A little girl giggled in a well-lit closet. She could hear someone passing in front of her door, opening another.
She hears a voice say, “Are you in this room?”
The little girl’s laughter can be heard all the way down the hall.
“You know I’m going to find you.”
The little girl peeks out of the closet to see if her pursuer is near.
“You can’t run. You can’t hide. I will find you.”
The little girl doesn’t say anything but covers her face to try to stifle her laughter at the sheer joy of the game.
“I think you are in this closet,” he said as he approached the girl’s closet.
In the game of Hide and Seek, the hider hides and eventually finds her way back to “base” – a place where she is safe from being tagged “it”. But the little girl just sits and waits giggling, perhaps too young to know she should have been finding her way back to base. She may eventually call out “Try the closet!” or some other hint because the enjoyment is in being found not in hiding.
As he opens the door, the little girl lunges at him and wraps her arms around him crying out “SAFE!” as if he were the base and they laugh together.
So maybe I’m too incredibly silly. But this is my idea of how to spend eternity with Christ.
First, I want to tell a funny story. I was subbing at a middle school and during one period I had an inclusion teacher come "help" me. She was probably in her late 20s. She saw my opened Bible and asked if I was still in school. To be a sub you have to have a degree so I thought it was an odd question and I think she could tell from my response that I thought it was odd. So she said, "oh, well, I just saw your opened book and thought it was a text book. What it is?" And very shocked that an educated grown woman wouldn't recognize the Bible, I told her that it was the Bible. I could tell she felt kinda silly. But the best part was when she said, "Oh, I should have noticed at the top of the page it says "pro-verbs"" She didn't say "Proverbs" she said pro-verbs as if it were an English text book. It was hysterical. SHe didn't feel stupid, or at least she didn't act like she felt stupid. And I didn't try to make her feel stupid but quite the opposite - I tried to help her laugh off her mistake. But it was very funny.
So, Proverbs. I've been reading it this week. The women in proverbs range in excellence. Wisdom is referred to as a woman. Her paths are paths of pleasantness and all her ways are peace, 3.17. And there is mention of wives as a gift from the Lord. a prudent wife is from the Lord, 19.14. And we all know the excellent wife passage of Proverbs 31. But what about those dripping faucets of 27.15? Am I her? And what of the woman who's stolen water is sweet of 9.13-18? She is seductive and knows nothing.
I continually fear becoming the nagging wife or the adulterous woman. I like to make sure that I am not behaving in a way that would bring reproach. I listened to the latest podcast from The Village church today. Matt Chandler spoke a bit about evil coming from within the church. He spoke about misleading doctrines, but I immediately thought of young Christian females who are within the church but behave as those he said were outside the church. He spoke of girls who behave seductively for their own gratification. It's immature. I can think of girls who flirt and scamper about trying to see how many boys will fall for her all the while having no care for them. It's an ego boost for her. I fear becoming that. The Bible warns against woman like that.
Make sure that you are not her.
Hebrews 61-2
Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.
elementary doctrine ie “the basics”
repentance – saved by grace through faith
washings – rituals and/or baptism
laying on of hands
resurrection – eternal life
eternal judgment – hell
leaving these…
I Corinthians 1313 faith, hope, love…the greatest is love.
Repentance faith
Washings
Laying on of hands
Resurrection hope
Eternal judgment
Love is built on the foundation of faith and hope. This leads to Ephesians 432 - Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
And John 1513 - Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
John 1335 - By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
Ephesians 319 - and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
I John 316 - By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
I don’t know of many who have gone beyond these basics. I personally am often sucked into conversations and lead others into conversations where our only content discussed is the nature of predestination. But here in Hebrews (at the top) I am told to grow up and stop dwelling on these childish lessons. It’s interesting to me how what is considered a basic lesson (love) is actually mature and what is considered a mature lesson (eschatology, religiosity, faith, security) is actually immature.
Christ tells us in John 1335 not that wooing others with our jargon and intelligence and bumper stickers and ball caps will they know we are his, but by our love. – not by our faith, not by our hope, not by our Ichthus fish, but by our love for each other. It seems so simple and yet rarely do we encounter someone who exudes Christ’s love in such a way that we just know they’re a Christian. I know that I am not that person.
We start with faith. I believe in my heart and confess with my heart that Jesus is Lord and that God raised him from the dead (Rom 109) then I can know that I am saved (I John513).
We build on faith hope…that whoever believes will have eternal life (John316) and Christ will return for his bride (I Thessalonians 416-17).
But pervasive to the entire Bible (not just the Gospels or the Epistles but also the Law and the Prophets) is the message of love. God is love (I john 416) and if we are to emulate God we must emulate love. For Christ is the example, that we should do just as he has done (John 1315).
2 Peter 15-7 - For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.
I don’t know if this passage is a literal stepping blocks of first this, then that; but it is interesting to note that we start with faith and end with love. Love is the goal lesson.
We knew through faith God to be the I Am. We knew through hope God to be trustworthy and faithful. But it required an additional demonstration to show his love to us. Love is the key.
The conclusion is the action of love.
But what does this look like? We can point to what is not love. We can remember Bible stories about Samaritans who showed love. We can remember the cross. But how do I, how do you show love?
I don’t really know. But I’ll take a stab at it –
We have to learn to do good (Isaiah 117). For this lesson we need a most excellent teacher. What did he do? He, being the greater, took the lower position and washed his disciples’ feet. How do I emulate? Do I wash feet? Maybe. But I think the point is to get dirty with love. More than just physically dirty, get emotionally dirty and mentally dirty. What does this look like? For me, it means apologizing for my lesser offense knowing that I will never receive an apology for their greater offense. Also for me, it means admitting my faults to people who will only take advantage of the admitting.
Further application for myself would be to not hold my money so tightly. It was always so highly emphasized growing up that I find it difficult to be generous. The reason behind it is no excuse.
Dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,
May you recognize the new tender mercies of the Lord early today.
This morning I was reading in 2 Kings 10 regarding the reign of King Jehu over Israel. He was commended by God for the good deeds he performed in destroying the wicked house of former King Ahab and putting away the worship of Baal by killing the worshipers and pulling down their temple. However, we are told he was not careful to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart, nor depart from the sins of Jeroboam who had allowed idolatry.
In short, he was only partially obedient, neglecting to follow with God his whole heart, which is obedience to the first commandment to love God with all our hearts. How well I identify with Jehu and how convicting those words are to me! Partial obedience, choosing the easy path, neglecting the weightier matters of the law are things of which I am guilty and in need of repentance.
I found the words of the psalmist in Psalm 119 pointing me to a high standard of obedience, not just partial.
"Oh, how I love you law!"
"Because I keep your precepts, I have restrained my feet from every evil way."
"I have not departed from your judgments,...therefore I hate every false way."
"I have not strayed from Your precepts."
The psalmist is apparently looking toward total obedience, not just partial. What an impossible standard, yet one for which we are to strive by the grace of God! Paul emphasized the same to Timothy as I read later in 2 Tim 1. Paul urged Timothy to "hold fast to the pattern of sound words" which Paul had given him, the word of God. Holding fast to the word of God will call us toward more complete obedience to Him.
May He cause us to mourn over our sin that we may be comforted and desire to walk in complete obedience, not just partial.
Dale
This was emailed to me this morning. And at Thinklings.org there's a conversation brewing that as of now says this:
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.
- Galatians 6:9-10
3. Lauren - 10/29/2008 8:52 am CDTI've been having a reoccurring conversation with different people. The theme is whether we should feed and take care of the poor.
1st conversation was with a staunch republican who works with the local Mission group to help poor people get jobs and find homes for the homeless. We were talking about republican v democrat and my problems with both sides. His position was that I didn't understand when some 24 year old guy refuses to work, how can we want to help him?
2nd conversation was with my best friend and he and I agree that we help and continue to help because Christ showed us by example what grace is and told us to feed the poor. By telling people they have to try to get jobs in order to receive our help we are negating the grace part of grace.
3rd conversation was with my mother and she said that if people aren't willing to work then we shouldn't have to take care of them.
I think we shouldn't grow weary of doing good despite it being foolishness to the world. If Christ were to say to us, that in order to get the grace and mercy he offers we must do ...something, that would completely negate everything Christians believe about faith being a gift from God and not of works that no man can boast.
But in all sincerity I understand how being first American citizens (and later becoming Christians) it's difficult to think of other values other than the American Dream. We want what's fair for others, but grace and mercy for ourselves.4. Bill - 10/29/2008 9:30 am CDT
Well stated, Lauren.
I do think that part of the issue is determining what we mean by "help". For instance (ok, extreme example coming here) does it help an alcoholic if you give him alcohol? Well, it makes him feel better, temporarily.
I think that grace can be worked out even in saying "no". There's hardly a better picture (though still imperfect) of God's grace on earth than when looking at a parent's love for his/her children. Yet what parent would give the child whatever he/she wanted, without teaching them to work and learn to get what they want on their own?
So there is a tension there.
Finally, doing the right thing (that can appear graceless), rather than the easy thing, can be very hard work, and can make us weary, and yet still be a good work. For instance, your friend who helps poor people get jobs. That is certainly more of an investment, and harder work, than just passing out meals.
Thoughts?5. Lauren - 10/29/2008 10:00 am CDT
That was great Bill.
It does seem to me from various conversations that people who don't want to help (I'm only talking about the people I have personally talked with) they don't want to help because "it isn't fair" or "no one helped me" etc. I come away thinking those were very selfish statements.
But also, I see some very lazy people who aren't doing anything but taking advantage of grace and free hand-outs. My heart breaks for them because if only they could see the better way, then they could get ahead and not be useless. But maybe I am being selfish by wanting them to contribute to society?
well, anyway, I think you must be right that sometimes love means doing things that appear graceless. so for me, I will check my motives and try to do what is out of love.
I am loving the new esv study bible! My uncle bought me one as a graduation gift and came in the mail last Monday. I especially like the maps because I'm not very familiar with the areas of the bible and often have no idea why an area is being mentioned. I also like how the comments are from many different men (and women? I don't know.).
Study bibles can also be dangerous though. I think often its easy to put our brains aside and just let other people think for us, or let them be the Holy Spirit for us. But we have to be like the Bereans even with the new esv study bible and check everything against scripture. Since several men have contributed, it's good to hear similar passages from different perspectives.
This past Monday, Felipe and I went to my local Starbucks and I carried my new esv study bible. During the course of the evening, Felipe asked me about the passages that command us to love the Lord with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. He wondered if I thought the order was of any relevance because it is listed in that order - in Deuteronomy, in Matthew, in Mark, in Luke (but Deuteronomy and Matthew leave out "strength" and Luke has the last two reversed). I thought there must be because the bible isn't coincidental or incidental. So, we looked at the Matthew first, and the commentator (Michael Wilkins of Biola) specifically says that each is not a compartment, but rather that refer to the entire person. Luke's commentator, either Wayne Grudem of Phoenix Seminary or Thomas Schreiner of the Southern Baptist Theo Seminary, does provide each a specific compartment: heart - emotions, will, and depest convictions; soul - the immaterial part of a person; mind - reason; strength - using one's ability and powers. Mark's commentator, Hans Bayer of Covenant Theo Seminary, ignores that part of the verse and just says that we love God completely. Back in Deuteronomy, comments from Paul Barker of Holy Trinity Doncaster, Barker says that in early Hebrew, "heart" included what we call the "mind" and "might" indicates energy and ability.
We didn't get to all that then though. But some other cool things happened. At one point a man came up to us and asked if we were doing a Bible study together since he could clearly see the opened esv study bible. We weren't. He wondered if we went to a local church. Well, the church we go to isn't local to the Starbucks we were at. If we were doing a group Bible study, I bet he would have wanted to join us. We should have Bible studies at Starbucks. He asked us for prayer. He knows that he should be going to church and that he should be involved with a local congregation. It seems like there's always an excuse to not go to church. He asked that God would move in him to motivate him and get him to church.
When we first went into the Sb*s, the other barista (not the one helping us) saw my new esv study bible and asked if it was the new esv study bible. It was. He said, "It must be pretty new." I told him that it just came in the mail the previous Monday. I think it encouraged him to have other Christians come into his store.
That same evening, a couple came up to us from Argentina. They were visiting Gateway Church. They just wanted to shake our hands. They seemed so excited that they had met young "believers" with an open [new esv study] bible.
The idea to carry around the new esv study bible came from another friend of mine. He always carries his bible out in the open for people to see. He always gets comments and questions. It's like a big sign that says, "please ask me about this." but without anything so weird. Is it weird to carry a bible around? maybe. but it serves a purpose. I have a tiny pocket size esv bible that fits in my...pocket. But then people can't see it. And by carrying it out in the open, people see it and are either encouraged or curious. Maybe I'll meet a hostile person, but an opportunity is an opportunity. And it seems that the Lord readily answers the request for more opportunities when I display his word the new esv study bible.
(Patty longs to give herself completely to someone to have a deep soul relationship with that special guy, to be loved thoroughly and exclusively.)
But God, said to Patty:
No Patty. Not until you are satisfied and content with being loved by me alone.
Until you give yourself totally to me to have an intense, personal and unique
relationship with me alone, discovering that only in me is your satisfaction to
be found. Will you then be capable of the perfect human relationship that I
have planned for you only Patty?
Patty, you will never be united with another until you are united with me,
exclusively of any other desires or longings. I want you to stop planning, stop
wishing and I want you, Patty, to allow me to give you the most thrilling plan
existing -one that you cannot imagine- to have the best. Please allow me to
bring it to you Patty.
Just keep watching me Patty, expecting the greatest things! Keep experiencing
the satisfaction that I am. Keep listening and learning to the things I tell
you. You just wait, that's all. Don't be anxious. Don't look at things you
want. Patty, keep looking up at me or you'll miss what I have to show you. And
then, when you're ready, I'll surprise you with a love far more wonderful than
you could have dreamed of Patty.
You see Patty, until you are ready; I am working-even in this very moment-to
put both you and someone else ready at the same time. Until you're BOTH
satisfied exclusively with me, and the life I have prepared for you, you will
not be able to experience the love that exemplifies the relationship you have
with me. And this perfect love is dear. And dear one, I want you to have the
most wonderful love. Patty, I want you to see, in the flesh, a picture of your
relationship with me, and enjoy material and concrete things everlasting. I
want you to have union of beauty, perfection, and love, and Patty I want you to
offer it to myself.
Know that I love you utterly. I am the Almighty God. Believe it Patty and be
satisfied. I want this Patty. Do you?
************************************************************************
thanks Shanna for sharing this with me...
now i share it with all the girls.
come one put your own name on the letter.
Patty wants this God.
Patty,
I don't want you to take this as a personal attack of any kind. But I disagree with your note and I'd like to share why.
<(Patty longs to give herself completely to someone to have a deep soul relationship with that special guy, to be loved thoroughly and exclusively.)>
This is a good, healthy, natural, God-given desire.
<But God said to Patty: No Patty. Not until you are satisfied and content with being loved by me alone.>
This simply isn't true. And it's a trap I've seen so many of my friends fall into. I was told once by a woman I admire that she only met her husband once she found her contentment in her relationship with God. And she encouraged me to do the same thing that Shanna is encouraging you to do. The problem is that this mind-set is not backed in scripture, and in real life I can think of numerous examples of people longing to be in a relationship and nothing else and then finding their "one and only" and live happily ever after without finding their contentment in God first.
Nowhere in scripture does God put a prerequisite on receiving a blessing from him. Instead he says, “He who finds a wife, finds a good thing.” (prov 18:22) And “ask whatever you desire and it will be given.” (john 15:7)
<Until you give yourself totally to me to have an intense, personal and unique relationship with me alone, discovering that only in me is your satisfaction to be found will you then be capable of the perfect human relationship that I have planned for you.>
This is not Biblical. Look at every and any good, long-lasting, Christian model of marriage. None are perfect. And none are “As perfect as they need to be” or even “perfect for each other”. All these married people were born sinful and imperfect, they got married while still sinful and imperfect, and they will die sinful and imperfect. But the beautiful thing about marriage is that God uses it to refine us as individuals. “As iron sharpens iron so does one man sharpen the countenance of his friend.” (Prov 27:17)
God does not reward good behavior and punish bad behavior. He causes the rain to fall on the just and the unjust alike (Matt5:45). He is a God of grace and mercy, giving what is not deserved and withholding what is deserved. There is no formula.
<Patty, you will never be united with another until you are united with me, exclusively of any other desires or longings.>
There fundamentally incorrect assumption with this statement is the assumption that there is someone out there for you. This may break your heart, but there is no such assurance. God does not promise us marriage, especially in this day when Christian women outnumber Christian men by about 4 to 1. I’m not saying that there isn’t someone out there for you, I’m simply saying that that is a poor assumption. And the thought that once I get my life right with God then I will get what I want will lead to disappointment and confusion because God may have you remain single for quite awhile. Or he may have you meet “the one” next week while your life is still not perfect. BUT PERFECT UNION WITH GOD IS NOT POSSIBLE THIS SIDE OF HEAVEN. Only once we die will be perfectly united with God.
God doesn’t want us to earn our salvation, and he doesn’t want us to earn his blessings. He wants to shower us with his grace and compassion and he wants us to rely on his better judgment that if we aren’t married it’s for the glory of God. Remember the blind man that the disciples asked if it were because of his parents lack of perfect union with God or the man’s own lack of perfect union with God and God simply said that it was for his own glory (john 9). Perfection isn’t the goal. Trusting your life to God, even if you die a virgin, is the goal. And it’s hard.
<And then, when you’re ready, I’ll surprise you with a love far more wonderful than you could have dreamed of.>
If this means, “Surprise! God is the only love you’ll ever experience.” Then, yes. Expect that. But I suspect that that isn’t the surprise you’re hoping for or writing about. Most girls whom I’ve seen with this mindset become bitter and cantankerous “waiting patiently” for God to surprise them.
<You see Patty, until you are ready, I am working to put you and someone else ready at the same time. Until you’re BOTH satisfied exclusively with me, and the life I have prepared for you, you will not be able to experience the love that exemplifies the relationship you have with me…Patty, I want you to see in the flesh a picture of your relationship with me, and enjoy material and concrete things.>
This is not found in scripture anywhere. God does not say that he wants us to experience material earthly things that describe his spiritual relationship with us. While those relationships do exist, and they are a good picture, God wants us to have faith and an everlasting relationship with him. But in heaven “they will be neither male nor female” (Luke 20:34-35, gal 3:28), thus no marriage, and thus, you’re earthly marriage is only until “death do we part.”
A better way to prepare for marriage is to simply prepare for marriage. Because, by preparing for marriage, you are becoming more like Christ. Statistically speaking, most of our girl friends will either never get married or will get divorced. But have hope, God is bigger than statistics. What are some attributes beneficial to marriage?
-Gentleness
-Kindness
-Loveliness
-Good with kids
-welcoming of new friends
-cleanliness
-healthiness
-good prayer life
And the list goes on. And what of these things would not be beneficial to a single person? I was in a small group Bible study a few months ago when this very issue was brought up. Venessa was saying how she’s a better cook than Melody and she enjoys cleaning but Melody doesn’t but Melody is married and Venessa isn’t. She said how unfair it was that Venessa would come help cook dinner and clean (not just for Melody but for many of her newly-wed friends) and when the husband got home the friend would get the kiss. Clearly (at least to Venessa), Venessa was more qualified to be married. Melody was sitting right there and agreed. Melody said she didn’t understand it, why would she clearly lack all things needed to be a good wife but get married while Venessa would have them all and not get married? And it’s for the glory of God, it’s because it’s good for their souls.
It’s somehow a very comforting thought that the reason we don’t have what we want in life is because we haven’t yet earned it. We like to be able to achieve things. We like to be able to be good enough to get married, or have a kid, or win the game, or whatever. But God just wants to bless us. And that blessing isn’t deserved. It’s a gift.
So, Venessa is bitter. She’s nearly 30. Melody is married and she doesn’t deserve it. And like every married couple, they fight, they argue, they disagree because they are still imperfect sinners. And they always will be. But they are refining each other. They are being molded together. They are two distinct imperfect sinners being grafted onto each to form one branch off Christ.
Another one of the newly-wed (and new mother) spoke up in this Bible study. She said that she completely appreciates it when her non-married girl friends come and help her out around the house. And this is where I gained a new perspective – It isn’t about me. She said singleness is a blessing. It’s a gift. And while I don’t know what she meant, I took it to mean that my singleness is a gift to the body of Christ just like any gifting we’ve been given. If I have the gift of tongues, it’s for the benefit of the assembly. If I have the gift or prophecy, it isn’t just for me. If I have the gift of charity, it doesn’t make sense until I share that gift. And so, being single is a gift to help those who are not single. God gives gifts to benefit the entire body (Eph 4:12) and he never intends on us to horde our gifts. He never wants us to be selfish.
So, Venessa while being bitter, should instead use her gifts as a way to lift up the body of believers. It’s good for her soul and it’s what God intended for her to do.
Find contentment in God. But don’t expect to ever manipulate God into giving your desires. Abide in his word, and he will abide in you, and then he will transform your will into his and only then will he grant you your desires, but they may not be what you originally think they are.
Never have I been so confronted with my sinfulness as when I entered into this relationship and head toward marriage. I've never felt so gross as the weight of my sin is unveiled to me. It isn't that he points it out, but rather that my own reactions and lack of reaction shows where my heart is. I think God is using him as a refining tool in my life to reform me in the image of Christ.
I was a very angry child. I thought this was something I had overcome. But the seed of sin is sown deep. And overcoming sin is more than just thinking positive.
I've been working on patience. But I grow impatient with the very man I profess to love. My hypocrisy sickens me.
I think I am loving. But he asks if I am willing to love everyone and it seem the answer is no. With some gentle chastising and loving rebuke as well as Biblical insight, he persuades me to love.
I think I selflessly love my friends. But by expecting the same in return is that selfless?
And what of being easily hurt? He holds my heart in his sinful hands and it hurts whenever he jostles it.
It seems it is hopeless. I am a sinner. He loves me anyway. All this goes to show me that I will never arrive. I will always be in need of Jesus and his cross. He is a sinner too, but this is my confession not his.
I am in dire need of the grace of God and the forgiveness that he purchased at the cross.
These thoughts courtesy of GHS biology class...
The goals of high school students and young people today seem to be how much can I get away with without getting caught. Their perspective is all wrong. It carries over to college. The goal is no longer to be the best or even just good. Maybe this has never been the goal of the young person. Maybe only a few rare people ever have that as their goal. But today, in all my classes, the children's goal is how much physical pleasure can be gained without contracting an STD.
I hear kids say, "My mom lets me do whatever I want." This is an example of a child who has terrible parents. I also hear one girl say to another, "My parents would never let me have a boy stay the night." This is an example of a good parent with a child who looks enviously at her promiscuous friends.
Let not your heart envy sinners, but continue in the fear of the Lord all the day. Proverbs 23:17
Life is so much more than hiding your cell phones and ipods and sneaking around with boys and girls and seeing how many drugs you can try before you graduate. And these lives that are aimed at such goals are wasted.
What are teachers supposed to do? I know what they do - they talk poorly about their students behind their backs to each other in the lunch room. -which is why I don't go to the lunch room and try to not talk to other teachers too much.
All I can do is pray for them.
I substitute teach for a certain ISD in Texas. I can teach science at a high school one day and English at an elementary school the next. This post is about some things I've noticed. Children are peculiar to me. I didn't act like this. I was the quiet one in class - the silent protester...and sometimes I just didn't know what was going on which resulted in my silence.
Children drop their pencils A LOT! and I'm not talking about the "hey everyone lets drop out pencils all at the same time." prank or the "oops, I drop my pencil and now I have to bend really close to my friend and hear what she's saying." -no, I mean genuine drops. It's ridiculous.
Children also break their pencils A LOT! on purpose!
Children also rip up their notebooks and basket-toss the paper to see if they can join the NBA.
Children also break EVERYTHING!
these last three points come from a general lack of respect for possessions and a disregard for their parents having to PAY for those items broken. These kids are spoiled. I would never have gotten away with damaging anything! ever! Everything I owned was treated with the utmost respect and care.
Elementary kids can't sit still. Last week I saw one kid sitting in an awkward criss-cross and was spinning on his ankle and a little while later he said that he thought he may have hurt his leg. really?
Are all children this unaware of consequences and reactions?
Yesterday, I taught at CTL middle school. This bumper sticker was on the van in front of me as I pulled out of the parking lot:
Hmmm....Kepler? Mendel? Newton? Pasteur? Darwin? just to name a few. It's ridiculous, hateful, intolerant statements like this that come from the bane of America that results in today's outburst of a child cussing at the class, and consequently being sent to the office.
I'm close to tears thinking of such hatred being taught to children. Intolerance being fed to children. If you are bitter or resentful to one religion or another, fine. But don't feed your hatred to your kids! These type of prejudiced and bigoted issues are just like those with black versus white skin. Completely ridiculous.
There's something special about reading the Word of God. I enjoy reading. I especially enjoy non-fiction. I get caught-up in Chesterton and Lewis and many others.They write about God and the Christian life but when it comes to the vitality of my soul nothing can feed me like Christ himself. The something special is the life-giving power of the Word of the Life-giver.
This morning I read some of CS Lewis' The Weight of Glory. I then read some of Ezekiel and since the entire book doesn't make a lick of sense I read chapter 3 in the Gospel of Mark. Lewis' words were good. But God's word was beautiful beyond description.
Chapter 3 starts with the withered hand healing. Jesus got angry at the leaders because of their hardness of heart. He was grieved. I don't know exactly what he must have been feeling.
And I wonder how often he feels this way nowadays. This would maybe be when someone claims to be a devout follower of either God or of truth. This person claims to be searching but refuses to accept the validity of Christ.
His feeling, then and now, might be like when a parent sees a certain behavior leading to the determent of the child but the child refusing to relent. The child wants to touch hot pots and no matter what the parent says and no matter how the parent demonstrates the validity that hot pots will burn, the child insists that if the parent loved him he would allow him to touch the hot pots.
Why can the children not accept the claim of authority the parent has over them? The children think they understand and they think they fully grasp how things ought to be. It's absurdity. The child has been alive for five years; not an expert by anyone's standards (with the exception of a few). The parent has been alive for decades. How can you test to see if someone is truly older and wiser than you are? For Jewish people of then and Christians of now we are told to test everything against scripture.
Jesus' claims were verifiable in what we now consider the Old Testament. Every Bible teacher in todays world should be validated through scripture, Old and New Testament. Some teachers today will be validated against scripture and some will fail. But we need to be certain of what we are reading and what our hidden agendas are. We cannot afford to read into the text what we wish to be true. Our eternal destinies are at stake. A little embarrassment now will be better than an eternity of hell. It is better to admit fault for a little while and turn to the truth of God and establish the rest of your earthly existence in the real truth than to cling to your reputation and realize too late that truth is better than prestige.
My boyfriend and I have this understanding that we will accept no doctrine unless it is clearly stated in the Bible. We refuse to accept anything from mainstream culture or Christian culture until it stands against the test of scripture. Quite a few things have failed.
One point my boyfriend pointed out while reading The Science of God is how over the years the church has established certain scientific facts as *unquestionable*. From orbits to "life-force" (discovered by Pasteur and others to be bacteria) the Church has claimed authority in areas it had no right to do so. Someone decided they understood and asserted their own desires on the text. But the text was quite silent on such claims! Here's a modern day example: women should wear only skirts or dresses; no pants. The Bible says no such thing. The text does say, "A woman shall not wear a man's garment, nor shall a man put on a woman's cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God." The apparel of the day when this was written was for men to wear gowns. Men wore the dresses. Men in scotland wear skirts (also known as kilts, but there is no denying that they are the same). And in India, women wear pants (called "salwar kameez"). Culturally "women's clothing" and "men's clothing" are quite different. Perhaps the point of this passage is to not be deceptive in portraying your gender, to not be ungrateful in desiring to be a different gender than you are, to not claim to have superior desires to God by desiring to be a different gender than you are, or to not pervert God's design by changing his creation. This passage is talking about transvestites; not GAP women's jeans.
Where else have we just accepted culture's norm and not tested it against scripture?
The next bit in Mark 3 talks about the great crowds that followed Jesus. I wish I had a map either in my hands or in my head that I might know which areas people are coming from. It seems that if Mark wrote down these places they might have significance of some sort. But I neither know where they are nor what historical significance they play in the story.
And when the demons proclaim Christ's Sonship, why does he command them to be silent?
Verses 22-30 is when the leaders accuse Jesus of having an unclean spirit and that this spirit allows him to cast out other unclean spirits. And Jesus, ever loving, takes the moment to teach a double lesson. First, he shows how a divided kingdom cannot stand. And if you think of demons as only a household and not an entire kingdom, well, a house divided cannot stand. And simply if Satan is divided he cannot stand. So if Jesus is of Satan he will not stand for very long. This reminds me of Acts 5:38-39 "" The second lesson is about the Holy Spirit. Jesus states that all sins will be forgiven except blasphemes against the Holy Spirit. And then Mark is kind enough to state, "for they said, "He has an unclean spirit."" But the only spirit Jesus has is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the only clean spirit. To claim it is unclean is unforgivable. I don't know if this is the same as denying the Holy Spirit. To not know of something's existence and to deny the nature of something's existence are different. I can claim to not know if the apple exists. But (in this analogy) if I claim the apple is blue then that is unforgivable. Maybe?
The last bit of chapter 3 is the "who are my mother and my brothers?" part. At first it may seem that Jesus was being rude to his family. But I think that truly he was just using this as an opportunity for another lesson. My idea of how this story progressed (completely fictitious account):
-slightly dramatized. But the lesson is the same in the dramatized version and the plain text version. God loves his entire family. And his family is anyone who does the will of the Father.Mother and brothers arrive. The crowd sees them and thinks that maybe Jesus would show favor to them. Maybe Jesus loves his family more than the rest of God's children. Someone was hoping to receive extra brownie points and told Jesus that his family was looking for him; surely Jesus would appreciate this and like the fellow more. But instead Jesus assures them that God is not a respector of men. While Mary was blessed among women, she is not "loved more". Jesus tells the crowd that he loves anyone who aligns himself with God. And then he exists stage right with a big smile on his face to find his mom and baby brothers.
