Blog inspired by the crying baby behind me on the airplane...

A crying baby on my flight? That is so cliché. Luckily, my flight is not particularly lengthy, but it allows me just enough time remind myself that this baby's audible weeping is merely a small fraction of what our whole world is feeling at any given moment. For this baby, crying is one of his or her (I can't see it from my seat) two modes: sleeping or crying. But in a very real way, our world is in a constant state of suffering. The Apostle Paul, in one of my favorite passages of scripture, puts it this way:

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:22-23)

I sometimes wonder how we manage to insulate ourselves from this pain which was so evident to Paul. In in the United States, we have built a system that promotes comfort. The trajectory of science, technology and all our institutions is towards whatever is easier, less painful, and less time consuming. Occasionally we get a glimpse of what is ailing us, sometimes in the form a the death of a loved one or an economic collapse. We see things that most agree, “Should not be this way,” and we decide that all our resources should be allocated to preventing this catastrophe from ever happening again. This pain management system we've developed is more laughable than laudable.

I sometimes wonder what our society would look like if we embraced the hurting world around us. Would we have reality television shows where contestants must be homeless for an alloted period of time? Would we have shows where contestants must actually survive in Third World conditions? Could we ever get to the point where war, disease, or oppression ever become subjects for our entertainment? The answer is probably not, but we have done a great job at removing these eyesores from our everyday life. Whenever you go to the grocery store, what are all the tabloids talking about? Celebrity relationships or infidelities, government coverups and which American Idol contestant has a secret life we don't know about What if our tabloids and some of our less refined magazines only reported on the terrible things going on in the world? What if some story about a “balloon boy” failed to capture the attention of the news networks because they were reporting on malaria deaths, genocides, tribal wars and starving children?

I am sick to my stomach sometimes because all I ever do is complain about the ignorance or insolence of Americans, but I myself fail to hear the groaning of the world around me. Even more than that, I fail to respond to the the groaning when I do hear it. I must confess that I am scared to death when I read the words of Jesus:

"But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. "Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry. "Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.” (Luke 6:24-25)

Knowing what I know, perhaps I should be joining the baby in tears.

The Need For Contemplation

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.

Mark 1:35

Recently, in my own personal study and conversations with friends, I have been finding some constant themes.

1. People are not pleased with their lives, and widely report to have no "inner peace."
2. People are looking to alternative forms of spirituality.
3. People think of Christianity as a moralistic, but not particularly spiritual path.
4. Christians do not understand their relationship to the Holy Spirit.

While I do not think any of these facts are good in and of themselves, I find an amazing hope in the way they relate. I will take a look at these ideas individually and then talk about what they mean together.

People are not pleased with their lives, and widely report to have no "inner-peace." This should come as a surprise to no one. We in the United States live in a culture that is finding less and less satisfaction in life. We live in an information age, where we are never more than a Facebook poke or Twitter tweet away from other people, but we reportedly still feel alone. Obviously we are in a time of economic struggle, but is there any proof to say that we will feel better when we come out of it? I've harped on this issue before, but I must maintain that we are slowly killing our souls with materialism. Whether you like him or not, Jimmy Carter was prophetic when he observed:

"Too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption. Human identity is no longer defined by what one does, but by what one owns. But we've discovered that owning things and consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning. We've learned that piling up material goods cannot fill the emptiness of lives which have no confidence or purpose."

People are taking many different outlets to fulfill their emptiness. Family, friends, sports, money, sex, drugs, alcohol, pets (so many lonely people only experiencing love from the Golden Retrievers), and everything else under the sun are becoming outlets to fulfill our deepest needs. Which brings me to my next point...

People are looking to alternative forms of spirituality. From the Hindu Vedas and Upanishads to Kabbalah, from Oprah and her gurus to Scientology, people are dying to believe in something. Obviously I believe their aims are way off, but I still see this as a good thing. Bad thinking Christians tend to be up in arms about the oncoming atheistic apocalypse, but the empirical evidence is not reinforcing such fears. I think our biggest fear as Christians shouldn't be that people like Richard Dawkins are going to argue Christianity away. We should be more afraid of not offering people what they need to the point that they will turn to empty religions in order to satisfy it.

People think of Christianity as a moralistic, but not particularly spiritual path. When I consider this prevalent idea, I cannot decide if I am more saddened or angered by the notion. As I understand it the church is supposed to be the Body of Christ in the world. If the world wants to see Jesus they should be able to look at the church. If this is the case people might think that Jesus...

1. hates all homosexuals and cares more about them not getting married than he does about feeding the poor.
2. thinks Barack Obama is a socialist and might be the Antichrist.
3. has a "pick yourself up by your bootstraps" attitude about salvation.
4. is mean spirited.
5. is antagonistic towards the world.

I don't really want to go into all those misrepresentations of Jesus because I will just get angry, but needless to say we have not done very well as Christ's representatives.

Furthermore, even aside from our ugly face we've shown, we haven't done a great job inside the Body of Christ either. Christianity has become an overly pragmatic religion. We have done a really good job at systematizing the Christian life and a really bad job of communicating the Good News. We teach people what we perceive as the necessary hows without teaching them the whys. Often have I heard sermons on "God's 12 Step Plan to Save Your Marriage," or "the Bible's Money Management System." I am not saying that God is not interested in those areas. Clearly He is. But I think we are going about it entirely wrong. (I'll finish this thought later.)

Christians do not understand their relationship to the Holy Spirit.I actually think that the Holy Spirit is sort of an outcast in many churches. Every good Bible student knows that Christians receive the Holy Spirit, but most Christians seem oblivious to His role in their lives. Just recently I was teaching a class where we were looking at how Jesus' life was Spirit led. Not surprisingly it prompted the question, "How do you live by the Spirit?" I think this is a question many Christians are asking, even if they can't verbalize it.

Now that I've made it through the preliminary ideas, I think it boils down to this: Christians need to learn the contemplative spiritual disciplines. Prayer, meditation, silence, and solitude are what I really have in mind. I think it would be extremely hard to make a universal order for the Christian life (many have tried), but if I had to guess it might look something like this:

1. People hear the Gospel, they believe and repent and are saved.
2. People join the body of Christ, they experience God through worship, fellowship, and the sacraments (essentially the Eucharist and Baptism).
3. People are taught about who God is and how we can know him.
4. People are taught how to spend time with God: prayer, meditation, silence, solitude.
5. People are transformed (not immediately or ever on a fixed scale) more into the image of Jesus.

Obviously I do not think it would or will always work nicely and neatly in that order. But I think that makes more theological sense than this:

1. People hear the Gospel, hopefully they believe and repent and are saved.
2. People join the body of Christ, they learn that singing is worship.
3. They are taught "how to be a Christian."
4. They never spend time with God.
5. They get really frustrated when nothing in their lives reflect Jesus.

I know that I may be exaggerated the process a bit, but not by too much. We have an American approach to Christianity: if you work hard at it, you will succeed. This is not the "faith that was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 1:3). I believe in a God of transformation. I believe that when we experience and draw close to God we cannot leave the same. I love the way Paul describes it in 2 Corinthians 3:17-18:

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

What should your church teach? Teach people to draw close to God. Teach people how to live in the Spirit. Teach people the Spiritual Disciplines. If we are helping the body of Christ to behold "the glory of the Lord" we will never have to teach another dating seminar, marriage saving lesson, or business ethics class ever again. I am hopeful because people all over the world are seeking inner peace and satisfaction in their lives and the only fulfillment they will ever receive will be through the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Further Reading:

A Celebration of Discipline and Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home by Richard Foster

The Life of the Spirit and the Life of Today by Evelyn Underhill

The Lord's Prayer and The Beatitudes by Gregory of Nyssa

The endeavor of postmodernism (pt. 1)

"A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you're looking down, you can't see something that's above you." - C.S. Lewis

I am well aware that "Pride goeth before a fall," but lately I have thinking about what causes pride to be such a powerful vice. I have long held to C.S. Lewis' idea that "evil is only spoiled goodness." That is to say that evil does not exist on it's own, but is only a corruption of things that were made to be good. I believe that this idea is both logical and biblical, and it leads me to consider: "What is the pure fulfillment of my corrupted desire which cause me to sin?"

The case of pride is an extremely complicated sin to consider because it is so pervasive in our society. Everything in our society preaches that at the end of the day the number one priority is you. Pop psychology teaches that the most important thing is to love yourself. Popular culture teaches that the person with the most toys wins. The brilliant Garrison Keillor refers to popular websites MySpace and Facebook as "exercises in narcissism." Even philanthropic exhibitions such as Oprah's Big Give completely ignore Christ's teaching, "But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (Matthew 6:3-4). Even charity has become further opportunity for ego inflation.

This complete obsession with the self is also moving into churches as sermons move from having Jesus as the main character to having people as the main character. I recently heard a very influential pastor teaching on Jesus' walking on the water saying:

I always assumed that Peter doubts Jesus. But Jesus isn't sinking. Who does Peter doubt? He doubts himself. He loses faith in himself that he can actually be like his rabbi. Jesus wouldn't have called him if he didn't think he could be like him.

I'm sorry, but short of talking about flying spaghetti monsters, I don't think there is a worse interpretation of this story from Matthew 14. This story is not about Peter's faith in Peter, it's about Peter's faith in Jesus. In fact, I don't think that the placement of this story is a coincidence. In Matthew's gospel, this story comes only one chapter after Jesus' parable of the "Sower and the Soils." Peter began to sink as "he saw the wind" and "was afraid" (Matthew 14:30). I think in this instance Peter might be a parallel to the seed that fell in the rocky soil which Jesus explains, "yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away" (Matthew 13:21).

I say all of this only to show that people are completely and utterly focused on themselves. But I do not consider this to be a sign of hopelessness. Thomas Traherne once wrote that, "The noble inclination whereby man thirsteth after riches and dominion, is his highest virtue." This may seem counter intuitive. It seems like the selfish focus of seeking money and power should be a vice which should be abhorred. But Traherne makes it more clear with the whole quote:

The noble inclination whereby man thirsteth after riches and dominion, is his highest virtue, when rightly guided; and carries him as in a triumphant chariot, to his sovereign happiness. Men are made miserable only by abusing it. Taking a false way to satisfy it, they pursue the wind.

I think what Traherne is getting at is the fact that the part of every person which makes us want money and power, is the same part of every person which makes them desire God. Riches and dominion were never meant to fulfill the deepest desires of our heart. We think being seen, recognized and envied by all people will ultimately make us happy, and in thinking so way we have never been so wrong and never been so right. Being in famous in front of people will never make us happy, and in the case of many celebrities, might make us go insane. However, it is about being known, by the one who knows us better than we know ourselves...God.

About this intimacy with God the Apostle Paul writes, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12). For Paul, a large part about being in a relationship with God is being known by him. Jesus says much the same when he states:

On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'

(Matthew 7:22-23)

Apparently it is actually of the utmost importance to be known by God. I think this is why the gospel stands in such stark opposition to self-centeredness. If the focus is on our own comfort, we will never know true contentment. If the focus is on our own appearance, we can never recognize the true beauty of God. If the focus of our worship is on the created and not the creator, we are idolaters and pagans (Romans 1:25). If I am too busy worrying about my own glory, Jesus will ask us, "How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God" (John 5:44)?

So what is the answer to this self-centeredness? The gospel. The gospel of a king of came to serve. The gospel of the sinless who became sin. The gospel of the Creator suffering at the hands of the created. The gospel which "opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6). C.S. Lewis once wrote, "'Nothing, not even what is lowest and most bestial, will not be raised again if it submits to death.'" This is the gospel. Losing our lives that we may be found in Him. Only then will we find any significance.

I Am Significant

"A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you're looking down, you can't see something that's above you." - C.S. Lewis

I am well aware that "Pride goeth before a fall," but lately I have thinking about what causes pride to be such a powerful vice. I have long held to C.S. Lewis' idea that "evil is only spoiled goodness." That is to say that evil does not exist on it's own, but is only a corruption of things that were made to be good. I believe that this idea is both logical and biblical, and it leads me to consider: "What is the pure fulfillment of my corrupted desire which cause me to sin?"

The case of pride is an extremely complicated sin to consider because it is so pervasive in our society. Everything in our society preaches that at the end of the day the number one priority is you. Pop psychology teaches that the most important thing is to love yourself. Popular culture teaches that the person with the most toys wins. The brilliant Garrison Keillor refers to popular websites MySpace and Facebook as "exercises in narcissism." Even philanthropic exhibitions such as Oprah's Big Give completely ignore Christ's teaching, "But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (Matthew 6:3-4). Even charity has become further opportunity for ego inflation.

This complete obsession with the self is also moving into churches as sermons move from having Jesus as the main character to having people as the main character. I recently heard a very influential pastor teaching on Jesus' walking on the water saying:

I always assumed that Peter doubts Jesus. But Jesus isn't sinking. Who does Peter doubt? He doubts himself. He loses faith in himself that he can actually be like his rabbi. Jesus wouldn't have called him if he didn't think he could be like him.

I'm sorry, but short of talking about flying spaghetti monsters, I don't think there is a worse interpretation of this story from Matthew 14. This story is not about Peter's faith in Peter, it's about Peter's faith in Jesus. In fact, I don't think that the placement of this story is a coincidence. In Matthew's gospel, this story comes only one chapter after Jesus' parable of the "Sower and the Soils." Peter began to sink as "he saw the wind" and "was afraid" (Matthew 14:30). I think in this instance Peter might be a parallel to the seed that fell in the rocky soil which Jesus explains, "yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away" (Matthew 13:21).

I say all of this only to show that people are completely and utterly focused on themselves. But I do not consider this to be a sign of hopelessness. Thomas Traherne once wrote that, "The noble inclination whereby man thirsteth after riches and dominion, is his highest virtue." This may seem counter intuitive. It seems like the selfish focus of seeking money and power should be a vice which should be abhorred. But Traherne makes it more clear with the whole quote:

The noble inclination whereby man thirsteth after riches and dominion, is his highest virtue, when rightly guided; and carries him as in a triumphant chariot, to his sovereign happiness. Men are made miserable only by abusing it. Taking a false way to satisfy it, they pursue the wind.

I think what Traherne is getting at is the fact that the part of every person which makes us want money and power, is the same part of every person which makes them desire God. Riches and dominion were never meant to fulfill the deepest desires of our heart. We think being seen, recognized and envied by all people will ultimately make us happy, and in thinking so way we have never been so wrong and never been so right. Being in famous in front of people will never make us happy, and in the case of many celebrities, might make us go insane. However, it is about being known, by the one who knows us better than we know ourselves...God.

About this intimacy with God the Apostle Paul writes, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12). For Paul, a large part about being in a relationship with God is being known by him. Jesus says much the same when he states:

On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.' (Matthew 7:22-23)

Apparently it is actually of the utmost importance to be known by God. I think this is why the gospel stands in such stark opposition to self-centeredness. If the focus is on our own comfort, we will never know true contentment. If the focus is on our own appearance, we can never recognize the true beauty of God. If the focus of our worship is on the created and not the creator, we are idolaters and pagans (Romans 1:25). If I am too busy worrying about my own glory, Jesus will ask us, "How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God" (John 5:44)?

So what is the answer to this self-centeredness? The gospel. The gospel of a king of came to serve. The gospel of the sinless who became sin. The gospel of the Creator suffering at the hands of the created. The gospel which "opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6). C.S. Lewis once wrote, "'Nothing, not even what is lowest and most bestial, will not be raised again if it submits to death.'" This is the gospel. Losing our lives that we may be found in Him. Only then will we find any significance.