Opps! Something Happened on the Road of Life
There was quite a gap between my first post and the most recent one. Why the silent span? In December 2006 I was diagnosed with cancer. We got it early but it was aggressive.
The first month following diagnosis was very "interesting," to say the least. In the midst of the emotional upheaval and fear God spoke to me in the most marvelous ways. I kept a journal during the first month and I capsulized it in a short piece titled "30 Ugly Days and Conversations With God." If you want to read it, CLICK HERE. It is in a pdf format so it may take a few longer seconds to load.
Now, six months later and two treatments of radiation, I'm back on track and feeling good with less than a 10% chance of recurrance. Thanks to praying friends, I've had an experience I can live to talk (and write) about.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
In The End It’s About Reconciliation
(From upcoming article in the Handbook for Spriritual Leadership--Embracing Conflict)
What’s the point of creation and the fall of Adam without reconciliation? It is incomprehensible to think that God would create man in his image, give Adam and Eve and their seed free will choice, allow them/us to experience the consequence of rebellion and conflict without the opportunity for reconciliation.
Looking through the Old Testament lens we see how futile reconciliation efforts are by our own works. Paul in explaining the radical difference between the two states of sin and righteousness uses three words with similar root and meaning when he talks of a new kind of reconciliation. Those words are katallagḗ, apokatallássō and metallássō. Packed into the root of the meaning of these words we have first an understanding of exchange and then of reconciliation. [1] What an incredible depth of meaning is wrapped up in those Greek words that our English fails to capture. Exchange and reconciliation. What a completely appropriate concept to fuse into a single word meaning to be reconciled from conflict.
God’s Exchange In order to accomplish reconciliation with God there first must be an exchange; His son for me, His blood for my sins, His body for my punishment. Second is the exchange of our old sinful nature for a new one. But wait a minute. Who started this conflict, God or me? Shouldn’t God, the Father, expect me to take the first step of reconciliation? After all, I’m the one who failed Him, not the other way around. If we are talking Old Covenant standards, yes. An eye for eye, tooth for tooth and life for life. Whoever was at fault must make an atonement for the sin. But in the New Covenant there first must be something for me to exchange for and so Grace was poured out through Jesus and his sacrificed life so I could have something to exchange with and for. Wow!
All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19
Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Romans 5:11
…and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Colossians 1:20
At a spiritual level our believing in the Lord, Jesus Christ accomplishes two similar but distinctive states. First I am justified. That takes care of my “legal” state. I am no longer guilty for my sins. Second is that I am reconciled and that takes care of my “relationship” state. While my justification is a static status my reconciliation becomes a dynamic change or exchange. Because Christ exchanged his place with me for punishment my relationship with God the Father is restored and I then exchange an old Adam body for a new one. (Col. 1:22; Eph. 2:16)
One other connection of reconciliation made so real is contained in the experience of Communion. If we take Paul’s point in Colossians 1:20 and put it up next to Hebrews 10:10, …we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all, we now experience the complete understanding consisting first of exchange, His body, His blood for my life and then reconciliation and relationship with the Father just as if I had never sinned. Communion, reunion, reconciliation.
My Exchange So how does that apply in a human conflict situations? In order to have reconciliation with another there has to be an exchange as well. I have to exchange my way, my control and my ideas for a bigger need, opportunity and vision. No matter the level of hostility I have a choice. I can exchange my self justifying human nature of gratification, preservation and control of my environment for something different. For what thing might I make an exchange? I have the choice to exchange my selfish nature to become an advocate for the best outcome for the person with whom I’m in conflict. In essence, because of the exchange it is now useless to fight with me because now I have chosen to fight for you. Reconciliation is now available.
[1]Kittel, G., Friedrich, G., & Bromiley, G. W. (1995, c1985). Theological dictionary of the New Testament. Translation of: Theologisches Worterbuch zum Neuen Testament. (41). Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans.
(From upcoming article in the Handbook for Spriritual Leadership--Embracing Conflict)
What’s the point of creation and the fall of Adam without reconciliation? It is incomprehensible to think that God would create man in his image, give Adam and Eve and their seed free will choice, allow them/us to experience the consequence of rebellion and conflict without the opportunity for reconciliation.
Looking through the Old Testament lens we see how futile reconciliation efforts are by our own works. Paul in explaining the radical difference between the two states of sin and righteousness uses three words with similar root and meaning when he talks of a new kind of reconciliation. Those words are katallagḗ, apokatallássō and metallássō. Packed into the root of the meaning of these words we have first an understanding of exchange and then of reconciliation. [1] What an incredible depth of meaning is wrapped up in those Greek words that our English fails to capture. Exchange and reconciliation. What a completely appropriate concept to fuse into a single word meaning to be reconciled from conflict.
God’s Exchange In order to accomplish reconciliation with God there first must be an exchange; His son for me, His blood for my sins, His body for my punishment. Second is the exchange of our old sinful nature for a new one. But wait a minute. Who started this conflict, God or me? Shouldn’t God, the Father, expect me to take the first step of reconciliation? After all, I’m the one who failed Him, not the other way around. If we are talking Old Covenant standards, yes. An eye for eye, tooth for tooth and life for life. Whoever was at fault must make an atonement for the sin. But in the New Covenant there first must be something for me to exchange for and so Grace was poured out through Jesus and his sacrificed life so I could have something to exchange with and for. Wow!
All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19
Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Romans 5:11
…and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Colossians 1:20
At a spiritual level our believing in the Lord, Jesus Christ accomplishes two similar but distinctive states. First I am justified. That takes care of my “legal” state. I am no longer guilty for my sins. Second is that I am reconciled and that takes care of my “relationship” state. While my justification is a static status my reconciliation becomes a dynamic change or exchange. Because Christ exchanged his place with me for punishment my relationship with God the Father is restored and I then exchange an old Adam body for a new one. (Col. 1:22; Eph. 2:16)
One other connection of reconciliation made so real is contained in the experience of Communion. If we take Paul’s point in Colossians 1:20 and put it up next to Hebrews 10:10, …we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all, we now experience the complete understanding consisting first of exchange, His body, His blood for my life and then reconciliation and relationship with the Father just as if I had never sinned. Communion, reunion, reconciliation.
My Exchange So how does that apply in a human conflict situations? In order to have reconciliation with another there has to be an exchange as well. I have to exchange my way, my control and my ideas for a bigger need, opportunity and vision. No matter the level of hostility I have a choice. I can exchange my self justifying human nature of gratification, preservation and control of my environment for something different. For what thing might I make an exchange? I have the choice to exchange my selfish nature to become an advocate for the best outcome for the person with whom I’m in conflict. In essence, because of the exchange it is now useless to fight with me because now I have chosen to fight for you. Reconciliation is now available.
[1]Kittel, G., Friedrich, G., & Bromiley, G. W. (1995, c1985). Theological dictionary of the New Testament. Translation of: Theologisches Worterbuch zum Neuen Testament. (41). Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Charam and Romans 12:1
Four Frames of Trust
I have been writing about trusting God, trusting others and being a trustworthy person. One of the concepts that has emerged is if you contrast Trust and Distrust on a vertical axis with Factual/Rational and Subjective/Belief on a horizontal axis you get a matrix made up of the following trust characteristics.
In the lower left quadrant is a person who distrusts and that distrust is subjective or based on feelings. This person or an attitude within a person could be labeled as Cynical. Moving over to the lower left frame you still have a distrustful person or attitude but now it is based on a factual/rational basis. This still distrust but now the person can give you specific reasons to not trust God, others or perhaps even themselves. This is the Skeptical.
Moving up one frame you have a person who is now trusting or trustful or has an attitude of trust but it is based on factual/rational; only those thing they can touch and experience. This person only trusts what they know or understand. This is the Cautious frame.
Finally moving over to the right is the fourth frame. This is the person who trusts and trusts with all their mind and soul. This is person who trusts as much from the subjective and feelings base as from the unknowing. This is the Devoted frame of trust and is the one, I believe, God desires that we all enter in to in our relationship with him. If we Cautiously trust God for only those dimensions we know and can understand then we can only trust a God who is no bigger in capacity than our comprehension and imagination. That's a pretty small God. But, if can plunge into the Devoted frame of trust, I believe God has more available for us than we could ever imagine or understand.
Devoted For Destruction When you look up the Hebrew for devoted it is charam meaning devoted to or for destruction. Charam refers to those things in the Old Testament that were given as an offering to God. It means those things given to God cannot be taken back and literally means a gift given for, given to or given up for destruction.
If we then go to Rom 12:1, where the Apostle Paul speaks about being a living sacrifice, then what we see is intended for our lives is that it is charam that we must offer. We don’t offer our human life as a sacrifice that can crawl off the altar. If we offer our imperfect human body as a gift for utter destruction (charam) then we cannot not take it back. It is a permanent irrevocable offering resulting in utter and complete destruction. In that light then it is impossible for there to be the slightest chance that neos, a refreshed old part is the action. It is now, kainos, a wholly new creation is what must occur because of Lev. 27:29.
Here’s the additional kicker for me. The vision statement for Evergreen Christian Community, my home church is, Evergreen Christian Community is committed to transforming spiritual hunger into devotion to God. When you then look at that vision statement in context to charam, what we are saying is that ECC is committed to helping people experience spiritual hunger and through that hunger the Holy Spirit will cause an entirely new creation to form as an expression of the complete and utter destruction of our carnal life which is our reasonable act of worship.
Don’t you love it when you see the incredible interconnected labyrinth of concept God has laid out in His word. I love it!
For more material log on to SpiritualLead.com
Four Frames of Trust
I have been writing about trusting God, trusting others and being a trustworthy person. One of the concepts that has emerged is if you contrast Trust and Distrust on a vertical axis with Factual/Rational and Subjective/Belief on a horizontal axis you get a matrix made up of the following trust characteristics.
In the lower left quadrant is a person who distrusts and that distrust is subjective or based on feelings. This person or an attitude within a person could be labeled as Cynical. Moving over to the lower left frame you still have a distrustful person or attitude but now it is based on a factual/rational basis. This still distrust but now the person can give you specific reasons to not trust God, others or perhaps even themselves. This is the Skeptical.
Moving up one frame you have a person who is now trusting or trustful or has an attitude of trust but it is based on factual/rational; only those thing they can touch and experience. This person only trusts what they know or understand. This is the Cautious frame.
Finally moving over to the right is the fourth frame. This is the person who trusts and trusts with all their mind and soul. This is person who trusts as much from the subjective and feelings base as from the unknowing. This is the Devoted frame of trust and is the one, I believe, God desires that we all enter in to in our relationship with him. If we Cautiously trust God for only those dimensions we know and can understand then we can only trust a God who is no bigger in capacity than our comprehension and imagination. That's a pretty small God. But, if can plunge into the Devoted frame of trust, I believe God has more available for us than we could ever imagine or understand.
Devoted For Destruction When you look up the Hebrew for devoted it is charam meaning devoted to or for destruction. Charam refers to those things in the Old Testament that were given as an offering to God. It means those things given to God cannot be taken back and literally means a gift given for, given to or given up for destruction.
If we then go to Rom 12:1, where the Apostle Paul speaks about being a living sacrifice, then what we see is intended for our lives is that it is charam that we must offer. We don’t offer our human life as a sacrifice that can crawl off the altar. If we offer our imperfect human body as a gift for utter destruction (charam) then we cannot not take it back. It is a permanent irrevocable offering resulting in utter and complete destruction. In that light then it is impossible for there to be the slightest chance that neos, a refreshed old part is the action. It is now, kainos, a wholly new creation is what must occur because of Lev. 27:29.
Here’s the additional kicker for me. The vision statement for Evergreen Christian Community, my home church is, Evergreen Christian Community is committed to transforming spiritual hunger into devotion to God. When you then look at that vision statement in context to charam, what we are saying is that ECC is committed to helping people experience spiritual hunger and through that hunger the Holy Spirit will cause an entirely new creation to form as an expression of the complete and utter destruction of our carnal life which is our reasonable act of worship.
Don’t you love it when you see the incredible interconnected labyrinth of concept God has laid out in His word. I love it!
For more material log on to SpiritualLead.com
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