Suffering for Joy: Easter 2016

Friday's glory realized:
Sunday, the King claims his prize!
The lashes opened doors;
We see what suff'ring's for.

Drew yourself close to vile man,
suffered at his sinning hands,
laid your life down for a short time
but with the strength to rise again.

Guilty mocked your triumphant death
and cheered your releasing breath.
Yet for your joy you endured
that we may praise our sin's Cure.

What glory in your resolve!
The chains of death dissolved
by Savior, Christ. Blood shed for sin -
He'll have the joy set before him!

Christ, you found and perfect me,
part of a world returning.
In your strength and witness,
remove my sin and weakness.

My Suffering, Your Suffering: Good Friday 2016

Where have you gone, my Lord?
Don't you hear me in dischord
hoping to hear your voice?
Some peace and I'll rejoice.

No. My heart sinks like stone
and I'm sick to my bones.
Do I suffer in vain?
Can you hear my soul strain?

You show me your stained brow,
crested with my mocking crown.
You let me dig the thorns in tight;
I cheered with scoffers at the sight.

Why lay down your life on that tree?
Why endure such hostility?
I'm vile: dirt before holy eyes!
There must be a reason for your demise...

Contrast: Advent 2015

Born to a sinful man who tried to teach me faith,
instead I inherited his constant need for grace.
Like countless others born on that day.
Like countless others born the same way.
My life was serving the god of my gut:
Ignored the Love self-worship cut.
Vain-hoping to avoid the reaper,
but I'm a weak man - my gut, weaker.
The god of my gut cannot turn the Earth,
it won't stop my death, never caused my birth.
Shortly, my flesh lays in the ground.
In myself, no hope will be found.

But there is a Son different than I,
begotten of the Holy Father on high.
Unlike any other man come to Earth.
Unlike any event was the virgin birth.
This Son served the only Master that matters:
One with God, a woven-bond never tattered.
Lowered in a manger, at mouths of stock -
helpless babe, yet the world's Founding Rock.
He still held them in place, put breath in us,
while he lowered himself to crawl in the dust.

Humbly, his flesh laid in the ground.

But in the tomb he can't be found.

Won't we see our need for this Savior?
Forget our foolish hopes in labor?
For I cannot turn from my gut on my own
but must trust in Christ by faith alone,
that his death and raising paid my debts.
In his promise to claim me, I find rest.

Not the season of giving, but one gift:
The birth of Christ, who lowered to lift
his people to God despite our sins,
a strength I'd never find within

Desert Heart

I would bring praise to the
god of my gut
but You interrupt with the
Goodness of your Grace.
Milk and honey
to the bitter dry soul of a rebel.

The wicked desert -
broken, burned, bare.
I do not know what to do with
Rain Released
from Heaven.
Surely, it didn't come from my lands.

At the gathered water
look for new life
springing forth in the desert heart.
Aching for answers.
Saved by mystery
but I need not know why to be satisfied.

Long Expected: Advent 2014

I have been waiting like a nation waits for a king.
I have been waiting like a mother for what labor brings.
I have been gripping at my chest with homesickness absurd
but I still live in my hometown! What, this sickness, could've spurred?

Akin to Israel, who, rejecting God, still waited -
expecting Him to defeat some government they hated.
They, not knowing what they needed, filled their hearts with idols,
even in waiting for kings with military titles.

I am of the same heart - hard to a defeating Savior -
because I wanted to save myself with romance or labor.
I was conquered by another force. Oh, the emptiness!
Yet, the crushing weight of ignoring the Lord's holiness.

Then came thou long expected Jesus, first as a baby -
You taught your sheep to follow you, wherever you may be.
A sweeter advent yet when you arrived to forgive me
and I will not forget the kindness of your grace and mercy!

Now we wait for your return as bare branches wait for Spring,
for they'll be full of life again as when we see our King.
In your past advents we rest; For your next advent we hold,
where we will bow at your feet and your glory we'll behold.

Shadows: Advent 2014

The Sun rises, the Sun sets,

and Night's fingers grip Earth.

In the Moon, we won't forget:

the Sun is set for rebirth.

As the Earth is frozen down

to the depths, trees pass away -

Yet our brother Spring comes 'round

like the start of a new day.

Even as a child is born

to show life can be made,

that we may not be forlorn

having seen such might displayed.

All to prepare us for Light

that casts these simple shadows

of gripping Death born to Life -

soon they will seem so shallow.

I take great joy in Winter,

who taught to rightly love Spring,

and these shadows that whisper

of the rebirth Christ will bring. 

Being a Christian Always Looks Similar

Lately, a Relevant Magazine article has been making its rounds through my social media circles. The article, titled Being a Christian Doesn't Always Look Like You Think It Should, lays out an argument for why we need to allow room for grace in each other's lives. It may look different when Bob is saved than when Alice is saved. A relevant (pun intended) example in the article is Shia Labeouf's recent proclamation of faith. The statement in which he said he was saved, he let two expletives fly. It's a good article and I encourage you to read it. But I encourage you not to take from it what many have.

Many people have read this article and thought "this is a great reason why I should never comment on someone's sin or ever let anyone comment on mine! Who are they to say if I'm sinning?" Or, as one commenter put it: 

There is nothing worse to me than human beings deciding what a sin is and who's doing it. As you said, that's God's territory! We should never be in the place to judge someone else or to tell them they're sinning.

 To gather this understanding is to gather the wrong one. Dr. Preston Sprinkle did not say that sinning is fine and only between you and God. He said how someone is sanctified (changed to look more like Christ, perfected) will look different for everyone.

In the interest of fairness to Dr. Sprinkle, I contacted him. I summed up these responses and asked "do you mean to say no Christian should comment or correct on another Christian's sin, no matter the circumstance?" His response was encouraging (highlighting is my own):

I absolutely do not think that a believer should never correct another believer. To NOT correct would be unloving. 

For what it's worth, the article summed up a chapter I wrote in my book, Charis: God's Scandalous Grace for Us. In that book I talk about the relationship between grace and obedience. I believe a true believer will obey. Otherwise, he's not a true believer. 

The article was simply trying to show that what this looks like will look different for different people... 

 Dr. Sprinkle rightly lays out some of the ways a Christian will always look the same. Christians, if they are loving, will correct their brother and sister when they are in sin. Christians will obey while resting in grace.

We see both of these concepts in the Bible. In 1 Corinthians 5:12-13, Paul specifies that we are to judge the church and, in fact, purge evil from among us. Jesus, the guy many people pin as the poster boy of not judging, gave us clear instructions in Matthew 18:15-20 to confront our brother in sin, first in private, then more publicly to help him understand what he's doing is serious.

Why do we do this? Because Christians are to obey God our Father. This concept is nuanced, and is well beyond the scope of a blog or an amateur as myself. I encourage you to find a sound Biblical teacher to show you more about this. We can see it briefly in 1 John 3:4-10. This is very difficult language to hear, is it not? I quite often still sin. Am I to understand I am not a Christian? I think the obvious answer is no, both from other scriptures discussing confession of sin (how am I supposed to confess something that I never do?) and observation. Again, I encourage you to discuss this with a pastor or leader who is strong in the faith.

It is clear, from Dr. Sprinkle's response and the Bible itself, that we are not supposed to allow our brothers and sisters to continue in sin. We should follow Jesus' model and confront them privately about it first, in hopes of gaining our brother. But we must understand that Christ's perfecting and sanctifying of his Church will look different person to person. Help them and do not think it strange if they have more trouble with a particular sin than you.