Andy's Blog: A Personal Word

February 2008 Archive

February 27, 2008

Feb. 27, 2008

In Luke’s telling of the feeding of the five thousand, there is an interesting detail, a throw- away line, almost tucked into the account. The crowds had been around all day and the disciples began to get worried. So they went to Jesus and said, “Send the crowd away, so that they can get something to eat.” Jesus’ response was, “You give them something to eat.”

That remark, I suppose, can be read in a number of ways, but it seems to me that Jesus meant exactly what he said. He wanted the disciples to feed the crowds. Only after they protested that their stocks were slim did Jesus feed them. Jesus did not bypass his disciples. He looked to them to do what they could do. 

It reminds me of a story that Tony Campolo tells. He was asked to speak at a women’s conference. The person presiding asked him to pray for the Lord to provide the funds for a mission need. Campolo refused. What he did was get up and address the audience. “The money to meet this need is already here in this room. We are going to take an offering, and then we will pray.” They passed the plate and raised far above what was needed. Campolo then prayed, thanking God for providing the resources needed. 

Jesus looks to us to share his ministry in our world – to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and heal the sick. He has provided us the resources to do what he asks of us.

Our Lenten Offering is one of the principle ways we provide for a ministry of compassion and outreach beyond our church walls. This offering supports work in our inner cities, the work of the United Methodist Children’s homes, homeless ministry, the Community Furniture Bank, and many other ministries. 

As part of walking with Jesus during these days of Lent, I encourage you to make a generous and sacrificial gift to the Lenten Offering.  Jesus says to us, “You give them something to eat.”

February 20, 2008

Feb. 20, 2008

Newsweek magazine did an article in 2006, in which they invited people to tell them who they thought Jesus really was.

Some of the answers:
- Jesus is real, in the sense that he exists for those who want him to exist.
- Jesus was one of a thousand Jews murdered by the Romans for threatening Roman rule.
- I believe Jesus is the Son of God. I am a Son of God.
- Jesus is about as “real” as Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, or King Arthur.
- Jesus was a man who was nailed to a tree for stating how great it would be to be nice to people for a change.
- A highly moral person, much like Mother Teresa of Calcutta, no more, no less.
- A prophet who bet wrong and died as a result. He should be ignored, not celebrated.
- A rabbi who was an example of compassion who had been exploited by Christians, particularly Americans.
- Jesus is the Son of God who was born, died and rose from the dead to save us from our sins.
- Honestly, I don’t care about Jesus. Who he was, is, or isn’t doesn’t affect me.
The opinions vary widely, but most everyone has an opinion.

There is a tendency always to see Jesus as we want/need him to be. Charlotte Allen, in The Human Christ, writes that the “liberal searchers found a liberal Jesus…the deists found a deist, the Romantics found a Romantic, and the liberationists a Jesus of class struggle.” In recent years an avalanche of books, beginning with The Da Vinci Code, has raised questions for many about the truth of Jesus.

To work our way through all the confusing/opposing opinions, we must turn to the Gospel accounts of Jesus. I profess a bias. I believe the Gospel accounts, despite the fact that they may not always agree in detail, present a reliable witness to Jesus. There we find a Jesus who defies our categories; a Jesus who will not be bent and shaped to our images of him; a Jesus who is startlingly original, compelling, challenging. Before we decide anything about Him, let us at least take Jesus on His own terms.

This week we will continue the Lenten Sermon Series “Jesus Uncensored.”

February 13, 2008

Feb. 13, 2008

What do you think of when you hear the word ‘teacher.’? I go through the roll call of all the teachers I have had since I was in the first grade. Some I feared. Some I respected. All were dedicated I have concluded, or they would have not been teachers. The work is too hard, the pay too little. 

But among all the teachers I have had in my life, there are a few who stand out: - favorite teachers. I do not recall them being any smarter, or better prepared than other teachers. They were not necessarily easier or harder - less demanding, more demanding. But somehow they had an impact on my life that was lasting.

That impact went beyond the knowledge they conveyed, the facts and figures, although, I certainly got some of that from them. But I got more.  These were the teachers who opened my mind to new possibilities. They taught with passion. They weren’t just conveying information, they were about transformation. Their concern went beyond the textbook. They cared for me as an individual. Their concern was to help me to reach my full potential.  When they corrected me, I never doubted that it was done in order to improve.

Jesus was often called “teacher,’ by his disciples and others. But he was not the typical teacher. His concern was not just to convey information - it was to bring about transformation. He gave no tests. The test was in a life changed.

This Sunday in our series on Jesus Uncensored, we will be looking at “Jesus:  The Teacher.”

February 6, 2008

Feb. 6, 2008

Some of you are old enough to remember the Burma shave signs that used to dot the nation’s highways. The original billboards were always in sequence so that you had to read each in order to get the message, such as:

DAISIES ARE YOUR
FAVORITE FLOWER
KEEP PUSHIN’ UP THOSE
MILES-PER-HOUR
BURMA-SHAVE

Burma shave signs became very popular; they gave people something to look forward to on long journeys.

One of the ways that Christians have marked Jesus’ journey to the cross is through “Stations of the Cross” or “The Way of the Cross.” Paintings or sculptures recalling steps along the way to the Cross are spaced along the walls of churches or sometimes in prayer gardens. By meditating or praying at the stations, Christians remember God’s act of redemption in Christ.

At Trinity, we are blessed to have many talented artists. As a part of our Lenten observance this year, twelve of our members have painted a scene from the Gospel account of Jesus’ journey to the Cross. These paintings will hang in the sanctuary during Lent, and a devotional guide has been created to use with them. This can be done as a private time of prayer or together with others. 

In remembering Jesus’ journey to the cross, we not only look back to a 2,000 year old event, we are also making our own journey and confessing our dependence upon God. In Jesus’ journey on Good Friday, we find reasons to hope even when our journeys are hard. We find strength and courage in watching Jesus’ commitment to the Father. We are confronted by the love and grace of God that knows no limit, a love that will risk even death for the sake of new life. In His journey, we find strength for our journeys.

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