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)
Sorrowing Old Man by Vincent Van GoghHow utterly disheartening it is when you are in the thick of serious questions and doubts to be told that you should not be questioning and doubting. If you’re in the middle of a storm, it’s no help to be told that you should not be there. What you then need is a helping hand, a sharing mind. And the more important the questions are to you, the more urgent will be your desire for clarity, proper consideration, and decision. When we were children we did not have to be taught to accept what our parents and teachers said. There was no other alternative but to accept. They were there first. But we grow up and we learn more than we knew as children. We begin to have the problem of sorting out the answers we learned and even the questions we should now be asking. This produces more questions and, most likely, confusion and frustration. No one who thinks at all gets through this stage of life without doubting. At this stage, the people who think they know every answer, or worse still, every question, are the ones who may be able to help us the least. People who have gone through an experience similar to ours a long time ago, and who have now found working answers to their questions, may have forgotten how hard-won their conclusions and attitudes were. It’s easy once you’ve found a working answer to problems which were once important to us and forget or overlook the process of struggle that led up to our present positions. It is easy then to be unsympathetic. That happens when once has become very certain of the answer one has attained. There is, of course, a very different attitude. Having experienced a struggle, more or less intense, to achieve one’s present position, one can then reflect on that process. It becomes obvious on reflection that others who have achieved some certainty through the process of doubting have also had tensions, struggles, opposition. Realizing that is often the case, one may be ready to be sympathetic to them, and willing to give support and help as it is needed. Those who have not gone through what we go through in this period simply live in a different world from us, and speak to us in a language which does not connect. We hear the words and see the concern. We know their affection and appreciate it. Yet sometimes the very finality and placidity with which we are told what they believe what their new attitudes and positions are disarms us. Their position differs from ours and is considered unsatisfactory. It may even, if we are deeply troubled by dogmatism, lead us to reject not only the answer that but also the very quest in which we are participating. It may even lead top alienation. Fortunately sometimes respect and even affection can survive the emergence of drastic differences of belief. This is a gesture of despair, but quite an understandable one. To those who have difficulty finding people who will treat their questions seriously and with understanding, I say: ‘Do not be put off from the quest for truth and for life. Keep asking. Keep searching. And try, meanwhile, to be loving. If you don’ t appear to be understood, then turn the tables by trying, as far as possible, to be understanding.’ It might help if I made an explicit distinction for you to think about. It is one thing to ask questions about what faith means. It is another thing to give up the faith. Because you have questions about the faith does not mean at all that you are giving up the faith. Do not let anybody persuade you that it does. If you are alert you will have serious questions. If your faith is vital and healthy, it will give rise to inquiry, to careful thought, to examination of answers you did not question as a child. One of the emancipating discoveries you can make is that Christian faith is big enough to permit the believer to live with questions, and to go on living with questions. To some questions there simply is no intellectually satisfying answer. For example, I have yet to read an intellectually satisfying answer to the problem of suffering. Indeed I do not believe that one is possible. There will always be room to doubt the goodness of God. I believe that God is good. But my faith in God does not depend upon the answer to this problem being satisfying to my mind. This does not mean of course that I shouldn’t seek the very best explanation I can get. While to some questions there is no finally satisfying answer, there is an answer to the mystery of life–the answer of faith in Jesus as Lord. When Jesus is found, then the process of inquiry and of questioning is put into a context where it has both significance and direction. Life is not God’s reward for cleverness in solving problems. It is a gift he offers us because we need it. When we accept and live out of the grace he gives, joy is larger than frustration. How do you mark off what is beyond doubt from what you may doubt, and what you must doubt, what is indubitable from what may be doubted? Why do you not doubt if you feel you should? There is no virtue in resolving, ‘I will not doubt’. you maintain a belief because no alternative has yet been offered to you or come to your attention. You have asked questions and may be in the process of finding answers that provide you with satisfaction. Questioning is not doubting, but it is often a pathway that leads us to revise our understanding, to revise our beliefs. But you maintain a belief or set of beliefs because it is comfortable to be accepted by other believers. You may forget that life and understanding become richer as new perspectives emerge. But guidance is often needed even if it is not sought.
We have distinguished faith from belief. We distinguish ‘the faith’ from beliefs held with in its context. Because you have questions about the faith does not mean that you are giving up the faith. Do not let anybody persuade you that it does. If you are alert you will have serious questions. If your faith is vital and healthy, it will give rise to inquiry, to careful thought, to examination of answers you did not question as a child, or have not questioned since. One of the emancipating discoveries you can make is that Christian faith is big enough to permit the believer to live with questions, and to go on living with questions.
by Dr. David Moffett-Moore, pastor and author of The Jesus Manifesto, The Spirit’s Fruit, Life as Pilgrimage, Creation in Contemporary Experience, and more! I sit here in the shadow of 9-11, that fateful day when the earth shook and the heavens cried. Fifteen years later and the memory lives on within us. 2977 were killed, but we are all victims. Our world was changed forever, and our nation has been at war ever since. Nearly 7,000 troops have died in this ongoing war and over half a million civilians, more innocents to go with those who have gone before. In losing a loved one, I often advise that we never get over the loss, we only get used to it. The place once filled in love remains ever empty afterward and only the loss remains. This seems to be true of 9-11 as well. Previous generations measured their history by where they were when President Kennedy was shot or when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Today’s generation’s history is measured by the long dark shadow of 9-11. The world I once knew no longer exists; the world that has replaced it is darker, colder, harsher. I don’t mean to question here the wisdom of the war in its original initiation or its ongoing direction. Others can do that elsewhere. I only mean to mourn the never ending struggle, the enduring violence, the graves whose hunger for life cannot be sated. We can mourn our inhumanity, our fear or judgment or hatred of those who are different, our seeking uniformity rather than understanding. We can question why so much evil is done in the supposed name of righteousness, why religion is such an easy pawn for extremism. Maybe someday we can try to find a way for us all to live together in peace and equality, but this is not that day. Martin Luther King Jr. advised of the injustices of his day, saying “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” A victim of the Palestinian – Israeli conflict confessed “There will be no peace until we realize we love our children more than we hate our neighbors.” We are all neighbors on this shrinking blue marble, and we’ve got to find a way for us all to live together. I’ve said a good place for us to begin is for people of faith to agree not to kill each other. So in this article I am not selling one of my books or hyping another publication. I am rather expressing our common despair at the ongoing “divine” devastation and saying a quiet little prayer, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me!” Amen.
I’ve recently saidand writtena few things about the gospel commission, including my claim in my concluding presentation for my video series on eschatology that eschatology is all about the gospel commission. You’ll hear more about this in my foreword to Dave Black’s new book Running My Race. It’s in the final stages of production and should be available soon.
This isn’t a new perspective on my part, but as soon as I start using words like “evangelism,” “mission,” or “the Great Commission,” I start getting questions about whether I believe in dialogue or whether I’ve started to think that all non-Christians are horrible people.
On the other hand, each time I start talking about respect, interfaith dialogue, inclusion, and similar topics, someone is bound to ask me whether I’ve given up on evangelism and mission. Perhaps I no longer think Jesus is important. (Read more …)
by Ronald Higdon, retired pastor (including intentional interim ministry), adjunct professor, and author of In Changing Times: A Guide for Reflection and Conversationand Surviving a Son’s Suicide A reporter was interviewing an elderly Kentucky farmer and posed an obvious-answer question: “You’ve been farming for over sixty-five years; I bet you’ve seen a lot of changes in that period of time, haven’t you?” The farmer replied, “I certainly have. And I’ve been against every one of them.” This is not unlike the song sung by Groucho in an old Marx Brothers movie that has this recurring line: “I’m against it!” This is the theme song of many who see change as only danger and threat. I often quip that I have pastored some churches with the unstated but obvious philosophy: “Come weal or come woe, our status is quo.” The above examples keep one in the negative and “kickative” mode because change is the one constant in life that can always be counted on. It is one of the great inevitables written large in the universe. Only of God’s consistency in his grace, mercy, and love can it be said: “As it was in the beginning, so it is now, and so shall it ever be, world without end.” A friend was recently talking about some changes that are about to be made in the church of which we are members. Her comment was: “Nothing in my world has remained the same. It seems that everything I have loved and cherished is no more. I guess I had always assumed that at least I could count on my church remaining the same.” Books have been written on the impact of the not only increasing amount of change in our world but of the rapidity with which it has come. I told my friend who was lamenting the changes in her life, even in the church, that each day when I get up I look out the window to make certain I’m not living on another planet. Many have brought to our attention our basic dilemma: those of my generation were educated to live in another time and now we find ourselves living in this time. My seminary education was excellent but it certainly did not prepare me for ministry in the church-world of today. The reference has been lost but not the story of the Bishop who was meeting with a group of pastors and began his session with the announcement that he had good news and bad news for them. He asked them which they wanted first. After a brief pause, one of the pastors spoke up: “Give us the bad news first.” “It is more difficult to be in pastoral ministry today than in any other time I have known.” After a brief period of silence and heads nodding in approval, the request came: “What is the good news?” The Bishop smiled and confidently announced, “If the fifties ever come back, we’re ready!” The impossibility of this kind of “back to the future” does not have to be spelled out even though the attempt to live it out remains in evidence. We shouldn’t have to be told, “There are no trains to yesterday.” We know the intellectual truth of this, even though some continue to wait at the Nostalgia Station for the Express to the past. It’s not coming. The time is now. It is not the same as it was in the past and, when the future arrives it will be different than what we are experiencing but, of course, will not be called the future but the present, the now. This is the only time zone in which we can live and in this “new time” in order to live with purpose and hope I believe, that basically, we have to see the changes in our lives as challenges and opportunities. In 1980, William Bridges wrote a book titled Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes. He offered what I believe continues to be solid advice: “Whether your chose your change or not, there are unlived potentialities within you, interests and talents that you have not yet explored. Transitions clear the ground for new growth. They drop the curtain so the stage can be set for a new scene. What is it, at this point in your life, that is waiting quietly backstage for an entrance cue?” The challenge in this he spells out in one sentence: “To have a new beginning you need to acknowledge an ending.” Why is it so difficult for us to acknowledge that some things are simply over? Endings are usually never swift or easy and are hardly ever complete. I maintain that successful beginnings always depend on reasonably successful endings. The grief process in mourning our losses plays a large part in successful endings and varies greatly with the nature of the loss (ending) and the way we have dealt with previous losses. It is not always easy to view change as a time of transition and the opportunity for a new beginning. But that is what it is – if we are determined to be truly alive in the moment in which we are living. Just because something is difficult (and what worthwhile thing isn’t?) doesn’t mean it is not meant to be a part of our learning and growing in God’s world for this time. Who knows what fresh beginnings await us? A lot depends on how we handle the changes that will only keep coming.
Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it. – Luke 19:41 Jesus was acclaimed as the Son of David and the King of Israel as He made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem the week He was crucified. The crowds shouted hosannas to Him and welcomed Him as their Messiah (Matthew 21:9; John 12:12-13). Bartimaeus also acclaimed Him as such, when he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:46-47). Jesus, likewise, identified Himself as the Son of David, in His final words of Holy Scripture: “I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star” (Revelation 22:16). The Son of David is returning one day to Jerusalem, the Jewish capital, the city He wept over when the Jewish leaders rejected Him (Luke 13:34-35; 19:41). Jesus also wept when his friend Lazarus died (John 11:35). He was not only crying because of empathy with Mary and Martha in their grief, but He likely was crying about the unbelief of the crowd. He already knew that He would raise up Lazarus, and He already knows that one day He will raise up the nation of Israel! On that day “all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:25-27). But until that day comes, He weeps over His beloved Chosen people. How sad that “a child was born unto them, a Son was given … a Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6), and Israel rejected Him! But, wait! There is a silver lining to that cloud.
For if their casting Yeshua aside means reconciliation for the world, what will their accepting Him mean? It will be life from the dead! – Romans 11:15 (Complete Jewish Bible)
In other words, if Israel’s rejection of Yeshua as Messiah resulted in the Gospel going to the Gentiles, then their acceptance of Him will bring world-wide revival! Isn’t that what we all want? But how have we been praying for it? King David wrote, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. May they prosper who love you” (Psalm 122:6). That is tantamount to praying for the salvation of the Jewish people, that their eyes will be opened, like Bartimaeus, to see the Son of David, their Messiah! Our own prosperity, spiritually and every other way, is tied up with this imperative. Will we be obedient? The tears of our Lord poured out on His people, and now we Gentiles who know Him as Savior and Lord are His people, too. We should have our prayers mixed with tears of repentance for what the Church has done to the Jewish people throughout history to harden them against their own Messiah! The Church is suffering from a case of mistaken identity! Jesus is weeping about it as He intercedes for the eyes of His Church to be opened!
IDENTITY
(Based on Romans 11)
So, what is my identity now that I am saved?
I have a Jewish Lord, so how should I behave?
I was graciously grafted into a Jewish olive tree,
I was a wild branch when Jesus set me free.
The Seed of Abraham was planted in the ground –
They’d nailed Him to a tree when I was not around.
But He was resurrected as the Jewish Scriptures said,
And offered all salvation by His blood He had shed.
I later heard the story, first told by Jewish men –
The Apostles, Paul, and all the church were Jewish, all of them.
But when the message got to me, the Jewish roots were cut!
Yeshua wept, because the door to heaven for Jews was shut!
The Jews now think of Jesus as a God who’s not for them –
The veil over their eyes has made their eyesight dim.
But we can make them jealous if we restore His Jewish identity,
Support the Jews and the Jewish nation; for them we must have affinity.
And we must know our history, horrible things the Church has done,
Identify with them in their pain, that’s how their hearts are won.
We must repent for atrocities done in the name of our Jewish King.
Forgive us, Lord, we did not know it was such an evil thing.
– Nancy Petrey ~ June 18, 2016
Most Christians are not aware of the anti-Semitic history of the Church. I recommend three resources: (1) Our Hands are Stained with Blood: the Tragic Story of the “Church” and the Jewish People, by Dr. Michael Brown. (2) How the Cross Became a Sword by Richard Booker (small booklet). (3) Why Christians Should Care About Their Jewish Roots by Nancy Petrey (40-page book). In praying for revival and preparing for the coming of the Lord, these are indispensable tools. I urge you to read one of them. You will be spellbound and shell-shocked! But at least you will be equipped for these end times. PRAYER: Dear Father, cause us to weep over Your chosen people like Jesus did. Give us a heart of compassion to pray for their salvation. Cause us to be more grateful that Jesus came to us through the Jewish people and that our beloved Scriptures were penned and preserved by them. May we be moved to action on their behalf, speeding the day when Yeshua the Messiah will return to Jerusalem and set up His kingdom.
by Dr. Bruce G. Epperly, pastor, professor, and author of Finding God in Suffering: A Journey with Job, Process Theology: Embracing Adventure with God, Healing Marks: Healing and Spirituality in Mark’s Gospel, and more! One of the first principles of medicine and ministry is “first do no harm.” This is sagely advice, since it is easier to say things that harm than cure, especially in sermons, interviews, and books. Words matter and this is especially true when we try to explain the tragedies of life. The Book of Job is a treatise aimed at exposing harmful theology. While the Book of Job may not give us the right answer – and in some ways the text suggests that humans can never fully fathom the intricacies of creation and providence- the Book of Job, like the (possibly) contemporary dialogues of Plato uncovers the wrong answers to the questions of “why the righteous suffer” or frankly “why do we suffer period?” since, for the most part, the morally ambiguous often receive greater suffering than they deserve, and the downright violent and greedy often to get away scot-free in this lifetime, which for the author of Job is the only one there is. Recently, Anne Graham Lotz, tried to explain the problem of evil as it relates to terrorism. She tied it to national infidelity. According to Ms. Lotz, when we turn from God’s way, “God abandons us and backs away, and takes his hand of favor away, [God’s] blessings. [God takes] his hand of protection away from us and abandons us…..We’re struggling with our own pride and self-sufficiency. I think that’s why God allows bad things to happen. I think that’s why he would allow 9/11 to happen, or the dreadful attack in San Bernardino, or some of those other places to show us that we need him. We’re desperate without him.” [link to Huffington Post report] Ms. Lotz claims to have an orthodox Christian position and to be able speak for the God of Universe, discerning clearly God’s thoughts and inclinations. Frankly, that’s above her pay grade and mine, as the author of the Book of Job confesses. Still, her comment is worth considering, especially since the Book of Job is a sustained critique of literal acts-consequences approaches to the problem of suffering. According to the text, Job is the best of persons, and yet he suffers almost beyond his ability to endure. He recognizes that there is no justice in his suffering. Job’s experience is proof that “righteousness leads to rewards” and “sin leads to punishment” approaches to suffering cannot not be theologically sustained, if it taken literally. The majestic dialogue that crowns that climaxes the text suggests that in this intricately connected and wonderful world there are pockets of chaos with which God must even contend. Such pockets of chaos insure that, as Jesus asserts, the sun shines and the rain falls on the righteous and unrighteous alike. Evil institutions and nations prosper, as do persons, and likewise faithful institutions, nations, and persons may also flounder. (Matthew 5:45) Acts do have consequences and a nation’s fidelity shapes its future, to a certain extent. A godly nation – if there is such a one – creates a social order of hospitality, economic justice, and earth care that leads to flourishing. The quest for the peaceable kingdom that inspired the prophets – fair business dealings, concern for the poor, affirmation of the needs of vulnerable persons – leads to less violence in the streets, healthier relationships between law enforcement and minorities, and happier homes, but does not insure complete security for the nation and its citizens. Ms. Lotz’s linear cause and effect understanding of divine blessings and curses does not square with reality, either individually or corporately. Job is clear that it is the wrong answer; and a harmful answer. Although the Book of Job struggles to find a compassionate God, the text leans toward a vision of God as creative, intimate, concerned with the details of creation, and caring for the world in all its diversity. This theological inclination renders Lotz’s pontifications problematic in terms of their characterization of God. While our actions may enhance or limit what God can do in the world, just as our behaviors place limits on the love others can manifest toward us, no good friend, parent, or grandparent “abandons” her or his child or friend because of her or his mistakes. The Good Shepherd seeks the lost one. The father runs out to greet his wanton (prodigal) son. Jesus is fully present on the cross, praying for the forgiveness of those who crucify him. My guess is that Ms. Lotz’s relationship to her own family is reflects a higher morality than she attributes to God. If Jesus said anything about God’s morality and love, it is that God is more moral and more loving than we are. This is God’s nature, not something God can arbitrarily withhold. A deity who withholds his care to allow terrorist acts in Orlando, San Bernardino, or on 9/11 can be feared but hardly loved, and in character is little better than abusive parent whom we would prosecute for child endangerment and manslaughter. The Book of Job reminds us to be careful about what we say about God. Our words about God can hurt or heal, can incite violence or promote love, can open the door to seekers or turn outsiders away. Popular religious leaders would do well to consult Job – and Jesus – before making pronouncements on the reality of evil.
By Rev. Dr. Robert R. LaRochelle Anyone who has been following the 2016 Presidential campaign, even on the most elementary level, has been exposed to what can be politely described as a high level of nastiness. For a variety of reasons, the animosity involved in our political discourse has intensified over these past few years and, in my view, has reached, if not an all-time low, definitely a modern one. Name calling, derisiveness toward opponents, supporters of one candidate screaming at and engaging in fisticuffs with supporters of another, have become part and parcel of our current political situation. I also have to say that if one need not be a liberal Democrat to express profound moral concern about the way the presumptive Republican nominee has treated his opponents in this campaign and has created a climate whereby divisive and racist language has become acceptable and even normative to many, including our young.
Even in writing this, my concern right now is that because I have pointed out my concerns about the way in which a particular candidate has campaigned, as a result, many people reading this will be immediately turned off and dismiss my comments because of what they may assume would be my political leanings, an assumption, I would suggest, that one could not necessarily glean from my comments above. After all, notable Republicans such as John Kasich and Jeb Bush as well as his brother, the former President, and the 2012 GOP nominee, Mitt Romney, (and many more) have expressed the same concerns.
Here is my issue: Those of us who profess that we are seeking to be followers of Jesus are disciples of the One who teaches us this about God: God is compassionate, loving, forgiving and engaged in drawing us human beings into a recognition of the inherent value of one another. Jesus was one who broke barriers, who really sought to tear down walls between people who had been divided from one another- Jew and Samaritan, man and woman, righteous from unrighteous. Jesus’ prayer as He approached imminent death was ‘ That they may all be one‘. It is this sense of oneness– the inherent unity of all that God has created, which is a fundamental tenet of Christian understanding.
Quite honestly, this approach toward life is antithetical to much of the tone of this campaign. Sadly, the tone of the campaign has made it easier for so many, including our young, to be nasty, prejudicial and downright mean, derisive toward others who are perceived as ‘ Other.’ One would like to think that with all of the horrific examples we know of in the history of the world, we as a society would be well beyond this. Yet, we are not, and instead are at a very perilous point.
Yet, as always, the message of Jesus presents us with a necessary corrective and with a vision of God that has significant practical implications in our daily lives.
In a world which needs the bold proclamation of an inclusive Gospel vision of justice, peace and hospitality, it is important that Catholics and Protestants work together both to understand the ‘ecumenical center’ they share and to live out its implications as Christian witness to the bigger and wider world. In doing so, those in this ecumenical center are poised to provide the kind of Christian witness which stands as a necessary corrective to those who have portrayed Christian faith as antithetical to science, reason, and to the bold proclamation that the grace of God is meant for ALL! (Crossing the Street, 193)
Divisiveness has been too dominant a force in the history of the world and, sadly, within the Christian church. It is the unnecessary tension caused by religious differences among people who love each other, spouses, parents and children, brothers and sisters, and long-term friends that motivated me to try to help people find positive ways of communicating about their religious differences.
When I speak of a home united, yes, I am speaking as a Christian, but I am also speaking in a pluralistic world wherein organized religion has often contributed to the very opposite of unity and love. I am asking you, the reader, to live lives of love with those to whom you are committed. I am saying this with the conviction I find in my Scripture that, in the very act of real love, the love I profess was made incarnate in Jesus, in that very act of loving those whom we can see, we are loving the God we think we can’t! (A Home United, 65)
What is it going to take to move beyond this sad and absurd current climate? It seems to me that you will find people of faith who affiliate as Democrats, Republicans and Independents. It would be nice if those of us whose faith serves as the underpinning and foundation of our lives could allow it to motivate our political discourse. And, while I have pretty strong opinions about a lot of political issues, I will also affirm with that great bumper sticker distributed by Sojourners that “God is NOT a Republican…or a Democrat.” God is God … the source of unity, love and compassion. Created in God’s image, may we strive to be so as well!!!
Why are there so many Christian denominations? It’s because people are really messed up. Divisions in the Body of Christ point us directly to our need for Christ.
Divisions among the brethren are the very best evidence of this. Even after a person is born again and grafted into the Body of Christ, he or she may remain in desperate need of the grace of God. And you can’t get that through religious traditions, maintaining an impressive building, or belonging to the right church or family of churches.
In my book Gomorrah Was Religious Too, I wrote, “The Church has become a stockroom for the crumbs which fall from the world’s table, rather than a storehouse for the bread of life. Division, greed, divorce, anger, violence, and brokenness are as rampant in most of the body of Christ as they are in the world.”
Look at how divided the Body of Christ is today. We call it diversity and pretend that God is pleased with the weird variety of church options available to would be church goers on Sunday mornings. “Diversity in the Body of Christ” is a phrase that means, “We don’t want to admit that we can’t even get along with ourselves!” God surely isn’t pleased with the division in the Body.
While it’s true that we can learn from every expression of the Church, those various “expressions” are all examples of people insisting on their way over unity among the brethren. I love to study Church History because we learn from wise sages and profound saints. But we also learn that our history is one of prideful assertion that we can figure this following Jesus thing out entirely on our own.
In this series of three blog posts my heart has been to provoke thought in the direction of seeking unity in the Body of Christ. There is a lot more than can be said on the subject, but I want to leave you with this one thought. These aren’t merely thoughts. I’m living it. I’m seeing it played out in my life and ministry.
A couple of years ago I founded a ministry for Haiti called “Supply and Multiply” (www.supplyandmultiply.com) that has allowed me to watch a network of churches, individuals, friends, and supporters from various denominations and church traditions come together to support our work bringing the love of Christ and the Gospel to Haiti. It’s been amazing to watch God at work. It is astonishing to see people from such varied traditions as Pentecostal to Southern Baptist partner in direct ways to see the unifying Gospel go forward in Haiti.
The Gospel is unifying. The truth of Christ can bring His people together. It will always be hard work. It will always involve sacrifice. But it brings with it the beauty of seeing God at work on a level far deeper than brand loyalty. Why are there so many denominations? Because we are imperfect and sinful. What can bring unity? Only the love of Christ lived out in simplicity in honest fellowship with other broken sinners honestly responding the call of Jesus to follow Him together.
If it is true that the Church is the visible witness to the glory of God in this world then it must surely follow that God is schizophrenic; at least, if I were an unbeliever, that’s what I’d think. In John 17:11 Jesus prayed to the Father for His disciples saying, “And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.” (ESV)
If God is one and Jesus prayed that His disciples would be united as one, why is the Church so utterly replete with divisions of every kind? Some people say that God desires variety and that’s why we have so many different denominations. Others say that the division we see in the Body in the Christ is healthy as people live out different expressions of Christianity.
We may attempt to redeem the division in the Church by resorting to labeling division diversity but that doesn’t really solve the basic reality that the Body of Christ is divided. We are not at all reflective of Jesus prayer in John 17:11.
Commenting on broad divisions among the brethren, Puritan Pastor John Anderson wrote, “Immanent lights have arisen and shone forth among Independents and Episcopalians, but yet their defenses of Gospel truths, and their distinguished piety, do not make these different forms of religion any more agreeable to the word, but only show that we know in part, and prophesy in part; and that we ought to call no man master, nor follow any man, no matter how learned or pious, any farther than he follows Christ.” (Overcoming Division and Unifying the Visible Church: A Rebuke Against the Sin of Occasional Hearing 1794)
God is one in Himself. He is unified in principle, personality and purpose. He is not at war with Himself, though His followers are often at war with one another. This should not be so, and we should fight against division by engaging in intentional acts of unification. The world is on the offensive against the Body of Christ.
To varying extents, persecution is commonplace in most of the world. Meanwhile, we make of ourselves a soft target for the enemy because we are like a soldier with an auto-immune disease: We are busy attacking our self. There are practical ways to fight against division and that’s what it’s going to take to bring about unity. Here are three really practical ways you can seek unity in the Body of Christ:
Start thinking more in terms of the Body of Christ in your community and less of the Body of Christ in terms of the denomination your individual church belongs to. I’ve seen God do miracles for unity by being a part of the local community of followers of Christ and letting go of denominational anxiety to protect the “brand.”
Actively seek out fellowship with multi-denominational Bible Studies, benevolent societies, men’s and women’s groups, and Christian awareness projects. I’m not implying you abandon biblical truth to fellowship with folks who are Christian in name only, only that you start to see the Body of Christ a broader than your “clan.”
Do your part to create a culture of reconciliation healing in your local fellowship. If a local church doesn’t seek unity within, members of that church are very unlikely to seek unity with other believers without.
God isn’t divided. We shouldn’t be either. We won’t see pure unity among the faithful until Jesus returns for His bride. But in the meantime we can’t let religion of a denominational and divisive sort define the nature of our interaction with one another as followers of the master of mercy.
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 sit here in the shadow of 9-11, that fateful day when the earth shook and the heavens cried. Fifteen years later and the memory lives on within us. 2977 were killed, but we are all victims. Our world was changed forever, and our nation has been at war ever since. Nearly 7,000 troops have died in this ongoing war and over half a million civilians, more innocents to go with those who have gone before. 
I’ve recently said and written a few things about the gospel commission, including my claim in my concluding presentation for my video series on eschatology that eschatology is all about the gospel commission. You’ll hear more about this in my foreword to Dave Black’s new book Running My Race . It’s in the final stages of production and should be available soon.
A reporter was interviewing an elderly Kentucky farmer and posed an obvious-answer question: “You’ve been farming for over sixty-five years; I bet you’ve seen a lot of changes in that period of time, haven’t you?” The farmer replied, “I certainly have. And I’ve been against every one of them.”
Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it. – Luke 19:41
One of the first principles of medicine and ministry is “first do no harm.” This is sagely advice, since it is easier to say things that harm than cure, especially in sermons, interviews, and books. Words matter and this is especially true when we try to explain the tragedies of life. The Book of Job is a treatise aimed at exposing harmful theology. While the Book of Job may not give us the right answer – and in some ways the text suggests that humans can never fully fathom the intricacies of creation and providence- the Book of Job, like the (possibly) contemporary dialogues of Plato uncovers the wrong answers to the questions of “why the righteous suffer” or frankly “why do we suffer period?” since, for the most part, the morally ambiguous often receive greater suffering than they deserve, and the downright violent and greedy often to get away scot-free in this lifetime, which for the author of Job is the only one there is.
Anyone who has been following the 2016 Presidential campaign, even on the most elementary level, has been exposed to what can be politely described as a high level of nastiness. For a variety of reasons, the animosity involved in our political discourse has intensified over these past few years and, in my view, has reached, if not an all-time low, definitely a modern one. Name calling, derisiveness toward opponents, supporters of one candidate screaming at and engaging in fisticuffs with supporters of another, have become part and parcel of our current political situation. I also have to say that if one need not be a liberal Democrat to express profound moral concern about the way the presumptive Republican nominee has treated his opponents in this campaign and has created a climate whereby divisive and racist language has become acceptable and even normative to many, including our young.
Why are there so many Christian denominations? It’s because people are really messed up. Divisions in the Body of Christ point us directly to our need for Christ.
If it is true that the Church is the visible witness to the glory of God in this world then it must surely follow that God is schizophrenic; at least, if I were an unbeliever, that’s what I’d think. In John 17:11 Jesus prayed to the Father for His disciples saying, “And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.” (ESV)
