Anger Management

 

Be angry at sin (at immorality, at injustice,

at ungodly behavior), yet do not sin;

do not let your anger cause you shame,

nor allow it to last until the sun goes down.

Ephesians 4:26 (AMP)

As it usually does, the Amplified Bible helps deepen our understanding of this verse beyond what so many other translations say: "Be angry, yet do not sin."

It's good to be reminded what it's okay to be angry about. Too often, we see Jesus overturning tables in the temple and think, "See? I can be mad at Tim for taking the last slice of pizza!"

Jesus was upset with the moneychangers and bird-sellers because they were making it difficult for people to worship Yahweh, not because the color of the tablecloths clashed with the drapes.

AND...he didn't grumble and brood about it, spreading discontent. He took action, not letting it fester and worsen with the passage of time. Before the sun set, he addressed the issue clearly.

Anger management made simple.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...I've often heard people pray, "Lord, break our hearts with what breaks yours." Maybe we could also pray that what angers God would raise our hackles as well.

The Verse That Disappointed the Teenaged Me

 

Greet all God’s people with a holy kiss.

1 Thessalonians 5:26 (NIV)

As a male teenager in North America, this may have been one of the Scripture verses I was most eager to obey. Of course, I wasn't aware of the myriad ways the original Greek of this verse had been translated through the years...

Modern English Version:
Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss.

This more-literal translation limited my pool of possible smooch partners to males, which greatly dampened my enthusiasm for obedience.

The Message:
Greet all the followers of Jesus there with a holy embrace.

This more-modern paraphrase opened it back up to include females, but erased the specific use of lips to greet each other.

The Living Bible:
Shake hands for me with all the brothers there.

And then Kenneth Taylor totally flipped the switch on both variables: no lips; no girls.

So, I needed to go to my favorite translation for getting every possible nuance of meaning out of a verse...

Amplified Bible:
Greet all the believers with a holy kiss [as brothers and sisters in God’s family].

...which gave me hope, but then I read the footnote:

Greeting other believers with a kiss on the cheek would be the equivalent of today’s handshake, pat on the back, or casual hug.

*  *  *  *  *  *  * 

Truth is...The point was never about romance, but about accepting and welcoming fellow believers, harboring no ill will against anyone who calls Jesus Lord, and recognizing commonality with all who share The Faith.

In the words of the Contemporary English Version: Give the Lord's followers a warm greeting.

Pearls B4 Swine: The Parable of the Owner's Manual

 

Big thanks to Stephan Pastis and Pearls Before Swine for today's lesson:

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17 [NLT])

I'd Like to Register a Complaint

 

Do you know anyone whose Mother Tongue is the language of complaints and negativity? Someone who just can't be happy if they didn't have something to complain about?

You know, like the New Yorker cartoon of a doctor telling his patient, "I can cure your back problem, but there's a risk that you'll be left with nothing to talk about."

Apparently, Solomon knew someone like that. It seems he even married someone like that:

It’s better to live alone in the desert
than with a quarrelsome, complaining wife.
Proverbs 21:19 (NLT)

A quarrelsome wife is as annoying
as constant dripping on a rainy day.
Proverbs 27:15 (NLT)

While King Solomon's Henny Youngman routine is kind of funny, the Apostle Paul tells us that the habit of complaining and pointing out the negative is harmful to our spiritual health.

Do everything without grumbling or arguing,
so that you may become blameless and pure,
children of God without fault
in a warped and crooked generation.
Then you will shine among them
like stars in the sky.
Philippians 2:14-15 (NIV)

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...Yes, it's kind of funny that I'm complaining about people complaining.

Calvin & Hobbes' Unintentional Commentary on Proverbs 6:6

 

Our text today, flock, features our hero, Calvin, coming to a wise conclusion at an unwise time.

Truth is...Go to the ant, you slacker! Observe its ways and become wise. (Proverbs 6:6 CSB)

Laughing at the Lack of Justice

 

There's usually not much to chuckle about in the face of an innocent person being railroaded by the justice system. This is especially true when thinking about the arrest and trial of Jesus.

And yet...

According to Mark 14, even though Jesus had spent all week acting like a messiah, starting with riding into Jerusalem on a donkey on Sunday and throwing moneychangers out of the temple on Monday, the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were having a hard time getting any hard evidence or corroborating testimony pulled together that would justify a conviction worthy of the death sentence they so deeply desired.

They were doing so horribly, Jesus finally had to give it to them on a silver platter.

Mark 14:61-64 (CSB)

The high priest questioned him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”
“I am,” said Jesus, “and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “Why do we still need witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy."

But the religious leaders' incompetence (and the main reason I find this funny) didn't stop there. When they took Jesus to Pilate to get Rome's stamp of approval on their plan to kill Jesus, things got...awkward.

John 18:29-30 (CSB)

So Pilate came out to them and said, “What charge do you bring against this man?”
They answered him, “If this man weren’t a criminal, we wouldn’t have handed him over to you.”

Imagine a beer-gutted Southern sheriff sliding his arm around the Roman governor's shoulders: "Piiilate! Ol' buddy ol' pal...This Jesus guy is nothing but trouble. Truuuust us!"

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...Not even I could find this funny if it weren't for knowing how the crucifixion isn't the end of the story. Spoiler alert: Jesus wins!

Alas, Poor Peter, I Know Him Well

 

The apostle Peter was a man of extremes.

There they are in the upper room celebrating Passover when Jesus gets up from the table, strips down to his loin cloth, wraps a towel around his waist, and starts going around the table washing 24 feet. He gets to Peter who humble-brags, "You shall never wash my feet!"

Jesus replies, "If I don't wash your feet, you won't have anything to do with me anymore."

So Peter does a one-eighty, cranks up the intensity, and says, "Well, then, not just my feet! ♪♫ All of me! Why not wash all of me? ♫♪" (John 13:2-9)

Then later, when Jesus drops the bomb that somebody in the room is going to betray him into the hands of the religious leaders who want to kill him, Peter gets all defensive and says, "Not me! No way! I would die before betraying you!"

Imagine how completely broken Peter must feel just a few hours later when someone as non-threatening as a servant girl causes him to revert to his sailor-talking self and swear that he doesn't even know Jesus, let alone follow him. (Luke 22:31-34; 54-62)

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...I know what it's like to do something you swore you would never do. And like Peter, I know what it's like to be forgiven and accepted and loved anyway.

Sure As Hell

 

Once considered foul language but now, apparently, barely eliciting a PG rating, the phrase "sure as hell" strikes me as...well...odd.

The phrase is meant to express that the person is absolutely sure about something or is 100% convinced of something, but I mostly hear it being spoken by someone who I'm not convinced is all that sure there even IS a hell.

Now Jesus...he could use the phrase with integrity because he often talked with certainty about the existence of a realm where God is absent and weeping and gnashing of teeth is present. But I just can't imagine Jesus trying to convince his listeners of the surety of a future event by saying something like, "And it's as sure as hell that I'll be with you always."

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...I'm pretty sure that some of you are at least a little uncomfortable, perhaps even offended, by this train of thought. And I can't say I really blame you. But I'm as sure as all get out that Jesus understands my warped curiosity and lack of filter and will continue refining me until the new Jerusalem arrives. My prayer is that you desire the same thing for yourself.

James Taylor and My Identity Crisis

 

I recently had a kind of cultural identity crisis.

Because of a song snippet that came tumbling out of my mouth, I discovered a twenty-something co-worker of mine has no idea who James Taylor is. So I strolled over to a thirty-something co-worker and said, "Guess what. Twenty-something Gal doesn't know who James Taylor is."

To which, Mr. Thirty-something replied, "Who?"

So I clarified, "Twenty-something Gal...right there."

Only to be gobsmacked by hearing, "No...I mean who is James Taylor?"

"You know...'Fire and Rain,' 'You've Got a Friend,' 'How Sweet It Is to Be Loved by You'?"

Nothing but blank stares.

When I told all this to Beloved, she pointed out that those songs are all around 50 years old and asked how many songs from the 20s did I know when I was in MY twenties?

So I did a little research and found out she was spot on.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

There is a pastoral application for this. When I'm talking to an individual with little to no church background, or addressing a group that could very well include such individuals, if I say something like "You know, it's like in the parable of the sheep and the goats," I could very well be met with blank stares.

Truth is...Never assume everyone knows what you know or has experienced what you have experienced.

No Need to Fear God's Judgment

 

There's an episode of Calvin & Hobbes that sent me on a search for a spiritual tract from the 1970's...and that ended up helping me appreciate the grace of Jesus.

But first, Calvin explains to his mom how it is that he finished his homework so quickly:

But then, with the specter of accountability looming, fear explodes:

That look of fear and desperation on Calvin's face is what reminded me of a series of cartoon-based tracts from "back in the day" produced by Chick Publications. They were almost all meant to literally scare the "hell" out of people. (I searched "scary tracts" and chick.com was the third item on the results page.)

I was specifically reminded of this panel from a tract titled This Was Your Life which pictures a guy dropping dead and then, before the judgment seat of God, a movie was shown of everything he ever did.

Truth is...for those who confess Jesus as Lord, there is no need to fear the cat being let out of the bag during the final day of judgment. And here's why you can be sure of that"

Micah 7:19 (NIV): "You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea."

Psalm 103:12 (NIV): "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us."

The Unnecessary Ascension

 

While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven.

Luke 24:51

It's called The Ascension and for some people, it's one of the strongest visual images associated with the life of Jesus: Twelve guys gathered on a hillside near Bethany and one of them...Jesus...just lifts off the ground and floats into the air until they lose sight of him in the clouds.

According to the first chapter of Acts, two people in white...presumably angels...appeared and asked why they were standing there staring into the sky (which I think is hilarious). Then they said that Jesus would be coming back "in the same way [they] saw him go" (Acts 1:11).

Dear Jesus: I don't think it has ever struck me before, but all this being-taken-up-into-the-air business was totally unnecessary. You could have just dematerialized. You could have faded away like the Cheshire Cat. Heaven is no more "up there" than hell is "down there". But you and the Father and the Spirit decided this was a good visual to give us.

Truth is...I'm looking forward to seeing you return, no matter what it looks like.

Jesus Is THE Alpha Male

 

Leader of the Pack. The Big Kahuna. Commander in Chief. Top Dog. Jefe El Grande.

Jesus put it this way in Revelation 22:13...

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end,
the first and the last.

In Philippians 2:9-11, Paul wrote...

God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord.

And in Colossians 1:15-18...

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

Make no doubt about it, everyone and everything pales in comparison to Jesus. Does your parent love you unconditionally? Jesus loves you more. Are you in touch with your inner motivations and strengths? Jesus knows you more.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...Because of this, I want Jesus to be my Alpha. And that should be easy, right, for Jesus to be something for me that he already says he is? It's like asking him to "be with me" when he's already said, "I am with you always."

Christ before me

Christ behind me

Christ on the lips of everyone

who speaks of me

Not the Answer Calvin Wanted to Hear

 

Our text today, flock, was first published October 18, 1990, and begins with Deacon Calvin asking a significant question and Pastor Hobbes having a profound answer.

That alone would make this episode of Calvin & Hobbes worthy of consideration, but when Calvin pauses and reflects on what Hobbes said and what it implies about himself, his reaction is priceless.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...We like to think when we have an outburst of anger or inappropriate behavior that we can say, "I wasn't being myself," but it's at those times when we are probably being very much ourselves...proving once again that we need to be changed from the inside out.

Are You in a Gang?

 

The more I get into Letters to the Church by Francis Chan, the more I just want to reprint the whole thing so everyone will read it (as if "everyone" reads this blog!).

Chapter 4 is titled "The Gang" and contrasts the idea of "going to church" with the concept of being part of a group committed to each other...like a gang.

We live in a time when people go to a building on Sunday mornings, attend an hour-long service, and call themselves members of the Church. ... But have you ever read the New Testament? Do you find anything in Scripture that is even remotely close to the pattern we have created? Do you find anyone who "went" to church?

Try to imagine Paul and Peter speaking like we do today: "Hey, Peter, where do you go to church now?"

"I go to The River. They have great music and I love the kids' program."

"Cool. Can I check out your church next Sunday? I'm not getting much out of mine."

"Totally. I'm not going to be there next Sunday because little Matthew has soccer. But how about the week after?"

"Sounds good. Hey, do they have a singles' group?"

It's comical to think of Paul and Peter speaking like this. Yet that's a normal conversation among Christians today.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Chan then introduces us to an elder of his church, Rob, who spent most of his life in gangs but who met Jesus while in prison.

Rob tells me stories of gang life and the fear he felt when he left his gang to join the body of Christ. ... It wasn't just the physical torture or death he feared; he dreaded the rejection by those he loved. The gang was his family. These were loyal and dear friends who looked out for him 24 hours a day. There was love and camaraderie from being in a gang that he enjoyed since childhood. Now he would lose those relationships and be hated by them all.

When Rob describes gang life much of it sounds like what the Church was meant to be. Obviously, there are major differences (drugs, murder  -  you know, little details like that), but the idea of "being a family" is central to both gang life and God's design for the Church. ... Could you ever imagine gang life being reduced to a weekly one-hour gathering? No group would meet briefly once a week and call that a gang. Imagine one gang member walking up to another one and saying, "Yo, how was gang? I had to miss this week because life has been crazy!"

We all know enough about gangs to know that's ridiculous. Yet every week we hear Christians asking each other, "How was church?" Something that God has designed to function as a family has been reduced to an optional weekly meeting."

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...Don't you long at least a little bit for that sense of belonging and mutual commitment to each other? Isn't there something within each of us that can't be satisfied by going to church instead of being the Church?

Just When You Start Thinking You're Sooooo Important

 

Serving as an excellent bad example yet again, Bill Waterson's Calvin seems to think he has complete control over a small group of flowers.

Then, just as he really gets wound up with his self-importance, God steps in.

Truth is...By the grace given to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he should think. Instead, think sensibly, as God has distributed a measure of faith to each one. (Romans 12:3 CSV)

Does God's Voice Sound Like Morgan Freeman?

 

 

It's not every day that Hollywood makes a deeply truthful theological observation, so I thought I'd better not let this one disappear into movie history unnoticed.

The movie was Evan Almighty  -  the 2007 sequel to Jim Carrey's film, Bruce Almighty. In Evan, God (played by Morgan Freeman) contacts Congressman Evan Baxter (played by Steve Carell) and tells him to build an ark in preparation for a great flood.

As might be expected, Evan's wife (Lauren Graham) has a hard time wrapping her head around this major change in her husband.

It's at this point the following conversation takes place:

Just to make sure you didn't miss it, here's the main point:

Let me ask you something. If someone prays for patience, you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If they prayed for courage does God give them courage or does he give them opportunities to be courageous? If someone prayed for their family to be closer, do you think God zaps them with warm fuzzy feelings, or does he give them opportunities to love each other?

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...Sometimes we are the answer to our own prayer.

Bonus truth...Now you know why I never ask God to give me patience. (wink)

Working Hard or Hardly Working

 

I'm still quoting from James Martin's book, Between Heaven and Mirth, but this time, HE'S quoting a book from Anthony de Mello titled The Song of the Bird:

The rich industrialist from the North was horrified to find the Southern fisherman lying lazily beside his boat, smoking a pipe.

"Why aren't you out fishing?" said the industrialist.

"Because I have caught enough fish for the day," said the fisherman.

"Why don't you catch some more?"

"What would I do with them?"

"You could earn more money," was the industrialist's reply. "With that you could have a motor fixed to your boat...and catch more fish. Then you would make enough to buy nylon nets. These would bring you more fish and more money. Soon you would have enough money to buy two boats...maybe even a fleet of boats. Then you would be a rich man like me."

"What would I do then?" asked the fisherman.

"Then you could really enjoy life."

"What do you think I am doing right now?"

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...Paul said it in Philippians 4:12-13. "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well-fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength."

He Should Have Asked, "Should I Be Doing This?"

 

I'm probably stretching things a bit to come up with a meaningful point from the following story quoted from Between Heaven and Mirth by James Martin. If that requires an apology, then I apologize.

But here's hoping you just appreciate the laugh.

One priest friend recounted the story of his first wedding, which he performed shortly after his ordination. My friend had borrowed the marriage rites book, the guide containing the script of the marriage ceremony, from an elderly Jesuit. The old Jesuit had written little notations in pencil, because the rites book includes all of the words needed for the wedding Mass, but not what you might call the "Stage directions." So alongside the script for the marriage vows the old priest had scribbled helpful directions like, "Turn to the bride," "Turn to the groom," "Go back to the presider's chair," "Take the rings from the best man." He also wrote directions for the congregation that aren't included in the book, like saying, "Please stand" or "Please kneel."

All was going smoothly until my newly ordained friend reached the end of the vows. There was a little notation that added something that most priests say, but is not included in the official Catholic rites.

The penciled-in note said, "You may now kiss the bride."

My friend found that baffling. But who was he to argue with the elderly priest, who had done more weddings than he had? So my friend stopped, closed his book, leaned down, and kissed the bride.

She stood there dumbstruck, and everybody burst out laughing. Finally, he said to the groom, "Uh, I think YOU were supposed to do that!"

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...Sometimes, unquestioning obedience might be questionable.

Holy Humor: Papal Edition

 

According to a book I am currently reading (Between Heaven and Mirth by James Martin, SJ), Pope John XXIII, who served from 1958 to 1963, had a notable sense of humor.

Some examples:

• When a journalist innocently asked him, "Your Holiness, how many people work at the Vatican?" John paused, thought it over, and said, "About half of them."
• In the 1940s, when John was still an archbishop and the papal nuncio, or ambassador, in Paris, he was at an elegant dinner party, seated across from a woman wearing a low-cut dress that exposed a good deal of cleavage. Someone turned to him and said, "Your Excellency, what a scandal! Aren't you embarrassed that everyone is looking at this woman?" And he said, "Oh no, everyone is looking at me, to see if I'm looking at her."
• The pope was visiting a Roman hospital called the Hospital of the Holy Spirit. Shortly after entering, he was introduced to the sister who ran the hospital. "Holy Father," she exclaimed, flustered by his surprise visit, "I am the superior of the Holy Spirit." "Well, I must say, you're lucky," said the pope, delighted. "I'm only the Vicar of Christ!"

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Truth is..."A happy heart is good medicine and a joyful mind causes healing" Proverbs 17:22 in the Amplified Bible

Prayer Posture Poem

 

In response to the 8-part series on prayer that finished last week, a co-worker of mine passed along the following humorous-but-accurate poem about the non-importance of what posture we assume when talking with God.

THE PRAYER OF CYRUS BROWN

By Sam Walter Foss

"The proper way for a man to pray,"

Said Deacon Lemuel Keyes,

"And the only proper attitude

Is down upon his knees."

"No, I should say the way to pray,"

Said Rev. Doctor Wise,

"Is standing straight with outstretched arms

And rapt and upturned eyes."

"Oh, no; no, no," said Elder Slow,

"Such posture is too proud:

A man should pray with eyes fast closed

And head contritely bowed."

"It seems to me his hands should be

Austerely clasped in front.

With both thumbs pointing toward the ground,"

Said Rev. Doctor Blunt.

"Last year I fell in Hodgkin's well

Head first," said Cyrus Brown,

"With both my heels a-stickin' up,

My head a-pinting down;

"An' I made a prayer right then an' there -

Best prayer I ever said,

The prayingest prayer I ever prayed,

A-standing on my head."

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Truth is...The attitude of the heart seems to be the place to start  -  more than standing, bowing, or what to say  -  whenever we set out to pray.