In a little over a week, I will be running in my first competitive race – a 10k (6.2 miles) in the Dexter – Ann Arbor area. I have been running off and on since high school, but never very seriously. Recently some friends convinced me that one way to establish the discipline to maintain a steady running program was to sign up for races, so that I would feel compelled to train for them. This advice has been immensely helpful to me, and I am looking forward to the opportunity to run the upcoming 10k. I have no illusions about my ability to outrun many of the seasoned runners who will run alongside (or more accurately, a long way in front of me), but I have set an optimistic goal for myself, and I fully intend to put forth every effort to reach that goal (specifically, I hope to finish in under 55 minutes). My training program up to this point has been directed toward accomplishing this objective.
It is interesting to me that the Bible, on more than one occasion, speaks of our spiritual goal, that of advancing the Kingdom of Heaven, as being comparable to a race.[1] For example, Paul challenged the Corinthians to “run in such a way that you may win [the race.]”[2] He encourages them to remain unsatisfied with mediocrity in their spiritual journey. We are all encouraged to take seriously this challenge, to seek excellence in all of our endeavors, but most importantly in the task of advancing the kingdom. In one translation of the Bible, Paul is quoted as saying, “I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.”[3] Paul’s experience with God was so profound that there was absolutely nothing that mattered to him more than being a faithful and enduring servant of Jesus Christ.
In thinking about this metaphor, there is one thing that keeps coming to the forefront of my mind – the need to train. I have now been training for about 10 weeks now for the Dexter-Ann Arbor 10k, and every day of training has been important in preparing my body and mind to be effective in meeting my goal. Preparation for our spiritual race is every bit as important. I cannot be effective in advancing the Kingdom and testifying to the gospel if I do not train for it through the disciplines such as Bible study, prayer, discussing Scripture and my spiritual walk with other believers, moral integrity, and serving within my local church community. If I were to run a 10k without having trained, I would not only perform poorly, but I would likely set myself up for injury. In fact, one reason I have chosen to run the 10k this time around is that I know that I am not yet prepared for my ultimate athletic goal of running a marathon; that will have to wait until I have trained much longer and harder. In the same way, the tasks that I take on in my spiritual journey, in serving and in proclaiming the gospel, should reflect my own level of spiritual preparedness.
This should not be seen as an excuse to avoid deeper and more intense levels of Christian service, but rather as a call to humility, self-awareness, and discipline. We are called to serve with the same attitude “that was in Christ Jesus, who . . . emptied himself, taking the form of a slave . . . . and became obedient to death—even death on a cross.”[4] We need to appraise ourselves honestly, confessing our sins and shortcomings and seeking the renewal of the Holy Spirit. I cannot be made effective if I am not willing to look honestly at my own spiritual condition. However, “[i]f we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”[5] Equally important is spiritual discipline. To successfully complete the race, we need to be prepared for it, which will require of us self-control, discipline, sacrifice, and an overwhelming desire to see lives transformed by the love of God and the advancement of His Kingdom. My prayer is that we will run the race, well prepared to win it.
“Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified.”[6]
[1] See, e.g., Acts 20:24; 1 Corinthians 9:24; Galatians 2:2, 5:7; 2 Timothy 4:7; Hebrews 12:1
[2] 1 Corinthians 9:24 (All Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version unless otherwise noted).
[3] Acts 20:24 (New International Version)
[4] Philippians 2:5-8
[5] 1 John 1:9
[6] 1 Corinthians 9:25-27
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
The Gospel and Social Justice, Part 3: Good News for the Whole World – No Exceptions.
In Part 1 of this series, I said that we are blessed when we selflessly choose to be blessing to others. Part 2 looked at the miracles that we see happening everyday when God’s people choose to love as Jesus loved. I would like to conclude with a discussion of the hope that Jesus brings to the poor, the oppressed, and the whole world, and our calling as the Church to make this hope real.[1]
Recently, I participated in a discussion on an internet forum about the biggest issues facing American Christians today. The conversation was sparked by a professing atheist, who suggested that biggest five issues for Christians were:
1. Evolution in schools.
2. Sex Education in school.
3. Gay Marriage.
4. The "dissent" of television.
5. The poor opinion the world has about many Christians.[2]
Sadly, the Christians who responded to this, by and large agreed that this or some similar formulation indeed represents the most important issues that we, as Christians, in America face. I don’t want to belittle these issues (or other issues, such as the environment, HIV/AIDS, etc.) as unimportant. However, I see many of these issues and other as mere symptoms of greater shortcomings and signposts to greater issues.
The main issue that I believe that we as American Christians face is the same as it has been for all followers of Jesus for the last 2000 years: advancing the Kingdom of God and proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ to all people. Jesus introduced his ministry as one that would “bring good news to the poor. . . . proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”[3] Jesus confirmed in this that the Lord, the God of Abraham and the God of Jacob, is concerned, above all else, with defending the vulnerable, the oppressed, and the innocent. This is a theme seen throughout the Old Testament and made fresh through the ministry of Jesus and the Early Church.
We serve a God who loves the world deeply, but especially those who are in the greatest need. It is tempting for me, at this point, to throw at the reader a long list of Scripture passages illustrating God’s heart for the poor, the oppressed, and the vulnerable. But, God’s compassion so pervades the pages of the Bible that I think that this point is not easily missed by any serious student of the Scriptures. This point is echoed by Jesus as He concludes his teaching ministry, as recorded by Matthew.[4] He tells us that whenever we do an act kindness for one of the least of his brothers or sisters, we do it for him.[5] He warns us, however, of the eternal punishment awaiting those who turn away his poorest and most vulnerable brothers and sisters.[6]
Essentially, Jesus begins and ends his ministry declaring God’s love for the weak, the poor, the vulnerable, and the oppressed. He begins by declaring that the people such as these are the very reason he came to be among us. He ends by calling all of us to serve them with the same selfless love that he did. Jesus’ younger brother, James, further reminds us that this remains one of our key purposes in the world: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for widows and orphans in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”[7] We are called to love and serve as God loves and serves, not to show favoritism to those who can repay us for our kindness, but rather to give generously especially to those who can never repay us in kind. When we, the Church, live up to this calling, we will see with clarity the Kingdom of God, and we will see healing in all aspects of our lives and of our society.
We live in a very broken world. Problems like poverty, warfare, religious persecution, and preventable diseases (not the least of which is HIV/AIDS) destroy far too many lives. For example, estimates are that 26,000 children, under the age of 5, die every day due to poverty related causes.[8] As citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven, we are called to care about this and to do what we can to show God’s love to a hurting world. We are called to be bearers of good news to the whole world – no exceptions.
[1] My apologies that it took almost two weeks to get this entry posted. Something about it was not sitting right with my Spirit, so I chose to take some extra time to pray and meditate on the topic prior to posting.
[2] http://www.christianforums.com/t7360558/
[3] Luke 4:18-19 (quoting Isaiah 61:1-2)(All Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version unless otherwise noted).
[4] Matthew 25:31-46
[5] Paraphrase of Matthew 25:40
[6] Matthew 25:45-46
[7] James 1:27
[8] See video posted at http://www.30hourfamine.org/
Recently, I participated in a discussion on an internet forum about the biggest issues facing American Christians today. The conversation was sparked by a professing atheist, who suggested that biggest five issues for Christians were:
1. Evolution in schools.
2. Sex Education in school.
3. Gay Marriage.
4. The "dissent" of television.
5. The poor opinion the world has about many Christians.[2]
Sadly, the Christians who responded to this, by and large agreed that this or some similar formulation indeed represents the most important issues that we, as Christians, in America face. I don’t want to belittle these issues (or other issues, such as the environment, HIV/AIDS, etc.) as unimportant. However, I see many of these issues and other as mere symptoms of greater shortcomings and signposts to greater issues.
The main issue that I believe that we as American Christians face is the same as it has been for all followers of Jesus for the last 2000 years: advancing the Kingdom of God and proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ to all people. Jesus introduced his ministry as one that would “bring good news to the poor. . . . proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”[3] Jesus confirmed in this that the Lord, the God of Abraham and the God of Jacob, is concerned, above all else, with defending the vulnerable, the oppressed, and the innocent. This is a theme seen throughout the Old Testament and made fresh through the ministry of Jesus and the Early Church.
We serve a God who loves the world deeply, but especially those who are in the greatest need. It is tempting for me, at this point, to throw at the reader a long list of Scripture passages illustrating God’s heart for the poor, the oppressed, and the vulnerable. But, God’s compassion so pervades the pages of the Bible that I think that this point is not easily missed by any serious student of the Scriptures. This point is echoed by Jesus as He concludes his teaching ministry, as recorded by Matthew.[4] He tells us that whenever we do an act kindness for one of the least of his brothers or sisters, we do it for him.[5] He warns us, however, of the eternal punishment awaiting those who turn away his poorest and most vulnerable brothers and sisters.[6]
Essentially, Jesus begins and ends his ministry declaring God’s love for the weak, the poor, the vulnerable, and the oppressed. He begins by declaring that the people such as these are the very reason he came to be among us. He ends by calling all of us to serve them with the same selfless love that he did. Jesus’ younger brother, James, further reminds us that this remains one of our key purposes in the world: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for widows and orphans in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”[7] We are called to love and serve as God loves and serves, not to show favoritism to those who can repay us for our kindness, but rather to give generously especially to those who can never repay us in kind. When we, the Church, live up to this calling, we will see with clarity the Kingdom of God, and we will see healing in all aspects of our lives and of our society.
We live in a very broken world. Problems like poverty, warfare, religious persecution, and preventable diseases (not the least of which is HIV/AIDS) destroy far too many lives. For example, estimates are that 26,000 children, under the age of 5, die every day due to poverty related causes.[8] As citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven, we are called to care about this and to do what we can to show God’s love to a hurting world. We are called to be bearers of good news to the whole world – no exceptions.
[1] My apologies that it took almost two weeks to get this entry posted. Something about it was not sitting right with my Spirit, so I chose to take some extra time to pray and meditate on the topic prior to posting.
[2] http://www.christianforums.com/t7360558/
[3] Luke 4:18-19 (quoting Isaiah 61:1-2)(All Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version unless otherwise noted).
[4] Matthew 25:31-46
[5] Paraphrase of Matthew 25:40
[6] Matthew 25:45-46
[7] James 1:27
[8] See video posted at http://www.30hourfamine.org/
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