Scandal !

scandalizedpast participle, past tense of scan·dal·ize (Verb)

1. Shock or horrify (someone) by a real or imagined violation of propriety or morality: "their lack of manners scandalized their hosts".

It's not fun to be scandalized. But from a third person perspective it can be amusing to watch, especially when the violation is imagined, not real.

• The Pharisees were scandalized when Jesus told them tax collectors and sinners would enter the kingdom of God before they would. They were scandalized to see Jesus not only associating with, teaching and healing sinners, but even eating and drinking with them! They were scandalized when our Lord told them the story of the Prodigal Son: When the father saw his son a long way off, he ran to meet him. But Christ made it clear: He has authority to forgive sins, and frankly, he was going to!
• The sense of God being less moral than us leaders and possessing a somewhat questionable wisdom was repeated. No man dared ask Christ why he was speaking to the woman at the well, but our Lord told them anyway: The fields are white for harvest. After Jesus not only bought lunch at the Samaritan village, he stayed awhile, and the men reported they believed; not because of the woman's testimony, but because they themselves had met Jesus. I don't know what the disciples really thought of that. But whatever they thought of it, it couldn't have influenced them too much because the early Church was scandalized when the gift of the Holy Spirit was granted to the gentiles. Only after much debate did they release Paul to minister to the unclean nations. (Better Paul than any of them, I noticed)
• John 10:16 "I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd." Will we be scandalized when he does that? I wonder...  

I think our Lord has given us a peek into what that scandalous situation might look like:

Matthew 25:37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'  "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' "

Would we be scandalized if Jesus were to bring into the pen, people whose only identification with Christ is that they were nice to people?

In His Name

Jesus
                                                                        Iesum
                                           Yeshua
                                                   Christ
           Criste

  Χριστός

                                                यीशु

I laugh (but not too hard) when I read or hear about men who emphatically stress the importance of calling on the name of Jesus and that it must be properly pronounced, or the petitioner will not be saved. Not much difference is there, between such people and the Pharisees that could not fathom that anyone could be acceptable to God who did not follow not just the Law, but the hundreds of regulations they had created as well?

I have heard different people tell me about various stringent requirements:

-  You must call out the name of Jesus, out loud.

-   No, no, you must call out the name Yeshua.

-  That's not it! You can't do either of those! You must pray using the name Jehovah, or else Jehovah won't hear you.

-  You must be baptized. But it won't do to be baptized in the name of the father, and the name of the son, and the name of the holy ghost.  God doesn't recognize such baptisms. You have to be baptized in the name of Jesus, and by full immersion only!

We laugh. Or rather, we smile grimly because it is obvious that the men who place such barriers in the path of peace are either hungry for power and control over others, or think that God must be very, very petty. Imagine a mother that would not answer to "mom", or a dad that would not recognize any of his offspring unless they addressed him "father", or "sir" and would disown any son that wrote a letter that began: "Dear dad".  Well, we may agree it is the parent's prerogative to be called as they wish; but no one would deny there could not be much love in such a family.

God is love. His word defines Himself as such; the gospel story illustrates him as such.

1 John 4:15-21 "If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.  If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother."

So you cannot just call out the name Jesus while simultaneously being disinterested in Love, and expect to be "saved".  (many will come to me in that day and say "lord, lord....")

I have a question: What if a person is, in their soul, crying out for love; desirous of love; craving love; seeking love but has not been taught the particular name of Jesus we commonly accept as the key to salvation? If a man, or boy, or girl, or woman, is crying out: "Love, I need Love, please love me!" will Love turn his face away because Love is pronounced GEEZUZ and that's all he answers to?

Walking Humbly

Humbly...  It's just so... humble. It isn't splashy. It doesn't attract the attention of the world, other Christians don't even notice. Those who wish to be noticed don't fall into the category of 'humble'.  It's not that some people who are very much noticed are not humble, (note especially our Lord Jesus) but for the vast majority of the human race, humility goes unnoticed. Except by God.

Micah 6:8

He has shown you, O man, what is good: And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?

Why is it that some very non-humble Christian leaders attract so much attention? I think we have to consider whose attention it is they are attracting. An analysis may reveal they gain a following among those who wish to be identified with the charismatic leader. They want 'a piece' of the glory. It's like being a fan of a winning sports team; even the most overweight slob feels like a winner. So even the most carnal believer feels righteous because his leader can eloquently slam all others for their spiritual blindness and stupidity.

Lord have mercy

Christ have mercy

Be Careful How You Word Your Expectations For Others

Dixit ergo Iesus ad duodecim numquid et vos vultis abire

Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.

But how often are we tempted to go elsewhere? Peer pressure; cultural expectations; religious dogma; all these things can distract our eyes from Christ Jesus: the Saviour of the world. In Jesus are treasures of knowledge, understanding, wisdom.  Paul felt a struggle in prayer for the believers in Laodicea and Colossae; that they would not be deluded by the persuasive arguments of people that wanted to bring them into bondage. Strangely, the bondage was not into what we would think of as "sin", but rather, a bondage to "not sin" by adopting a certain set of expectations. If they did not cow, they would be told they were sinning. Sinning terribly.

In reality, Christ would save them, yes. But to live all this life in fear and bondage; not knowing if one had met all the legal requirements, or thinking that one had not: that was not the life Christ was calling them into and Paul struggled to set them right.

Christ had come into the world and disarmed the religious bullies that would want to hold over the heads of the common people a list of do's and don'ts that the people were already guilty of breaking.

Now, many years after Christ had disarmed the religious bullies, more of the same had worked their way into leadership in the church and Paul struggled in prayer and in carefully worded epistles so that the people would not be defrauded of the peace that comes in trusting Christ. Paul wanted all believers to know that Christ had accepted them; that God had cancelled out the certificates of guilt that might have been used against them, and to get them to live in fear of rejection. Sadly it is still very often that religious leaders attempt to bring people into submission by guilting their followers into certain practices or codes of conduct. They claim to have a revelation, a word, or some sort of authority and the ability to judge the spirituality of people according to a set of exterior standards. Their desire is not godly. That is, they do not try to get each person to "submit one to another" and "in love prefer one another". Rather, they try to exalt themselves as examples and authorities on holy living and if anyone else falls short of their example of not touching, or not eating, or not drinking, or of worshipping only on a certain day etc..... then those religious bullies try to tell the people that they are not pleasing God.  Whenever we hold up a rule of living (other than to love one another) and infer that anyone not measuring up to that rule is not worthy of our fellowship, we do Christ a sad disservice.

Instead, we as leaders should be turning people's attention to Jesus; encouraging them to hold onto him, as the head of the Church.

Think about it:  Do you do what you do out of love for Christ, or out of fear of being rejected by him?

 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf and for those who are at Laodicea, and for all those who have not personally seen my face,  that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself,  in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.  I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument.  For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.  Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,  having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.  See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.  For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,  and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority ;  and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ ;  having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.  When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,  having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.  When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.  Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day-  things which are a mere shadow of what is to come ; but the substance belongs to Christ.  Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind,  and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God.  If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as,  "Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch !"  (which all refer to things destined to perish with use )-in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men ?  These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence. Colossians Chapter Two

For Thee All the Pleasures of Sin I Resign

At 16 years of age, William Ralph Featherstone was living in Montreal. The year was about 1862 and he attended a Wesleyan church. At sometime, he heard the Holy Spirit reveal to him that Christ Jesus was alive indeed, and was offering him friendship and life. He believed.

Not long after, he wrote a poem that has inspired millions of people of all denominations.

My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine.
For thee all the pleasures of sin I resign;
My gracious Redeemer, my Saviour art thou,
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.


I love thee because thou hast first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree;
I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow,
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.


I will love thee in life, I will love thee in death,
And praise thee as long as thou lendest me breath;
And say, when the death-dew lies cold on my brow:
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.


In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I'll ever adore thee and dwell in thy sight:
I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow:
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

At least, that's how it appears in old Wesleyan hymnals and The Song Book of The Salvation Army. I'm inclined to believe those are closer to the original words than what I am able to find anywhere on PlayList or iTunes. Where ever I look, and whenever I see the song being sung in churches, one difference jumps out at me; the second line reads: For thee all the follies of sin I resign.

Was it changed by someone that thought it would be a bad idea to describe sin as pleasurable? Maybe it would encourage 16 year old boys to seek it out, if it was pleasurable?

But that's the point. A young boy made the decision to forego the pleasures of sin because Jesus loved him, and he wanted to love Jesus. "Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;" Hebrews 11:25

You know there's a difference between Pleasure and Folly. It is folly to sin. But we will do it. Will you choose to not enjoy it? Not like these guys Paul is describing in Romans...

"And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil ; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice ; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful ; and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them." Romans 1:28-32

 For thee all the foolishness of sin I resign? No problem. In fact, the line appeals to the self-elevating opinion I have of my ability to discern good from evil. Evil is foolishness, and I would never consider it wise to partake in it.  But for me to give up the pleasures of sin?  It's an admission that my sinful center has found sin pleasurable. Admit it. We have enjoyed seeing others humiliated and ourselves lifted up; we have dwelt hours on the desires of the flesh, superimposing our fantasies over others; we have amused ourselves with thoughts of perpetual wealth and grandeur. Enjoying that is what William wanted to give up for Jesus.  "For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another." Titus 3:3

And you know,  it actually is more pleasurable to give ourselves, our work, our thoughts and hopes and desires and relationships to Christ; asking him to be Lord. He's not a thief. Pleasure sanctified is pleasure indeed.

"You will make known to me the path of life ; In Your presence is fullness of joy ; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever." Psalm 16:11

*The young man pictured is for illustrative purposes only; it is not a photograph of Featherstone.

The Tree of Life

Panis angelicus
fit panis hominum;
Dat panis caelicus
figuris terminum:
O res mirabilis!
manducat Dominum
Pauper, servus, et humilis.
Te trina Deitas
unaque poscimus:
Sic nos tu visita,
sicut te colimus;
Per tuas semitas
duc nos quo tendimus,
Ad lucem quam inhabitas.
Amen.
Bread of Angels,
made the bread of men;
The Bread of heaven
puts an end to all symbols:
A thing wonderful!
The Lord becomes our food:
poor, a servant, and humble.
We beseech Thee,
Godhead One in Three
That Thou wilt visit us,
as we worship Thee,
lead us through Thy ways,
We who wish to reach the light
in which Thou dwellest.
Amen.

My Play List includes a song sung by St. Phillips choir: "Panis Angelicus" or, Bread of Angels. A beautiful song; it sounds like we imagine it would sound if the angels themselves were giving voice to the words. It's originally inspired of course, by our Lord's own words: "For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." "Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread." Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty." John 6:33-35

Jesus' audience hoped for a free hand-out. They really didn't understand that when they looked upon Jesus, they could see the Father. They didn't understand that the Father himself was inviting them to be reconciled with himself; that he was giving the invitation to rise above the mundane and the restrictions of the flesh and walk with him in light - as the sons of light they were created to be. They wanted supper.  Later, when Jesus told them in effect: "no, no, it's not supper - IT IS ME! IT IS ME YOU NEED!", they were even more offended. "How can this man give us his flesh to eat (and his blood to drink)?

"The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life." John 6:63  You cannot receive life by eating the sanctified bread if you are not listening to the Word of God carried to your heart by the Holy Spirit.

Have you noticed our Lord gives us a "vegetarian" version of the same teaching?

"Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me."I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:4,5

The Words, the Spirit! Jesus isn't recommending we search out the right tree and make cuts in it and our own flesh so as to receive the life sap of the tree into ourselves. No sect of the church (to my knowledge) has dedicated any type of tree or fruit that must be eaten in order for us to receive the life of Christ. But this is the same teaching, none the less. Christ's Spirit, the Holy Spirit of Christ must be welcome in our souls. His words tell about the life "blood" of the tree that must find its way into our own veins.

Don't be afraid to call out to the Son of God. Call to him: "Christ, have mercy. Be welcome; fill me with the knowledge of your presence."  He doesn't despise your humanness. He made you and he loves you.