inclusive Christianity

Radical Inclusion

/ JJS / 1 Comment

shoes mile

Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 143; 147:12-20, 1 Samuel 13:5-18, Acts 8:26-40, Luke 23:13-25

One of the great joys of being a Christian is that we are called to be more in the business of expanding our circle than closing our ranks. At any given point in history, or in any given congregation or denomination, we may be circling the wagons in fear, but since the earliest days of the apostles we’ve been learning that God’s love is more inclusive than our own.

Take Philip for example. One day the Spirit urged him down a certain road, where he found a man sitting in a chariot and reading from the prophet Isaiah. The man, an Ethiopian eunuch serving as a court official of his queen, was in Jerusalem to worship. Philip ran up to the man, who needed help understanding what he was reading, and began a conversation which led to the Ethiopian asking to be baptized in some water they passed on the side of the road. So Philip baptized him.

This first Gentile convert – eager to join the faith and just as eagerly welcomed at the urging of the Spirit – differed from the Jewish apostles racially, ethnically, and sexually. He would never have been allowed inside the physical temple, but once Christ became the temple raised, these distinctions no longer mattered. Christ’s arms stretched out on the cross are the temple gates thrown wide open.

Radical inclusion, while ultimately joyful, can scare us. We worry strange newcomers might change the fundamental character of our community. We fear that allowing our understanding of God’s inclusive nature to evolve somehow betrays long-held beliefs or practices. Throughout history the church and its members have excluded, minimalized, or stereotyped the roles of women, the disabled, and even the left-handed. Yet the Spirit continues to urge us toward each other, to build bridges, to break down assumptions and prejudices based not in the gospel but in culture and superstition.

The world pushes us to judge, condemn, and exclude. Christ invites us to love, forgive, and welcome. As Christ’s body, let’s run to those who, like our Ethiopian friend, differ from us so struggle to understand his invitation.

Comfort: God loves more and better than we could possibly understand.

Challenge: Try to find more reasons to include people than to exclude them.

Prayer: Teach me, o Lord, to love your people and share your Gospel abundantly.

Discussion: Do you belong to any groups the church has excluded or does exclude? How does that affect your relationship with and understanding of Jesus?

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Getting What You Want

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happiness_want

Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 65; 147:1-11, 1 Samuel 12:1-6 (7-15) 16-25, Acts 8:14-25, Luke 23:1-12

The musical Wicked is a study in contradictions. The Wicked Witch is a misunderstood outcast whose best intentions are used against her. Glinda the Good Witch has charm that hides her manipulative and ambitious nature. As in real life, no character is completely good or evil, but a complicated mix of motives and circumstance. As the second act opens, Glinda has gotten the boy and the fame she hoped for, but at the cost of her dear friend who has been slandered as wicked. As she celebrates her good fortune she also begins to realize it may be the very thing unraveling her happiness. She sings: “Because happy is what happens when all your dreams come true. Well, isn’t it?”

The people of Israel got the king they wanted when God appointed Saul. Yet, Samuel warned them, it was not what God wanted for them. If they or their king rebelled against their Lord, that Lord would turn against them. Once we get what we’ve asked for, we have to live with it … which can turn out to be more complicated and less satisfying than we’d anticipated. And if we’ve really pushed for it – alienating God, friends, or family in the process – we have few options left.

Centuries later the people of Israel got a different kind of king in the person of Jesus, and they didn’t want him. For a while they loved him, but when it became dangerous they turned on him. The authorities arrested him, mocked him, and twisted his words and teachings to convict him. Eventually Jesus just stopped answering questions; no matter what he said, it would be used to condemn him. Maybe that’s a sign that we’ve hardened our hearts too firmly toward what we want (or don’t want): we can’t even hear conflicting opinions.

Life constantly teaches us the differences among what we want, what we should want, and what we need. While we chase our dreams, let’s not trample the blessings we already have. As the Psalmist says, “We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple.”

Additional Reading:
For more about today’s passage from Acts, see Money For Nothing.

Comfort: True happiness lies in seeking the Lord.

Challenge: Pray regularly about your goals and dreams to discern whether they are right for you; pray also to be grateful for what you have now.

Prayer: Thank you, generous Lord, for providing for my needs.

Discussion: How do you know whether you’re making a sacrifice to follow the right dream, or being stubborn and following the wrong one?

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Power Play

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lincoln

Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 54; 146, 1 Samuel 11:1-15, Acts 8:1b-13, Luke 22:63-71

After Saul was appointed by God through Samuel to be king, one of his first acts was to end the oppression of Nahash the Ammonite who had been terrorizing Israel by gouging out the right eyes of everyone who did not escape. After Saul defeated and scattered the Ammonites, the people called for the deaths of those who had initially opposed his reign. Saul declined, demonstrating he could be merciful in his power. Many years later, taking power for granted, Saul would become petty enough to maneuver David (of “versus Goliath” fame) into life-threatening situations for becoming too popular. Yet in the moment, and for many years afterward, he was a benevolent ruler who ruled wisely.

Centuries later another Saul, who would become the apostle Paul, used his power to persecute Christians because they represented a threat to the stability of the Jewish people under Roman occupation. This Saul’s power was fueled largely by a sense of righteousness, but somehow his dedication to serving his God did not translate into mercy until he was suddenly brought low.

After Jesus was arrested and brought before the council, they asked him if he was the Messiah. He replied “If I tell you, you will not believe; and if I question you, you will not answer.” When pressed further he said, “You say that I am.” They took that as a confession of heresy. The council used their power to twist perceptions and definitions so the outcome – regardless of the facts – was to their liking.

Power, seen through the eyes of Christ, is more responsibility than privilege. Using power (no matter how limited) in petty and cruel ways, even against our opponents, does not reflect the message of the Gospel. Retaliation is both a poor substitute for justice and difficult to reconcile with turning the other cheek. When we find ourselves in positions of power –elected office, social status,  work hierarchy, family dynamics, etc. – let us pray for strength to show mercy and restraint.

How blessed we are to have a savior who shows us the true meaning and best use of power.

Additional Reading:
For more about today’s passage from Acts, see Written Off?.
For another take on today’s passage from Luke, see No-Win Scenario.

Comfort: Being merciful is not a sign of weakness, but of strength.

Challenge: In ways large and small, we can have the upper hand in many relationships. Reflect on whether how you wield power, when you have it, spreads the Gospel.

Prayer: God of power and mercy, give me a heart like Christ.

Discussion: Have you ever been surprised to find out you had more power than you expected?

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But what has God done for me lately?

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language of friendship

Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 57; 145, 1 Samuel 10:17-27, Acts 7:44-8:1a, Luke 22:52-62

New relationships are exciting. We learn new things. We feel new things. We expect new things. But as a relationship matures, we realize we can’t depend on things being constantly new. Deep relationships are based on established expectations. If we are wise, we confide more in someone we’ve grown to trust over time than in our most recent acquaintance. Unfortunately, we can become almost addicted to the excitement of new relationships because they raise immediately gratifying emotions. In the worst cases, we never learn to value depth over novelty.

In today’s reading from Acts, Stephen finishes telling his Hebrew audience the history of their people and how inconstant has been their faithfulness to God, the cycle of loving God when they are being delivered, and neglecting – or even turning away from – God after their memory of God’s deliverance begins to fade. In our passage from Judges, Saul has been selected as king because the people, in opposition to God’s wishes, want a king to be more like the idolatrous nations around them.

In what ways can we be like the ancient Hebrews? When people first find their faith, or have a faith-renewing experience, it’s like the beginning of a new relationship. They are wrapped up in feelings. They see God everywhere. They can be practically giddy. But novelty eventually fades. If the relationship ages without maturing, they need new experiences – like new “signs” – of God’s love and presence. An immature relationship demands constant reassurance because it values feeling over faith.

What a mature relationship with God may lack in flash, it makes up in substance. Like lifelong friends who are content simply to be in each other’s presence, our relationship with God may be punctuated with long periods of silence. We shouldn’t confuse this silence with absence or boredom. Like a fallow field, it may seem dormant, but below the surface its very structure is constantly renewed. While the steady maintenance of a good relationship, especially when it seems “dull,” may not produce the high of something new, an enduring relationship built on faith and trust is infinitely more rewarding.

Additional Reading:
For more about Stephen, traditionally considered the first Christian martyr, see Stephen The Leader or Sax and Violence.

Comfort: In times of God’s silence, we still build our relationship.

Challenge: This week, devote 10 minutes a day to silent meditation.

Prayer: God of renewal, I seek a mature and confident relationship with you.

Discussion: Think about your enduring relationships. What do they have in common?

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Not so Nice

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 67; 150, 1 Samuel 10:1-16, Romans 4:13-25, Matthew 21:23-32

When the chief priests asked Jesus by what and whose authority he acted, he declined to answer. Instead, he offered a parable about two brothers whose father told them to work in the vineyard. The first refused, but then went; the second said yes, but didn’t follow through. Which, Jesus asked, did the will of his father? Then he said:

Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.

Tax collectors and prostitutes were not considered “nice” people. Chief priests, the wealthy, and the other usual suspects  were (are?) considered polite society.  Even today we reward people more for blind obedience to the rules than for confronting unjust conditions. We would have more sympathy for refugees “if they followed the rules” though they flee the same types of horrors as did our ancestors who had far fewer rules to contend with. We wouldn’t dismiss protesters “if they were more polite” even though the times they make us uncomfortable are the only times we choose to listen to them. We insist on courtesy from the oppressed before we will acknowledge – let alone help relieve – their suffering.

Then we have the nerve to wear WWJD* t-shirts. Did the pharisees think Jesus was a “nice” guy?

An insistence on niceness always favors the powerful – because nice people don’t challenge the status quo. Jesus didn’t seem too keen on enabling the powerful status quo. So what did Jesus do?

He spoke up for the underdog.
He fraternized with all the “wrong” people.
He named hypocrisy when and where he saw it.
He cared more about people’s stories than their status.
He spoke the truth even when it made “nice” people uncomfortable.

Nice is easy. Kindness is complicated. Nice is cheap. Justice costs us. Nice is love in theory. Discipleship is love in practice.

* What Would Jesus Do?

Comfort: When you are unjustly persecuted, God is with you.

Challenge: When someone’s method of delivering a message makes you uncomfortable, make an effort to listen for content, not emotion.

Prayer: May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, that your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations (Psalm 67:1-2).

Discussion: Valuing authenticity over niceness does not mean having free reign to be deliberately unkind just because we feel like it. When is the last time you were unnecessarily unkind?

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Rising Above

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 56; 149, 1 Samuel 9:15-10:1, Acts 7:30-43, Luke 22:39-51

The author of Psalm 56 feels besieged from all directions. The psalmist – trampled, oppressed, and fought against all day long – cries out to God for strength and relief. In the face of those who stir up strife, plan evil, and lurk ominously, the psalmist continues to thank and praise the God who will provide delivery from death. Amid many trials, this author’s faith even finds cause for poetry:

You have kept count of my tossings;
put my tears in your bottle.
Are they not in your record?

While a literal bottle of tears is unlikely, the psalmist imagined a God so invested in our well-being as to count our sorrows drop by drop; to remember our restless nights as if recorded in a ledger waiting to be balanced. Though enemies are plentiful, the psalmist trusts in God and asks, “What can flesh do to me?”

Are we able to place that kind of trust in God?

We face a lot of threats from mere mortals. Some days we feel as besieged as the psalmist. Do we scheme and plan how to get the upper hand or, as Psalm 56 advises, perform our vows to God and offer thanksgiving because we trust God will deliver us? Plotting a comeuppance for the person who got “our” promotion or bringing up at yet another family holiday dinner that decades-old grudge against our sibling may just be at odds with a better change God has in store for us. Do we have to put up with being stepped on? Certainly not. But when Jesus told us to love our enemies, he didn’t qualify it with “after you get over it.”

So many times, while we toss and weep as we need to, we neglect church, prayer time, or other things because we aren’t in the “right” frame of mind. Yet God isn’t waiting for us to be “right” … God waits for us to be present. Like the psalmist we may have every reason to be upset and fearful. When that’s the case, let’s lean into faith like a kite leans into the wind.

Comfort: God is with us in times of sorrow, fear, and anger.

Challenge: Think about the last time you were upset. Did you turn to God or rely on your own plans? Ask yourself what that can that teach you about how to react in the future.

Prayer: O Most High, when I am afraid, I put my trust in you (Psalm 56:2b-3).

Discussion: What’s your first instinct when you are attacked?

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The Word and The Sword

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 130; 148, 1 Samuel 9:1-14, Acts 7:17-29, Luke 22:31-38

After the Last Supper, Jesus tried explaining to the apostles yet again that terrible things were about to befall him and them. He also assured them he would not leave them unprepared. After all, hadn’t they survived – even thrived – when he sent them on the road to spread his message with nothing but the clothes on their backs? Now though, he said, it was time to take up their bags and purses and carry a sword, even if they needed to sell a cloak to buy one. When they pointed out the two already at hand, he told them, “It is enough.”

This idea of Jesus encouraging them to carry weapons really stands out among his teachings to turn the other cheek and love one’s enemies. Sometimes it’s used by people to justify Christians using violence, generally in self-defense but sometimes in more broad terms.

But there’s a greater context.

Jesus referred to a prophetic scripture from Isaiah  which needed to be fulfilled: “And he was counted among the lawless.” Moving from itinerant (if heretical) preacher and his followers to the leader of a party of armed insurrectionists had “lawless” covered. And only a short time later, when Peter actually used one of those swords to defend his messiah, Jesus commanded him to put it away, adding (in Matthew’s gospel), “all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” And the Apostles were famous for their commitment to peace, not their handiness with blade, club, and fists.

We don’t have to assume a position of pacifism to understand Jesus’s advice to take up swords was not about condoning violence. On the other hand, while Jesus talked about loving and forgiving our enemies, he didn’t command us to surrender to them. Wherever our conscience takes us regarding violence and non-violence, we should remember that Christ is fully capable of defending himself or not as he chooses. Our fears never justify initiating violence in his name. To the contrary, times of fear are the times we most need to take a breath and ask ourselves how Jesus would choose to love.

Comfort: Jesus is with us in times of danger.

Challenge: When you must make decisions about violence, make decisions about love first.

Prayer: Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts (Psalm 139:23).

Discussion: What are your feelings about the intersection of violence and faith?

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King Makers

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stone-horses-1219399-1598x838

Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 36; 127:12-20, 1 Samuel 8:1-22, Acts 6:15-7:16, Luke 22:24-30

After the death of Joshua, who succeeded Moses, the twelve tribes of Israel fractured and many people – despite warnings from God – began to worship Ba’al in the custom of the other nations around them. Because of their unfaithfulness, God let their enemies overtake them. Eventually God pitied them and raised up a series of Judges (part military leader, part legal arbiter) to restore them. Both the people and the Judges were unsteady in their faithfulness, and often relapsed to Ba’al worship and corruption.

Samuel, a righteous man and Judge, was the father of the last two judges. His sons, nothing like him, “took bribes and perverted justice.” The people demanded Samuel instead appoint a King. Samuel and God were displeased  the people were rejecting God as their king. Speaking for God, Samuel told them what kind of king they could expect: one who took their property and harvests, conscripted their sons into military service, forced their daughters to labor for him, and generally abused them for his own gain.

The people refused to listen, saying “We are determined to have a king over us, so that we also may be like other nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.”

God let them have their king.

How often we choose affection for a king (or president, coach, etc.) over the blessings of the Lord. As long as we feel someone will lead our tribe to victory (be that in elections, ball games, or culture wars), we overlook that person’s ruinous flaws even when we’ve been warned about them. In the end the institution we claimed to want to protect is tarnished at best or gutted at worst.

We can do better than willful ignorance and hollow victory. Our triumphs don’t come from bringing our enemies low at any cost, but from holding our integrity high at every cost. Placing our trust in God rather than kings frees us to tell the emperor he has no clothes. The price we pay today will be much lower than one that comes due later.

Comfort: Choosing integrity is its own reward.

Challenge: Don’t follow authorities blindly, even when you agree with them.

Prayer: O continue your steadfast love to those who know you, and your salvation to the upright of heart! (Psalm 36:10).

Discussion: Have you ever found yourself questioning someone you once put on a pedestal?

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Every Table

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 15; 147:1-11, 1 Samuel 7:2-17, Acts 6:1-15, Luke 22:14-23

Jesus didn’t seem to miss many meals. He accepted dinner invitations from tax collectors. He ate with Pharisees. He arranged delivery for thousands of people. Twice. He had intimate dinners with friends. He invited himself into the homes of notorious sinners. After his resurrection, he threw a fish fry on the beach.

Certainly his most famous meal was the Last Supper, the Passover meal he ate with his disciples before the crucifixion. From this meal we derive communion, sharing bread and cup in remembrance as Jesus commanded us.

When he arrived for this supper, he told his disciples, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” Among them was Judas, who would betray him for thirty pieces of silver. Jesus could have called Judas out and sent him away before the meal, but he chose not to. This choice makes a remarkable statement: despite knowing of Judas’s impending treachery, Jesus still loved him so much that he wanted Judas at the table for one last meal together.

Depending on how we understand the accounts of Judas’s death (Matthew tells us he gave back the silver the next day and hung himself), this was also his last supper. An even more final event perhaps, since no resurrection awaited him. Imagine the sorrow Christ must have felt not just because he was betrayed, but because his friend would never have a chance to know that even he could have been forgiven.

While we point to the cross as the ultimate symbol of Christ’s immeasurable love for us, let’s not neglect the sacredness of the table. Not just the communion table, but every table which offers us a chance to love as Christ did; that is … every table. Powerful as it is, the cross is in the past, over and done, making relatively few demands of us. The table is present, sometimes inconveniently so, waiting for us to invite friends, strangers, enemies, and lost causes to experience the common humanity Christ brought to every table.

The cross, though indispensable, remains empty. The table begs to be filled.

Additional Reading:
For more on today’s passage from Luke, see Continental Divide.
For thoughts on today’s reading from Acts, see The more things change…

Comfort: Even when we don’t invite Christ to the table, he may invite himself.

Challenge: Read about the meals Jesus attended in Luke.

Prayer: Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer (Psalm 4:1b).

Discussion: Describe a meal that was especially meaningful to you.

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Dishing It Out

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 123; 146, 1 Samuel 6:1-16, Acts 5:27-42, Luke 21:37-22:13

In some cultures it’s considered bad form to return a dish empty. Say your neighbor prepares a plate of food for you when you aren’t feeling well. You might bake some nice cookies to load the plate before you give it back. That extra touch shows your gratitude.

When the Philistines finally realized they needed to return the Ark of the Covenant to Israel, their priests and diviners warned them not to send it back empty. To do so would show a lack of respect for the great power the Lord had demonstrated. It sounds a little disgusting, but the Philistines fashioned ten gold tumors and ten gold mice to accompany the Ark. These objects symbolized the plagues the Lord had set upon them.

Now they could have just dropped the Ark at the border and run, but that would not have shown they had learned and grown in their understanding of the relationship through the hardships that damaged it. That’s kind of the difference between making an apology and making amends. An apology requires a certain sincerity and an admission of wrongdoing, and is often adequate, but it’s like returning the plate empty: your bases are covered and you’re under no further obligation, but it’s the bare minimum. Amends are the cookies on the plate. They show that you value the relationship enough to put in the extra effort; that you appreciate the circumstances which have made them necessary. Most importantly, amends are not about you or soothing your guilt or grief, but about letting the other party know you are invested enough to genuinely try.

Sometimes relationships can’t be salvaged. Apologies aren’t always accepted. Amends aren’t always welcomed. Such rejection can be hurtful and bewildering, but if we simply recycle that pain as blame or anger, we’re back at square one. The Philistines had no guarantee the Lord would be moved by their odd golden ornaments. Before we offer amends, we should be resigned to be at peace regardless of the outcome, because we have done what we can. Bake the cookies, and leave the rest to God.

Comfort: You are only responsible for what you can do.

Challenge: You are responsible to do what you can.

Prayer: Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us,
for we have had more than enough of contempt (Psalm 123:3).

Discussion: Has anyone ever made amends to you?

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