Once Upon A Time...

via youtube.com

Fairy Tales are glimpses into our cultural psyche. They paint pictures of deeper bits of reality. ABC's Once Upon a Time paints an interesting picture:

The town of Storybrooke is under a curse. The people there do not know who they really are because of the curse. There is one woman and a little boy who know the truth. The woman, the Evil Queen is doing everything in her power to conceal the truth. The little boy, proclaims the truth about the curse and the people's real identities. The town thinks him crazy.

My 10 year old son said, "Dad, this is just like the gospel."

Indeed it is son, indeed it is.

Review: Sherman - The Ruthless Victor by Agostino von Hassell & Ed Breslin

Sherman: The Ruthless Victor (The Generals)
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 by Hassell and Breslin is a nice little biography.  It is written in a winsome style, easily engaged, and hits the proper narrative tone for a non-fiction work.  I was not sure when I opened this book if it was going to be something that would capture my interest.  However, I was hooked early on by the nature and quality of the writing.  I thought that Hassell and Breslin did well by tracing the life of Sherman.  What I most appreciate was how they were able to connect some dots between his childhood, early adulthood, and the actions that he took in his march through Georgia to Savannah. I think that there could have been greater attention given to the long range impact of Sherman.  I also think that there could have been more done with regards to his leadership skills and how those might translate to today's world. All in all, I now have a greater appreciation for Sherman's role in the Civil War and the years following.

I Don't Know How She Does It

On Monday I was hard at work when I received a text from my sweet wife.  She suggested lunch and a movie.  I can't pass those opportunities up, so I agreed.  I had never heard of the movie she wanted to see, but it didn't matter, I just like hanging out with her. Then I watched the trailer: httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSi3LdUrq18 I immediately began to fear that 90 minutes, I mean this really looked like a serious chick flick. Afterwards though, I was amazed at the interesting social critique that I had just witnessed.  I am of the age where many films from my youth were about dads and kids (think Hook and the like).  These films all had a common theme: Dad was a workaholic and sacrificed his family for a ride up the corporate ladder.  However, in each film something happens where Dad changes course and becomes a family man to save his marriage and family. I Don't Know How She Does It was the complete opposite. This time it is Mom who is rising the corporate ladder and sacrificing her family and marriage. It struck me that this is new.  The film doesn't bash on working moms, quite the contrary.  But, it does ask the pointed question to these moms, "what's most important?" I find it fascinating that the Dad is now seen as the steady, supportive, rational, and faithful spouse.  The Mom is the self-centered, irrational, and nearly un-faithful spouse. The roles have been reversed. I think that we need to be aware of what is going on here.  Pop culture is crying out for Moms.  As much teasing as June Cleaver has taken since the feminist revolution, there is a hunger for what only a mother can provide.  Men took the heat and from what I can tell, in my peer group, are engaging with their families.  Pop culture is now looking at the Mom and asking, "where are you?" I suppose when it comes down to it we must realize this one thing: We need both.  Moms and Dads. We need them working as teams juggling the complexities of life together.  We need the pendulum to find its equilibrium on this one.

Justice? Are you sure?

Last night was a tipping point in American history.  We heard the details of a straight out of Hollywood scene recounting the death of Osama Bin Laden.  It has been a fascinating scene to see this unfold via social media and other information outlets.  Upon hearing the news I tweeted,
Interesting how my perspective on all this is so much different than ten years ago. Desiring justice more than revenge.
Ten years ago, I would have rejoiced. Ten years ago, I was longing for the death of this man. Now, I am saddened that he is separated from God. Now, I am saddened that many of my friends consider this justice. I am more and more aware that justice is not something that I really want. If I really want justice then I would want God to cast me off.  I would want God to send me away from his presence forever. No. I desire grace. I desire grace for everyone. Yes, even for those who do evil. I desire grace. I am grateful that justice was served nearly 2000 years ago on a cross on a street corner that is now a parking lot for buses. I am grateful that I won't have to face justice, because if I am honest with myself, I am more like Osama Bin Laden than I am like Jesus.  At the end of the day, that's all that matters. Let justice be served? I suppose. But I think I prefer to let the gracious God who gave everything to reconcile the world to himself through a cross dole it out.

Before the Beginning...applied

So, if Jesus is the center, his life, death, and resurrection culminating in the reality that he is Lord, how does this apply to mission? How does this reality determine how we ought to live and act as his followers? Well, that's just it, we have to follow. I really like what Rt. Rev. Dr. David Zac Niringiye says here, it has been stuck in my head. We are to be followers. If Jesus is the center then we go where he goes. We follow where he leads. We love how he loved. We extend grace like he extends grace. We engage the lost world at the expense of our own safety and comfort. We enter into relationship with people who are the same and different from us. We speak truth. We live truth. We love the Scriptures. We ask questions. If we accept the invitation to follow and we believe that Jesus is the theological center of everything then our lives cannot be lived as our own. 1 Corinthians 7 offers a helpful reminder:
You were bought with a price; do not become slaves of men. (1 Corinthians 7:23 ESV)
If Jesus is our center then we cannot, must not, retreat behind the walls of a holy hideout. We must, we have to step out into the lost and broken world and... engage it, question it, challenge it, transform it. Following Jesus necessarily pushes us out and into the world as transformative ambassadors who bring a story, a message, healing, love, grace, mercy, truth, transformation. To call yourself a "Christian" means you are required to go on expedition on behalf of the one who bought you.

Before the beginning...

If we are going to be wrestling through what we believe and how those beliefs drive us to mission then we need to determine what is the controlling idea. In a previous post I outlined my presuppositions. Now, I want to give what I think is the controlling idea that we need to have at the center of our doctrine. While some would argue for beginning at the beginning, Genesis, I think we need to start before the beginning. As I wrestle through the driving force for my doctrine that drives us to mission I think we must look at one person:
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. (Colossians 1:15-20 ESV)
This is the hymn from Colossians 1.  It is an incredible statement of who Christ is. There is so much here that we cannot possibly dive into and digest all of it.  First, we need to understand that Paul was pointing out that Jesus is the real emperor.  The phrases and descriptors used here are those that were also ascribed to Caesar. Paul subverts the Empire and calls Jesus out as the real king. Consider what is true of Jesus, he is the image of the invisible God.  If we want to see God we look at Jesus. He is the creator, he is the ultimate authority, and he is the preeminent one. It doesn't stop there.  Jesus made peace.  Pax Christus versus Pax Romana.  One was brought through crucifixion and the other through war and violence. Peace and reconciliation though are not for just people.  It is an all encompassing reconciling for the entirety of creation.  The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus then must be the central lens through which we understand all things. Alan Hirsch says it well, "Jesus is Lord."

What's Worse? (Part 2)

In our previous post we saw how Jesus engaged the world. He entered in and sought to transform the culture within which he lived. He did so with passion, without regret, and in perfect holiness. He did so to the point that he was called a "drunkard" and a "glutton". This is our model. How do we apply it? The first question that I hear murmuring is, "He was God. It's different isn't it?" No. It's not different. That kind of reasoning has no place here in the quest for the engagement of culture. It can't. If it did then we ought to say, "He was God, therefore we shouldn't disciple, because it's different." We could allow this line of thinking to go in any number of directions. No, it's better to say that Jesus did it, therefore, we must try. The next thing I hear murmuring through your mind is, "Not everyone is called to this. What about the weaker brother in Romans?" I hear your concern. I think in some sense it's an appropriate one. I don't think it should rule the day. The thinking becomes similar as the previous statement. The "stronger" brother has a responsibility to help the weaker grow. He should not flaunt his freedom (which is Paul's concern) but should help his brother grow and become strong. To remain stagnant is not what Paul is arguing for. How do we engage with a broken culture and transform it while maintaining our holiness? That's the question. I think we first need to realize that we need to start at the place of discernment. We each have different capacities and different amounts of freedom. Some of us will be able to engage in different cultural activities and others will look elsewhere. These differences are what make us the body. Discernment requires us to pray, to study, and listen. We must not allow discernment to be a vague form of legalism though. To avoid this we must believe the best in those around us. This caveat must not be a license to sin. The thing about sin is that you typically know it when you see it. Along with discernment there must also be engagement. The engage means that we are moving out critically. We are not simply taking in but we are evaluating, critiquing, and seeking understanding. This also requires us to have a "telos" or goal of transformation. If we are simply seeking to be entertained then we are not following Jesus' example. If we withdraw from the world then we are not following Jesus' example. If we engage, transform, and then begin to create culture, we are following Jesus' example. There is so much we complain about and worry about. What would happen if believers created culture on the basis of the Christian worldview? What about education? Politics? Art? We would find films rated R, G, PG, PG-13 because life, reality, is represented by all of them. We would find horror films, we would find romance, comedy, action, violence, sex, redemption. We would find these because they are part of the Scriptures and reflect reality. We engage culture because we are human. We seek to transform it because we image bearers.

What's Worse (Part 1)?

As we near the end of this discussion on engaging culture a few concluding points need to be made. Primarily we need to discuss which is worse, sinful thematic elements, or subtle deconstructions of worldview. This is something that we struggle to figure out on a principled level in every aspect of our lives as Christians. For us to get our minds around this reality we must first look at the life of Jesus to give us a glimpse of how we ought to live. To do that I think it will be helpful to take a look at Luke 7. This section of Luke's narrative begins with the story of the Roman Centurion. The Jewish context of this time was varied and it is hard to necessarily pigeon hole the average Jew into a group. However, there is one thing that we can be relatively certain of, and that is the basic distrust and dislike of the Roman occupation. This was understood to be an extension of exile. The average Jew would not have associated with Centurions. The leaders of Capernaum apparently did because this particular Centurion built the local Synagogue. This story is remarkable because of Jesus' statement, "I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith." That is an abrasive statement, at best. That would be like a U of M football coach saying that OSU is the greatest football team ever, at a pep rally on campus at U of M. This simply does not happen. But it did. From here Jesus raises a widows son from the dead. He displays the justice and compassion of God. Then we encounter a remarkable interaction between Jesus and John's disciples. We couldn't possibly enter into a full exposition of this passage, however, I want to point out verse 34. Jesus says, "The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'" Consider what Jesus is saying here. He self-identified with the immoral and broken of his culture. He did this to the point that the religious people called him a glutton and a drunk. Jesus stepped into the sinful world and engaged it so fully that he was challenged as to his own morality. This section closes with a sinful woman, a city prostitute, forgiven. Jesus allowed her to touch him and caress his feet with her hair. She made him ritually unclean. Jesus didn't care. He forgave her and sent her away in peace. Jesus engaged the lost world and transformed it. This is our model. How do we apply this? That's the next post!