Return and Rest

“For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.’ But you were unwilling.” (Isaiah 30:15 ESV)

When you are facing some trial or difficulty, what do you do? If you are like me, you probably rely on your own strength, chase down solutions, and figure out how to handle the situation yourself.

Even as believers, we are often unwilling to live the life of faith: return, rest, quietness, and trust. That is why Isaiah received these words. Judah, under imminent threat of attack from the Assyrians, was looking everywhere for protection and help except to God. Does that sound familiar?

Rather than turn to God, rest in him, and discover his strength in our quietness and trust, we look around for self-made saviors. Our problem is not God’s unwillingness to save but our unwillingness to receive his kind of salvation: turning away from our own striving to rest in God.

How do we solve this problem of our own self-reliance? We need to see more and more that turning from self-effort to resting in God is the wisest course. God stands ready to bring the deep waters of his mercy and grace into our life when we trust in him. That’s what Isaiah goes on to tell Judah:

“Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.” (Isaiah 30:18 ESV)

Reading Scripture Slowly

Every Christian knows that engaging with Scripture is an important part of life with God. For some people, reading a few chapters has become a daily habit while, for others, it remains an unmet goal that can leave them feeling guilty.

However much you read, and whether that reading comes easily or through much struggle, the temptation for all of us is moving too quickly over the words of Scripture. (Ironically, those who try to read regularly through the Bible might be the most prone to this temptation.)

I came across a quote that pinpoints how we can make the most of our time in the Scripture, and the answer—perhaps to your surprise—isn’t more volume. It’s pace.

“If there is a secret to getting involved with God through the pages of Scripture, then perhaps it’s this: turn the pages slowly… Many of us have to read for our jobs, and we pride ourselves on how rapidly we can move through vast quantities of print. But the Bible discourages us from making mileage a measure of success. In many cases, its riches are perceptible only to those who move slowly, like mushroom hunters, peering closely where at first there appears to be nothing at all to see.”

Maybe rather than striving for mileage and volume we can slow down and linger long enough in the Word to discover the deep riches of God’s grace.

What is Jesus Doing?

Most of us are better at thinking about what Jesus has done than about what Jesus is doing. We know the cross brings forgiveness, but we forget that the ascended Christ continues to rule and reign over us so that we can live with courage and hope in the present.

One person calls this “the gospel gap.” We know that back then Jesus atoned for our sins. We also know that Jesus will bring a day of shalom and then we will be free of sin and struggle. The gap comes when we forget the gospel doesn’t only matter then, it also matters in the now between the two thens!

Here is a nice quote that can help us fill in the gospel gap:

“While it is popular to ask, “What would Jesus do?” the better question was always “What is Jesus doing?” The first question assumes that the Savior is on the sidelines and that the burden of life and work is on our shoulders. But in that case the Savior is not really saving but is setting impossibly high standards that we attempt to imitate by doing what we assume he would do if he were in our situation. On the other hand, the question “What is Jesus doing?” is built on the conviction that he is alive, reigning, and at work in our lives. In other words, he is in our situation, and that changes everything thing about our mission. Rather than believing that the work of Christ is completed and that now it is our turn to try to imitate his life and work, we take on the identity of being witnesses who watch and testify to his continued work of salvation that is unfolding before our eyes.”

— Craig Barnes

Blind Spots

Have you ever started to change lanes only to discover — at the blaring of a horn — that someone was in your blind spot?

Blind spots are scary. While a car has two blind spots, one on each side, fallen people have many more. It is humbling to recognize that we can love the Lord yet fail to see many things about ourselves that are probably clear to others around us.

What is our biggest blind spot? Sins like anger, covetousness, and lust affect us all, but tend to be like semi-trucks driving right beside us that aren’t hard to spot. Jack Miller suggests that our biggest blind spot is something that most of us probably don’t even think about: self-dependence.

Miller writes:

God’s work begins when ours comes to its end. Sometimes His presence is not felt with power through our methods however useful they may be, especially when we are confident we have the right approach and insights. God has a way of wanting to be God and refusing to get too involved where we have our own wisdom and strength. Then when we run out of wisdom and strength, He is suddenly present…

I think He wants our confidence to be exclusively in Him, and when we lose our self-confidence then He moves in to show what He can do. Perhaps self-dependence — and forgetting the strength to be found in Christ-dependence — is always our biggest blind spot.

I know that when I am ministering out of my own strength and wisdom, I am relying on the wrong person to do ministry: myself. I need to turn from self-dependence to Christ-dependence.

Is it possible that some of the frustrating circumstances and trials in our lives are like the horn exposing self-dependence in our blind spot? Or are there places where, despite our confidence that we have everything under control, we need to come to the end of our own work so that God’s work can begin?

Jesus calls us away from self-dependence to live in dependence on him. He promises, “Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

The above quote comes from Heart of a Servant Leader: Letters from Jack Miller, pp. 201-202.

Doing Life With Each Other

Grandma said you didn’t live with a man like Grandpa; you live around him.  And that was pretty much the way things were between them.  Grandpa didn’t feel at home in the house, and when he wasn’t at work he spent most of his time at the barn.  When he was in the house they lived around each other (quote taken from Wendell Berry, Nathan Coulter, pg 35)

I’ve never really stopped to consider the difference between living with and around someone.  People live with each other when they inhabit the same world and share in life’s ups and downs together.  People live around each other when they occupy the same space but inhabit different worlds.  It’s like the difference between good friends and family sharing a nice holiday meal and twenty business people sitting side-by-side on a public transit bus as they travel silently to their individual destinations.

I found this to be a good reminder of the kind of life Jesus envisions for his people.  We’re not merely a bunch of individuals independently heading in the same general direction.  We’re a divinely created family unit that shares in the same life with God.  In fact, the deep Spiritual bond Jesus establishes between himself and us also binds us to one another.  Together we compose “one body” (Rom 12:4-5; 1 Cor 12:27; Col 3:25) united to the same head, Jesus Christ (Eph 4:15-16). 

Paul points not to himself but ultimately to Jesus’ own heart when he says, “I want you to know how great a struggle I have…that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love” (Col 2:2).  By his Spirit, Jesus is at work knitting our hearts together so we can live life together.  This deep Spiritual (and mysterious) bond we share with each other in Jesus means we get to do life with rather than around each other.

What a great reminder to let our individual lives converge with the lives of other believers God has placed in our midst.  Since we inhabit the same life in Jesus, we get to walk alongside each other through thick-and-thin.  We get to be involved in each other’s lives.  We get to encourage one another.  We get to bear one another’s burdens.

As we pursue life with others we’ll quickly recognize that it is eminently more encouraging and life-giving than living the Christian life by ourselves merely around other Christians.

Blessings,

Adam

5 Things I Learned on Sabbatical

I have just returned from a wonderful three-month sabbatical. This is hardly an exhaustive list, but I wanted to write down a few things I learned:

1. I have a loving church

One estimate suggests that only 5% of churches offer their pastors sabbaticals. A fellow pastor said it best when I told him I was on sabbatical: “Wow, your congregation loves you!” I am so grateful that my church cares about my spiritual health and understands that ministry is difficult and filled with ups and downs and twists and turns that necessitate periods of rest.

2. I have a loving God

The love of God is astounding. We forget this when we start defining ourselves by our activities and efforts. Then God’s love becomes his reasonable response to all our hard work. We cannot worship God or be astonished by his love from this place. See yourself as the chief of sinners without any hope or goodness and then you will be amazed that this majestic God loves you. Then you will discover that real joy is found in setting your heart on this loving God and living in dependence on his grace.

3. Being busy is easier than being quiet

It’s easier to feel spiritual when your day is filled with ministry activities like sermon prep, counseling, visits, etc. Take all that away and you realize that the heart of the Christian life — cultivating communion with God through Scripture and prayer — is harder than it looks. Is it possible that we fill our lives with busyness because solitude and contemplation are difficult and reveal the shallowness of our faith? God is inviting us all into deeper communion with him.

4. There are wonderful churches in our presbytery

Our family was privileged to visit some amazing churches in our presbytery during sabbatical. They were all different — more formal, less formal, bigger and smaller — but at each church we were encouraged by solid preaching, faithful worship, and sweet believers. We truly experienced that there is “one body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” (Ephesians 4:4–6)

5. Ministry is a privilege

Sometimes it doesn’t feel this way because ministry is hard (see point 1) or because pastors become dull to the love of God (see point 2) or they start doing ministry by the power of the flesh rather than by communing with God (see point 3). On the other hand, where else will you be invited into the best and hardest times of people’s lives, as well as spend a significant part of your week meditating on the gospel and preparing to encourage and build people up in their faith? A successful sabbatical ends with excitement to get back to shepherding the flock.

Praying with Paul

Here is a post from Adam Phillips who will be starting as our pastoral apprentice in the fall.

For many of us, just thinking about prayer can be like gearing up for an awkward, dreaded phone call. Maybe you have to ask your friend for a huge favor. Or maybe you need to apologize for something. Or maybe you’ve been out of touch for a long time and know that making conversation will be like pulling teeth.

How often do we come to prayer and think to ourselves, “What will I say?” Or even better, “What can I say?” At times we wonder if God has time for our silly thoughts and requests. On the one hand, we know that prayer is part-and-parcel of the Christian life. The eternal God has pursued us in Jesus and has happily opened a 24/7 phone line with us. He never tires of hearing our prayers—just look at the Psalms. But on the other hand, prayer can be a really cumbersome thing for us.

The Scripture has a lot to show and tell us about prayer. All the different dimensions and aspects of prayer keep us learning for our entire lives! In the beginning of his letter to the Colossians, Paul makes a few comments about prayer that are encouraging for us as we cultivate a life of prayer.

1. God doesn’t grow tired of listening

Paul says “we have not ceased to pray for you” (Col 1:9). Paul is constantly in conversation with the Lord about the Colossians. Paul is saying his prayers for the Colossians literally have no end. If you’re a parent, there are days when you can’t handle the unceasing chatter from your child(ren). The Lord has no limit with Paul, nor with us. Of course, this is an encouragement for us to pray more than we do. But let it also be an encouragement that the Lord never tires of hearing your prayers, even if in your mind it just sounds like chatter.

2. Thanking

Paul also thanks God when he prays because “we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints.” From a prison cell, Paul is marveling at the gospel fruit being born in Colossae. Paul’s thankfulness for this gospel fruit overflows into thanking God in prayer. Simply thanking God for who he is and what he has done, is doing, and will do—even the small things—is a perfectly acceptable prayer.

3. Asking

In his unceasing prayer, Paul asks the Lord to continue his work in the Colossians, that they would grow in knowledge, wisdom, and understanding and walk in good works (Col 1:9-10). God is in the process of transforming each of us into Christ’s likeness. Requesting that God would continue his work in us and those around us is another aspect of prayer that fits the biblical mold.

Let us remember that in Jesus Christ we meet the Lord who hears the cries of his people (Psalm 34:17). If you’re struggling with prayer, start simple by praying with Paul, thanking God for what he has done and asking that he will continue his work.

When Church Disappoints

The church will disappoint you.

Maybe not if you stay on the fringes, resist real community, and avoid investing yourself in the lives of others. Otherwise, it’s only a matter of time.

I increasingly talk about the reality of disappointment with people who are joining the church. Sooner or later, in one way or another, someone will let you down or something will disappoint you. What will you do then?

I came across this solid advice by Jonathan Storment about three things to say to people who are facing disappointment with the church:

1. Sometimes your complaint is a calling. Maybe the reason it bothered you so much that no one came to visit you in the hospital is because you know that’s not who the church is supposed to be. And you are the church. It is easy to blame leaders/members/systems. But maybe the reason this is gnawing at you so much is because God is tapping you on the shoulder to minister to others out of the disappointment you have.

2. When you are disappointed with a church is the worst time to leave your church, especially to go to another church. I have seen the other side of this. People will come to Highland (the church I serve) and for a month or two they think it is the best thing since God made the blueberry pop-tart, but over time, the same disappointment creeps in. It turns out that humans are in this community too, and we don’t always do things right, we don’t always sing the songs that are on your iPod, or say just the right things, or respond in just the right ways. And if you change churches enough you will never learn to love the actual God, the same way you might never learn to love actual people.

3. Disappointment isn’t always bad. In fact, that is often when people grow the most. It is when we learn that we were leaning too hard on certain things, good things, but things that can’t bear the weight of our ultimate love. It is when we have to realize that God isn’t synonymous with what causes us to have goosebumps or an “aha” moment. God actually has bigger things in mind for our lives than a perpetual state of individual bliss. That was true for Jesus, and servants are not greater than their master.

Yes, the church will disappoint because it is made up of broken, sinful people. But if you leave, you will miss the way that God’s grace wants to teach and transform you.

A Wedding Homily

Several of you asked if I could post this, so voila! Here it is.

April 11, 2015

Jacob and Elisa, at the outset of your marriage, I would like to tell you the story of the whole Bible.

I know what you are thinking: this does not sound like the 8 minute homily I promised you during premarital counseling. Well, marriage is full of surprises! But I also think the whole Bible can be summarized as the story of four marriages, each of which has a lesson for you as you start your married life together.

The first marriage is found in the creation story. The Bible opens with God making all kinds of good things, things that complement each other and go together: heaven and earth, the sea and the dry land, and of course man and woman, Adam and Eve, two people designed to be one and to work together. Right at the start of Genesis, the climax of God’s good creation is the marriage of man and woman.

Here is the first lesson: your marriage is a gift of God’s goodness. Scripture says it is not good to be alone. You were created for relationship, for companionship. God is good to let you share your lives together physically, emotionally, and spiritually. There will be many challenges in your future that will test your belief in God’s goodness. But you will face them together. Learn to see your marriage as one of the good gifts of your creator.

Of course, we know that the good relationships that God established in creation didn’t stay that way. They were broken by sin, by human pride, and the refusal to acknowledge God’s goodness. We call this the fall. After the fall, instead of judging humanity, God in his grace set out to restore humanity. He established a special relationship with Israel and that relationship is spoken of as a marriage, a covenant partnership, in which God the bridegroom takes Israel as his bride. Marriage becomes a sign that God is going to pursue sinners — take sinful and unworthy people and love them and make them his.

Here is the second lesson: Since God did not run away from sinners but pursued them, this is what you must do for each other. Because of sin your marriage will reveal that we live in a broken, fallen world. Marriage will reveal all kinds of sinful things about you and it will reveal all kinds of sinful things about your spouse. Many people run away from seeing the hard things that marriage reveals. But God is giving you marriage as the place where sin will be revealed and grace can be extended. Pursue one another in love and forgiveness, and as you do your marriage actually becomes part of the way that God is pursuing you to make you his.

This brings us to the third marriage (see how fast we’re moving!). God’s relationship with Israel reaches its fullness in the Messiah who is God’s own Son. Jesus will redeem his people by paying for their sins on the cross. In very striking language, Jesus redeeming sinners is presented again in the language of a marriage — Jesus the bridegroom lays down his life for his bride the church. The relationship of husband and wife is modeled on how Jesus has sacrificially loved and redeemed his beloved.

Here is the third lesson: your marriage is a call to sacrifice. The biblical pattern for marriage is hard to maintain. It is tough being a Christian, being a husband or wife, making family life work. Just as God’s marriage to his people cost God nothing less than the death of his only begotten son, it also costs you. You must learn to die daily to selfishness and pride, to be humble, forgiving, patient, generous, wise, etc. In the end, you must learn to lay down your lives for each other as Jesus has done for you. Marriage is the context in which so much of what Jesus has done for you is symbolized and reflected.

Finally, the bible ends with the consummation of all creation. God who made everything will restore everything that has been broken and marred by sin. The symbol for that reality is marriage. The Bible that begins with the marriage of the man and the woman ends this say: the New Jerusalem comes down from heaven like a bride adorned for her husband (Revelation 21:2). This is what God had in mind all along: that marriage would point to the coming together all of things in Christ.

Here is the last lesson: as good as your marriage can be, and I truly hope it’s the best marriage, it is not the place where you will find ultimate hope and fulfillment. We know this because part of the vows you will take is “as long as we both shall live.” Your marriage is temporary, but your marriage to Christ is eternal. You will not get all the satisfaction you need from your spouse, and marriage was never meant to carry that kind of weight. But when your spouse fails you, or when death eventually parts you, you are still married to your beloved Jesus. Let your earthly union be the place where together you both cultivate that heavenly and spiritual union with your savior. Let it be a foretaste of the eternal joy you will have with Jesus.

Well, that’s the whole Bible story — creation, fall, redemption, and new creation. I hope that’s also the story of your marriage: a place where you discover God’s goodness, his grace, his sacrifice, and the hope he has laid up for you in heaven.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Ascending or Beginning?

This is a post from the old site but it’s a thought I keep coming back to.

How do you view the Christian life?

The medievals viewed the life of faith as semper ascendere or “always ascending.” The life of faith was one long ascent from virtue to virtue until you reach glory. Sure, there might be little setbacks in which you sin and fall out of the state of grace but those are quickly remedied and the ascent continues.

I know someone who attended traffic school where each session began with the class reciting, “In every way and every day we get a little better, hey!” That wasn’t a medieval saying but it could have been. For the medievals, the life of faith was one of constant progress in holiness.

Martin Luther came along and said there was a semper or “always” to the life of faith. But it was semper incipere or “always beginning.” The Christian life is always coming back to the starting point and beginning again. Luther described the church and the soul as a “rising dawn” because it always assumes the posture of rising again at daybreak. One writer describes Luther’s view this way:

For the true [faithful] to live in faith is for them to live as if they are ever at the beginning of their Christian existence, constantly appropriating this faith and fighting the evil within them through this faith… It is as if one is always entering the church anew, entering anew upon the life of faith.

This is a very different posture than the medievals had. It is a consequence of the fact that, for Luther, the believer is always both a justified person and a sinner (simul justus et peccator). Therefore, what characterizes the faithful is not that they are always getting better but that they are always repenting. They turn from sin and ask again, not simply for an increase of grace, but for the gospel itself through which faith comes and is nourished.

So here is some good news if you don’t feel like you are always ascending. Whether you have been a believer for 40 years or 40 minutes, you can begin again.