in God’s sight. I pray for God’s kingdom to come and God’s will to be done, not for the kingdoms and wills of this world to grow.

    I pray that my cynicism is unwarranted and that what’s happening at Asbury is genuinely something of God. This is one of the times I hope I’m wrong about something being “not quite right.” Why would I feel as if something is off? Revival services tend to evoke emotional responses and, unfortunately, once the emotions. are gone, so. is the so-called revival. Only time will tell if this is really happening.

    Christians are known for their fruit. The revival at Asbury will also be known by its fruit.

  • A TL, DR Sermon: The Lost Sheep

    Matthew 15:21-28
    Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32

    Going into my final year at Asbury Seminary, I did an internship where I worked with some of the homeless population in Lexington, Kentucky. The experience was a profound eye-opener that had a major impact on my life and my ministry. Among the lessons I learned was that much of what we think we know about the homeless is untrue and there are many systematic problems that prevent them from more quickly getting back on their feet. I was also reminded that the homeless that society – and the church – tends to often shun are seeking God and are just as precious in His sight as anyone else. Oh, that we would all be reminded of this from time to time!

    The texts I chose to preach on this week were part of the Lectionary, but I also believe that choosing just one for such a time as this was not adequate. I believe these texts give us two important truths: All people are beloved by God and are worthy of being invited to His table, and the calling to seek the lost sheep never expires.

    The gospel reading starts soon after a group of disciples is sent off on a missionary trip for the first time. Jesus instructed them not to go among the Gentiles. This text can often be used to justify bigotry but I do not believe Jesus did this as a judgment against the Gentiles. Rather, I believe He knew that the disciples were simply not ready ready effectively minister to the Gentiles and Jesus needed to show them that the prejudices that Jews held against Gentiles were wrong and sinful.

    This is where the Gentile woman comes in. The fact that Jesus illustrated to His flock that she, too, was worthy of love and receiving grace and mercy. This was the beginning of their eyes being opened to the reality that God’s kingdom is not just for certain people, but that He desires for all to have a chance to know Him.

    In the reading from Romans, Paul is teaching that not only does the call to seek all of the lost sheep never expire, but that God has not abandoned the Jews in favor of the Gentiles as many of them thought. Paul was saying that, yes, the Jews still matter to God, but so do the Gentiles. Until they understood this, the Jews would continue to hold these age-old prejudices against the Gentiles and consider them inferior. Yes, the Jews still matter but so do the Gentiles and so does anyone else made in God’s image (Spoiler: That’s everyone!).

    In God’s eyes, no one is inferior. I believe these two texts together are trying to teach us that. Who are the lost sheep that you need to invite to the table? Let’s stop acting as gatekeepers to the Kingdom and instead act as guides who show people the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

  • A TL, DR Sermon: “YOU Give Them Something

    (I’m at new appointment – more on that another time – and we have not been meeting in-person for nearly a month due to COVID-19. For people in my midst who don’t have reliable internet access and are unable to watch our worship service recordings, I’ve been including condensed versions of my sermons for the worship bulletin. Here is this week’s. I will be sure to include them here starting now. I hope you find a blessing from my ponderings. – Jonathan)

    Text: Matthew 14:13-21 (NLT)

    One of the most common questions for pastors right now is, “How should Christians respond to the COVID-19 pandemic? What should our witness be?” I believe this is an excellent question, because what we see playout on social media and elsewhere by people who state that they are followers of The Son seem to be anything but a positive response. I believe Jesus calls us to exhibit sacrificial compassion in the face of a crisis like COVID-19.

    I believe this is just one of the lessons we learn from what we call the Feeding of the 5,000. First of all, we need to know that the number was actually much higher because only the men were counted (the women and children present were not counted at gathers back then). Jesus likely fed closer to 10,000 – or more – people with five loaves of bread and two fish! People tend to get lost in the “how” of this miracle but I believe the more important question is, “Why?”

    The writer of Matthew tells us why in verse 14: “He had compassion on them.” We have to remember that this is just after Jesus found out that John the Baptist had been executed so He was in the midst of grieving the loss of his cousin and friend. This grief may not be unlike the collective grief we’re experiencing now.

    I believe there are several reasons why Jesus responded in the way that He did and I’m sure I could preach several sermons on this passage. The lesson we most need now is His example of sacrificial compassion. When Jesus told the disciples, “You give them something,” He wasn’t trying to pass the buck because He didn’t feel like performing a miracle, rather He wanted them to know that sending people away in their time of need is not how a disciple ought to respond to a need.

    How do we respond in the midst of crisis, whether it’s a pandemic, natural disaster, or something else? We show compassion, even to the point of personal sacrifice. That’s why we do things to protect our neighbors: It’s not out of a desire to make a political statement but out of a desire to make a moral statement, to give a strong witness for the love of Christ. We are called to be imitators of Jesus and showing compassion is one of the ways which we do this.

    Remember: Even Judas ate, had his feet washed, and sat at the right hand of Jesus – the place of honor – at the Last Supper. If Jesus can show the one who would betray Him this much compassion and mercy, what could we do?

    Let’s go and do likewise.

  • Sermon: Real Talk about Racism

    More or less, what follows is the sermon I gave this morning at Druid Hills UMC in Meridian, MS (Lost Gap had a different sermon because they were voting on closure today). I’m sharing this here because I believe this is a message that we all need a reminder of right now. The recent racial unrest has underscored that we have a long way to go in racial equity, much farther than we probably want to admit. I hope you will take my attempt to articulate what has been on my heart and “chew on” these words. Allow God to work on you and what your part may be in breaking the church’s silence on racism and how we can combat this sin.

    If you’d like, you can watch the worship service from Druid Hills here.

    LUKE 10:24-37 (NLT)
    One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?”

    26 Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?”

    27 The man answered, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”[c]

    28 “Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!”

    29 The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

    Parable of the Good Samaritan
    30 Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road.

    31 “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32 A Temple assistant[d] walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side.

    33 “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. 34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. 35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins,[e] telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’

    36 “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.

    37 The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.”

    Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”

    Last week we celebrated the day that the Holy Spirit was sent to this world with a video worship service featuring clergy, laity, and children from all over our Mississippi Annual Conference connection. Did you notice the diversity that was represented? Men, women, white black, and everything in between coming together with but one two-fold goal in mind: To lead us in worship and to give glory to the Lord’s name. As I watched the video with you all last week, the sheer beauty of how wide and deep our own state is in terms of the different people we have in our midst brought tears to my eyes. In my mind, it was truly a reflection of God’s kingdom – the way the kingdom was always intended to be and will be someday when Jesus returns.

    We live in a fallen world where diversity is not always celebrated and, in many cases, is discouraged and even ridiculed. The killing of George Floyd sent shockwaves through our nation, just as such an unjust and evil event ought to do. While Mr. Floyd’s death may have been an event that brought our racial tension to a head, this was hardly the first time that we have seen unjust killing of people of color. Another recent example is the shooting death of Breona Taylor, a young black EMT from Louisville, Kentucky, who was killed when police executed a raid at the wrong address – her apartment – looking for a suspect who was already in jail on another charge. I resonate with the cries of our brothers and sisters of color when I say that enough is enough and it’s time for an end to these senseless deaths. As a white man who has family members who are biracial or of another race entirely, I must stand up for my loved ones. As a Christian pastor, I know we are all children of God. The children’s song says, “red or yellow, black or white, we are precious in his sight, Jesus loves the little children of the world.” So why are we not doing that for each other now? We are all loved by God. And God taught us to love our neighbor, as we heard a moment ago. So, now above any other time in our existence, God is calling us to love our neighbors. We must love the most threatened among us. We should stand with our black brothers and sisters and protect them, love them, treat them as our equal… because anything less is a sin in front of our Lord and Savior.

    Now I say all of this as a pastor among a white congregation. I say this, knowing that this is not the popular belief in this area, but brothers and sisters, Jesus did not preach to what was popular. He preached to what is right.

    On Friday, Bishop Swanson sent out a video that was both a rebuke against the church for its long and deafening silence on racism as well as how we can begin to respond. Bishop Swanson is absolutely correct: The church has remained silent for far too long and this needs to change. The reason the church is often silent on racism is because we don’t want to seem to be preaching political topics or we don’t want to make people uncomfortable. The truth about the gospel is that the truths within it often are uncomfortable because we are forced to see ourselves for who and how we truly are. So, today, I do my part to change this trend of silence in the church. Today, I stand here and tell you that we’re going to get uncomfortable. I declare from this pulpit that racism is a sin. Racism is incompatible with Christian faith – you cannot call yourself a follower of Jesus if you are a racist. To remain silent is equally as sinful. Our baptismal vows that we make before God and His people include standing up for the oppressed and to resist evil in whatever form it takes. That starts with us acknowledging the sin of racism.

    And that brings us to our scripture today: The Parable of the Good Samaritan. The legal expert who is questioning Jesus is really wanting to justify himself. While I fully admit that I’m using some conjecture here, I would speculate that the man that Jesus was talking to was one of the Jews who really hated Samaritans. Back then, Jews and Samaritans simply did not get along. Jews viewed them as inferior and as beneath them. Perhaps the justification that the man was seeking was really that which would affirm his hatred toward someone simply because that person looked different than he did. And as we see through the rest of the passage, Jesus is not having it. The fact is, a story where the Samaritan was the hero was very scandalous to the Jews who heard it.

    The belief back then was that touching certain people or people experiencing certain conditions would make one unclean and this certainly would have included touching a man who was beaten and bloody and left in a ditch to die. The Levite and the priest would have been considered to be ceremonially unclean had they touched him. It was because of those crazy fears that they went so far as to cross the street. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech using the story of the Good Samaritan as an example. He had this to say about it: “The first question the priest and Levite asked was, “If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me? But the Good Samaritan reversed the question: ‘If I do not stop and help this man, what will happen to him?’” In other words, the priest and the Levite were putting themselves first. Instead, the Samaritan chose to put the man before him and to in turn take care of him.

    One thing I have seen over and over again is that children do not seem to have a racism gene. If you go to a park in most cities, you can see white children playing with children who are black, brown, and everything in between. Comedian Denis Leary says, “Racism isn’t born, folks. It’s taught. I have a two-year old son. You know what he hates—naps.” Children are not born to hate other people. Instead, this behavior is something that is learned. When children are raised in ignorance about other races, that’s how they learn to hate. And simply, this is not ok.

    More than anything, racism is not a skin issue, it’s a sin issue. The problem is not the color of one’s skin or their national origin, the problem is that the person who is racist is giving in to sin. James 2:9 says, “But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.” When the command handed down says, “Love the Lord with all you have and love your neighbor as yourself,” there are no qualifiers attached to that. There is no asterisk with a list of who our neighbors are not at the bottom of the page. Our neighbors are all people, period, full stop. There’s a meme that goes around from time to time where Jesus is telling those gathered to love their neighbors as themselves. Someone from the crowd goes, “What about my black neighbor?” Another says, “What about my Jewish neighbor?” And then Jesus says, “I’m going to start over, tell me where I lost you.” When Jesus tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves, he’s telling us that we are to love all people no matter what.

    So how can we neighbor those who look different than us? Well, it starts by taking a good look at the person in the mirror. We have to confront our prejudices. Let’s be honest with ourselves for a minute: We all have them. We all have those pre-conceived judgements about other people that are not based on any sound reason or experience (which is the definition of a prejudice, by the way). Some examples might be, “All rich people are snobs.” Or, “Old people are mean.” Or, “Which men can’t jump.” I could go on and on. Or maybe we say things like, “I’m not racist because I have black friends.” Well, that’s great! But do you truly see them as your equal? Are they just as much deserving of the love of Christ as you are? We have to confront those prejudices. We have to get real with ourselves.

    Next, we have to see to understand others. This is another hard part because this means we will have to get even further outside of our comfort zones than we did when we took a good hard look at ourselves in the mirror. This means that we have to actually pay attention to our neighbors, take the time to get to know them, really listen to them. This is the one that is the easiest to ignore because it takes real effort on our part, but it’s so vital. We can not simply look at people different from us who are on TV or read some data about what works in one place. We have to know how to love people and help them right where we are. This is where they live as well and it’s vital that we take this seriously enough to truly listen to them in order to find out how we can best show them the love of Christ.

    After we listen to them, we have to do the hardst thing of all: We have to love those who are different from us. This is not simply telling someone that we love them, it’s actually doing it. It’s putting our faith and our words into action to show them that we mean it. This is hard becasue it involves a lot of sacrifice. In 1996 in Michigan there was a rally by the Ku Klux Klan and the police in the town were doing their best to keep the Klan and the protesters separated. One of the Klansmen snuck over to the protesters side. Next thign you know, they started to beat on him with shouts of “kill the Nazi” being hurled. 18-year old African American girl named Keisha Thomas threw her body on top of the man’s to stop beating. She put herself at physical risk protect man that likely wanted to harm her.

    Who does this? Committed believer. “I knew what it was like to be hurt. The many times that that happened, I wish someone would have stood up for me.”

    Crossed the street—protect someone different from her.

    Thomas says she tries to do something to break down racial stereotypes every day. No grand gestures. She thinks that small, regular acts of kindness are more important. “The biggest thing you can do is just be kind to another human being. It can come down to eye contact, or a smile. It doesn’t have to be a huge monumental act.”

    Radical love is what she showed to that man. The best way to combat racism is with love because racism is not the presence of hate, it’s the absence of love! Paul wrote to the Galatians, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” God loves all people. He loves Americans. But he also loves Nigirians, Cubans, Hondurans, Mexicans, Choctaws, Jamaicans, Turks, Iranians, Russians, and all other people. He loves white people, black people, brown people, and everything in between. Heaven will be the most diverse place you will ever see. If you hate diversity, you are really going to hate Heaven. Ultimately we will all be together and it will be a beautiful sight.

    We have to face the sin of racism and combat it head on. Racism is not a Christian value. It is not acceptable to God and racism should therefore not be acceptable to us. Jesus said for us to love our neighbors with no qualifiers attached to that. He told us now to neighbor those who are different than us. We simply love.

  • Racism and Conspiracy Theories are Incompatible with Christianity

    As I scroll through social media, I’m disturbed by much of what I see. What we’re seeing is an unprecedented time in world history where information is so easily shared and, at least for the most part, this is a good thing. Unfortunately, this also means that the ease of sharing false and misleading information is also easy. Constantly, I’m seeing Christians share articles that call into question whether or not COVID-19 is real and even how the entire virus was a conspiracy by the Democrats (how this would even be plausible, I have no idea). One video even went to great lengths to try and connect Kobe Bryant’s death to COVID-19 (the mental gymnastics needed for that gave me a headache).

    The sharing of racism is also easier than ever. The killing of Ahmaud Arbery has exposed a lot of racism on social media. The father and son who claim they believed he was responsible for burglaries in their neighborhood have been arrested due to a viral video clearly showing that all that occurred was the senseless killing of an unarmed man of color who was only jogging through a neighborhood. Yet, people are defending the actions of these two men, actions that amount to a lynching, which were fueled by the ugly sin of racism. Ahmaud Arbery was shot for being a black man in a white neighborhood.

    I’m shocked at the number of Christians who participate in these hijinks. And, pastors: Some of you are the worst.

    People are dying because of racism and the denial of medical science. There have been numerous killings of young black men in particular simply for being black and for being in the “wrong place (people like Ahmaud Arbery have just as much right to be jogging down the street as anyone else). People are believing the pseudoscience and outright lies contained in conspiracy articles and videos such as “Plandemic” and are dying because of their distrust of valid, peer reviewed scientific fact (in addition to common sense). The Christians who are sharing these articles are bearing false witness, a false witness that can literally end with someone needlessly dying.

    Scripture is clear about a lot of things and speaks clearly to the larger issues surrounding racism and the spread of conspiracy theories. Moses gave this as part of the law: “You must not testify falsely against your neighbor” (Exodus 20:16 NLT). Jesus further clarifies in the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10 that all people are ultimately our neighbor. In other words, to quote the great philosopher Harry Potter: “One mustn’t tell lies.” When we spread conspiracy theories or partake in racism, we are telling lies about our neighbors, in addition to putting our neighbors at risk. God’s law can be boiled down like this when he was asked which commandment was the greatest: “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.” (Mark 12:29-31 NLT)

    When we hate our neighbor because of the color of their skin, we are breaking God’s law. When we share conspiracy videos that foster distrust of the medical community and are based on nothing more than a series of coincidences, quakary, and are motivated by personal gain from fame, we are breaking God’s law. We are failing to love our neighbors when we refuse to accept facts that don’t fit our wants and desires because we are putting them at risk.

    Christians, we have to do better because to do otherwise is sin.

    Pastors, I want to talk to you (and myself) for a moment: Our words have a lot of power. People will take what we say as gospel more often than we perhaps realize. If we use our social media to shed doubt on a racially motivated killing or to spread lies that deny established medical facts then we are leading our people astray. People could die because of your actions. Have you ever considered that? Have you considered that people could not take precautions against COVID-19 because you share a video or an article that sheds doubt on a global crisis? Have you considered that could lead them to their death? Pastors, stop spreading these articles and videos. Stop being silent in the face of racism. Doing otherwise does mean that you are neglecting your office, abusing your power, and being irresponsible with your flock. Fact check. It takes all of thirty seconds to disprove almost all of the conspiracy theories floating around by simply using Google. As for racism, scripture is pretty clear on that. If you cast doubt on racism, it’s not me you have a problem with.

    Are we truly disciples? Are we truly committed to Christ? Then we must be committed to loving our neighbors regardless of the color of their skin. We must be committed to sharing the truth and encouraging people take pandemics seriously. We have to practice what we preach and claim to believe.

    Racism and conspiracy theories are incompatible with Christian teaching and belief. There’s simply no way around that.

  • We're Not Called to be Selfish

    True disciples of Jesus are not selfish people; we are called to be selfless

    Yesterday, I ran across an account of a priest in Italy who was stricken with COVID-19 and on a ventilator. USA Today ran an article about him and his sacrifice.

    Don Giuseppe Berardelli, 72, was the archpriest of Casnigo, a town in northern Italy about 50 miles northeast of Milan.

    According to Italian news site Prima Bergamo, Berardelli died sometime between March 15 and 16 and was being treated at a hospital in nearby Lovere, as his condition worsened.

    A health care worker at the hospital told the Italian online news outlet Araberara that Berardelli was given a ventilator but the priest refused it so someone who was younger than him could use it.

    USA Today https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2020/03/24/covid-19-italian-priest-who-donated-his-ventilator-has-reportedly-died/2906351001/

    This is who I want to be when I grow up.

    We’re not all called to give up a life-saving machine for the sake of another but Christians are called to show sacrificial love to our neighbors. After all, sacrificial love is the example that Jesus gave during His ministry in this world and at the cross. This is love in action, proving that love is not a mere emotion. To draw inspiration from prominent theologians Toby Mac and dc Talk: “Love (I can’t misspell it like they did, sorry) is a verb.”

    COVID-19 has revealed a lot about the world. As for whether these things have been good or bad, I believe we can agree that the result has been a bit of both. We have seen so many people coming together for the common good, doing whatever they can to make sure children continue to have food and that other vulnerable persons are taken care of. Unfortunately, we have also seen another side: Jacking up prices on essential items in light of a crisis. And, perhaps even worse, we have seen people hoarding items such as bottled water, frozen food, and even toilet paper out of fear of the items running out. I have found myself at a major loss in light of these events. The term I used just today in response to Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick saying that our grandparents should be willing to be sacrificed for the good our economy was, “I’m out of evens. Completely out.”

    Last week, I took to Facebook Live to encourage my friends not to respond to our current crisis with fear but out of a place of love. I used the account out of Exodus 16 to illustrate how God had always provided for our needs and always would. But God something something else: He instructed the people to to take only what they needed for the day and no more. If they gathered more than they actually needed…

    Then Moses told them, ‘Do not keep any of it until morning.’ But some of them didn’t listen and kept some of it until morning. But by then it was full of maggots and had a terrible smell. Moses was very angry with them.

    Exodus 16:19-20 (NLT)

    God gave them the instructions to only gather what they actually needed for a reason: He was always going to supply the manna (bread) and the quail that they needed and would never forget to feed them. If they gathered more than they needed – that is, if they hoarded – then the leftover would rot and no one would be able to benefit from it. Later, Jesus said to His disciples (yes, that includes those of us who want to be His disciples today), “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal.” (Matthew 6:19 NLT)

    Friends, disciples don’t hoard. We are people of faith, not fear. We know that God is always going to look out for us and that he will never forget to feed us, clothe us, or to give us implements for the cleanliness of our tush.

    We are called to share, to give sacrificially. I encourage you to please only take what you need so that others can benefit. God could be using you to enable the provision for one of your neighbors. We are not creatures of fear, we are creatures of hope and love. This is the example that our Lord gives us.

    Let us go and do likewise.

  • It’s Time to Return to Jesus

    “When the crowds came to John for baptism, he said, ‘You brood of snakes! Who warned you to flee the coming wrath? Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones. Even now the ax of God’s judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire.’”

    Luke 3:7-9 (NLT)

    Dear Fellow Christians:

    We gotta talk. And this isn’t going to be easy.

    We all know about the recent goings-on with ICE raids and immigration issues lately so there’s no need to rehash that here. That isn’t the point of this letter anyway. What I want to talk about is how we have responded to these situations. Just to make sure you’re aware: People, children, actual human beings made in God’s image are impacted by these raids, deportations, and detainments. I have to be blunt: We have been anything but Christ-like in how we have addressed the people involved. Many of us seem to believe that it’s perfectly acceptable to consider immigrants to be sub-human and even to condone their mistreatment. Here are just a few actual statements from people claiming to be Christians that I have witnessed on social media just over the last several days:

    “They’re illegal! They have no rights!”

    “I shouldn’t have to feed children of ILLEGALS!”

    “The Bible says to obey the laws! God is judging them and their children!”

    “Illegals have to sleep in cages? BOO HOO!”

    Seriously, church? Seriously?

    When John the Baptist made his proclamation that I quoted from Luke 3 at the top of this post, people like that were what he was calling a “brood of snakes.” Pharisees. People who saw other people who were different from them as less-than. People who said that people deserved to be treated poorly. God’s word teaches us many things about how we are to treat immigrants, children, and people in general. But lately, it seems that we have been willing to put all of that aside and to trot out some verses from Romans 13 (out of context at that) as justification for treating people as if they are trash with the argument of “they shouldn’t have broken the law.”

    We have committed a grave sin and it’s time to repent. That sin: Trading our humanity and compassion for political ideology. We have sold our souls for party allegiance. We have made Jesus into a muscle-bound, American flag-waving caucasian in order to fit our political aspirations.

    The facts are: All people are made in God’s image and are worthy of dignity and respect regardless of their citizenship or immigration status. Children should not be traumatized on the first day of school by coming home to find out that mom and dad have been taken away. And for Christians, there is simply no justification for thinking that anything to the contrary is acceptable. It’s not. I’m not arguing against having laws (though I believe our immigration laws do need an overhaul), I’m simply pointing out that we have gone down a very dangerous road of denying dignity and basic rights to people. This is not what Jesus would find acceptable. If you actually read the gospels and pay attention, you may find that Jesus has more in common with these immigrants than He does white America.

    It’s time to repent, church. It’s time to remember who we are and to go back to our first love. It’s time to take off our hats, put away our torches, stop being afraid of people who are different from us, and truly be people who love. We simply can not claim to be Christians and continue to believe that conflating our faith with a particular brand of politics is acceptable in God’s eyes. It’s not. In fact, we are taught that this is dangerously close to the line of idolatry.

    May God forgive us.

  • Jesus and Swords

     

    if-you-dont-own-an-ar-15-sell-your-cloak-and-buy-one-luke-2236
    Filed under “Thing Jesus Never Said.”

    Earlier today I was involved in a discussion about gun policy and then it happened: Someone said, “Jesus would be in favor of guns, he told his followers to buy a sword! SEE! LOOK!” They then quoted Luke 22:36: “‘But now,’ he said, ‘take your money and a traveler’s bag. And if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one!’” This was something I expected, as many Christians have used this one verse to try and state that Jesus would be against gun control. There’s just one problem with this line of thinking: That is not what Jesus meant. As Dr. Ben Witherington III is fond of saying:

     

    A text without a context is merely a pretext for a proof text and it can be whatever you want it to be.

    The problem with employing an ultra-literal interpretation of scripture and a hermeneutic of “God said it, I believe it, that settles it” is that such interpretations ignore important items such as context, cultural considerations, and good old-fashioned common sense. Using so-called “gotcha” texts to make a point that goes beyond any reasonable context for scripture is a poor witness for Christ. Further, while scholars believe that literal interpretation of scripture is considered a high view of scripture, I believe that such is actually a low view because an ultra-literal interpretation does a great disservice to the authors and intended ultimate message of scripture: The story of God’s love for us.

    Simply stated: Jesus is not telling his followers to arm themselves. He is not calling for any sort of armed insurrection, revolution, or otherwise telling Christians that employing violent tactics is the way of a disciple. Here is what noted new testament theologian – and professor at Asbury Theological Seminary – Craig Keener said about this passage in the IVP Bible Background: New Testament.

    By mentioning the “sword” here Jesus is not inviting revolution like the Zealots did (cf. Pseudo-Phocylides 32–34). Instead, Jesus calls for a temporary and symbolic act—two are sufficient (v. 38)—so he may be charged as a revolutionary and hence “reckoned among transgressors” in accordance with Isaiah 53:12… To be without one’s outer cloak at night would leave one cold; yet Jesus suggests that it is better than being unprepared for the conflict these disciples are about to face.

    So, no, Luke 22:36 is not a call for Christians to arm themselves. It’s about the fulfillment of prophecy, specifically a prophecy that said that the messiah must be charged as a criminal. More proof of this comes from verse 37: “For the time has come for this prophecy about me to be fulfilled: ‘He was counted among the rebels.’ Yes, everything written about me by the prophets will come true.” Being with people who were armed with swords would certainly give the Romans cause to allege that Jesus was planning an armed revolution against the Roman Empire, therefore fulfilling the prophecy from Isaiah 55.

    To think that Luke 22 calls Christians to arm themselves is just plain wrong. Such a notion also flies in the face of the other teachings of Jesus where he encourages peace, non-violence, and to put down their weapons (remember the scene where Jesus stops a stoning?). Further, one taking scripture completely out of context in order to fit their own belief is tantamount to re-constructing God into their own image. Let us remember that the will of God is not violence, but peace. I close with the words of the prophet Isaiah, and also long for the day when this prophecy is fulfilled. May it be during our lifetime.

    “They will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.”