There is an Explanation, Mr. Congressman

It was awkward and painful listening to a US Congressman twist and squirm in a tense press conference in Washington DC, this afternoon. After more than a week of lying and stonewalling, NY Representative Anthony Weiner finally confessed what most people have suspected for days. He had lied about his Twitter Account being hacked, and had personally sent a lewd photo of his crotch to a young woman he had apparently never met. He had betrayed the trust of his wife, his family and his constituents. He had lied to any number of journalists and reporters on a daily basis. And he had falsely accused one particular conservative muckraker of setting him up and being dishonest.

We've known for days this press conference was coming. We knew it when the congressman announced his Twitter account had been hacked for an embarrassing prank, but did not summon investigators. We knew it every time he made one more sophomoric joke about his name, the awkward situation, or parts of the human anatomy. He should have realized this day was coming as well, but that's the strange thing about the human heart. It can be so callous and stony.

When reporters continued to batter him with questions like, "What were you thinking, anyway," the humilitated politician endlessly repeated phrases like "I sincerely apologize," and "It was a stupid mistake." Finally, in one fleeting moment of clarity, he said something like this: "If you're looking for a rationale explanation or a purpose, there's not one. I can't tell you why I did it."

Without even a whiff of rancor or condescension, I could have explained to the reporters why Rep. Weiner did what he did. The Apostle Paul described it this way: "For the good that I will do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, it is that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me." (Romans 7: 19-20)

Followers of Jesus Christ don't delight in sin. Neither do most of us enjoy heaping scorn on human beings who fall victim to the seductive spell of wickedness. Mankind is uniquely susceptible. We can't help it. In our natural state, the will to defy authority and indulge the self is hard-wired into our system. I suspect it is intertwined with the survival instinct. The sinful impulse can be absolutely overwhelming, causing a man or woman to defy logic and rush towards destruction.

James put it this way: "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death." (James 1: 14-15)

Like most Americans, Rep. Weiner lives in a very secular world where the idea of sin has been abandoned, and where personal freedom trumps every remaining virtue. In our self-esteem generation, we have been brainwashed with the false assurance that anything we want is natural and normal, and therefore every desire must be fulfilled. Decades ago, our public schools swapped the ideas of responsibility and character for the illusions of self-esteem and and emotion. We spend our days wandering around a virtual reality theme park in which every one is his own god and there are no consequences. My avatar can even fly!

As it happens, that virtual reality theme park is grounded in a real world where secrets get out, photos are leaked, people go to the press, scandals sell newspapers, and crimes are punished. Like Icarus who flew too close to the sun, our sins eventually bring us crashing to earth in a society where wives feel betrayed, where sons and daughters are humiliated, where employers are scandalized, and where clients bail out of contracts.

This real world is the one where Sin is so insidious, so seductive, so overpowering. The problem with secular societies like ours, is that frail humans begin to believe their press releases and feel free to defy the Laws of the Creator. One of those laws makes a promise: "As a man sows, so shall he reap." This is why grace is not an option. We have to have it. People need the Lord for real-world reasons! Christ died on the cross for sinners, of whom I am chief.

The congressman's most tragic lie was the one he told himself long ago. It's the lie he was probably told as a young man. It's the falsehood that is perpetrated endlessly by the media who have now taken such delight in Mr. Weiner's pathetic pornography. That fatal falsehood promises, "Intelligent people don't need Jesus Christ." Wrong again.

In Love & War

Jihad is a literal concept in Islam, but spiritual warfare is simply a metaphor for followers of Jesus Christ. Do we truly understand that? I suspect we do and yet we don't.

In these treacherous times, it has become apparent that there are occasions when it is valid, even prescribed, for a devotee of Mohammed to slay his enemy. I've read the Koran a couple of times, so I know that holy war is what befalls some infidels. By contrast, the Bible uses images like sword of the spirit or shield of righteousness, and encourages disciples to armor themselves with these spiritual tools, but everybody knows the fellow who wrote that, Paul, never carried either. He actually wrote on another occasion that the weapons of warfare are not carnal, but they are powerful. (2 Cor 10:4)

I think it's fair to say that followers of Christ are not permitted to have enemies. Granted, the Lord mentions our enemies on a couple of occasions, but his command to is love them; to bless those who attempt to persecute us. In other words, when human beings attempt to create enmity with us, we short-circuit their efforts with godly love. We love them and seek to bless them.

So when we speak of the culture war, we have to remember that there's only one enemy: Satan. Everyone else on the cultural battle field is simply a prisoner of war we hope to rescue.

When we refer to the battle for souls, we have to remember that the foe is Satan. The human beings who have been seduced and enslaved by the forces of darkness are not our enemies. They are neighbors we want to love and rescue.

And when we talk about the Defense of Marriage, it's important to remember that the conflict is spiritual, not political. Satan knows what's at stake. The gay men and women involved in that struggle are working in opposition to us, but only because they are slaves to sin.

Of course, there are some who suggest that some of the doctines we uphold risk making the church irrelevant. Secular people don't accept the idea of original sin. Young people overwhelmingly approve of homosexuals and even civil unions. Having cherished ideas like these challenged and even dismissed can create anxiety, embarassment and even resentment. But facing our fears, overcoming our shame, and putting away our resentment are part of the spiritual warfare Paul had in mind.

The people who oppose us, condemn us and attempt to dismiss us are not our enemies. They are our mission. Once we realize that they are enslaved by the forces of evil, we are reminded again that we must overcome evil with love. This is, after all, what is engraved in the Sword of the Spirit.

Selah.

Invisible People

I don't believe in ghosts or poltergeists or even zombies, but I do believe in invisible people. In fact I've seen some! That sounds quirky, doesn't it?

Do you remember the story about the demoniac who came rushing down the hillside to meet Jesus when Christ's boat docked at Gadara? Here was a man in desperate need to compassion and care. The poor guy was so tormented by the demons that controlled his mind and his body that he went running naked through graveyards at night. The neighbors had tried to restrain him with heavy ropes and chains, but poor Legion had always managed to break free to run howling through the hills at midnight. (Luke 8:26 - 39)

Over time he lost some of his shock value and was downgraded to a nuisance. Then one day, his appearances became so routine and unremarkable that Legion became invisible. Nobody could see him anymore. Sure, they could see him, but not really. They couldn't see his pain. They couldn't see his fear. They could no longer see his humanity or his profound physical and spiritual needs. Until Jesus refused to turn away and actually looked this poor man in the eye, the neighbors were no longer angry or even ashamed. They were just indifferent. Because he had become one of those invisible people we don't want to look at.

I'll bet there are invisible people in your life. I'm talking about that painful person who is so galling to you that you'd rather not face him. Why is he so irritating? Are there spiritual needs in his life other people have chosen to overlook? Then there are those ever afflicted men and women whose problems never seem to go away, and you finally get tired of dealing with them. It's a drain and even an embarassment! You know what I mean? And what about all those faceless people behind the counters at grocery stores, drug stores and coffee shops when you're in such a hurry? Sigh! Sometimes we don't even see those stressed out human beings because we are so busy glancing impatiently at our smart phones and watches. "Good grief! How long does it take to make a stupid cup of coffee, anyway?"

Once in a while, I find myself trying to rush grimly past some clerk or a barista or teller. "Could we just get it done and get me outa here?" It's usually pretty easy, because other people feel overscheduled, over-worked, and unfriendly as well. But once in a while, as I'm glancing at my watch, a service person will glance across the counter with a big smile and inquire, "What do you do for a living, Mr. Floyd?"

OMG do I have to say "I am a Pastor.........?" Then there's the question, "Oh, wow! Where is your church?" There is no escape! I have to slow down, and smile "warmly," and say "Providence Baptist Church in McLean. Have you ever visited us?" (If everyone there is an impersonal jerk like me, why should she?)

Until she smiled and asked about my profession, that teller was just one of those invisible people. I couldn't see her because I was too busy.

The world is full of lost people who think they don't know any Christians. And the church is full of busy Christians who think they have never encountered an invisible person. Both groups are wrong.

Slow down and smile this week. Before leaving home, program a good word onto your tongue and a chorus into your heart. Don't leave home until you're ready to minister grace. How quickly you will discover that you really can see all those faces that never showed up on your radar before! Start warming them up today and- who knows!- in a few days you might be able to talk about your life with Christ or recommend a good book... or a good church.

Selah!

Why are the Lights Blinking? Part 3

Great Falls, VA – A couple of weeks ago, I spent a week-end afternoon with a small group of twenty-somethings. I raised this whole question of what it takes to reach a generation of pagan Americans. Once you recognize that most Americans have no spiritual moorings, you realize the “Come & See” strategies of most churches are not going to work. The multitudes of the pagan majority aren’t coming. They can’t imagine why anyone would waste a great Sunday morning on something as antiquated and irrelevant as a “worship service.” So what are we to do?

Someone immediately waved the red flag of fanaticism. “Well, we certainly can’t go out there with the good news that they’re going to Hell. We can’t run down the list of all the things they can and can’t do in order to be a Christian!”

I could only sigh. Can we all agree that, in all honesty, that old cliché’ is just a straw man? In my long years of working with local churches and outreach strategies, I can recall only three individuals who might have conceivably fit that worn out stereotype. Sure, maybe one in a thousand Christians might assault an unbeliever with the threat of Hell and a list of spiritual do’s and don’ts! But if I’m right, most secular Americans have never met a Christian who behaves that way! to the contrary, far more American Christians are guilty of a different offense: never bringing up the Gospel at all. If only 30% of people here in the very secular DC area are actually Christians, that still means that 1 of every 3 people a bureaucrat meets here is a Christian. At least in my urban area, most people actually know quite a few Christians, but I would daresay many, many secular men and women in this area doubt that they know any Christians at all.

So please understand that I’m not even slightly worried about launching a vast tide of Christian evangelists who angrily warn neighbors they’re facing damnation and unfurl the flag of “Thou shalt nots.” No, it wouldn’t work, but it’s not going to happen. What I’m proposing is a generation of Christians who talk about their own personal lives the way other friends and co-workers talk about theirs. You don’t have to summon the fires of Hell and the demands of the Ten Commandments to share one detail from your spiritual life with an acquaintance or class mate.

For instance, smile and nod as your acquaintance talks about a riotous Friday evening of getting drunk and watching some gross-out movie about randy single people. Then mention that you played tennis or went fishing on Saturday, but the best thing that happened was in worship on Sunday. Then share something wonderful that happened at your church.

Ask questions about the plot when your friend summarizes what has happened so far in the best-selling novel she’s reading. After talking about that book for a while, mention that the most interesting thing you’ve read in the last few days is a particular section in the Bible. Then take a few moments to share something interesting from God’s Word.

Listen with interest as your co-worker shares the details of living with her boyfriend without the benefit of marriage. If it’s good news, you smile and nod. If it’s bad news, you sympathize. Then you confess with a slight smile, I thank God for my husband every day. I’m so glad I got him to say “I do,” because now I know he can’t get away!”

If lost people are not inclined to visit churches, then followers of Jesus will have to win them first and invite them later. But herein lies yet another problem of this pagan age: a vast and shocking number of Christians aren’t reading their Bibles. Hence, when opportunities come up to talk about what Christ is doing in our lives, quite often we have nothing to say. We haven’t thought about our faith. We haven’t read anything. We haven’t given God a chance to speak. So the great spiritual battlefields across the USA are littered with pagans who don’t know Jesus and saints who don’t know the Word of God.

We have to get the people of God back into the Word of God. Imagine a division of Marines rushing onto a battlefield with weapons they’ve never fired or even trained with. Of course, that would never happen. The Marines are better than that. So why are the people of God landing on battlefields with untried Bibles? We have to do better. Whether we want to admit it or not, the USS America is going down. Too often, the Church is still busy reorganizing deck chairs.

Selah!

Why Are the Lights Blinking? Part 2

On the fateful night when the RMS Titanic hit the iceberg that would sink her, the first warnings must have gone nearly unnoticed. Although the trembling chandelier over the ballroom floor gave little clue to the rushing tide that was already filling chambers below the waterline, the ship was doomed and the clock was ticking. Last week, I suggested that in the history of the USS America, the trembling of the proverbial light fixture must have come in 1962 when the US Supreme Court threw prayer out of the public schools. Even then, a surging tide of anti-Christian court decisions and two generations of godless popular culture were preparing to flood the USS America and erase every hint of our Christian foundation.

As a result, most Americans under the age of forty have no vocabulary for discussing spiritual realities; no framework for arriving at spiritual conclusions. On those moments when some young American might possibly sense a vast, growing emptiness within, the movies and internet offer an endless list of kinky suggestions (i.e. more sex) and narcissistic notions (i.e. create a new self) he or she can pursue. And contrary to the illusion that largely dominates the ranks of church leaders, pagan Americans are not waiting for the right invitation to join in some church activity. From their secular perspective, churches are historical relics of an ignorant world where science and computers were not available to answer every question.

So what does a Christian do when you realize your pagan neighbors are not looking for spiritual answers or waiting for you to invite them to a special church event? It seems that you and I suddenly find ourselves with a lot in common with Patrick of Ireland. Kidnapped from his comfortable home in Britain and carried away to slavery in Celtic Ireland, he was suddenly immersed in a pagan culture in which his identity, his customs, his convictions, even his language were useless and held in contempt. When he finally escaped after years of neglect, he realized he could not take refuge in the comforts of home and privilege back in England. Rather, he prepared himself to be a missionary and returned to pagan Ireland.

It goes without saying that he would often be unappreciated and would frequently be misunderstood. But he relied upon the supernatural power of God. And he worked tirelessly to inject the distinctive ideas of Jesus Christ and the Gospel into an alien environment where violence was a form of recreation; where coarseness trumped sophistication every time; and where the most twisted forms of sexual behavior were woven into routine life.

Patrick surely realized there was no quick fix for this pagan land. He was prepared to commit his entire life to the venture, and that is what it would require. But God was able to anoint one man with so much heavenly fire that his lifetime of ministry would indeed spark a spiritual rebirth. A heavenly tide would eventually cleanse the vile land and replace paganism with a lively and distinctive Christian faith.

In pondering a strategy for unleashing the Gospel across pagan America, Patrick would be a good place for us to start. I challenge you to read his story and ask God to call up an army of Patricks here in 21st Century America.

More next week.

Welcome to the Desert.

WHY ARE THE LIGHTS BLINKING? PART 1

In the motion picture Titanic, one of the most telling scenes depicts the moment when the "unsinkable" ocean liner strikes the submerged portion of an iceberg, leaving a deadly gash in the bow. Upstairs in the ballroom, a large crystal light fixture trembles as if it has been kissed by a gentle breeze, offering the only visible clue of what has happened far below. Dancers and diners will continue to celebrate for at least another hour. In fact, because the generator will survive to keep the lights burning until the very end, many passengers will be reluctant to leave the "security" of the ship in order face the cold biting sea in lifeboats. But at the moment when the crystal chandelier trembles, the great ship is doomed.

A book recently reminded me of that momentous scene in the movie. Immediately, I thought about the tragic state of affairs in my homeland, the United States of America. We have been crippled by an economic disaster rooted in our addiction to spending more than we have. The family is dying, as schools, governments and daycare centers take greater and greater responsibility for children. Our children and teen-agers are jaded, saturated in an over-sexualized culture, and largely disinterested in anything except Facebook and movies. And a growing majority of Americans are beginning to believe that Christianity is a sad, old dragon which has been finished off by the advances of science and technology. At least dinosaurs were real at one time. Christianity is dismissed as mythology.

It seems apparent that the U.S.S. America is taking on water. All that remains is the tragic day when the ship rises up on one end and makes one last dive into darkness. There was a time when we supposed that it was not too late for a political solution. Watching the recent budget debate in Washington over a few billion dollars in cuts even as we are piling on trillions of dollars in debt,it became apparent to many of us that this is beyond the reach of politicians. For nearly a week, I have asked myself, "When was the moment when we should have instantly known our fate was sealed?" When did that crystal light fixture in the ballroom of U.S.culture tremble because a fatal wound had been inflicted at the belly of our nation? I believe I know the answer.

In 1962, the United States Supreme Court ruled that prayer in public schools was unconstitutional and, therefore, illegal. Many Christians actually celebrated that decision as an enlightened advance in the separation of church and state. Not surprisingly, once the camel had his nose in the tent, other rulings followed at national and state levels. Within a very short time, schools were forbidden to tolerate the name of Jesus Christ- not only in class, but even in ceremonial prayers at graduations and footballs games.

Half a century later, we find ourselves in a moment unlike any other we have seen in our history. A large share of Americans has grown up in secularized schools where the name of Jesus Christ was never uttered. One of the lessons they learned is still with them. Children understand that public schools are structured to teach things that adults believe are important. So our children have been convinced that math and science are important. Spelling is also important. Safe sex is taught in most public schools, so it must be very important. Likewise, saving the rain forests is extremely important. But worship, prayer and faith in Jesus Christ are clearly unimportant and unrelated to real life. When you tell kids they can't even say "Christmas Holidays," the message is crystal clear.

It is no accident that jaded boys and girls in the US have trouble wrapping their minds around spiritual ideas about faith, character and sacrifice. It is not by chance that children have difficulty in mentally processing moral and ethical decisions. This was never about atheists or unreligious children being offended. There were never that many atheists or Jews in most US public schools, and they were never compelled to convert, or even to pray. As a child in the South, I sometimes read or doodled mindlessly during the daily prayer, and I was never penalized. The whole debate was designed to generate new atheists and agnostics.

Fifty years later, we in the church have experienced a rude awakening. For the first time in history, American young people are abandoning the religious faith of their parents in record numbers. We finally recognize that this was about more than poison politics. It was about poisoned education. But we look around at our jaded, secularized children whose eyes roll at the mention of spiritual things, and we wonder, is it too late? Can you right a sinking ship or would you only be rearranging deck chairs while everything goes down?

The answers are hard ones. Let's talk about them next week.

Selah.

The Rape of Agape, Part 3

This blog is the 11th in a series, "The Top Ten Questions People Ask Pastors." The leading question commonly sounds like this: "How could a loving God condemn to Hell men and women he has created?"

Two weeks ago, we concluded that 21st Century Americans are in no position to challenge the quality of God's love. Ours is a culture where children are neglected or abandoned to the care of strangers, where marriage is considered too demanding, and where Christians change churches frequently because they can't work through conflict with friends. We are clearly not qualified to make judgment calls about the quality of anyone's love, particularly the love of God.

Last week, we considered the importance of someone's decision to follow Christ. In the mind of God, that is obviously the most important decision in all of life. God sacrificed his only begotten Son to offer men and women an escape from judgment, and an avenue to life with Him. But in this generation, we have devalued that all important decision. For present day Americans, a decision about religion ranks all the way down there with other mundane choices about deodorant, shave cream, toilet tissue and dog food. We argue that everyone has a right to make his own decisions and even God should not challenge my civil right to make choices for myself. "How dare God send someone to Hell because of a personal decision?" We demand tolerance from everyone, even God! Of course, the God of Creation isn't really subject to our demands. Best-selling authors and ambitious pastor-marketers may care about the whims and fantasies of consumers. But those passing fads have no standing in the courtroom of God. And here is what the Lord of Salvation says about the unpopular subject of Hell:

• Mark 9:42-48; Christ insists you should get rid of anything in your life that might cause you to reject God and be sentenced to Hell. Better to live a limited life on the earth, than allow earthly comforts to take you to Hell "where the maggots never die and the fire never goes out."


• Matthew 8:46; The Master explains that some people will continue to enjoy life in eternity, while others will depart the earth for eternal punishment.

The Son of God says more about Hell than any other person in the Bible. We'd be wise to take his words literally. But even is you interpret them in some symbolic fashion, Christ's point is still clear. The consequences for neglecting the grace of God are lasting, serious, and agonizing. Knowing that, how could a loving person fail to warn a friend or relative about the consequences that we believe are waiting beyond the grave?

I love my family, friends and neighbors so much that I want to inform them all about the principles of faith and eternal life. Yes, this is the 21st Century and we are living in America. Sure, everybody has the right to choose. All I'm saying is that people should make informed choices. And I have discovered that the information found in God's Word is vastly superior to the trivia and celebrity gossip that are constantly on the airwaves of the world.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever should believe on him might not perish, but have eternal life."

Selah.