Slim Fast, Runny Noses, Midgets, and Jesus

This morning, on my way to church, I stopped at our local Quick Trip. For those reading this that live outside the Kansas City area, Quick Trip is much like a 7-11 convenience store/gas station. I ran in, grabbed a Slim-Fast shake (also called ‘breakfast’), and took my place in line in order to check out. The poor fella working behind the counter was a bit stressed as he was obviously doing the job of two or three employees. Usually there is more than one, but apparently not today. As he rushed about grabbing cigarettes for some and lottery tickets for others, all while consistently welcoming every person that walked in with a “Welcome to Quick Trip”, he began to cough. I watched him and greatly appreciated that he covered his mouth with his arm each time a coughing fit came about.

When all others were helped and I finally had made my way to the counter, I said something observantly clever like, “Wow, you sure are busy”. He grunted something under his breath and then began coughing again. This time, however, when he removed the crevice of his arm from covering his inopportune and unrelenting hacking, he had unknowingly smeared a bit of something on his cheek. The something that I’m talking about was not pretty. It was a greenish-yellow color and seemed to have the consistency of tapioca pudding.

Perhaps you think this is a made up story? I guarantee you it’snot.

I realize now, I was being presented with a test.

You see, if I was the one with a glob of gelatinous sinus scum on my face and I was completely unaware that it was glistening in the gleam of the fluorescent lights and jiggling for all the Sunday morning world to see, I think I’d want to know about it. But would the embarrassment of being told, by a complete and utter stranger, that a slippery secretion produced by mucous membranes had escaped the safety of his nostrils be too much for him? Would it not be best for a friendly co-worker, who would more than likely be coming back from break any moment now, be the one to share the precise details of this unfortunate phenomenon? What was I to do?

Ruthlessly fighting the urge to regurge, I paid for my shake and left. I stared at the counter the whole time. I said nada. I wimped out. I just left the kid in his slimy, unknowing bliss.

Now I’m haunted. Did I do the right thing? I’ve always said that if I was in a similar situation with my zipper down or a nagging piece of spinach between bicuspids I’d desperately want someone to clue me in. But don’t I want that to be somebody that I know? Don’t we earn the right to talk into one another’s lives?

What about the snot of sin?

Is it our place to walk up to complete strangers and tell them that they have a sin problem? Or should we earn the right to talk to them by building relationship with them first? I mean, everywhere I look I’m faced with people who are in blatant sin. Those who call themselves ‘Christian’, and whom I have relationship with because of the mere fact we are brothers/sisters in Christ are ones that I feel I can more openly discuss sinful issues with. However, those not in ‘the family’ per se, those not having made a commitment to follow Jesus, what about them? Is it my job to point out what awful sinners all the sinners are? I’m not so sure.

What did Jesus do?

Some Christians believe that the way of the Master was to point out people’s precise sin problem. But when I read of how Jesus behaved with sinners, I see Him responding differently. I see Him lovingly living out His Message.

For example, remember the midget in the tree? This height-challenged tax collector was a pretty bad guy. A sinner. What did Jesus do? He simply told Zack that He wanted to have lunch with him. The next verses describe this horrible sinner completely turning his life around! Jesus even says, “Salvation has come to this home today” (you can read this cool story for yourself in Luke 19).

Sure, when the religious folks – those supposedly already following Jehovah – were sinning, Jesus was all over them. Telling the truth in love is definitely one of the ways of the Master, but it is important to look at who His audience was at those times.

So yeah, maybe I wimped out. I probably should have done that kid a favour and clued him in on the gloop clinging to his cheek. However, it has reminded me that entering in and building authentic relationships with others is extraordinarily important and desperately needed. It’s needed, if for no other reason than to occasionally have someone who loves me and shares my desire for pleasing the Lord, hold a mirror up to me from time to time.

Culturally RELEVANT

Philippians 3:12 - "Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own."

I love that Paul, this 'hero' of most of us that are followers of the 'Way', stresses that he is not 'already perfect' - he is still involved in the struggles of life in a fallen world and hence he still sins. Obviously he hasn't realized the full embodiment of his future hope, yet he proudly and boldly states, "I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own". There is a balance of faith and works, of God's call and the believer's response, here that is really cool.

Today so much is made of being 'culturally relevant'. I'm a huge proponent of this - if we are so far behind what is happening in culture, then we risk losing the ability to speak Truth into any one's life. For example: To me, using a King James Version of the Bible when sharing the Good News of Jesus with someone is the equivalent of visiting Mexico and speaking in Russian! Our culture no longer uses that language, so to make the Gospel Message 'relevant', we've updated the language so that 'Truth' is understood. Another example might be the use of Godly lyrics in updated music styles. I believe that using a culturally relevant style of music to relay the same powerful 'Godly' Message will open up doors to a whole new generation hearing and coming to 'faith' in Christ (remember Romans 10:17?). A final example (and I have many more) would be the way a Christian dresses, or even their hair styles. If all the men have newscaster haircuts, wear ties, and clone themselves in the image of Billy Graham (...or any of the business men you see on Wall street who live for the almighty dollar and constantly cheat on their wives), and if all the women wear long dresses to the ground, skip the make-up, and competitively see how high they can stack their hair - is THAT what God desires? If a Christian man wears jeans and has a 'rock-star' hair-cut, or a Jesus-loving woman wears the latest brand of make-up... are they now in direct disobedience to God's Word, or are they now positioned "in the world" perfectly in order to share a Message that is definitely not "of the world"? I would say the latter.

Yet, there is an inherent danger to this line of thinking. Many Christians will say, "Michael, if you become so much like the world then you will become the opposite of what God has called you to be, namely a 'foreigner', 'pilgrim', 'alien'." This, in fact, is very true. However, we must always remember that the Christian, like Jesus, is both a friend and an enemy of the world. "Anyone who chooses the world for his friend turns himself into God's enemy" (James 4:4). The world returns the favor by hating those who follow in the way of Jesus. Paul (in Ephesians 2:1-3) challenges us not only to turn away from our own sins, but also from following the "course of this world".

But what exactly is the "course of this world"? Isn't that really where the confusion lies?

David F. Wells, in his book Above All Pow'rs (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2005 - page 23) would define it as "our embeddedness in culture at the point of its fallen horizons, false belief structures, and misdirected devotions - all of which are kept in place by the powers of darkness." Think about that statement, because it's pretty powerful.

God is not concerned with the way we look, that has always been man's concern. Even in the passages of the Bible where "dress" and "appearance" is spoken about, we see that those were extremely "culturally relevant" statements. In other words, in that culture, at that time, the men and women dressed like that and appeared that certain way. For a Believer to dress differently than "that culture" it would have been so drastically out of place that it would have caused a major distraction. As a matter of fact, an argument could be made that to appear drastically different than the culture would be inappropriate.

So what is right?
What is appropriate?

I think we should take Paul's lead (follow his example like he told us to in Philippians 3:17) and "press on to make it my own because Christ Jesus has made me His own". We should just be ourselves. We should just be who God made us - unique individuals. I am not talking about copying the world and "embedding ourselves into the false beliefs and misdirected devotions" that others who do not have relationship with Father God are doing. I am saying that God is concerned with what is happening in our hearts (1 Samuel 16:7). May we be concerned about that too. If being "culturally relevant" is what is needed, then may we be just that without compromising the fact that we are still "His own".

Lastly, some say that I only paint a picture of God as this Supreme, Loving, Forgiving and Gracious King of fools. To that I would say, you're just not listening. God is the King of Fools. That is true. That is why I love Him so... I'm a fool. He's my King. The Jesus we love and follow reaches down to the alienated and the dispossessed. He goes to the fringe and draws in the rejected. He lays gentle hands on the dirty and the ostracized. But He does not only touch and heal, He also instructs and warns. He tells the woman caught in adultery, "Go now and leave your life of sin" (John 8:11). He tells the invalid by the pool, "See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you" (John 5:14).

Following Jesus is also hard-core, because He is hard core. He came on an invasive, dangerous, and unwelcome mission of mercy to come open and expose what was hidden in men's hearts (Luke 2:34-35), not ask them to read from the King James and abstain from dressing like a rock-star. His coming was not to be marked by peace and tranquility - He came to impose a test of absolute allegiance. He forced people into a divisive crisis of choice (Matthew 10:34-39). The peace He came to bring first triggered a war. He was on a guerrilla mission to infiltrate territory controlled by His enemy, raid his camp, and set the prisoners free (Mark 3:23-27; Luke 4:18).

May you and I, like Paul, realize that we aren't perfect but we are going to press on and make this thing authentically our own, because Christ Jesus made us His own. May we shout with a bold, confident joy at the dizzying delight of being chosen, of being welcomed in by our true Father and invited to sit with Him at the banquet table reserved for His friends.

But, as we celebrate how awesome all that is, may we never forget that the One who called us His own is Friend but also sovereign King - that He who gave everything up for us... calls us to give everything up for Him.

R.S.V.P.

"You've been especially and specifically chosen to come and test-drive our car," the invitation read in my mailbox. But when I saw that it was addressed to "Occupant," I wondered how specifically chosen I really was. Many invitations are humorous. Some are dubious. But some are actually pretty awesome. The Bible has a bunch of invitations like that - that have meant a great deal to me over the years...

Exodus 32:26a
"then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, "Whoever is for the Lord, come to me!"...

Isaiah 55:1
"Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; And you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost."

Matthew 11:28
"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest."

John 7:37-38
"Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'"

Revelation 22:17
"The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come.' And let the one who hears say, 'Come.' And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost."

See what I mean, there are some pretty cool invitations in the Bible. Maybe none as powerful and meaningful as the one I read this morning during my Desperation Journal time:

Isaiah 1:18
"Come now, and let us reason together," Says the Lord, 'Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool."

Isaiah was writing to people who were totally abandoning their former religious beliefs (apostasy). They were rebelling against the Lord and not interested in obeying Him. Yet, instead of giving a word of annihilation, the Lord, in His matchless grace and mercy, offers a word of invitation. To people who were, at best, apathetic toward Him, the Lord says, "Come on... let's reason together. Think with Me. Consider with Me."

And that's the message for me today too. "Come now, Michael, let's reason together." Sin is sick. It's not bad because it's forbidden by God. Rather sin is forbidden by God because it's bad. He knows it destroys, erodes, ruins, and harms. So He invites us to come to Him and learn why it is unreasonable for us to continue in sin any longer.

I presently know people who were at one time 'radical' for God, but are now in rebellion. All of a sudden, they seem to be apathetic towards God. They skip church, they're involved in things that previously they would have NEVER been involved in. For some reason, sin has become MORE attractive to them than God and living for His Kingdom. Oh, how I wish they could sit for a moment with the Lord... and consider... reason... learn... why it is unreasonable for them to continue in sin any longer.

Here's some things I think they'd have to consider(For sake of time, I won't type out the Bible verses, but trust me, they're worth checking out):

First, sin is like a disgusting disease that pollutes the entire body. (Isaiah 1:5-6). The Book of Romans further describes how sin takes over every part of our being and influences us negatively. A person might look healthy on the outside, but if he is knowingly walking in sin, his very nature is being eroded and destroyed. That is why it's only reasonable for us to consider our sin and repent from it.

Second, sin is a binding cord that holds man in its power (Proverbs 5:22). "I'm free," the sinner insists. "It doesn't matter what I do." And yet when he finds himself addicted, infected with disease, or haunted by guilt; when his family, integrity, and personality are destroyed, he realizes that he is anything but free - that he is bound by the cord of sin.

Third, sin is a destroyer of rest, a disturber of peace. (Psalm 38:3). Sin robs us of the rest, peace, and tranquility we long for and which we once enjoyed. That's why our Father says, "Because I want you to have peace and I want you to be at rest, I want you to stay away from sin.

Fourth, sin is like a foggy cloud that hides the face of God from us. (Isaiah 59:2). Just like when the clouds are in the sky and we can't see the sun, when people say, "Where is God? I can't feel Him. I can't sense Him. Where is He?" very frequently, it's usually due to sin that has come between them and the Son, muting His voice or obscuring His face from them.

Fifth, sin is a clever detective that will find us out (Numbers 32:23). Not only does sin suck us in, but it makes our sin known. There really are no secret sins. We might think we get away with sin for awhile, but according to the Word, we can be sure that sin is a clever detective that will suck us in and then seek us out.

Finally, sin is a thief. It actually robs of blessings and it strips and starves the soul (Jeremiah 5:24-25). God wants to rain blessings upon us and give tremendous harvests to us. It is only our sin that prevents the rain of blessings and abundant harvest that God desires for us to have.

You see,... sin stinks. It holds back God's blessings from our lives, obscures God's vision from our eyes, sneaks up on us and then makes itself known to all people. It erodes, corrupts, and torments. But God says that even though our sins be as bright as crimson and as visible as scarlet, even though they can be seen for miles away, we are invited to come to Him and let Him deal with them.

"No matter how glaring and bright your sin might be, I can make it white as snow," our Father in heaven says to us. I think maybe that I've heard that so many times that it has lost a bit of its meaning to me.

In London many years ago, a minister and his young son were standing in their window, looking down at the street as a parade passed by. In this parade, along with the clown and marching bands, British soldiers marched in their red coats.
"Look at those soldiers, Daddy!" the little boy said. "Look how white their coats are!"
"Their coats are red, son," the minister said.
"No, Daddy, they're white," the little boy insisted.
And when the minister stooped down to his son's vantage point, he saw that his son was looking through a pane of stained glass that bordered the window. Seen through the red glass, the red coats appeared to be white.
Suddenly a light went on in the minister's head. "That's it!" he thought. "Though my sins are scarlet, the Father looks at them through the filter of the blood of His Son and sees me white and pure and clean."

Though my own sins are as scarlet - glaring and ugly - I choose to heed the invitation of my Father who says, "Come, let us reason together. Stay away from sin in the future and confess the sin of your past. Realize it can be white as snow because of the blood of My Son."

Today, I am encouraged to take the Lord up on His invitation. If you've actually read this far, then I hope you are encouraged too. Come to Him. Reason with Him. Repent of any sin the Holy Spirit is bringing to your mind right now. It might be something obvious or something subtle, but you know it's a cord that is beginning to wrap itself tightly around you, a worm eating away inside of you, a detective beginning to follow you, a cloud obscuring God's glory from you, a thief robbing the harvest from you.

"Come," Jesus says. "Come now."