Devotion.al

Tag: politics

  • Power to Divide or Unite

    Matthew 5:3–12, Romans 13:1–10

    Authority is an issue. Authority is not the same as power. Plenty of people have power. In fact, most of us have power. We may not be aware of it, but we have it. One of the greatest powers we have on earth is our vote. It often doesn’t seem like it. Politicians, traditional media, social media all try to convince that we need to make the right choice, and then tell us how our vote doesn’t count because someone else has the power to our vote or take it away.

    Often we confuse power and authority. Power can make people do things. Authority, however, is the right (as in ) to orders, commands, and make decisions.

    We have a mutual agreement between our fellow citizens here in the United States. It is actually a mutuality of submission. We don’t think of it that way. We think of it as our “rights”. Through that mutuality of submission, we give authority to .

    As much as we may not like politicians we still, collectively, elected them. We don’t like that . It doesn’t change it though. In comparison to the era in Paul wrote, we do have power and authority in regards to our government. As much as we feel we have no control, in comparison to Paul, we do.

    When Paul tells us to submit it’s not quite the same for us. Yet, there is a truth. We are not called to beat our chests or shake our fists. We are called to reach out with open hands. The sad part is that right now the two “sides” have split Christians. Both sides (the parties are a completely different issue) have ideals that are . We have allowed ourselves to be divided.

    1) Politics and are two “bad” topics in social settings. How can we talk about them with the grace that we are to have through the Spirit?

    2) Why do we allow ourselves to be torn apart by politics, especially when we are called into by Christ as his bride (the church)?

    3) How can we balance the freedom and responsibility we have as citizens of the United States with the submission to authority that Paul calls for?

  • Were and Being Sent

    Luke 9:1–6, Luke 10:1–16, Luke 22:35–38

    This series of passages shows a progression of being sent out. The first passage is ‘ immediate 12 disciples being sent out. Their was to tell about the and to heal people. Pretty simple goals. Difficult mission. This seems to be the test run, for Jesus later sends out 72.

    These 72 are told that there are few workers. The 12 didn’t get that “pep-talk”. In both cases, they (whether 12 or 72) are to only preach to those who are open. Jesus tells them to “shake the off” if people are not receptive. In our day and age where were seek to not offend, this can seem pretty harsh. Yet, often we are called to plant seeds and on so that we can plant more seeds. If you plant one seed, but just stay in one place to make sure it grows, everywhere else you could have gone remain unseeded.

    Even still, there is a balance. While they are directed to move from town to town, while they are in one town, they only stay in one place. This is a not-so-subtle reminder that humans play . The latest prophet (or one sent by that prophet) is the latest “star”. Imagine how far too many people would clamor to host them, creating strife in a community where the of God is being preached.

    However, the last “sending” has a much darker and starker tone. Now, they are to be fully prepared and even armed. As an aside, many commentators struggle with Jesus telling them to have swords while at the same time being the Prince of and (to many) a pacifist. That’s actually what makes this third sending so dark and stark. The reality of the world is that being means that you will be destroyed. Now, there is the pacifist route, the self-defense route, and the armed aggressor route. As we look back at history, there is no question that the armed aggressor “evangelism” is against the Kingdom of God. Where the balance between pacifism and self-defense is a discussion that is still going on to this day.

    Regardless, though, we know that the ways and the hows of sharing about the Kingdom of God are always changing. The message does (and must) remain the same, but how we it changes constantly. One of the most common phrases used is, “this is the way we’ve always done it.” While, at the same time, how groceries, tools, gas, cars, and many other things are purchased has massively changed. Modes of communication have expanded. The ability to see across the world in real-time is everywhere. Yet, we want to deliver the message the same way?

    1) Where have you been guilty of saying/thinking/feeling “that’s the way we’ve always done it?” What do you think the underlying emotions are?

    2) Tossing the old just for the new can be just as bad. How can the old inform the past, and how can the new transform the past?

    3) All too often we operate as if it is old versus new. How can we operate old and new?

  • Dehardening Hearts

    Psalm 105:1–4, Deuteronomy 24:17–22, Acts 6:1–7

    “Solitary religion is not to be found there [inward]. “Holy solitaries” is a phrase no more consistent with the Gospel than holy adulterers. The Gospel of Christ knows of no religion, but social; no , but social holiness. working by is the length and breadth and depth and height of Christian perfection. This commandment have we from CHRIST, that he who loves GOD, love his brother also; and that we manifest our love by doing good unto all men, especially to them that are of the household of faith.”

    —John Wesley

    “…no holiness, but social holiness…” has been misused over the years, being equated with social justice. John Wesley was specifically speaking about what would now call private versus public faith. For John Wesley—and the church as a whole—found that Christians were more likely to be better Christians when living within the context of a discipleship and context. When our religion becomes private, we hide from ourselves and others that which needs to be brought into the light. The path of holiness can only be walked in the and the light with others. There are 2 “gotchas” with this. The first is the whole discipleship and accountability piece. When the world looks at us and judges us, it’s because we’re doing a pretty poor job. The other is found in our passages in Deuteronomy and Acts.

    “…we manifest our love by doing good unto all men, especially to them that are of the household of faith.” Read that again. The orphans and widows, those left alone, are our responsibility to love and care for. Is there a “reasonable” limit? Maybe, though God’s poured out on the cross puts a lot of doubt on that. We could be Ebeneezer Scrooge and talk about our taxes, work programs, welfare, etc., but while that may be subsistence, it isn’t True Life. We think it is hard today, because “so many” people take advantage of the system. Yet, in John Wesley’s day, there were more disadvantaged, fewer programs, and a lot less going to it.

    As we look at our fellow beings, we cannot allow ourselves to be deceived by those who use our hearts for their gain. This is the sad reality of (all parties) and the media (bad news sells). In fact, we are seeing fatigue of all sorts set in. This allows us to harden our hearts. All is never lost, however. As the world becomes fatigued, this is our opportunity to once again be the light that we are called to be. We are not called to make a big splash, nor are we all called to the same thing. We are all called to love each other.

    1) Have you found yourself becoming callous or even adversarial to others in the current political and social climate?

    2) Do you find that you identify more with a political party or social view more than Jesus? Are you allowing politics or culture to define what it means for you to follow Jesus?

    3) Why do you think social holiness (e.g., Sunday service, Life Groups, ) is needed for us to love one another?

  • Isle Crossing

    2 Corinthians 5:14–21

    There are many things that are worshipped. Most have supplanted God with something man-made or of human origin: science, , , work, . Even the fundamental nature of God——has been corrupted by humanity.

    We are all familiar with 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new ; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!” It is often used as an encouraging verse for the new and struggling believer. We are made new in Christ. However, the verse is placed within the context of a larger picture…a larger mission.

    We are to be messengers of reconciliation and ambassadors for . If we are honest with ourselves, we have been doing the best we can, but it still hasn’t been very good. We—as the —have put family first in an unhealthy way. It is not that family is unimportant, but that the church family is our family, too, and we often neglect it.

    The church allowed itself to be drawn into politics, and we need to stop. Politics are human, but they are often of greater priority to “Christians” than . We need to be the ones on the forefront reconciling differences and parties, rather than being on side of the aisle or the other.

    Our world is in desperate need of something different, let us be something different. Let us be new in Christ Jesus.

    1) Have you questioned someone’s or spiritual maturity based upon their political disagreement with you?

    2) Have you done the same if they raise(d) their children differently?

    3) What have you done to help people be to one another as an ambassador of Christ?

  • The Other Side of Work

    Psalm 33, Numbers 12, Luke 6:37–42

    The Bible doesn’t say what event or interaction incited Aaron and Miriam to openly oppose Moses. Whether the Cushite woman was Zipporah—who Moses married prior to Israel’s exodus from Egypt—or another woman (Jewish and scholars are unclear) it didn’t really matter (to God, at least). Aaron and Miriam were looking for a cause to sow discord and take the mantle of leadership from Moses. Some scholars believe that by calling Moses humble leadership had been a long-simmering issue, and Moses had kept his mouth shut (publically, at least). The “sudden” interjection by God tells us that something had to happen. God saw that things were going awry.

    As only Miriam received the penalty, we could that she was the instigator. One could , though, that if Aaron was no longer clean, who would intercede for him. Moses? There is another lesson. Miriam was put outside the camp. The camp waited for her. After she was determined clean, she was brought back into the .

    Often people will use petty, visual or emotional things to tear another person down. We see it daily in . If, for example, the wife of Moses in question was Zipporah, God called Moses after he married her. That should have been an indicator. If there was some other question, then it should have been more specific. Cushites weren’t a banned people. A phrase that we would be familiar with is “a red herring” or “a straw man”.

    While the case against Aaron and Miriam would seem to be rather strong, why tie Jesus’ words regarding judging into this? Often we judge others based on less knowledge and more feeling. We are often told to our gut when avoiding things or situations. However, we are still bound to test ourselves to make sure we are not judging others. Judging is a hard that is often misused. Judging is specific regarding making critical analysis and condemning the person to the penalty ( or excommunication, predominately). Judging is not comparing behavior to scripture, yet one has to be careful in making assumptions regarding the , for that is God’s domain.

    1) Have you ever experienced a situation like Moses? What do you think were the motivators in that situation?

    2) In your own words, how would you define discernment and judgment?

    3) Why is understanding discernment and judgment essential to having a fully functional Very Good with others?

  • Not-So Great Expectations

    Psalm 43, Jeremiah 38:1-28, John 15:17-16:2

    is not always easy. There are those that just seem determined to oppose you even if it is to their advantage to support you. Pride, jealousy, greed, and envy can lead anyone to make poor decisions regarding .

    King Zedekiah was not a particularly strong king. His advisors pushed him to punish Jeremiah’s words (from God) because they feared (reasonably) that if the soldiers and people heard the words, their resolve would weaken or collapse. Truly, we should be able to understand their point. Nations that do not understand a democratic republic see the political posturing of our political parties as weakness (mostly because they are all of an authoritarian mindset). The officials of Jeremiah’s day were of the same authoritarian mindset. In addition, Jeremiah’s role as prophet meant that his words had significant weight. In other words, they had a point.

    It is how they dealt with the point that was the issue that is the issue. There was a general distaste, distrust, and disrespect from these men towards Jeremiah, and thus God. It is a sample of their attitude that got the people of Israel in this situation in the first place. The words from Ebed-Melech to the king (they do “”) show us that perhaps their hearts weren’t as heartfelt for the people as it seems. This easily leads one to conclude that they—and those like them—were at least a source of Israel’s downfall. That God would offer King Zedekiah a way out, without , and not these leaders, shows that God was also still honoring his promise to David.

    While Jeremiah wasn’t killed, much of his life was not all that comfortable. Imagine being the doomsayer that was right. Often the doomsayer who is wrong is mocked, but the one who is right? Jeremiah was probably not everyone’s favorite, and obviously many of those in power were less than pleased. Often power doesn’t like , and often God’s Truth speaks to power in ways it doesn’t like.

    When speaks about the world hating us, there is (sadly) truth in that. We should be clear, though, that there are plenty of Christians (on either side of the political spectrum) that take great pride in being persecuted “for the ,” when it is really their approach (most often) or (theirs or others’) that is the problem. Compare “persecution” here in the US with true persecution in places like China, North Korea, Iran, then adding on non-systematic persecution such as the bombings that happened in Sri Lanka on this recent Easter. Not that we don’t feel put upon out our faith, it’s just that we still have power, even if it is equal to the non-believer next door (the ballot box).

    The reality is that there is something about the message of Jesus that both attracts and repels those of the world. It’s easy to say everyone. It’s hard to do it. The world is mired in death, and the concept of victory over it offends many. Granted, Christians are often not the best messengers of Jesus. However, even those who are great messengers still have to deal with animosity and persecution. It is a dark—yet, still hopeful—truth, if the world killed Jesus, can we really expect anything less?

    1) Have you ever felt persecuted? If so, how? When you look around the world, what is the difference between your experience, and that of others?

    2) Do you feel as if you are more often having to apologize for other Christians just so you can talk about Jesus?

    3) God and earthly power exist in tension, with earthly power often pretending to be Godly. Where do you see that at work in the US, and in the world?

  • Pedestals

    Daniel 4:28–37, John 6:25-35

    Nebuchadnezzar is an interesting study in , belief, unbelief, wrong belief, and pride. Nebuchadnezzar had been confronted by God’s might, majesty, and multiple times during his reign. One would have thought that he might have learned something. However, Nebuchadnezzar seemed to have to multiple times. As Nebuchadnezzar’s story ends at the of chapter 4, it would be nice to conclude that Nebuchadnezzar learned. However, the Bible doesn’t say, and history (including even the history in Daniel) would imply that he didn’t.
    Nebuchadnezzar was in the middle of a culture with many Gods. As much as he was in power, he would have still had to consider the faith of the populace. Turning over their would not have gone well, and would have likely caused unrest. Other jealous and powerful people would have leveraged the unrest and potentially created a rebellion.

    We can see similar tensions in our own . It has only been in the last few years that politicians feel that it is culturally acceptable to not say they are a . While there is a balance of power in our system, it wasn’t that long ago that politicians either toed the “Christian” line (of at least saying they were Christian) or did not succeed (by and large).

    Often in Nebuchadnezzar’s era, kings were what were perceived has making the country flourish, be bountiful, and be powerful. They were put on pedestals they hadn’t earned. Often they become proud. God made sure that Nebuchadnezzar’s pride took a hit.

    Sometimes God-fearing people get put on a pedestal, too. In this passage in John, Jesus has to correct the people that it was God the who gave the manna, not Moses. Imagine that! People had become confused enough that they thought a man completed and of God (and for 40 years, at that).

    From what we know about Moses, he would not have accepted any part of God’s . He often took a reconciling role between God and the people. By the time of Jesus, Moses had become a great mythical godlike super-man. Moses would not have been pleased.

    1) Why do we have a tendency to esteem people beyond their roles and capabilities (i.e., put on a pedestal)?

    2) How does putting a person on a pedestal endanger that person?

    3) How does putting a person on a pedestal endanger our personal and spiritual growth?

  • The Right Ground

    1 Corinthians 15:35–49, Mark 4:1-20, John 12:12-28
    A life of holiness is a hard pill to swallow in many respects. We look around us and wonder how could any one of these fallen human beings be holy. When we look in the mirror and think even more so. Holiness has often been twisted to be living a certain way (with or without something, usually) or doing (or not doing) certain things. It has often been twisted to mean that anything that is outside of our so-called culture is bad without analysis. In other words, a life of holiness has often about fulfilling certain rites, rules, and regulations.

    Now, truth be told, following God’s ways is holiness. However, it is our hearts’ to following those ways that is a life of holiness rather than rules that makes all the difference. There have been many people who have followed the “holiness” rules of men and driven people further from Jesus Christ. There are probably people who have practiced behaviors contrary to so-called holiness rules of men that have brought more people to Jesus Christ that all of us reading this combined. Are there ways that God calls us to live? Yes. We just often have to be careful that it is not our cultural biases, prejudices, or family traditions that are imposing our way of seeing world onto God’s ways.

    Holiness starts with . Sounds great, doesn’t it? Yet, it is death that invites us into a life with Jesus Christ. The first death, of course, was Jesus’ own on the cross. The second is our own. When is talking about death, he really is speaking about the death of this body that you have. He understands that this body went through things that God never intended for his creation to be. This body was corrupted by the that preceded its birth, and by the sin that has corrupted its very life. Its death, therefore, is a good thing. Paul says that this death will lead to a body that is as God intended. This is the good death. Yes, that sounds strange. Death as good.

    Jesus would seem to be calling us to a brand new life. In fact, in our current sermon series, the Very Good Life. Sometimes, however, the Very Good Life isn’t exactly what we expected. Sometimes our familiarity with certain Bible stories leads us to lazy thinking. This is one of those parables that Jesus actually explained to his disciples. This is a significant event. So, we should pay particular attention to it. Based on Jesus’ explanation, we are quick to read through it and on.
    Reread Mark 4 verses 6 and 16—17. What if we are the stony ground? Pushing on new believes (or new church people) so hard without developing their roots in that we destroy what roots grew and become the reason someone fell away from the church and Jesus.

    Reread Mark 4 verses 7 and 18–19. What if we are the thorns? What if our understanding of church, holiness (or “right” living), society, or rip and tear at people that church or we become such that we cause more pain than they can bear?

    We have all been trained to see the seeds and what ground they fell on as a parable of Jesus’ words and our readiness and willingness to listen. However, many of Jesus’ parables were not about those who were not yet followers, but about the people that claimed to follow and obey God.

    Tying both of Paul’s letter and Jesus parable of sowing are Jesus’ words in John. This becomes another what if, sort of. For a seed to truly bear fruit, it “dies”. The seed ceases to be a seed and becomes something more. Often we become so obsessed with the seed and its potential that we protect the seed—keeping it a seed—so that the seed does absolutely nothing. The potential becomes trapped. Many of us have found ourselves in that exact state. Stuck. Often times, however, we are so excited for the potential that actually developing the potential scares us. What if we do it wrong? We ask. At what point, do we take risks to develop seeds with deep roots, so that the land is expanded.

    One thing to keep in mind with the sower parable is that we are talking about wheat. This is important for a different reason. If you’ve ever been up to a mountain you have probably seen trees in really strange places. A tree seed lands in a crack in a rock with some dirt. Against what seems to be all odds (except that it happens a lot), the tree takes root. Over time, the tree’s roots dig deep into the rock. Eventually the rock gives and breaks. One of two things then happens. Either the tree developed enough roots to stand on its own, or it falls over and dies. However, because of its effort, another tree may grown there, where none could grow before.

    1) How have you been stony ground to , whether in faith or in life?

    2) How have you been the thorns to others?

    3) Dying takes on many forms. Death of dreams, solitude, partnership, and other things. Scripture, however, teaches that death has been redeemed. What deaths (not just bodily) deaths can you seen in your life that have transformed you or others?