In writing posts like the Gilt Cage, i don't mean to set myself apart from my brothers and sisters. there's just this WALL there... it's between us, as a people, and God. it's monolithic disobedience. it's rampant materialism. it's softsoaping the call of the gospel to disciple and follower alike. it's US! and although I may not be Man On Watch there, we're in this thing together for the long haul.
In Jeremiah, the prophet gets dragged through everything with the people. Why? Because prophet and people are one. We are the people, and any prophet that separates himself from the fate of the nation that he is calling to obedience, well, he's gonna go off his rocker, and he's missing the point. Jeremiah is the saddest of them all. He is totally vindicated, but ends up writing Lamentations and disappearing into the horizon of history. (isaiah got sawn in half)
There were a thousand beautiful buildings in Jeremiah's Judah--programs for benefactors to elevate themselves, aplenty. Was it ALL that way? Were there no sincere people? Just fewer and fewer. And the religion business got braver and braver. Alms were given. The message was twisted by self=interest. The show went on.
prophets arose from time to time. They all got killed, after they were done being spoken against. Their tombs were decorated, though.
But the prophets were clear: it wasn't about themselves. and it wasn't about the "good" that was being done in the name of the Lord. It was about the Lord. It was about the burden.
it's about the man, Christ Jesus. It's about what He said, did, and does. It's about His radical command to love. It's about Grace that teaches us to say "NO" to ungodliness. It's about not even a hint of sexual immorality. It's about giving to get, losing to gain, being last and getting first place, being weak to get strong...dying to live, suffering to triumph... being clay and glorious...
It's about being rescued. It's about heaven and earth. It's about losing it all, or being radically willing to. It's about living for the Above, below...
i struggle. i need help. it's so hard to live stretching between what Jesus said so clearly and intensely, and...
...and US!!!!!
I know I hamburger love all over again as I try to thrash out a call to the body to take it all more seriously. I know i am wrong. yet i also know that this post was true. that there is a truth in it that transcends the "wrongness of me"--the scandal of the unclean vessel--the grubbykupp....
I am the Body. We are the body. and we have some serious work to do on the Gospel, and how we live it out. it's about Jesus. and we're too much about ourselves--what we want, what we have, what we can do... things that are passing away...
i hope we awaken to LOVE. God knows I yearn to, and I can't get there without YOU. I'm not a me, in Christ. I'm more than a "me". I'm part of an "us".
I pray we awaken to the call of LOVE...
Lew-
ReplyDeletethis is exactly how it should be...a dialogue between brothers on the same journey. I totally agree that the gospel is watered down many times (observe my life and you'll see). Megachurch is not necessarily my cup of tea either, but I think that God works in so many ways. Some need a miracle, some need a meal, others (like many of the disciples) need someone willing to be patient with them as the gospel takes years for them to understand.
Maybe this has something to do with being all things to all people, i dunno. In practice, i prefer ministry done much more like the folks at grubby kupp. I just still cannot deny that I am so thankful for the work of the church discussed, how they have helped my loved ones pursue abundant life. Maybe it's like God speaking out of His ass (you know..that talking donkey from Numbers 22...way before Shrek). And like the ass, i wonder if the church asks "What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?" OK, that was gratuitous and totally doesn't work as well as I intended, but I hope you know that I am your brother and not an adversary. Keep sharpening me and I'll do the same. shalom.
So I went to X Church's youth program they have on Monday Nights for Senior High Youth. There were about 85 youth there. I gotta admit, I thought there would be like a bizillion, but there weren't. It was an interesting night. The flow of the night was not entirely different from my own youth ministry
ReplyDeleteGather/Talk
Song
Icebreaker
Teaching
Announcements
Food
It was chill. The youth not only meet in the old meeting space, but they have their own room too. It seemed a bit over the top. I mean during a youth group teaching of under 100 kids they had the video camera going to make the leader larger than life. He was a nice enough guy. You could feel his strain to keep the teaching simple, not too challenging. It had some cool points. About letting the light shine, but not much talk of who the light giver is, where we got the light. There was a nice hip phrase used a couple times- "Christ Follower" I guess that is better than Christian, or follower of Christ. I don't know. It was an experience. They had some nice gear-lights, camera, action. They were nice enought to show me the main auditorium-seats 3500, 2nd largest in the city. They explained they are having a concert there on Friday-Over the Rhine and another band. I guess the lady thought I disapproved, because she went onto explain how it is just a building and the lead guy had said he didn't care if Chris Rock was in there. That is when we parted big time on belief. I happened to think of the Temple and the desecration it suffered-God was not happy with prostitutes in the temple. Not that Christian churches are on par with the temple. But in some ways better, more important. What about prostitutes in XCHURCH, is that ok since it is just a building? I understand what they are saying, I understand the mentality, but sometimes we are too busy trying to be on the wrong end of a spectrum that we believe to be radical. I mean come on. "Its just a building and has no value in and of itself" This would be true accept for the fact that the Body meets there and has governance over it. Is lew's house just a building where the body meets, or is it a place that he stewards? I am going to continue to walk with some at XCHURCH and listen to their hearts and see what gets fleshed out.
Over the Rhine are artists who happen to be fellow Christ followers. It is not sacreligious to have music or art in church if it contains truth.
ReplyDeleteNow having Chris Rock in church would be another story, even though he communicates quite a bit of truth himself in his acts.
the whole Chris Rock thing has me confused. I was in service last sunday, and The Voice was talking about how they were going to have Chris Rock there, or they WOULD have Chris Rock there if they wanted to, because it was just a building, and it didn't matter...something. I didn't get it, but it looks like tojesus got a bit of the same message.
ReplyDeleteDid Chris Rock become a Christian? Christ Follower? whatever? (shouldn't Christ Follower be hyphenated?)
aaaaanyway... the whole Chris Rock thing is a bit weird. I don't have a comment on Chris Rock.
I'm so glad to have this conversation, though. Thank you, tojesus, for your comment...
Christ Follower just sounds bad. I am sorry, it sounds like a term from monty python or something. And note well that my comment about over the rhine wasn't about over the rhine, it was about the mentality of it doesn't matter what goes on in the building where you worship. just a clarification...god's peace
ReplyDeleteSigned, Follower of Jesus ; )
tojesus-
ReplyDeletesorry for the miscommunication about OTR.
as for me, i really like the term Christ-follower (thanks lew for pointing out grammatical errors, amongst others!). Or maybe some other terminology, like "followers of the Way" like the early Christians in the book of Acts. When you say the word "Christian to a non-believer (maybe believer is a good enough term), it seems to invoke so many negative connotations, and I'm not sure if I want to be associated with homophobic pro-war hate mongers.
Or maybe I can just try to live in a way to help redeem the word. just a thought...
amen on the living it part there, Jeremiah. Great point about "followers of the Way"... no matter what we call it, we'd do best to DO it... no kidding. that's that.
ReplyDeletethis sparring around over terminology helps me to appreciate the fuller definitions of what it means to believe. thanks guys.