Deal or No Deal

Easter is my third favorite holiday.  It’s not that I dislike Easter, but it’s hard to compete with two holidays that center around belt-loosening eating, football, and free stuff.  That said, this year I caught myself wondering why the story of Easter has become so boring to me.  To a Christian minister, “Easter apathy” is a bigger problem than food preference and presents.

Easter Sunday 2012 looked exactly like it did in 1988, 2011, and all of the years in between.  I woke up, put on my seer sucker and tore off to church.  Armed with my dapper wardrobe, Sunday smile, and leather bound Bible, I fit the part.  You would’ve never guessed it, but sitting in the pew that Sunday I wondered, “Do I really believe this stuff?”

That was really scary for me. 

For those of us who like a southern, buffet-style religion, the life of Jesus seems pretty palatable.  Yeah, he certainly said some difficult things, but weren’t those comments always directed towards the rich and proud?  He seemed to like the poor, weak, and insecure.  Don’t all of us connect with that?  In fact, when I think about it, I’m pretty thankful for Jesus.  He lived for our success, right?  I browse the buffet of his teachings and pick out the pieces that I like best.  Yep, he taught us a lot of good lessons – and we’re pretty thankful for those.

But wait, there’s more! Not only does he seem like a savvy fellow, history also tells us that Jesus died for something he believed.  We place Jesus somewhere between William Wallace, Maximus Decimus Meridius, and Dumbledore.  All of these guys died for something they believed in – and all of them were awesome.  To most of us, that’s a great stopping point for our spirituality: a man lived, he believed in something, he died, and now he’s famous. 

But the Bible doesn’t stop there.  It tells us that Jesus rose from the dead. 

Hold on.  We just crossed over from Braveheart to Dawn of the Dead. 

Now, I’ll certainly “smile and nod” at the general idea of the resurrection.  I might even dress up for it, but I’m not sure that I really, practically, believe it.  I’m not sure if I can stake my life, my passions, my Friday nights, and 4^th period English on this “zombie story.”

Believe it or not, you and I aren’t the first people to ever wrestle with this question.  The apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 15 explains the importance of the resurrection.  In verse 4, Paul basically tells the Church in Corinth, “If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, go ahead and disregard everything else we’ve said about him.”  Regardless, shut down the buffet and take away the menus.  According to Paul, there is only one option. Take it or leave it.  Deal or no deal.

See, the actual, historical, resurrection is pivotal to Christianity.  It absolutely is not a few fairy tales with a moral lesson.  Believe it or not, Jesus wasn’t focused on my personal success.

If all of this is really true - if a God-man really did condescend to our tiny planet in order that he might do what we couldn’t – shouldn’t that change my life?  And if we really believe this Jesus literally rose from the dead - if we believe he defied physics, anatomy, and time - doesn’t that change everything?  Logically, wouldn’t true belief in this create in me an unquenchable, irresistible, eternal passion? 

Real belief in Jesus changes my Easter, but it also changes everything about the other 364 days of the year.  Like a contact lens over a clouded eye, the implications of Easter shift our focus.  Life now has purpose, and death loses its sting.  Our quest to appease others, ourselves and the Almighty concludes in the resurrection of Jesus.  It’s much greater, much more filling than a religious buffet.  Real resurrection inspires real belief.  Real, vibrant, Biblical-based Christianity doesn’t suck the life out of people- it gives them life.  Christianity is not a formula for success.  Those never work.  Rather, the Christian's life is compelled by the resurrection of Jesus like a river is constrained by the towering canyon around it.  The river is simply being what it is.  It is the force of the canyon that transforms a current-less flow into an overwhelming rapid.  So, my question is simple - do you really believe in Easter?  Does your belief compel your life?  It’s a good question - really.

Re-Create

If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next.  It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.

-C.S. Lewis

I remember like it was yesterday- I tore through the packaging and un-wrapped my very own, brand new, Desert Eagle replica, battery powered, BB gun.  From its sleek black finish, to the lifelike weight and size, it was everything that the online description made it out to be. I hastily loaded the gun with the plastic BB’s, found some half decent batteries (they’re never included) tore open the screen door and ran into the freedom of blue skies, crabgrass and backyard adventure.  “Finally,” I thought.  It was time to try out my newest toy on the nearest tree or unlucky animal.  Near the creek bank, I heard a rustle in some overgrown, weedy-looking bushes - this is literally every little boys dream. 

I held my breath and waited as an unsuspecting chipmunk scurried into the sunlight.  Our eyes locked.  I pulled the trigger. 

Adrenaline surged through my veins.  Ecstasy.  I watched as the small, yellow BB exploded from the pistol barrel, twisted violently through the air- and fell harmlessly to the ground…no more than 15 feet away from me.  Figures, things are never as good as they’re promised to be. 

I wonder if it’s the same with Christianity.  We all have our expectations.  All of our problems are supposed to disappear, right?  But things are never what they seem.  Still, we keep trying, and our situation just gets worse.  Dreams are still shattered and relationships still disintegrate.  All the while, those typical remedies prescribed by the people we look up to most seem shallow and frankly, don’t work.  We wish that we could’ve given it a test run. 

Hold on.  Are we missing the point entirely?  We use words like “grace,” and “faith,” but do we really have any idea what we’re saying?  After all, who is Jesus and why did He come to earth?  I’ve spent the last 3 years of my life asking myself and you all that very question. The answers vary, and yet they all seem to revolve around one primary idea – “Jesus came to die on the cross for my sins so that I can go to heaven.”  While I certainly agree with this answer, I can’t help but wonder- Is that all there is to Jesus?  Is He just our cosmic problem solver?  Speaking practically, don’t most of our lives boil down to, “I do the ‘right’ stuff and don’t do the ‘wrong’ stuff, so God has to be happy with me.” 

A passage in the Hebrew Scriptures that I haven’t been able to get away from lately speaks directly to this idea of Christianity.  In the book of Isaiah (chapter 58), the prophet warns the Israeli people that their hearts are screwed up.  But it is not for the reasons you’d expect.  In fact, the Israelites seemed to be rather pious at this time.  They “daily seek [God] out, and are eager to know [His] ways.”  They “humble” themselves.  They fast.  Sound familiar?  In fact, sound a little “churchy?”  In Mountain Brook terms, “They have a daily quiet time; go to church on Wednesday, Sunday morning, and Sunday night.  They go to Young Life, to BigTime, join a D-group, and join a Campaigners group.  They pray - alot.  They go to Donna Greene.  They fast (and not just because the lunch room food is bad).”  They are really good, really clean looking folks.

Yet God is upset with the Israelites. They’ve missed the mark.  To the Israelites, religion is something that they do.  It isn’t who they are.  They’ve bought into the dangerous philosophy that they can “twist God’s arm” with their own personal piety.  This is dangerous.  Especially when we obsess over how much we do for God, and yet, we still feel empty.  We really try, and we are really let down.  That thinking can make us angry.  It does make us angry.  It makes me angry.

People are funny.  We refuse to put our faith in Jesus, and then we blame Him for letting us down.

“So what?  I already knew that I was screwed up.  Is there any hope?”  Isaiah shows us that a relationship with God is much deeper, much more robust than we could ever imagine.  Judaism was not God coming to the Israelites and saying, “I’m freeing you from half a millennium of physical slavery in Egypt so that I can give you an entire new set of laws and make you slaves indefinitely in a different way.”  No.  God desired a relationship with the Israelites, and He desires one with us in which He says, “Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.”  See, Jesus is in the process of reclaiming this world and He wants us to join in with Him.  This is so much bigger than dodging hell!  He asks us to join Him in re-creating the world, not just to sing praise music and hope for the best.  He wants His people to daily “act justly and love mercy (Micah 6:8),” not just go to another small group. 

Re-create.  Not retreat(s).

True Christianity is a long, hard process.  Like a constant flow of water over a rock, it changes everything about you.  It’s slow.  It’s painful.  And it looks nothing like you expect.  Still, Jesus tells us, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.  I am the King who is bringing healing to the entire cosmos.  If – and only if – you repent and believe in me, you will someday enjoy all of the benefits that my kingdom brings.”  He’s here, working now, and He wants us to join with Him. 

Believe It or Not

Suspicion is dangerous, but that does not mean that we should suspend our suspicions.  It means, rather, that we should suspect our suspicions, knowing of their danger.

-Merold Westphal

Why in the world do I believe what I do?  It’s a good question – really.  One of the greatest of the Greek philosophers, Aristotle figured out that our beliefs are based on 3 factors.  The first is our reason – what we believe just seems to make sense.  The second is our emotions – it feels right to believe what I do.  The third (I bet you see this a lot) is our culture – since mom and dad believe something, I believe it. 

But do you ever sit and wonder why? Or does it make your head hurt too much to bother? Do I go to Bible study just because my friends go?  Is religion just something I do?  Did I give up on religion because my parents or siblings are fanatics?  Have I seen too many “religious” hypocrites? 

Honestly, I find it easier to avoid these uncomfortable “why” questions.  After all, I’m just a kid right?  I just want to have fun.  I just want to be happy.  Is that asking too much?  But I wonder, if I’m afraid to ask these hard questions – then do I really believe what I say I do?

Believe it or not, Jesus had something to say about our questions.  In John 5:39, Jesus uses the Greek word “ereunao” when he is talking to some local religious leaders.  Ereunao is an imperative statement (basically a command) that simply means “search.”  When the religious leaders were questioning Jesus’ authenticity as Messiah, Jesus did not simply dismiss their doubts.  Rather, He told them ereunao the scriptures and see if He was who He said that He was. Jesus didn’t tell us to stick our heads in the sand and follow him.  He told us to be proactive.  Seek and you will find (Matthew 7:7).

Ereunao.

But seeking isn’t easy.  It takes time, and often makes us vulnerable.  It takes courage.

Later in John’s gospel, some of the “cultural Christians” decided that following Jesus was a bit too much for them.  So Jesus asks his disciples, “Do you want to go away as well?”  Here I imagine Jesus drawing a line and saying, “Well guys, here’s your chance.  You can leave too if you want.”  But Peter speaks up.  “Lord, to whom shall we go? (John 6:68a)” 

Courage.

Peter made up his mind in that moment to really follow Jesus.  Jesus wants us to have courage?  Maybe that’s not what you see in the 21^st century pop-culture Christianity, but it’s who He is.  God is not scared of your questions.  Actually, it’s what He wants.  But courage is dangerous.  It requires us to stick our necks out.  It requires us to ask real, uncomfortable questions.  Questions that might scare us.

So, to my Christian friends, I have a question.  Do you have courage?  Do you ereunao the scriptures?  Do you take this Jesus thing seriously?  What kind of impact would it have on you if you did?  Why in the world are you a Christian?  Please, don’t make Jesus something that you do on Tuesday morning, Wednesday night, Thursday morning, Thursday night at 7, Thursday night at 8, and sometimes on weekends.   Spare us the T-shirt.  Jesus calls for a radical following.  It’s supposed to make us uncomfortable – get used to it. 

To my cynical and doubting friends, I have a question too.  Do you ereunao your own doubts and cynicism?  Is it possible that your doubts are based on your own personalized idea of what’s right and wrong?  Maybe you’ve proven to yourself that there is not God because he probably wouldn’t be happy with your lifestyle.  Do you trust your doubts enough to doubt them?  Do you question so much that you see holes in everything- except for your own questions?  What if your doubts are wrong? 

Jesus Christ – the most important figure in human history.  Imagine reading all of the books on Jesus.  Good luck.  So, let’s take his words seriously.  Let’s have the courage to search – together.  I guarantee you’re going to be surprised what you find. 

Maybe Jesus is more than we thought He was. 

If It's Broke- We've Gotta Fix It

"Any picture of human life that "works" is necessarily informed by deep-seated beliefs about the purpose of human life." -Timothy Keller


My family has a tradition of watching a movie together on Thanksgiving Day.  I'll admit, it's one of my favorite traditions.  A free movie after stuffing myself with turkey? I'm not complaining.  This year I chose to see Hugo over my other two options: The Muppets and Arthur Christmas.  To be honest, I was expecting a Martin Scorcese version of I,Robot, but from the moment the lights dimmed, I knew I was in for a surprise. 


I'll go ahead and recommend this movie to you.  Instead of trying to lay out the incredibly complicated plot, let me give you the bare bones. Hugo is about the desire inside of each of us to "work."  For the first part of the movie, Hugo (our orphaned protagonist) spends his time trying to fix an automaton (robot).  Hugo does everything he can to fix the machine.  To  my surprise, only an hour into the movie he fixes the robot!  Movie over, right? Wrong.  Fixing the robot doesn't "fix" Hugo's need to "fix." In fact, it only makes him realize that there are much deeper issues.


Sounds familiar, right? Whether you spend your Friday nights at The Dunes or packing up for your next church trip, you've got to admit that you're searching for something.  We really, really want to find some purpose in life.  On the other hand, we really, really, really want those beliefs to complement the way we are actually living. So what do we do?  We find a set of beliefs that explain what life is about, and we use those beliefs to make us feel good about how we spend our time.  


Doesn't make sense?  Ok, let's talk Mountain-Brookish.  What if you like to party hard on Friday and Saturday nights? Don't you find yourself making up  a god in your mind who's easy going, and just likes to kick back and have a good time?  On the other hand, what if you are hard core youth group?  Don't you make up a god who smiles at you for living the right kind of life? Oh, and he probably gets angry at those who narrowly avoid the police road blocks?  Or maybe you like a tolerant god.  He or She (just like you) figures there is no right or wrong.  Maybe there's just no god and we're just floating along.  In that case let's have a good time.  But wait, what's a good time?  Is it partying or another mission trip?


My point is that we all have our beliefs, or religion, that tell us how to live our lives.  We judge everyone else and everything else that we know based on that religion.  I think we relate more to Hugo than we'd like to admit.  Over an over again -whether it's a new drug, new girlfriend, new service project, new Bible study- we "fix" ourselves.  The problem is that EVERY SINGLE TIME we end up alone.  In short, our religion has failed us.  We don't work.


Where do we go from here?  In one of the final scenes of the movie.  Hugo, running from the orphan loathing, train station inspector (Sacha Baron Cohen), trips and breaks the automaton.  The inspector catches Hugo, and all seems lost.  Unexpectedly, the man Hugo was trying to impress/fix/change shows up and claims, "The boy belongs to me!"  It's one of the most heart wrenching movie scenes I've ever witnessed.  Hugo didn't need to fix one more thing.  He couldn't fix enough.  Hugo needed to be unconditionally, undeservingly, accepted.  I wonder, how different this is from us?  We long to hear those unconditional words of belonging.  Whether we admit it or not, we seek it everywhere.  The problem is - our religions don't do that for us.  We need (and I want to suggest that there is) something real, something concrete, something supernatural, that offers to redeem us unconditionally.  


What I want to suggest is that you and I stop fixing robots (and creating new robots to be fixed) and start taking this situation we're in seriously.  And maybe a good place for us to start is to admit that the reason we want to "work" is because we don't.