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.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Monday, April 11, 2011
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.
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.
Monday, April 4, 2011
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.
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