Beginning (SA)

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week . . . 

 - From John 20

The Bible is a book of beginnings.

"In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth."

"In the beginning was the Word."

"When it was the first day of the week."

We go from the Old Testament, in which God is launching everything, to the New Testament, where the baton is handed off to us, so that we may launch everything.

The Sabbath goes from being the last day of the week, when we have rested from our labors, and when we return gifts of praise and tithe offerings back to God, in return for His goodness to us.

Hard work . . . then good things.

But in the New Testament, the work itself is a good thing. We want to work. We choose to work because we are under grace. It is no longer something we are forced to do. In fact, it is no longer work at all. It's acts of service to others. We take on the mind of Christ.

Thomas served an important purpose. He wasn't just some stick in the mud holding us all back. Thank God for Thomas! He is like most of us!

In fact, I can imagine Thomas . . . at the Cross. Not understanding fully what had happened, he may have been the one most angry at the outcome. "Nothing ever turns out right for us!" He had to see for himself, that Christ was dead. Perhaps he touched the drying blood on the deceased Lord's face. Maybe he stuck his finger into the holes in Christ's hands and feet . . . just to be sure.

He took his hand, or maybe a cloth, and wiped the area around the wound in Christ's side. He could see that blood had drained, completely, from it. He bent over and listened for the sound of a breath coming from Jesus's mouth. He put his hand over Christ's heart, for the longest time, for any sign of beating.

Maybe he insisted that they wait, before removing Him to a tomb. "Didn't Jesus say He would rise up? Let's wait here a little longer . . . . let me check for a pulse again."

Maybe hours went by . . . and maybe Thomas was, at that point, the one in charge of declaring Jesus completely and sufficiently dead. The others got irritated. But finally Thomas said "It's over. Take Him away." And for two weeks, Thomas sunk into a deep depression. He went far away. How deeply did he mourn?

But while the others had been with Jesus for an entire week, some of them finally found Thomas and told him that they had seen the Lord . . . alive! And finally they were able to prevail upon him to met up with them on the next Sunday. He did . . . and it became another first - - - the first Sunday worship service in history, in which all of the Apostles (except Judas) were present with the Lord. And it featured the Thomas experience as the lesson of the day.

Thomas is not to be diminished because he doubted. He is to be valued because he doubted. And thank God, because that's how most of us are.

And it all happened on the first day of the week. The Beginning of the New Era places beginnings, themselves, in their rightful role. The first day of the week is now our worship time. We celebrate now, first. We tithe, first. We serve, first. We follow, first.

And everything else just falls into place.

Beginning and End (SA)

Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead . . . 

 - From Revelation 1

Christ's steps out of the tomb signaled the vanquishing of Death. A new Era had dawned . . . an era in which Death would no longer rule us, as it had since Adam and Eve were cursed for their disobedience.

But His work was far from finished. His time with his friends, before His ascension, was like a half-time break in a football game. They received their strategy for the second half. Indeed, Christ has been gone long enough that we may end up with pretty close to two halves of history, divided by his Death, Resurrection, and Ascension.

The Second Half gives us a chance to participate in the emergence of His Kingdom. Now we get to vanquish Death, too.

But we can't vanquish Death if we keep acting like it controls us. Death goes hand in hand with the behaviors that brought about the curse in the first place! We have to disconnect the strings that still tie us to the Law, to Judgment, and to Death.

We have to end sin in our own lives.

Our language betrays us. Stephen Covey, in his book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, discusses the limitations of the phrase "have to." He says "We don't have to do anything." The only thing we may actually have to do is to die, if we live long enough. But anything else we do involves a conscious choice on our part . . . even if some of those choices are habitual, or instinctive. Think about it - You don't have to go to work by a certain time. You don't have to mow the lawn, or buy Christmas gifts. You don't even really have to breathe, if you don't want to.

When we say "I have to . . . " it means we are under the control of other forces. We are not free, liberated, intelligent and dignified beings whom Christ has redeemed. We are still slaves to the old system.

But under grace, we may choose to go to work. We may choose to mow the lawn. We may choose to purchase Christmas presents. We are noble persons that choose to do good things, or necessary things. It's a slight change in attitude that takes us from being paupers, to being God's children living under grace.

We no longer have to gossip about others. When the name of my great-aunt Melissa is brought up (she died in 1980, at just about ninety years of age), those that knew her will reflect that she never said an unkind word about anybody. My niece, Becky Houle, resists conversations that move towards gossip. She will quietly leave the place where it is happening. This is something people have noticed about her, and point out. It's a good thing to notice about somebody.

If you have eternal life . . . if you're really going to live forever (and we will have our own resurrection experience some day), then you are free to comment only on the good things about others . . . all others.  We can put an end to the way we think about others. It's pointless! You're alive! Death is vanquished! Now put an end to our words and thoughts, that Christ said is the same as murder.

(There's that sin and death linkage again!)

Christ launched a new era. Now it's our turn. We can participate in it, too . . . but we have to put to death the things that are keeping us from walking in His shoes of dignity, honor, goodwill, and love.

End and Beginning (SA)

I shall not die, but live . . . 

 - From Psalm 118

There's a crashing finality to Christ's emergence from the grave. The death of death is an event to dwarf all others in history.

There's nothing quite so final as the end of death. Death had always represented the ending of life. The ending of anything. Ecclesiastes 9:5 says "The Living know that they will live, but the dead know nothing more."

Ecclesiastes 9:10 "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom."

The characterization of death as a sleep, especially in the Old Testament, brings home, perhaps more eloquently than we would care to think about, the utter hopelessness of being dead. When it comes to our fear of death, the thing we seem to dread the most, is not the prospect of punishments and never-ending agony (otherwise, why is it such fodder for comedians?), but rather, the sad prospect that we will miss something. 

And sleep is the same thing. We hate to sleep through a good movie, because we might miss the good part! 

And it makes us sad, that we might not be here to see our kids grow up, to see what their kids are like. If the process of dying were not so painful, we would never want it all to just end. Because no matter how bad life gets - - - if you're alive, there is always a chance that things will get better.

Death was always the end of it all. But Christ's resurrection put an end, to the end. "O Death, where is thy sting?" When He spent those six or seven weeks with His friends, after dying, it gave them so much confidence to move forward that that handful of men and women changed the world forever. 

Eternal life will do that to you. 

"I shall not die" is a double negative. Death died. And we will live. 

End (SA)

We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name . . . 

  - From Acts 5

Jesus had been killed, and then he came back to life after three days. He visited with the Apostles for another forty days, and then ascended into Heaven, or . . . He elevated through the air, up into the sky, until He disappeared from sight. As He soared overhead, a cloud encircled Him, like the exhaust of rocket thrusters. 

The whole area around Jerusalem, and in fact, throughout all of Judea was trying to get back to normal. It was like a college town, three hours after a big home football game, when the stadium is back to being empty; traffic has gotten back to normal, students are out tossing Frisbees, and the libraries are filled with students. 

The Scribes and Pharisees, and Romans, liked the settled nature of things. People were just tired of the tension that had been tightening over the past few years, and especially, few weeks. Even the followers of Christ seemed to be wanting just to launch a routine of meeting with one another, and follow His directives, to spread the Kingdom of God, through acts of kindness and charity. It seemed like a slam dunk.

It felt like that whole awkward chapter had finally wrapped up. 

"Good, I'm glad that's over."

Everybody knew that a lot had ended, and not just the life of Christ on Earth. Whatever had been the case before, would never be repeated. 

It was The End. And the world breathed a sigh of relief.

But good times seem to bring out the worst in the worse kinds of people. For the Scribes and Pharisees, a return to normalcy meant never having to hear about Jesus ever again. They established rules of politically correct language. They would make it criminal even to talk about Jesus. This was just the little detail that would bring the whole affair to a sufficient and final ending. 

They would rid the world of this Jesus message of love, selflessness, humility, and purity. Let me live my life as I see fit! Let me be who I really am! Don't judge me!! And so, their continuing ignorance of what Christ was all about made them willing to extricate even the good parts of Christ's message, if it meant never having to hear about Him. His very Name was too convicting, too challenging! 

But the world has never been able to annihilate God's Plan. Even one person, out of a population of billions, is all it takes to keep the Gospel alive. 

Crag

Be my strong rock, a castle to keep me safe . . . 

 - From Psalm 31

In Scripture, the safest place seems always to be off by yourself somewhere, in a cave, in a hideaway that is hard to get to, and where there are no vantage points to see you.

Even in the most ancient eras found in Scripture, a city was never a good place to hide. The city, and crowds, insist that you conform, or assimilate. In our modern age, we insist on going into the middle of a crowd, and mouth off the most absurd things, present ourselves in a way that demands people notice, and dare anyone to do anything about it. I do not believe the sincere opinions are accurately reflected in most polling done today.

The only place to be yourself, really be yourself, is by yourself. The closer one gets to God, the fewer others there are, and the safer one gets. God gets us far off from the madness of crowds, where we can hear, and see, and feel more intimately and honestly. Intimacy and honesty are the same, and the greater the intimacy, the less a reliance on sensual pleasures, or touch. Intimacy becomes a thing that affects one's spirit.

Christ got off alone, a lot. And when He died, He was utterly alone. He was placed in a safe tomb, with a heavy rock. He was well-protected, and they even posted a Roman guard outside.

People of faith have never been safe. The world concocts ways to get believers out in the open, where they are exposed, and where they are prodded to answer questions to land them into jail, or a violent end. For whatever reason, a person that believes in selflessness, in fidelity and purity, is an existential threat to non-believers. You must get away, get remote, and get behind a sure fortress. And then trust in God to protect, all the more.

The after the Crucifixion was a peaceful day. The world was stunned. Christ's believers were scattered and confused. The problem . . . it seemed . . . was solved.

But Christ was safer than ever. And He would soon emerge into a state where He really can take care of His own.

Good

 . . . yet he did not open his mouth . . . 

 - From Isaiah 52

WWJD

What Would Jesus Do? This catch phrase, from probably the 1990s, has apparently run its course. And that's probably welcome. It came to mean "I'm doing what Jesus would do, and you are not."

But there's nothing quite like having a personal encounter with Death, to illuminate what Christ, or any person, would actually do in some scenario or another.

Follow Christ? When He was being lied about, pursued, attacked, criminalized, investigated, hammered, tortured, He said nothing. Or, He said little. He did not defend Himself. He let it unfold.

Of course this was God's plan all along, and Jesus knew this. He knew that in three days He would be alive again. But this attitude severely undercuts the fact that He was treated as poorly as any human ever had been, more unjustly, more inequitably. Christ was willing to take our penalty. But His passion for justice and life was part of His being. His trial and death was harder for Him to face than any one of us . . . for He had to turn His back on the law, on justice, on peace, on love . . . in order to let it all happen.

Follow Him? No, not us. Our culture, and our generation, believes in "being yourself". Stand up for yourself. Don't let people push you around. Don't apologize.

I was born this way.

I would suggest that there has never been a generation so unwilling to follow Christ . . . really follow Him, than the present one. Purity, justice, sacrifice, serving others: these are not in our vocabulary. And it's ironic, because no generation has given Christ-following more lip service, without accompanying action, than this first generation of the Third Millennium.

He didn't open His mouth.

That's what being "Good" is all about.

Maundy

. . .  love one another. Just as I have loved you.

 - From John 13

The mid-point of Holy Week could be redubbed "Drop Your Guard Days." Or, to use Star Trek parlance, "Lower Your Shields." It's time to drop the phony political alignments and get down to brass tacks, to the nitty gritty. To life and death.

Because, at this point, it really does come down to Life and Death.

From the dawn of creation, to the end of it all, the shadow of the Cross extends from one end of the cosmos to the other.

Like my last moments with my Dad, while he was still conscious, before he drifted off to sleep, never again to awaken, these are the heart-felt and absolutely essential moments in the life of Christ, and in the church yearly calendar.

But we'll go off to some cushy service tonight. Some churches will actually do mostly symbolic foot-washing. But did Christ want us actually to wash each other's feet, or did He wish for us simply to love one another? Isn't that the hardest thing yet? Feet-washing is fine . . . but people certainly are going to undergo the ritual, while harboring resentments against others, even others that are present. And that's missing the point.

It all comes down to the Death of Christ . . . why He died. Why he had to die.

Do you think that, as He shared these last peaceful moments with The Twelve, that He was hoping we'd score some points in political debate? Did He want His Church, His Body, dividing and realigning with temporal, earthly political factions? Did He want half of us to be hyper-focused on stewardship of the Earth and it's environment, while demonizing the other half, which is hyper-focused on stewardship of our own bodies and the higher calling of moral purity?

Or did He simply want us to love one another?

The word "Maundy" is attributed either to a Latin root which also means "mandate," or possibly to a middle English word indicating the giving of alms. Both definitions are good.

A new commandment: to love one another as the Father Loves Christ, and us. A new commandment: a mandate . . . "maundy." And so the word "mandate," like the word "rainbow" becomes another Christian word and concept that has been misused in our times. We think of mandate as something politicians force upon the population, because they have a "mandate" to do so. But as believers, our understanding of "mandate" should be linked to a commandment that we love.

It's the last thing Christ wanted us to get. It was what dominated His prayers later on that night . . . in Gethsemane.

Love one another.

Holy I

 . . . purify our conscience . . . 

 - From Hebrews 9

It's called "Holy Week." But what makes it holy? What makes anything holy?

We've been told that the definition of "Holy" is "set apart," or special . . . different . . . on a higher plane.

God is Holy. Jesus Christ is Holy. Some people in history have been called "Holy." But really, what evidence do we have, that any human has even been holy? Jesus, though holy, or sinless, still died. And the reason we die, is because we are, in fact, not holy. We are corrupt and corruptible. God forbid we should live forever in this state. Let us become holy.

At the very least, we can reflect, this week, on how our unholiness has precisely made us human, which in turn has made the historic events of this week essential. Do you want to live forever? Be holy. It's the only way.

Outside a few religious or spiritual circles, the world "holy" is not all that popular today. It's dated, uncool. It smacks of judgmentalism, even hypocrisy.

The writer of Hebrews says that Christ's death and resurrection would make us pure. And not just our behavior, but our conscience, our thoughts!!

Wouldn't you like to have pure thoughts? What if you never felt malice for someone, ever again? What if you thought about others only, and rarely about yourself? How about being able to say exactly what needs to be said, and withholding comments that would not help?

Purity goes way beyond that, though. You would be able to tame any selfish impulse that came to mind. You could actually control yourself. You would be able to refrain from any action that could harm the body, mind, or spirit of another person. You would avoid thoughts, and behaviors, that might prove unhealthy, or unwise.

But doesn't that mean we would be able to say "no" to all those little things we love to do, when we're caught up in the moment?

Indeed, it does. And even if nine times out of ten, your yielding to impulsive words and actions actually causes no harm at all, you would still have that one of ten, where you meant well, but somebody got hurt anyway. And it was because of you.

Purity isn't easy. And it's certainly not popular.

But it's what keeps us alive through eternity. And it's what allows us to relax and actually enjoy every special moment that comes along. Without regret.

Purity is a big deal. Let's have pure thoughts. 

Palm

Lord, send us now success.

 - From Psalm 118

There was a very popular book about fifteen years ago, called "The Prayer of Jabez." It talks about an obscure figure in the Old Testament - a man named Jabez, who asked God to increase his territory, and God did. We can boldly ask God to protect us, and prosper us. He might just do it.

There's s much about sacrifice and service during Lent; denial of self; putting other first. So that, it's a relief finally to get on the good side of things. We've gone through troubles and want. But according to God's promise, we're going to win in the end.

Jesus rides into Jerusalem, as King. He finally is being recognized by a growing throng. By the end of the week, He'll be dead, and the crowd will turn against Him (we really should think twice about joining any mass movement - that ought to be a red light). But although a major setback occurred, Jesus' arrival in Jerusalem, riding a donkey, truly was the beginning of His Kingdom. Something good, and divinely promised, began that day . . . and it was never going to be turned around.

Over the course of history, the movement just grew, and grew. Even though it is the most hated movement in the world, it would grow just the same.

We may have to wait a very long time. But God brings us success. We're on the winning team and Christ is King now.

So go ahead and ask for the success. It doesn't hurt to try.

Twisted: Lent XXV

 . . . being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus was about to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the dispersed children of God. So from that day on they planned to put him to death.

 - From John 11

It's hard to believe, but as many times as I have read the Bible, and most times, quite carefully, searching for some nugget that perhaps few people have noticed, I still can come across items that feel like I have never read them before.

So it is today. Perhaps God really does cover our eyes with a veil, until we're ready for certain things. All things, in their own time.

We have a scenario here, that feels eerily like present times. It looks like Caiaphas, and the Pharisees, in their own way, actually saw some good in Christ. They had a Machiavellian scheme that they rolled out, where Christ really was from God. His purpose was, yes, indeed, to die. But His death would restore the nation of Israel, and would launch a chain of events that would have the scattered children of Abraham returned home again . . . and thus would God's plan be consummated.

Christ really was the promised one. And He really was meant to die.

And to them, the death of Christ couldn't happen fast enough:

• They were eager to have God's plan revealed
• They yearned to have a role in accomplishing the will of God
• They wanted to strike while the iron was hot; let them not delay, lest they lose their focus!

They truly felt they were doing the right thing. Others in Scripture were sorely mistaken, yet firmly convinced they were doing God's will: Cain, Esau, Joseph's brothers, King Saul, King Ahab, Absalom.

They all, all of them, justified the murder of another, by convincing themselves it was the right, and good, thing to do. 

Like modern times. Morality is twisted, until people that are doing right, have become the immoral ones. Notice how they use the word "immoral" so much. Look how they say to people with different viewpoints that they are not "Christian" for believing such. 

 . . . This from people that don't really consider themselves Christians.

Their forbear, Caiaphas, was no different. Doing evil . . . committing murder . . . because it's the good thing to do. 

Lent is a good time to check your goals and objectives. Do you mean harm to others? Are you setting yourself to be on the side of people that are opposed to Christ and His followers? 

Stakes: Lent XXIV

. . . the torrents of oblivion made me afraid.

 - From Psalm 18

We don't take the time to understand what's really at stake.

We have blinders on, that have convinced us that, no matter what, one way or another, we're going to live forever.

We'll be in one place, or the other. We'll be in paradise or the underworld. But we'll be alive, just the same.

In this regard, death without Christ does not scare us much, otherwise there would not be so much humor around the idea of "going to Hell." And it's a horribly misplaced game we play, in our dallying about the idea of Hell, as it is commonly understood.

Joking around about Hell would be the same as cracking wise and silly about the Taliban, or Auschwitz. Although . . . I suppose our glamorization of the Vikings and of pirates just proves how we are unable to access the meaning of terror. We seem to want to keep a part of it alluring.

And so it is with Hell.

But if we really believe what people want to believe about it . . . it is nothing to laugh about.

How about dropping our suppositions about eternal torments, and take the biblical concept of annihilation? This one idea alone totally separates Christianity from every other world philosophy and religion. What if you really die? What if death yields life only, for only those that have accepted it . . .and absence of life, or death, or oblivion, for them that have not accepted it?

It is a much simpler equation.

Life + Acceptance = Life
Life - Acceptance = Not Life

Lent is a good time to reflect upon the deeper things of Scripture, that nobody wants to talk about. It is a time to understand what's at stake: either life forever; or absence of life.

Alien: Lent XXIII

 . . . the land where you are now an alien . . . 

 - From Genesis 17

The concept of "alien," in Scripture, is one about which a lot of people now consider themselves expert. Scoffers, doubters, and garden-variety atheists alike, now love to tout any Scripture passage directing believers to welcome and assist aliens. Because, it is said, our ancestors were aliens.

Christians are considered aliens from an other-worldly nation. (This is true. The more "Christian" you are, the less likely you are to fit into any of the world's societies. Sincere Christians do not participate in mass movements).

But the promise God made to Abram was not based on his status as an alien. It was based on his status as righteous. God's promise to us, for being faithful, is not riches on earth. It's not health. It's not lots of friends. It's not success or fame. The promise is land . . . lots of land. Land as far as you can see, and beyond. We are hard-wired to love open, undeveloped land.

Some people believe that religion is the cause of wars. Maybe so, but only indirectly. I would blame our love for wide open spaces as the cause of wars. Territory. Geography. If we can only be surrounded by a lot of land, we can feel safe and secure. We have all the resources we need for a good life. Even desert land, if you have enough of it, can be all one needs, if she can steward it skillfully.

Now . . . this idea about our desire for land does not explain why so many people crowd the cities. Maybe it's based on the opposite impulse: a sense of insecurity, a need to be noticed; a craving to find your value in getting lots of "likes," as opposed to being left alone.

God approached nomadic people, as His plan was being rolled out. Is it because the solitary lifestyle lends itself more easily toward righteousness? A person that is alone should certainly have an easier time holding to the discipline of prayer.

Nevertheless . . . we should indeed be kind to all people, no matter what. And aliens typically are decidedly exposed and vulnerable. My personal view is that we should not be mixing it up in this particular political debate. An influx of aliens means a bountiful harvest for spreading the Gospel. And that, ultimately, should be what believers are all about.

In Lent, we may begin seeing all people as of greater value than ourselves.

No Can Do: Lent XXII

Where I am going, you cannot come.

 - From John 8

The narrative is important, because it describes an instance where Jesus said one plain statement, and the religious people around Him didn't understand it's simple meaning.

I believe it was David Dean, a long-time professor at Berkshire Christian College, who would be asked a question by his students: "What does it mean?" To which his replay was: "It means what it says. What does it say?"

And so, here.

Jesus says, "Where I am going, you cannot come." He's about to do something that no one else could do: Die, but live again.

They thought He was saying "Maybe He's going to kill Himself." But anybody can do that.

When we get Scripture wrong, we concoct interpretations that are fanciful, and that make it more complex than it is. It's actually quite simple. Let it remain simple.

His message was to the religious people, to the leaders, to the smart people, the popular, the powerful, the influential, the celebrity, the wealthy.

He says to the Koch Brothers, and to George Soros; to Barack Obama and to Donald Trump: You cannot do what I'm about to do.

So don't even try. Just follow Him.

It's quite simple.

Resurrection: Lent XXI

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection . . . 

 - From Philippians 3

We really discount the power of the resurrection. It is the most compelling theme in all of Scripture.

Rudy Giuliani wrote "Weddings optional, funerals mandatory." Besides being great advice for prioritizing our time, it also indicates the near-obsession we have with life and death issues. We realize death is a very, very big deal. Almost every day on Facebook, someone reports a death - - - a marriage, a pet, a loved one. Without doubt it is perhaps the singular life event that grabs each of us by the jugular and does not let up.

And yet, all of Scripture addresses this theme, over and over again. Death is regarded as The Problem of and for humanity.

The curse upon Adam wasn't so much being cast our from Eden. The main feature of the curse (the penalty for sinning) was death!

Now, we can argue about whether or not God is loving, or just, in allowing death into our lives. Some will argue that one death is more unjust than another . . . . in fact, we all will die and it will have the same effect on each of us, in the end.

But we will die, nevertheless. It is our Big Problem. And face it . . . it dominates all of our decisions and thoughts, from nursery to grave.

And God has taken care of it. It's all right there, in Scripture.

So why aren't we more excited about it? I would estimate that 80% of all sermons have to do with making us feel better; more affirmed; safer; welcomed.

But that's not The Problem. The Problem is that we're mortal. And God has taken care of it for us!

Paul wanted to know the power of Christ's resurrection. He bet everything he had on wanting to be raised up . . . from DEATH! . . . at the last day.

Not being whisked off to a floating, breathy dream in the way-off yonder!

Paul was eager to lay his head down in the sleep of death, and then . . . like an instant! . . . wake up to see his Lord, and his loved ones, never to die again.

The Power of the Resurrection!

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there's a saying: We have a Hulk.

In the pantheon of comparative world religions, there should be a similar saying: We have a Resurrection.

Balance: Lent XX

. . . for you test the mind and heart, O righteous God.
     - From Psalm 7

The Conservatives have it right: Liberals use emotion but not logic.

The Liberals have it right: Conservatives seem to lack compassion.

But God puts both to the test.

We have to study Scripture carefully and closely. Let it harmonize with itself. Let it make sense. Let the Bible be its own commentary. Find the threads within, that bind it all together. It is not just a bunch of stories, lists, and moral precepts. It is a complex narrative that must be understood, as a unified and integrated whole. It tales time, prayer, and effort. It required patience and the willingness to be challenged.

It is also good for the Bible student to be well-versed in other disciplines: Science, History, Mathematics, Ethics, the Arts. Bible students need to care about current events. They should even be well-versed in the popular culture. What are people thinking, and why?

God will check up on us . . . He will apply Scripture to our lives. And we'll understand better if we've been studying.

But we also have to show the love that God has shared to us, and through us. We must act. We must care. We have got to put others first. We must not respond hatefully to others. We must not respond hatefully to all others. Even politicians . . . opposing politicians . . . are people. Immigrants are people. People that do not know English, are people. God loves them all.

Our heart must be on the right side. It must care. It must soften. It must help and it must act.

Jesus wept.

God will also follow up on us: Do we care? Do we love? Is our heart in the game, as well as our mind?

Reasoning: Lent XVIX

Thus they reasoned, but they were led astray . . . 

 - From Wisdom 2

Wisdom 2 takes the perspective of scoffers, doubters, God's adversaries . . . okay I'll say it: Evil People. 

They really hate "the righteous man," for a litany of reasons, which the reader may read for him or herself.

God's enemies fancy themselves quite learned and logical. At their base, they're driven by envy - the happiness of others, that they don't share; The selfless and warm parenting that benefited some of their friends, but that they never knew; the unfairness of life. 

And this idea of envy is mentioned toward the end of the passage - that it all started with the Devil's own envy. There are other corollaries in literature and legend: Thor's brother Loki comes first to mind. All trouble starts with an envious person. What the envious person doesn't realize, is that the people they hate have troubles, too - - - they just have learned to manage it, or overlook it, or mask it. 

Personally, my attitude is that, yes, other people have lots of problems. I should not add to their problems with my own. I shall manage by response to problems. Maybe it will become a model for others to follow. Maybe it will lessen the stress in other's hearts. 

But the evil people . . . not wanting to be thought of as foolish, use all kinds of reasoning, and logic, and "credentials" to lift themselves up so that they can take others down. "You can't argue with him - he's a PhD."

But in Lent, when we should be denying ourselves things that have no eternal value, perhaps we can start by remembering that the smartest person in the room is probably the person with the fewest degrees. I have always believed it . . . and it perhaps explains why it's easy for me to see the value in everybody. 

Individualism: Lent XVIII

I do not accept glory from human beings.

 - From John 5

Our "Culture War" is founded upon a desire for people to be noticed; to belong to a crowd; to be "on the right side of history."

I must be right. But for me to be right, you must be wrong.

It has all boiled down to two definitive camps: the voyeurs and the exhibitionists. And some people are in both camps.

Please notice me! Now, let me pry into the most private affairs of your life, that I may pass judgment. 

It's childish. It bespeaks a low form of emotional intelligence. It's what we should expect from the "Me Generation" of the 1980s . . . or the "No Rules" ethic of the 1990s. It's what adults have modeled to children, now into the fourth decade of it.

And it goes even further back than that - - - the Baby Boomers, the children of the Fifties and Sixties, that had it all. They grew up with more options, and more material wealth, than any generation before them.

My University of Michigan professor, in a 1981 political science class about futurism, was right. He was concerned about what would happen once the Baby Boomers were in charge of things.

And my Texas Christian University professor, in a 1985 MBA class about consumer behavior, was also right. He said that the growth of two-income homes, children raised in daycare centers, and the experience of the latchkey child, was an experiment that we could not afford to try out with such aggressiveness, that we had no idea what we were doing.

Did I just blame a lot of good, moral, well-meaning, responsible people - - - people that raised good kids - - - for society's problems? What if I did? What if the two professors were right? Are we mature enough to consider it dispassionately? Is it important enough to check our assumptions?

Materialism. Instant gratification. Me first. Distrust The Other (we all do that, and probably always will).

But what if we downplayed the desire to be noticed by other humans? What if we didn't have to be "liked," whether it's talking about our on-line posts, or belonging to a very large group that affirms us?

What if we put the desire to be accepted by God first, foremost, and only?

I have known a few people in my life, that were so close to not needing to be accepted by others, so that they could follow God's way, unfettered by the influence of people. They were as close as a person can get, to being a true individualist.

Where are the people that are not so needy? The people that need only acceptance by God? The people that take God's word seriously, not to engage in party politics or denominationalism? The people that can balance God's love, with His justice, and His demand for moral purity? Are people in the 2020s - the Decade of Vision, going to be able to handle all of that? Or will they continue erecting great armies of aimless people, angry at all the other aimless people?

Take Lent seriously, and you may find yourself the only person left.

Patient: Lent XVII

The eyes of all wait upon you . . . 

 - From Psalm 145

Lent is about waiting, as is Advent.

Two seasons out of the Church calendar, each lasting about a month; devoted entirely to waiting.

That's one-sixth of the year.

Christians need to be patient. There were four hundred "Silent Years" between the end of the Old Testament, and beginning of the New. The Seven Days of Creation were probably "days" in God's eternal, timeless reckoning - seven essential time periods, or steps, which to us would be rendered something differently than twenty-four hours (how long were the days prior to the creation of the Sun?)

"The Day of the Lord" describes a day that is not necessarily twenty-four hours long. It really means the "now" of the Lord. Any time God acts, it is His day. A thousand years of Armageddon may be over with in a flash.

On the first day of a month, you relax, thinking you have an entire month to complete some project. But then a few days pass and you realize you are now in the middle of the month.

Time is a very fluid thing. If a day seems to go on forever, was it really the same length as a day that goes by in a flash? And if we're sleeping in the grave for two millennia, once we wake up, is it not basically, to us, the same day that we died?

We wan wait. We can do this. We can be patient.

This is why Love is such a simple, basic thing to practice.

You can practice love. Because life is short . . . and in eternity it will not seem that big of a deal. We can tolerate others. We can wait for marriage. We can put off eating, until dinner time. We can take our time on important tasks, and give them our best, quality, attention.

We can wait for the Lord. We need to be patient.

Water: Lent XVI

. . . everything will live where the river goes.

 - From Ezekiel 47

Imagine Judgment Day. Sentences are pronounced, and then a sudden burst of fire totally obliterates anything that was corrupt, evil, and/or dead. The Earth, and in fact, the universe itself, is left desolate. Even the setting of the novel and film, The Road by Cormac McCarthy, will seem like the first really lush day of Spring, in comparison.

Complete darkness, totally bleak and barren. You're standing there with a crowd of people, as these events unfold. You are among those still standing. You have made it this far. You escaped the final punishment for selfishness, carnality, evil, sinfulness.

You look about you, and a sense of anticipation builds. The people left standing mostly know what is about to happen . . . but it has always been only in their imagination. The scene that just transpired: Of everybody, one moment, going about their daily routines, in the Year 2236, or maybe 2159, or even, 2019. But in an instant, there was an explosion like none other, and a brilliant flash of light that even permeated into darkened, windowless cellars, jerked every living creature from its slumber.

All at once, (or was it a hundred years?) there was a battle, and the appearance of a great figure in brilliant light - The King! Human-built armaments gathered together to resist the Person in blinding light. The humans had so much to fight for! The right to be yourself! To do whatever you wanted to do! To gain power so that the entire community could do your bidding! Humanity had perfected the art of gaining power over others, and was not about to yield it now! But the King and His angelic forces swept the human armies away, with a single word. In a flash, it all seemed to over.

The vast landscape was left with the entirety of all of humanity, from all ages, gathered in a crowd and looking up. They were clad in simple robes. And then came the judgment, and the burst of fire.

Just like that, it was over . . . this moment of time that couldn't have transpired in less than a hundred years. Yet . . . here we were.

From out of the sky came a city the size of a world. It was made of gold and other shiny metals.

And then, once grounded . . . water flowed from its east gate - it flowed outward, towards the East. And everywhere it went, life burst forth. Life, and food, and color, and peace, and joy.

The floodwaters of Noah, once used to eradicate life on earth, were now used to restore it - - - but to restore it eternally. The water from the River of Life eventually works its way into the soil of all the earth, bringing forth life wherever it soaks.

And you're going to want to take a drink of it.

Water is a symbol in Lent. Be mindful of Water. And of Life.

Welcome: Lent XV

 . . . the Galileans welcomed him . . . 

 - From John 4

The "Other." There's so much talk about "the Other."

But we all have an "other." Even the "politically correct" of our time, that preach about our irrational "fear" of "the Other," fear an "Other" of some sort.

The detestation that a Trump hater has of Trump backers, is exactly the same as the feelings of the worst kind of racist. It derives from the same part of the brain that drives us to mistrust whatever is different.

We come into the world, as a part of a family. Members of a family share DNA, immutable traits. They resemble each other. They talk like each other. And even if they end up in disparate political camps, they behave like each other. And these DNA components of a person are more important that something superficial like political leanings.

At the end of life, these hard-wired commonalities of families is what brings them back together. As friends pass away . . . the ones you called "family," we are left, more and more, with family that, by default, is there for us . . . if we're lucky,

We do prefer the familiar. It's how we're made. Yes, we're born that way. And it's good that we are. We need to belong. We need to know that we are not so distinct as to have no place on the earth. When a person chooses to leave the familiar, and home, and family (notice that "family" and "familiar" are from the same root), then it represents a failure on the part of families, and the Church.

And yet, Christ was not accepted by His own. (Isn't that the point). Strangely, and ridiculously, families operate to pull down someone with remarkable gifts. You would think that Jesus' family, his neighbors growing up, in Nazareth, would support and encourage Him! Isn't it good for all of us, if one of us succeeds?

And so, too often, the gifted person has to go outside his own home, and family, to find success. And more often than not, when he succeeds, he still ends up sharing his bounty with those that rejected him.

 . . . which brings us full circle. This is why we are supposed to embrace aliens. A person with great gifts, and value, gets rejected by his own; and then wanders until he finds a place where he can succeed.

Be the ones that welcome such people. But before you do that . . . make sure you do not drive away that dreamer, that slightly odd person, from out of your own family, and town.