First, before I get to the question, be sure to visit the Prayer Wall page, we have a lot of needs to be keeping before God for the people of our church community!

 Ok, here goes…

Why Doesn’t Jesus let the demons He throws out identify Him as the Son of God?  Wouldn’t that make people believe, and wouldn’t that be kind of ironic?

Also: Why did Jesus warn folks not to make it known that He was the Son of God?

Ok…obviously, the reason this is asked is because the Scriptures don’t give a definitive reason why Jesus did what seems almost counterproductive to gaining a following.  I mean, if Jesus let supernatural beings identify Him as the Messiah, wouldn’t that just help to further His cause?  The most common  answer to that, and the one I tend to lean toward has to do with timing.

Everything happening in it’s right time.  The amazing thing about God is that He is sovereign, meaning, He is in complete control of all things.  The even MORE amazing thing about His sovereignty is that He seems to be able to exercises it through the midst of man’s appearant free will.  Jesus had to go to the cross…it was mandatory.  If He didn’t, we would still be lost.  There had to be a right time and a right place for people to know that Jesus is the Son of God…and the majority of that belief came after Jesus was killed and then rose again.  Had He let everyone identify Him as the Messiah, the groundswell of His popularity may have prevented His death.  Maybe that’s even why the demons were so quick to want to identify Him…to throw off the timing, make the cross a less sure thing? 

That seems like the most reasonable explanation for His behavior to me.

What do you think?

I love Eugene Peterson’s take on Matthew 5:5-13 in The Message.  No formulas, no fakery…just love and relationship.  “Just be there, as simply and honestly as you can manage.”

 Read this…read it again.  Read it slowly.  Jesus is crashing paradigms and inviting us to grace.  Take a deep breath…it’s like the shining after a rain. 

 5“And when you come before God, don’t turn that into a theatrical production either. All these people making a regular show out of their prayers, hoping for stardom! Do you think God sits in a box seat?

 6“Here’s what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.

 7-13“The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They’re full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don’t fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need. With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this:

   Our Father in heaven,
   Reveal who you are.
   Set the world right;
   Do what’s best— as above, so below.
   Keep us alive with three square meals.
   Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
   Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
   You’re in charge!
   You can do anything you want!
   You’re ablaze in beauty!
      Yes. Yes. Yes.

The CBC News  (a Canadian News agency) recently did a story on a reporter who “embedded” himself with the “Christian Army”.  Yeeks.  The two videos take about 25 minutes to watch in total…but it is well worth it.  It’s important for us as the church to listen to and understand the questions posed by those who try to understand us.  In fact, the reporters questions form some of the most insightful stuff about the issues at hand. 

VIDEO ONE

VIDEO TWO

Go take a look at them, and share what you think in the comments.  I think the most damning statement made comes as he summarizes his perplexity that we (Christians) want to change the world “from a compound out in the middle of nowhere”.  He concludes he has nothing to fear concerning their influence on the world at large.

It could even be an example of what I said in an earlier post…salt shaking out on salt.

Christians….mostly harmless.

*sigh*

“… no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins.”

Jesus said no one puts new cloth which hasn’t been shrunk on an old garment…and they don’t put new wine in old wineskin’s.  The idea he’s getting across is one of FLEXIBILITY. In that day, garments weren’t as disposable as they are for us. If a tear was made in an outer coat they would patch it with another piece of material, but they had to have material that wasn’t going to shrink up over time (as cottons and wools are prone to doing).  It had to be preshrunk or the patch would just shrink and tear the coat again.

From Eugene Peterson’s “The Message”

Matthew 5:13-16

“Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.

“Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

Salt brings out the natural flavor of a food.  It enhances what is already there.  Jesus used the idea of salt losing it’s salty-ness…but there’s also an opposite application as I contemplate this.  Ever have food with too much salt on it?  No good, right?  Why?  Because the salt overwhelms the natural flavor…all you can taste is salt.  The flavor is God…God’s presence and grace evident on this fallen earth.  If we put too much of our ministry, too much of our ingenuity in the mix…all the world will taste is the salt.  Maybe our culture has been screwing up it’s face at Christianity lately because all they taste is salt…and not the wonderful God flavors we were supposed to be highlighting.

The same can be said for light.  I’ve always heard this concept put negatively…that light illuminates what’s hidden in the darkness (which usually meant pointing out sin)…but when I read Peterson’s take on it, it gave me a fresh vision.  Light enables us to see things in color…see things for what they really are.  But, a light so bright and beaming straight into your eyes will only make you see spots and irritate you.  God is the color we are supposed to put on display…but if we put too much emphasis on our clever programs or catchy phrases or slick presentations….maybe all this world gets is a blast in the eyes of our light. 

The world will never make a place for Christianity…Jesus pretty much promised that.  But, that doesn’t mean we can’t examine our methods to make sure we aren’t putting an artificial barrier between Jesus and those who may seek Him.

Right on?

Here’s an interesting article from the Christianity Today site:

“Attack Dogs of Christdondom”

This is presented as a problem for Christianity…which it most certainly is….but think about this:

Isn’t this almost an “American” thing? Our present 21st Century culture, with it’s prioritization of free speech over civility and intense individualism has sort of created this kind of attitude of hostility in any exchange of ideas.

For example…look at the 24 hour news networks. There are only a few minutes of any real reporting of actual events, the rest of the HOURS are filled with split screens of two people who hold opposing views about who’s to blame for everything who viciously attack each other publicly.

We have sort of become Vick Nation….one giant, ongoing dogfight (except with no apologies or promises of reform).

I’m somewhat convinced its not even just a 21st century American Christian thing as it is an American culture thing that the evangelical church has adopted and perversely sanctified under the banner of “taking a stand”.

Either way…we as the evangelical church have got to repent for being prompted by antichrist methods.

The Kingdom of God is revealed in so many different ways.  It’s revealed in a kind touch.  It’s revealed in spaghetti noodles, soccer balls and summer camps.  We were never called to promote a church.  We were called to preach what Jesus preached, that the Kingdom of God is close at hand.  Then we were called to stretch out our hands and let the Kingdom of God press through us toward others.

The Kingdom of God is basically God’s rule over the hearts of men.  Anywhere there is a person who has submitted his or her life to God through Jesus Christ; the Kingdom of God is there.  Anywhere kindness is shown in the name of (for the sake of, in the style of, in harmony with) Christ; that is the Kingdom of God at work on this earth.

“Let Your Kingdom come, let Your will be done on earth, like it’s done in heaven.”