Frank Viola and the Experiement

Frank Viola is a name I've known for a long time. I love his contribution to the house church movement, of which I am an avid fan. I've followed this movement for many years and consider myself on the fringes of it, even though at CrossBridge we are holding primarily public meetings at present. Frank is a prolific writer and is one of the names most associated with the house church movement. He has a passion to see the practices of the early church be once again embraced. So do I. CrossBridge, though only about 2 years old needs some tweeking. I've said numerous times that public meetings are an experiment that we're trying and we'll see how it goes. The experiment is to see if we can have an experience of authentic church life and public meetings as well. Can we live in relationship with one another and have a public presence? Can we also recruit the troops and pool the resources in order to make a difference in the world? Can the two co-exist? Here's how its going: We have grown from about 10 people meeting in our home in early '07 to about 20 people meeting in St. Andrews Civic Club in late '07 and '08 to about 50 people meeting at our rented facility in the Lincoln Center now in '09. Numerical growth is happening. We're moving about 300 boxes of food a month through Angel Food Ministries. We've seen some lives changed and some people walking with Jesus who were not before coming to CrossBridge. We've been able to give away about 25 cars to needy folks. We've done well about showing the love of God to the world. We have a great worship team and great worship. (Truly unbelievable for a church our size!) We are quick to love and slow to judge. We have great conversations. But... Someone told me today that they feel disconnected...that back when we were smaller and met in the St.Andrews Civic Club it felt more like a family. We all knew each other. We ate together most Sundays. It was more intimate. We've lost something as we've grown. Its easy now to come to church and go home without really talking to anyone. Its easy to get in and out. Get your church fix, and not connect with anyone. And as we continue to grow it will become even easier. But the irony is that its becoming less and less 'church.' Because church happens in relationship. Church happens when people pray for one another, laugh and cry together. When they bear each other's burdens. When they are involved in each other's lives. We've gotta get that back and there's only one way to do it. We've got to experience church life beyond Sundays from 10-12. We've got to build this thing on relationships. And we've got to do this no matter the cost. This means....(drumroll)....meeting in homes. Period. This is not about Dave wanting everyone to join a homegroup. This is about being the church. Its the fabric of who we are. If its not the fabric of who you are then you should prayerfully consider if CrossBridge is the place for you or not. When Frank's office sent an e-mail that he is coming I responded immediately, hoping, but thinking that it was a long shot. CrossBridge is a small church and doesn't have money to bring in big name speakers. But Frank accepted our invitation. This speaks highly of Frank, his heart and his approach to ministry. He's not driven by numbers or big money. He's like Jesus that way. I'm excited about Frank coming because I believe that his message is timely for us. I believe that he has something to say to CrossBridge at this time. And I believe that this whole thing is being orchestrated by our Father. So be prepared, CrossBridge. God is up to something.

The Lord's Prayer Part 6-Temptation and Evil

Temptation and Evil Mt. 6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. There is an ancient Jewish Evening prayer, which Jesus likely knew. One section says the following: Lead my foot not into the power of sin and bring me not into the power of iniquity and not into the power of temptation and not into the power of anything shameful. It would follow that Jesus was referencing this prayer when He taught His disciples to ask to be spared temptation. To be spared temptation and rescued from evil should be the desire of any spiritual person. We should resist sin, but we need help. It’s one thing to struggle against sin. But if we are not tempted then there is nothing to resist. Abstaining from sin would be a breeze. So, it’s a good prayer. And we all can be sure that Jesus’ prayers were always answered. But…Houston, we have a problem. This is a prayer that God doesn’t seem to answer. At least not all the time. We ARE tempted. And sometimes it seems that the more we sincerely ask for relief, the further away the relief moves. Or maybe its just me. Assuming that He Himself prayed for deliverance from temptation, even Jesus was denied an affirmative answer. Perhaps he prayed the aforementioned evening prayer, or perhaps the same ideas in a different form. He was “led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil” in Matthew 4:1, just 2 chapters back from The Lord’s Prayer. And later He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane for the cup to pass from Him. It did not. It only got harder. If Jesus was tempted and thus received a less than affirmative answer to this question, we can be sure that the spirit will lead us to places where we will be tempted as well. Regardless of our answer to the prayer we are instructed to pray it. I Cor. 10: 12So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! 13No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. He always gives us a way out. We don’t always take it. But this is a most appropriate time to pray for deliverance from evil. When we find ourselves on the verge of giving in is when evil always seems the most personal. Its attacks on us are tailor-made. In our weakest moments we are tempted with the things we most desire. Its hard to imagine that this is arbitrary or coincidental. The Greek word that is traditionally translated “evil” can equally be translated “evil one.” The Christian belief in a personal devil is often rejected by critics of the faith. But no one can deny the personal way in which evil works in the world, especially in the area of temptation. The Bible offers two primary ways in which to resist temptation in the frequent occasions when our prayer for deliverance is not answered affirmatively. They are both vitally important and can be effectively employed simultaneously. The first is by using God’s word. Matthew 4:1-11 is the story of Jesus’ own temptation in the desert. For each temptation the devil presented, the Savior quoted scripture. It follows that various temptations can be better resisted the more scripture we know. The second way is by a simple removal of the obstacle. I call it simple because it is not complex. Not because it is easy. Earlier in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus speaks of the severity of the sacrifice that the disciple should be willing to make in order to resist sin. Matthew 5:27-30 speaks of amputating limbs that cause one to sin. Certainly Jesus is no dummy, and realizes that the sin of stealing has to do with the mind and heart, not with the hand. The point is to become radical in dealing with sin. Do what it takes to eliminate the sin, even if it is painful or involves sacrifice. Some years ago a colleague in the next counseling office and I had some down time and were sharing a conversation. He mentioned a TV show and asked if I’d seen it. “Nope.” He continued to ask this or that question about TV shows that yielded only frustrating answers until I confessed that we had given away our TV some time earlier. The look of shock on his face is burned into my memory. “Well…what DO you do?” I listed the things that my wife and I had time to do that we hadn’t because of our diet of boob tube. We read books, spent time together, took long walks on the beach. My friend’s response was as if I had cut off my right hand. (By the way, we once again have a TV and we are addicted to ’24.’) Thousands of men struggle with temptation to access Internet pornography. As the Internet becomes more and more indispensible as a part of our lives, the options for dealing with this sin become fewer and more important. For many it is not as simple as cancelling home Internet service. But filters and accountability software can be an excellent option for those of us who feel the need to remain plugged in. (see www.covenanteyes.com or www.xxxchurch.com.) The point is to deal with this and other sin radically and with a vengeance. For others it may be that life is too busy and we need to learn to be ruthless with our schedule to free up time for God and family. So, pray to not be led into temptation. If you are tempted, pray for deliverance and look for the way out that He provides. Resist temptation with God’s word and remove the temptation even if it means being socially awkward or inconvenienced. Trust the God who loves you enough to send His Son to deliver you from sin will support you fully. Even if He leads you through deserts of temptation He will lead you out and His angels will minister to you as well. Winston Churchill’s words seem appropriate here: “If you’re going through hell, keep on going.”

The Lord's Prayer Part 5-Forgiveness

Mt. 6:12Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. 14For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. If there’s one thing that I need it’s forgiveness. We all need it. Lots of it. All the time. Forgiveness is the only way to maintain relationships. It’s the only way to maintain sanity. We’re not perfect and we will fail. And when we do someone will get hurt. And if the hurt is not forgiven it will not heal. Forgiveness is what we really need. Interesting that of all the things that are covered in the Lord’s Prayer, the one thing that Jesus comments on after the prayer is forgiveness. And His comment bothers me. I don’t like to think of God in these terms. My guess is that you don’t either. If we do not forgive men their sins God won’t forgive us ours. Pardon me? That was my bad ear. God forgives everyone who prays a sinner’s prayer, right? However, the sinner’s prayer is not in the Bible. The requirement that we forgive one another is in the Bible, on the lips of Jesus no less. I suggest that when someone wants to begin a journey with Jesus we turn to this verse. And I suggest we turn to it many times again and again with an open and honest heart, ready to forgive the hurt we bear because of the imperfections and character flaws of others. Why won’t God forgive us if we don’t forgive others? In Matthew 18, Jesus makes the same point in the form of a parable…a story that would have been hilarious to its original hearers because of the ridiculous amount of debt owed by the unmerciful (read ‘unforgiving’) servant. The answer to the ‘why’ question may not be given, but the insanity of not forgiving when we’ve been forgiven so much is clear as a bell. But why does Jesus instruct us to ask for something that He came to provide anyway? Perhaps because it reminds us that we must forgive others in order to receive from Him the forgiveness we really need. Perhaps the heart condition required to forgive others is the same heart condition needed to experience and live in His forgiveness. In the equivalent passage in Luke, it is trespasses that are to be forgiven, not debts as here. Debts are good things left undone. Sins of omission. Trespasses are evil deeds we have done. Sins of commission. Both Greek and English have separate words for debts and trespasses. Aramaic, which is the original language of the prayer has only one word for both. Both debts and trespasses are included. Certainly we are guilty of both, and thus must extend forgiveness for both as well. God is so willing to forgive us ours. May we be also be willing. One final thought. If you step on my foot I will likely be able to forgive you quickly. This is forgiveness as an event. If you permanently injure someone in my immediate family, I cannot forgive you so quickly. I have a process to go through. If I pretend to forgive quickly I am being dishonest and covering up the hurt rather than forgiving it. If we are to release the hurt we must first own it. We must experience it fully. It is only then that we can make a decision to forgive. In fact, forgiveness can only be as thorough as our experience of the pain. And for a serious offense this can take months or years. But God meets us in the process of forgiveness and will lead us through it by His gentle but firm hand. He will lead us step by step. For further reading on the subject of forgiveness, I suggest reading one of Lewis Smedes excellent books, ‘The Art of Forgiving’, and ‘Forgive and Forget.’ "You will know that forgiveness has begun when you recall those who hurt you and feel the power to wish them well."- Smedes

The Lord's Prayer Part 4-Oh, Manna.

Matthew 6:11 Give us today our daily bread. Jesus was not a wealthy man. And He habitually spoke against greed and the abuse of wealth. He said later in this sermon not to store up treasures on earth. But He did understand the need for provision and here instructs His disciples to ask God to give them what they need. For today. Enough for today, not enough for the year. This idea is beautifully illustrated in Exodus 16, the story of God giving the Israelites bread from heaven. It is highly likely that Jesus was nodding to this story in his request for daily bread. The story talks about the Israelites complaining about being in the desert without what they considered to be adequate provision. These guys had already forgotten that they were in an abusive and inhumane situation in which they were slaves to a cruel dictator. Their grumbling against Moses and Aaron was actually grumbling against a compassionate and merciful God who is all too ready to help. The good ole days are usually not what we remember them to be. The bad stuff we simply choose to forget. Just like Barbara Streisand. Anyway… God promises to “rain down bread for heaven” and He does just that. The Israelites saw the substance, which was “thin flakes like frost on the ground,” and exclaimed, “Manna!” which means “What is it?” They had never seen frosted flakes before. The name stuck and the Israelites had breakfast. Lunch and dinner to boot. And even quail meat as a main course for dinner. God gave them enough for today, but not enough for tomorrow. If they were greedy and gathered too much it would spoil (except on Friday night, when they could also gather enough for all day Saturday, the day of rest.) A story about frosted flakes and a prayer about days and bread speaks strongly to us. I went to school in a town where I heard a lot of preachers say that Jesus wants us rich. Once I was actually in a Bible study led by a guy who taught that we should have faith for everything we want. Piles of money, cars, TV’s, etc. This type of biblical interpretation could only be birthed in the wealthiest nation in the history of the world. The good ole U.S. of A. Jesus does tell us to pray for provision. Don’t be satisfied that less than what you need. But we may need much less than what we think. But He never instructs to pray for what we do not need. Bread for today, not for the whole year. Not even for next week. Today. Further, He instructs us to pray for bread. Not cake. We are to pray for sustenance, not luxury. No place for extravagance and greed in the kingdom of God. And let us not forget the bread is a gift. We think that we work for our money and that we deserve it because we’ve earned it. Wrong. What an arrogant and thankless way to think! Those who gather manna didn’t produce it. Didn’t supply it. They just went and got it. God gave it from a heart of caring for His children. If you build houses (sorry that work is slow for you right now) you didn’t grow the trees that make the lumber, or create the clay that the bricks are made of. And it is God that gave you the strength and the ability to acquire the appropriate skills. All you’re doing is gathering manna. The farmer plants the seed but God supplies the growth. The hunter seeks the prey but God provides it. If you work on computers or are in a helping profession it may be a bit less obvious. But we have no materials to create that did not come from God’s creation, and no knowledge and skill that didn’t come from His generosity. When my wife and I spent a decade on the mission field we saw this demonstrated clearly. Our support came from gifts, not a salary. And though we worked hard, our finances were in no way connected to the work we did. We did what God called us to do, and He provided for us. When we moved back to the states and ‘got jobs’ nothing really changed. We still must do what god calls us to do and trust Him (not ourselves) to provide. Nothing we do to provide for ourselves really provides for anything. It is all simply receiving a gift. And recognizing this fact changes everything. All our possessions and finances are suddenly meaningful. Even holy. We no longer have to worry because it is God who supplies everything. Pressure to perform and overachieve takes its proper place as sinful and anti-kingdom motivation. And we are free to give because we know that it is all from God in the first place. Asking God to give us daily bread is recognizing the way that the world really works. If our nation is facing hard economic times, we must trust God who gives us enough manna for today.

The Lord's Prayer Part 3-Name, Kingdom, Will

So far we've covered 2 words in The Lord's Prayer: "Our Father." We discussed the intimate term of Abba, Papa that is used of God... a word close to our word, "Daddy." The following words, "Which art in heaven" make it clear that it is not our biological daddy we're referring to. The words, "Our daddy in Heaven" point clearly to the fact that God is both intimate and transcendent. He is our daddy, yet He is high and lifted up and rides upon the cloud. All of the power of Almighty God must not be ignored when we are close enough to lean on His chest and hear His heartbeat. He is our Daddy. And He is the All Powerful King of the Universe. The next few lines of the prayer tend to be misunderstood or not understood at all. Still, I believe these lines to be of monumental importance because they outline God’s desire and the church’s mission. Matthew 6: 19bOur Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 
 10your kingdom come, 
 your will be done 
 on earth as it is in heaven. The Lord’s Prayer is the central prayer of the Christian faith. When Jesus’ disciples asked to be taught to pray He taught them this prayer. Now some 2000 years later we say the prayer corporately, privately and many use it as an outline to expound upon during prayer time. At the risk of being redundant, Jesus was a Jew. And there was a specific prayer that was (and is) central to the Jewish faith in much the same way that the Lord’s Prayer is central to Christianity. This prayer is called Shemoneh Esreh, meaning ‘18’ as it consists of 18 requests. Sometimes it is called Tefillah, which simply means ‘prayer’. The Tefillah can be prayed in 5-10 minutes depending on one’s fluency in Hebrew. It was part of the morning, midday and evening services in the synagogue. Jesus knew this prayer well and prayed it regularly. The prayer that Jesus taught His disciples incorporates elements of the Tefillah. One place where Jesus’ prayer echoes the Tefillah is in the ‘hallowed be your name’ clause. The Tefillah reads: “We will hallow Your name in the world as it is hallowed in the Highest Heavens” One notable difference is that the Tefillah points out who will do the hallowing (the Jews) as opposed to the Lord’s Prayer which asks that His name be hallowed but is not specific who is to do the hallowing. Perhaps Jesus’ intent was to point out that though the Jewish people have a vital role in bringing the light of God to the world, they must not be the sole hallowers. But for those of us who are thrown off by the word “hallow” or “hallowed” let me explain. The English language is notorious for having multiple words for the same thing. This is one of those instances. The Greek word hagios is translated holy, holy one or saint. A saint is someone who is holy. One word in Greek, two in English. But wait there’s more. Hallowed is related as well. Remember Halloween? Its on the Eve of All Saints Day, November 1st. Its called All Saints Eve or All Hallows Eve. Because ‘Hallow’ means holy. Thus ‘hallowed’ means ‘having been made holy.’ Got it? Hagios =holy=saint=hallow. Now that we’ve got that, there’s something else going on that confuses us and throws us off. Anytime people recite something together over and over it develops a cadence, a sort of rhythm that helps us stay together and remember the words. The cadence is based much more on the rhythm of the sentences and the sound of the words than on their meaning. For example, take the American Pledge of Allegiance. Below I have indicated where our pauses occur when we recite it together: I pledge allegiance/ to the flag /of the United States of America. //And to the republic /for which it stands:/ one nation /under God, /indivisible, /with liberty and justice for all. These pauses may be helpful for staying together or for remembering the words, but they obscure the meaning. The intent of the author is much clearer if you take the pause marks out and read it straight through. “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America” is one complete thought. We are ‘one nation under God,’ and this meaning is blurred because of the cadence we use, and because of the familiarity of the words. The same is true for this part of the Lord’s Prayer. When we say it together it becomes this: Our Father/ Who art in heaven/hallowed be thy name./ Your kingdom come/ your will be done/ on earth as it is in heaven. In the original manuscripts there was no punctuation marks at all, and no capital letters. And certainly no verse marks. But there is grammar and this can help us. My Greek is not too good, but good enough to have realized that the three phrases “Hallowed be your name, Your Kingdom come, Your will be done” are parallel. The first is hard to express in English, but could be rendered, “May Your name be made holy.” All three go together and are related in meaning. Also they are all equally followed by “On earth as it is in Heaven.” He just added that to the end referring to all three as a group instead of after each one. So here is what we come up with: o May Your name be made holy on earth as in heaven o May Your Kingdom come on earth as in heaven o May Your will be done on earth as in heaven These three ideas are meant to go together, rather than effectively attaching the hallowed part onto the ‘who art in heaven’ part, and thinking of ‘on earth as it is in heaven’ as only pertaining to ‘Your will be done.’ All three are parallel and have similar meanings. The kingdom of God is where God’s name is made (and kept) holy and where His will is done. And the prayer is for these things to happen here. On earth. Brian McLaren points out that when many of us pray the Lord’s Prayer we do not mean it. We should instead be praying, “Our Father who art in Heaven…may we leave earth and go to heaven where Your will is done because it is being done THERE but not HERE.” He even goes so far to say that Jesus’ primary reason for coming was not to tell us how to go to heaven but rather how to bring heaven down to earth: how to see His will done here. And I would add to Mr. McLaren, that His name would be made and kept holy here on earth as well. God’s name, kingdom and will encompass so much more than simply personal salvation so that we can get to heaven. Jesus, the prophets, the entire scripture in fact seems to be obsessed with pleasing God by taking care of the poor and making sure that justice is done. (A good overview of some scriptures dealing with the poor can be found at: http://worldwidewanderer.blogspot.com/2005/04/biblical-teachings-on-poor-pt-1.html) Worship God, but do not neglect the poor. Keep your oaths, follow the big 10, pray a lot but take a stand against injustice! Jesus had the idea that God’s kingdom was to happen here on earth. And that we, by our lives lived for God before the world were to play a part in its coming. Greed is replaced by generosity. Pride melts away in the presence of humility. Justice shows injustice the door. Love gives the pink slip to hate in all its forms: racism, judgementalism, legalism, rejection, abuse… All of this. Here. On earth. Jesus prayed it. Do we think he was mixed up? No. If Jesus prayed it and taught His disciples to pray it and people have been praying it for 2000 years, the chances of this actually taking place is pretty good. Sorry if that messes up your idea of the end times. And I’m certainly not wanting to get into an eschatological argument with anyone. There are others who will engage, but not me. I’m just saying that this was important to Jesus and that He meant exactly what He said exactly how He said it. And Jesus teaching us to pray this way indicates that He also wants us to live this way. We are to be the ambassadors of His kingdom. And what this looks like may vary from person to person. But for all of us it means putting the teachings and desires of Jesus above our own thoughts of the way it should be. And for all of us it means doing something. Working at a shelter, taking a homeless guy to Denny’s, sweeping the church floor, going on a missions trip, adopting a child…and to do it for Him, giving Him the glory and thus making His name holy.