The Heart of God: Love Your Neighbor

This post is going into further detail on a point that I made in a sermon given on February 21, 2016.  You can access the sermon here... look for Jonah: God is Love (2/21/16)

There is an interesting discovery that takes place in Jonah chapter 4 when we read a conversation between Jonah and God.  We find that Jonah’s flight from Israel in chapter 1 was because he had a gut feeling that God might relent from judging Nineveh, if they repented at the message he was supposed to preach.  Sure enough, Jonah's gut feeling was right. The end of chapter 3 concludes with God relenting from judgment after the people of Nineveh repent at Jonah's short message.   In Jonah chapter 4 we read the following… 

“But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry.  And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.”  Jonah 4:1-2

Jonah is angry because God relents from His judgement at the repentance of Nineveh. He knew God’s heart and it stands in contrast to his own heart towards the Assyrian people. I made the comparison in my sermon that I found some of the Christian attitude towards the current refugee crisis that we are seeing in the US, draws a few parallels to this story.  I’ve seen and heard some of the current conversation taking place in parallel of Jonah/Christians being angry, afraid, and hateful towards Nineveh/Refugees. 

I won't pretend to understand the complexity of the immigration issue.  So, while I will refrain from commenting what our national policy on immigration is or isn’t, there is a deeper issue for the Christian that affects us in relationship to our neighborhood and local community.  Is our heart for the refugee the same as God’s?  Is our heart for our neighbor the same as God’s, whoever they might be?  

God’s heart for the one who is a foreigner that walks with us (the refugee) is this…

“When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.”                    Leviticus 19:33-34

For the New Testament believer, the apostle Paul reminds us that we are also sojourners in this place, 

“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,”  Philippians 3:20

If we hate and have hateful feelings towards the refugee, the immigrant, or whoever our neighbor is, we will find our hearts in contrast to God’s.  If our hearts and feelings are based out of fear on what could happen having a refugee family or group nearby, that is in contrast to the spirit that God has given us (2 Tim 1:7).   While I believe that the immigration policy is complicated and involved, I have no understanding of how the politics work or play out effectively in this arena.  What I can control and do understand is my responsibility in yielding my heart to God and conforming my will to His (Luke 6:40).  

This was thought to be an early creed of the church.  Paul writing to Timothy says this, 

“The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners...”   1 Timothy 1:15a

God’s desire is to save as many people from their sin that will believe, that is, the salvation from sin as the result of believing in the perfect and finished work of Christ on the cross.  Many refugees coming into this country are fleeing unspeakable horrors and circumstances.  Many of these circumstances and situations are the very reason the Church is not going into these regions.  Who is to say that God is not bringing them to our community that they might hear and experience the wonderful gospel of Jesus Christ?   God’s desire is for people to be saved. This is why He sent Jonah to Nineveh, that they might repent at the message He gave to Jonah to preach.  Who is to say that we are not here for such a time as this? 

An issue that is of real concern is one of safety when bringing in a group of people that can’t be vetted or background checked properly.  While this issue is also real complicated and involved, this I believe is the job of government to take care of it’s citizens.  We are instructed to pray for our leaders and that God would give them wisdom in navigating these situations (1Tim 2:1-4).  This is also where each believer can put their faith in the leading of the Holy Spirit to cast their vote (each persons civic responsibility) for their electable official.  A vote that is considered through much prayer and as much research as they can possibly do on the candidates.  

As believers we ought not be motivated by fear, but feel compassion as Jesus was with the masses who were compared to sheep without a shepherd (Matt 9:36, Mark 6:34).  We ought to pray for God’s heart for those who are without a shepherd, those who “do not know their right hand from their left” (Jonah 4:11).  As we are able to affect our communities, seeking to bring God’s tangible kingdom here on Earth, we will affect our cities in a positive way.  As we affect our cities, our counties take notice and we have potential to change culture.  As I understand history, this type of “grass root” movement is what can bring about real effective change on the national level.   If we focus on that which is right in front of us, it’s exciting to think how that might eventually change the national conversation.  Our government is a reflection of it’s people.  Let’s be a people seeking to reflect the heart of God and seeking to be about the will of God being done here on Earth, as it is in heaven.  

All scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2001). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

The Flawed and Beautiful Church

“These days American Christians switch churches because the one they are in lacks the desired programs. By contrast, Bonhoeffer “switched churches” so that he could go suffer with a church that was in difficulty and distress… Church as a place to serve, much less as a place to suffer, just doesn’t compute.”     - Everyday Life of a Pastor: Reasons to Persevere, by Stuart Stogner; The Journal of Biblical Counseling - Summer 2006

The Church is an amazing organism. It is one of the only things in this universe that in it’s brokenness and depravity, does it also magnify the graciousness and goodness of God. Of it’s many members, it speaks to the community that is the Trinity.  As there is fellowship with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, so the church is not to neglect the communal gathering. 

Having held the role of a pastor for almost 20 years I’ve seen my fare share of those who have left my church to go to another.  I’ve also seen those leaving another church to come to mine.  All for various reasons that seem important for the individuals that have made the decision to leave.  In my opinion, some had very legitimate reasons to leave our church.  Others, I thought their reasons were quite petty.  

No matter what the reason, my heart is to encourage those that leave our church and those that come to make the church better.  A cynical heart, like mine at times, would say the church is already better because of those that have left.  But that would be wrong and counterproductive to admit.  I’ve had to repent of such feelings.  No, the best thing to do is to encourage those coming into the church from another to understand that we are as flawed as the last church they left.   Yes, we are flawed in different ways, but you will find out soon we are still flawed. Help make us better.  To those that leave, know that where you land, they are flawed too.  When you find that out, please don’t leave, but for the very reason that they are flawed you need to stay.  

The reality of encountering Jesus is to understand that we are sinners who can only be saved by grace through faith.  The more we understand and know who God is, the more we are aware of our own sinfulness and inability apart from God’s initiation.  It is only those who are disillusioned as to who God is and the reality of their present situation that can stand in front of another man and think of himself better than him.  

When the weakness of the church is exposed, it is all the more reason to stay, to labor, and to pray for the church to become what God has intended it to be.  If a doctor never went into the room of a sick patient, no one would ever be healed.   When we see the brokenness of the church, we must declare and marvel at the goodness of God that He would leave the glories and majesty of Heaven, for the joy that was set before Him (the Church), endure the shame of the cross, forsaking all of the glories and splendor of Heaven, His precious treasure… His pearl of great price… the Church.  Is that not worth laboring with and serving those whom Christ died for?

Christian, see that your place in the church is first to serve.  In your service you will receive what you need as the Lord ministers to you through your service.  May we remember that a servant is not greater than his Master.  We have His example, may we do as He did.  No greater love has a man than this, that he would lay his life down for his friends.  

Simplicity in Mission

This last year I've been meditating on the commission given to the disciples in Acts 1:8, one to which extends to all that hear their message and believe:

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Jesus has not called us to save people.  He has not called us to do that which we could never do.  Jesus called us to testify and to give witness to the work that He has done in us.  Jesus is the One that saves. The gospels make it very clear that it is the Father that draws people unto Jesus.  It is the Holy Spirit that convicts people of sin, righteousness, and judgement.  Let that 10,000lb. weight fall off of your shoulders now. 

Paul would tell us as he spoke to the church in Corinth: (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”  

Notice he tells us that we are able to comfort people with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted.  The idea of having to go through what others have gone through to share the hope we have in Jesus is a misguided notion.  We have everything that we need to comfort others in despair when we ourselves have received the comfort that Jesus has given us upon conversion. 

What does this mean? May we live and seek to share with others the hope we have in Jesus.  Being about the will of the Father as He lays it out before us.  That could be to live in poverty to reach those in poverty.  It could be to use our resources and affluence to further on those who are called to the utter most part of the earth.  Or to use our resources, sphere of influence, and leadership capital  to change and affect policies/behaviors that further the will of God here on earth as it is in heaven.  

David Platt in his book Radical: Reclaiming your faith from the American Dream regarding the ministry of Jesus:

"But Jesus is so different from us. With the task of taking the gospel to the world, he wandered through the streets and byways…All He wanted was a few men who would think as He did, love as He did, see as He did, teach as He did and serve as He did. All He needed was to revolutionize the hearts of a few, and they would impact the world.”  

The key to simplicity in mission is being where you are, listening to the Lord in your circumstance, and loving those around you fiercely.  We then are able to leave the rest to the Lord to sort out.