by Dr. Allan R. Bevere, pastor, professor and author of Colossians and Philemon: A Participatory Study Guide, The Politics of Witness: The Character of the Church in the World, and The Character of our Discontent. Too many Christians often compare God’s will to a road map with very specific directions from the Almighty they need to discover– God wants you to turn left here and go right there– God only has one spouse in mind for you and only one profession you must enter. And while I do believe that at times God may call certain persons to specific things because the Bible itself contains such callings, God’s call is often more open and elastic.
I believe that most of the time, God’s calling is more like a canvas on which we are allowed to paint wherever we desire. We may not move off the canvas onto the walls, but anywhere on the canvas we express ourselves in daily living is acceptable and pleasing to God. God may call me to ministry, but that may be validly expressed in being a pastor, a missionary, or a professor. God will work God’s will through me regardless of the vocation I choose. (Read more)
Sam (short for Samson, not Samuel), picked up the stein of beer he had just paid for, gave it an initial taste to savor the taste, and then followed with a gulp. He enjoyed his beer in the evening after a hard day of work.
He took a quick look around the bar, searching for faces he knew. He wasn’t much of a talker, but he loved to sit with friends and just be there.
Today, however, he saw a man he didn’t know sitting alone at one of the high tables, an empty stein in front of him. The only conclusion one could come to—and as usual, Sam came to it quickly—was that the man was wearing high quality clothes, but had been wearing the same ones for at least a couple of days. He was alone at the table, and he looked alone, absolutely alone.
Sam walked over to the table. “Hi. I’m Sam. Can I buy you a refill?” he asked.
The man looked back blankly, like he didn’t understand the question. Sam just stood there. He figured the man would figure it out in his own time.
After what seemed like a couple of minutes, the man nodded and kind of pushed the stein over. It didn’t look very polite, but Sam didn’t care. Without knowing why, he sensed that was about all the man could do.
He went to the bar, got the man’s drink refilled, paid, and went back to the table. As he sat down, he remembered what his pastor had said in church the past Sunday. He’d talked about being a witness, introducing people to Jesus. “Witness” didn’t make much sense to Sam. He understood introducing people to Jesus, but he could never figure out how you did it. If Jesus was one of his normal friends, he’d take him to one of his friends and say, “Hey Bob, meet Jesus.” Then he’d just sit there quietly and people would talk. He just couldn’t quite get to those intellectual things people kept saying about Jesus. (Read more …)
by Dr. Chris Surber, pastor, director of Supply and Multiply ministry to Haiti, and author of A Cup of Cold Water, Rendering Unto Caesar: Examining What Jesus Said About Giving God What is His, and more!
Published in the Suffolk News-Herald, December 5, 2016 in the Opinion Column: Sorrowing Old Man by Vincent Van Gogh
It’s almost cliché to say that people are suffering at the holiday season.
To say, “Remember those who are less fortunate” is a kind of passive compliance with one of our more polite social norms. Give more, smile more, laugh more, have more compassion at the holidays.
Down the street a 90-year-old man is mourning the first Christmas without the shining bride of his youth. A loving mother is spending the first Christmas without her little boy who just went off to the serve in the Army. It’s a sad Christmas for Mom, because her long-ailing father just slipped into eternity.
These are real pains and deep sorrows that dropping seventeen cents into a red bucket can’t solve. We need a deep wisdom to find meaning at Christmas. (Read more …)
by Dr. Allan R. Bevere, pastor, professor and author of Colossians and Philemon: A Participatory Study Guide, The Politics of Witness: The Character of the Church in the World, and The Character of our Discontent. O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel. O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel. – translator John Mason Neale (1851) When Mary wished for the coming of Emmanuel, it was very clear what she expected. She expected a this-worldly Savior who would deliver her in this world. She did not deny the resurrection at the last day; like all faithful Jews, she looked forward to it. But she also knew that what God had promised to do was to bring deliverance in the here and now. If all Jesus’ birth was about was some future salvation in the world to come, then why did Herod the Great perceive this young king as such a threat? If all Jesus’ ministry was about was a heavenly existence after death, why did the authorities string him up on a cross for treason? Emmanuel came to Mary as one who would make a difference in the present moment. A Messiah born into an unjust world, would seek to bring justice to those so oppressed.
When we sing “O come, O come Emmanuel,” what do we hope he will do? How do we wait for Emmanuel, we who do not suffer from having too little, but from having too much? (Read more …)
An election has taken place. We have a President-Elect. He’s not the one I would have chosen. He didn’t receive my vote. Nonetheless, the Electoral College has weighed in. On the night of the election, after Hillary Clinton called to concede and congratulate him, he came out and spoke of uniting the nation. As we have seen from comments on social media, in our own conversations, and in the protests that have taken place, not everyone is ready for unity. That is because over the course of the past eighteen months we have heard a candidate speak in divisive terms. Not everyone voted for Donald Trump, because they are bigots or ignorant. People vote for a wide variety of reasons. At the same time, there are elements of his “coalition” who are bigots. They have reveled in their perceived freedom to say and do as they please without any concern for the feelings of others.
As an American citizen, I respect the office of President. It’s important for our cohesion that we respect our democratic institutions, some of which have some cracks in them and need to be fixed. One of those is the electoral college, but it needs to be said that both candidates operated under this system knowing how it works. If the electoral college were abolished they would spend most of their time in a different set of battle ground states. Florida would remain in the mix, but New York, California, and Texas would get the bulk of the attention. That said, when the people in office act in ways that we cannot abide, it’s important that we stand up for what we believe is right. (Read more … )
by Rev. Shauna Hyde, is a pastor, mother, a black belt in Shota Khaun karate, and author of Victim No More!, Fifty Shades of Grace, and Vicar of Tent Town.
This is from Shauna’s blog, shaunahyde.com, May 12, 2016. Religion is my life. It really is that simple. I not only live it, I study it, teach it, and practice it. I am fascinated by religion and all that comes with it. I have acquired many friends from other Christian denominations and other faiths and I have been present with them in their holy moments just as they have been present with me in mine. At my United Methodist ordination was a Buddhist, a Wiccan, a Jew, several Roman Catholic nuns, and a Pagan.
I love being at Native American ceremonies and feel the beat of the drums vibrate through the earth into my soul. I love hearing the chant and the wail of the singers late in the night around a fire. Sitting in a Buddhist or Hare Krishna temple listening to the bowls, bells, and soft chants calms my body to peace and stillness. I have been present to bring in Beltane and watched with fascination as the practitioners dance, sing, run, play, pray, and celebrate new life and the cycle of life. There is something about watching a new moon rise in the dark of night that is beautiful and hope-full. Every Passover I go to a friend’s house to take part in the remembrance of their roots and the celebration of their freedom. Sitting around the table with the traditional food and symbols I listen as he sings in Hebrew and I can feel with spirit swell with joy and love. I know I will leave full of physical and spiritual nourishment as we say, “Next year, in Israel.” I have watched a ghost hunter speak to ghosts and a Native American cleanse a space. The call to prayer, bells ringing throughout the area, and the harmony of choirs remind me of the beauty of our duty in communing with God. In churches all around, I have listened to song, praise, prayer, chants, bells, organs, guitars, pianos, voices, and stillness. I love Communion and Baptism with a passion. Hearing the Lord’s Prayer said in mass still gives me the Spirit Skin. (Read More)
by Dr. Allan R. Bevere, pastor, professor, blogger [Faith Seeking Understanding] and author of Politics of Witness, Colossians and Philemon, and Character of our Discontent. I was involved in an interesting discussion recently on the idea that we human beings forge our own destinies and how that squares with the Bible’s affirmation that our lives are in the hands of God. In the course of the discussion we began to talk about forgiveness and how it is easier to forgive than to be forgiven, because to be forgiven means we must let go of our fate and put our destiny in the hands of another. How true it is that we human beings like being in control of our lives. “I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul;” so goes the poem that so many learn in school and recite as if in fact it were true. Falsehoods sound so believable when they are stated poetically.
But to live in forgiveness is to live life out of control; to live in forgiveness means that I must be willing to put my future, my fate in the hands of another. That is just what we must do as we approach the throne of God. Without the willingness to be forgiven and to live life on the terms of another, we cannot find the grace we so desperately need. (Read more …)
by Dr. Robert D. Cornwall, pastor and author, from his blog, Ponderings on a Faith Journey. Author of Ultimate Allegiance: The Subversive Nature of the Lord’s Prayer, Unfettered Spirit: Spiritual Gifts for the New Great Awakening, Marriage in Interesting Times: A Pariticipatory Study Guide, and more! What use is God if God can’t or won’t prevent evil from occurring? That’s a question people have been asking for millennia. Theologians and philosophers have done their best offer answers defending God (the term for this is theodicy), but the question keeps arising. It would be easier if Christian theology allowed for the existence of two equally powerful gods, one good and the other evil (dualism). Then evil could be blamed on the evil god, leaving the God of love untainted. Unfortunately, that solution isn’t available to Christians, for like other traditional monotheistic religions, Christians believe that God has no ultimate rival. Therefore, we must look elsewhere for answers.
A seventeenth-century theologian suggested this is “the best possible world,” and so we should accept things as they are. This solution, however, ultimately failed to gain full support. Either God is capable of keeping evil at bay (omnipotent) and fails to do so, or God is too weak to address evil. If either is true, then why bother with God? (Read More … )
from the personal blog of Dr. Allan Bevere, pastor, professor, and author of Politics of Witness: The Character of the Church in the World, Colossians and Philemon: A Participatory Study Guide, and more Christians have always struggled to view the whole of Scripture as authoritative in a practical sense, but it has become fashionable of late to deliberately argue that 21st century Christians should have a canon within a canon, that we modern, enlightened, scientifically-oriented believers have the wisdom to decide which Scriptures are relevant only for today and which are only for a by-gone more primitive era.
The problem with such a view is that the church hasn’t left us with that option. All Scripture is authoritative and necessary for Christian ethics, for Christian life– from law to prophetic pronouncement, from poetry to prose, from parable to narrative– all of it is authoritative. Once we realize this, we are freed from the arrogance of suggesting that we know more than the ecclesiastical wisdom of the ages what God has and has not said, and we can spend our time reading, interpreting, struggling, and wrestling with the biblical narrative from Genesis to Revelation in all of its complexity. (Read more … )
from David Alan Black‘s blogsite,jesusparadigm.com. I’m really looking forward to a fun and exciting fall semester, not least because I’m teaching NT Intro again for the first time in several years. The course covers Acts – Revelation, which means that, if I time things just right, the semester will end before I have to discuss the Apocalypse (wink, wink)! Let me tell you how we’re beginning the class. Day One consists of students reading the book of Acts and then also reading my Seven Marks of a New Testament Church – which, I would remind you, is nothing but an exegesis of Acts 2:37-47, eleven of the most action-packed verses in the entire New Testament. Students will then produce a “reaction paper” to what they have read and I’ll ask for a few volunteers to share with the rest of us what they learned. Thus, from the very first day of class, we’ll be asking ourselves the question: “What does an obedient church look like?” Christian discipleship means placing ourselves under orders. It’s not merely a psychological experiment in self-improvement (along with watching our weight and catching up on our Honey-Do lists). As disciples, we are not on our own. The goal is not self-actualization but obedience to the instructions of the church’s Head and only Boss. (Read more … )
Too many Christians often compare God’s will to a road map with very specific directions from the Almighty they need to discover– God wants you to turn left here and go right there– God only has one spouse in mind for you and only one profession you must enter. And while I do believe that at times God may call certain persons to specific things because the Bible itself contains such callings, God’s call is often more open and elastic.
Sam (short for Samson, not Samuel), picked up the stein of beer he had just paid for, gave it an initial taste to savor the taste, and then followed with a gulp. He enjoyed his beer in the evening after a hard day of work.
O come, O come, Emmanuel
An election has taken place. We have a President-Elect. He’s not the one I would have chosen. He didn’t receive my vote. Nonetheless, the Electoral College has weighed in. On the night of the election, after Hillary Clinton called to concede and congratulate him, he came out and spoke of uniting the nation. As we have seen from comments on social media, in our own conversations, and in the protests that have taken place, not everyone is ready for unity. That is because over the course of the past eighteen months we have heard a candidate speak in divisive terms. Not everyone voted for Donald Trump, because they are bigots or ignorant. People vote for a wide variety of reasons. At the same time, there are elements of his “coalition” who are bigots. They have reveled in their perceived freedom to say and do as they please without any concern for the feelings of others.
Religion is my life. It really is that simple. I not only live it, I study it, teach it, and practice it. I am fascinated by religion and all that comes with it. I have acquired many friends from other Christian denominations and other faiths and I have been present with them in their holy moments just as they have been present with me in mine. At my United Methodist ordination was a Buddhist, a Wiccan, a Jew, several Roman Catholic nuns, and a Pagan.
I was involved in an interesting discussion recently on the idea that we human beings forge our own destinies and how that squares with the Bible’s affirmation that our lives are in the hands of God. In the course of the discussion we began to talk about forgiveness and how it is easier to forgive than to be forgiven, because to be forgiven means we must let go of our fate and put our destiny in the hands of another. How true it is that we human beings like being in control of our lives. “I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul;” so goes the poem that so many learn in school and recite as if in fact it were true. Falsehoods sound so believable when they are stated poetically.
What use is God if God can’t or won’t prevent evil from occurring? That’s a question people have been asking for millennia. Theologians and philosophers have done their best offer answers defending God (the term for this is theodicy), but the question keeps arising. It would be easier if Christian theology allowed for the existence of two equally powerful gods, one good and the other evil (dualism). Then evil could be blamed on the evil god, leaving the God of love untainted. Unfortunately, that solution isn’t available to Christians, for like other traditional monotheistic religions, Christians believe that God has no ultimate rival. Therefore, we must look elsewhere for answers.
Christians have always struggled to view the whole of Scripture as authoritative in a practical sense, but it has become fashionable of late to deliberately argue that 21st century Christians should have a canon within a canon, that we modern, enlightened, scientifically-oriented believers have the wisdom to decide which Scriptures are relevant only for today and which are only for a by-gone more primitive era.
I’m really looking forward to a fun and exciting fall semester, not least because I’m teaching NT Intro again for the first time in several years. The course covers Acts – Revelation, which means that, if I time things just right, the semester will end before I have to discuss the Apocalypse (wink, wink)! Let me tell you how we’re beginning the class. Day One consists of students reading the book of Acts and then also reading my Seven Marks of a New Testament Church – which, I would remind you, is nothing but an exegesis of Acts 2:37-47, eleven of the most action-packed verses in the entire New Testament. Students will then produce a “reaction paper” to what they have read and I’ll ask for a few volunteers to share with the rest of us what they learned. Thus, from the very first day of class, we’ll be asking ourselves the question: “What does an obedient church look like?” Christian discipleship means placing ourselves under orders. It’s not merely a psychological experiment in self-improvement (along with watching our weight and catching up on our Honey-Do lists). As disciples, we are not on our own. The goal is not self-actualization but obedience to the instructions of the church’s Head and only Boss. (Read more … )