Evidently, our Lord would have had a hard time getting into our country according to the recent discussions on immigration.  I realize immigration and the issue with “DREAMers” are complex issues.  We live in dangerous times. Yet, we can allow fear to control us and cloud our judgment.  The question for the followers of Jesus is: “How can Holy Scripture guide us beyond our fears to be God’s people of justice and reconciliation in these challenging times?”

            Jesus was poor. Scripture says, “Birds have nests and foxes have holes, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”  He was from a third-rate country and the no-count town of Nazareth. It was said about His background, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”  

            Can you imagine Jesus going through US Customs?  He isn’t blond-headed or fair-skinned from a prosperous Scandinavian country.  He is dark-skinned from the Middle East. When asked to declare what He brings into our county, He simply says, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he anointed me to set free the oppressed.”  The stunned agent asked, “Thank you Jesus, could you step into another room for further questioning?”

            During Christmas, we heard the words from “Sweet Little Jesus Boy” – Forgive us Lord, we didn’t know who you were….  I’m not sure we know who He is today and that is my confession as well – His ways are not our ways.

            The people in power, from Rome to the religious leaders in Jerusalem, considered Jesus dangerous. Jesus, stay where you are. You don’t deserve a visa or green card. What could you ever contribute to our country?  You’re just a subversive who says radical things like, “Blessed are the poor, for theirs is the Kingdom of God.”  Jesus, you could be a real drag on the economy, but then perhaps, Jesus could set us free from our financial fears as He said, “Seek first His kingdom and righteousness and all your human needs will be met.”

            Jesus was a refugee, an undesirable. His Jewish family fled Bethlehem and the brutality of Herod’s law and order policy to Egypt. He found as an alien, refuge and acceptance in of all things, an Arab country. Jesus understands those who flee Syria, persecution, and hardship beyond what we can imagine. 

            Jesus grew up hearing the Word of God. He didn’t listen to popular politics, a false-religion which cozies up to culture and Caesar, or panders to popularity.   His ethic came from Deuteronomy which said: “God defends the cause of the alien…and you are to love and reach out to the aliens and refugees….” There goes the Bible, meddling in the way we live.  Let’s face it, there are truths in the Bible we don’t want to hear.  My Bible can be very selective.

            I wonder what might happen if we let Jesus into our country? We might really secure the borders as we are freed from fear, or we might begin to see that in Jesus Christ, there are no borders.   Remember, “For God so loved the world….”  As the Psalm proclaims, “Our God is the God of the nations and not just one nation.”

            What if we got our truth and news from Jesus, instead of the clamor of cable news?  What if we let Jesus into our country who said, “If you only love those who love you, what reward will you get?” What if we let Jesus into our country? People might know we are His followers by the “…way we love each other.” What if we let Jesus into our country? We might hear the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. who echoed Jesus: “Darkness cannot drive out hate, only love can do that. Let no man pull you down so low as to hate him. We will live as brothers and sisters or perish as fools”

            What if we let Jesus into our country? We might hear the words Bobby Kennedy shared in an angry black neighborhood following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.  We might hear his words not as a Republican or Democrat, Conservative or Liberal, but as sold-out followers of Jesus and His Kingdom.  Senator Kennedy said: “In this difficult day, in this difficult time for the United States, it is perhaps well to ask what kind of a nation we are and what direction we want to move in. …you can be filled with bitterness, with hatred, and a desire for revenge. …I can only say that I feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man. What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred…but love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another….”

            If we let Jesus into our country, we might start seeing each other in a new way. In the words of the Apostle Paul, “No longer do we regard anyone from a human point of view.”  We might start seeing the dignity and worth in each other.  Perhaps we might even see worth and dignity in ourselves…and perhaps that is part of the problem.

Brave Journey,

Phil

November 7, 2017, by Dr. Phil Christopher

A Pastoral Word in a Time of Such Heartbreak…

We would be heart-broken over wherever the shooting on Sunday happened.  But in a church? We have grieved over the precious lives lost in Las Vegas.  They were enjoying life and the gift of music. We have grieved over those in New York City who were bicycling on a beautiful October day. Our hearts are heavy with those acts of senseless violence and the ways that people’s lives have been shattered.

 

I am so, so sad…beyond words, about what happened in the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, TX.  My sadness does not minimize the heartache over the recent acts of evil.  Whether in a sanctuary of worship, a country western concert, or a bicycle trail when a truck becomes a weapon, we hurt the same for all of the victims and families of violence.

What got me Sunday was seeing that little white framed church with an attendance of fifty. I thought, those people didn’t show up on Sunday to be entertained or dazzled to get their needs met; they came for worship and the deep sense of community that comes in being church, especially in a small town.  I saw a picture of the church’s sign that advertised the “Fall Festival” on October 31 – like we promote in our parking lot. I thought of this church trying to reach and love children and families.  I thought of all the small churches that incarnate the truest sense of church.

 

I used to preach in churches like Sutherland Springs when I was a seminary student in Kentucky. I thought of those small churches that often are doing as much for the gospel, as they care for people, than mega churches. Those small churches were filled with “salt of the earth” believers who were in worship not because they had to be there, but because they wanted to be.  They were there to praise and serve the Lord.

I thought of the pastor, Frank Pomeroy, whose daughter, Annabelle Renee Pomeroy was one of the victims. It is hard and demanding to pastor a small church.  I often think I am not worthy to untie the sandals of those pastors of small churches who serve in obscurity, yet so faithfully. Now he must pastor his church, and even a community, as he deals with his own grief.

I would never speak for Pastor Pomeroy.  I don’t have the answers. I am suspicious of those who think they do. Yet, in the midst of the anger, the questions about a loving God, and deep grief, I wanted to offer a word of hope in this darkness.  

Let us keep being the church of Jesus Christ, a counter-culture community to the ways and politics of the world. Let us be Jesus people who love our “enemies.” In such deep hurt, we are tempted to lash out in vengeance. Let us stop listening to the anger on cable news or social media and start listening to God’s Word in the Bible. We can naturally feel so vulnerable for what happened in a church.  Yet, let us not live by fear.  Let us keep trusting in this world of trouble that in Jesus Christ, God will have the “Last Word.” Let the mind and attitude of Christ be so much a part of how we think we live out the promise – love will conquer hate. We can easily doubt that love is stronger than hate, but just look to the cross and what God can do in the darkest night.  Never forget, we are Easter people of hope….

Phil

 

One other word:  Later this week, we will share with our membership the steps we have taken over the last several years to provide security and a safe environment on the church campus.

September 19, 2017, by Dr. Phil Christopher

“The Power of Perspective”

 

Chuck Swindoll suggests that the secret to happiness is perspective.  Perspective determines our attitude, approach to life, and the ways we handle challenges. Do we moan and mope our way through the inevitable difficulties of life?  There is an old Yiddish Proverb that says, “to a worm in horseradish, the world is horseradish.” Perhaps you feel like a worm in horseradish…. The only thing you can see is where you are, right now.  You see the negative. You see the problems. Perhaps you see through the eyes of fear.

 

Remember the power of perspective when the children of Israel passed through the wilderness on the way to the Promised Land.  They had been set free from 400 years of slavery.  God had delivered them. God even parted the sea when the people’s backs were against the wall with no way of escape.  Now the people complain and grumble against Moses that they will starve.  You talk about loss of perspective. They even think they had it better back in Egypt.  How easily we look back to the “good old days” but those days aren’t as quite as “good” as we remember – perspective. 

 

God will feed them with “manna,” which in the Hebrew means, “what is this?”  The “manna story” is not so much about what they were eating. This story is about perspective. God is trustworthy to provide for our every need, even in the wilderness.  God is generous and like with the manna, there will always be enough, even when we are anxious about our daily provisions.  Some worried that there would not be enough for the next day.  Their perspective is that God cannot be trusted.  They collected more manna than they needed trying to stock-pile it for another day – just in case, but the extra manna spoiled overnight.  We need the perspective to trust God will provide every morning and for every need.  The book of Lamentations gives us perspective: “Fresh and new are his mercies and provisions every morning.”

 

This story might sound crazy to some, especially in our consumer culture of comfort. But enjoy the journey through the wilderness with all of its dangers and challenges. Discover the perspective that God can be trusted to generously provide in the wilderness. We learn some of our greatest lessons in the wilderness. The Creator will give strength and bread for today and hope for tomorrow even in the wilderness. Keep trusting through the power of perspective that the wilderness of the moment will one day be behind us…and that God is always taking us to the Promised Land.  No matter where we are we – have hope – even in horseradish.

 

Prompts: Let me hear from you…

What shapes your perspective especially in approaching challenges? How do you have a distorted perspective about the past? In what ways has some “wilderness time” been fertile as you trusted that God will provide?    

Words for the Journey – The Mystery of Milestones

May 17, 2017 – Phil Christopher

 

Milestones… we all have them if we will take time to reflect. The term means an event or action that marks a significant moment or even change in a person’s life. Such marker moments can be seen as positive or negative. However, be careful before judging some event as a discouraging defeat. A failure or mistake can become a memorable milestone that changes the course of our lives for the better. Too many people look back and remember the past as a “millstone” that they drag through life instead of searching for the miracles and mysteries of milestones.

 

Milestones certainly occur in events like graduation, the first job, buying the first house, or the first child. A milestone moment can happen even when we hit bottom. I remember a friend who each November celebrates the milestone when she stopped drinking and trying to escape problems. She realized she was powerless and that her life had become unmanageable. She made a decision to turn her life over to Jesus Christ, trusting that only Christ could restore her sanity. Out of the dark pit she raised a milestone. However, milestones do not have to be that dramatic or earth shaking. Milestones can happen every day. It would be remarkable if we could start seeing daily milestones like those mile markers we speed by on the interstate. Each day holds the potential for change. Each day has its own markers that define us by the choices we make. But we can miss and speed by those significant moments. Thanks be to God for memory that can help us what we missed in the present.

 

Our lives are shaped by milestones that mark our journey. Some moments of reflection might bring grief. But they also can provide deep sources of gratitude and hope. The question: are you lugging around millstones or raising milestones? Gaines Dobbins said on his 75th Birthday, “As I look back on the twisting turns of my journey I see that God has kept his angels up late at night redeeming my life from destruction and charting out a destiny for me.”

 

Think about the milestones that have marked or changed your life. Were they events that seemed negative at the time, but have become memorable milestones for the better? Perhaps something bad happened, but God meant it and turned it into good. Where has God provided, protected, and encountered you through the milestones of the past? Do you carry “millstones” or see milestones? What milestones could you be missing today? Brave Journey…