Christian vs Christ Follower in Action

I have one final video in the Christian Mac vs PC parody series and this one goes a bit deeper than the ones that came before and will likely hit closer to home. As ultimately it is the price of discipleship or the efforts to avoid one’s responsibility that separates the “Christians” from the “Christ Followers”

Churchgoer vs Christian videos

If you enjoyed the previous set of  Christian Mac vs PC parody videos than here is a followup set of two pairs of videos which deals with the difference between merely attending Church on Sundays and living the Christian live throughout the week.  As before remember that it is a matter of the heart and not contemporary vs traditional.

Christian vs Christ Follower videos

I just came across this interesting set of vidoes which us a pardy format of the Mac vs PC commericals to present the difference between a Christian and a Christ Follower.  I highly recommend watching them as they are sure to make you think and consider where you stand.  Just keep in mind that it is ultimately a matter of the heart and not a matter of attending a Contempary Church vs a Traditional Church.

And also for your children

This past Sunday I attended a monthly Children Communion service at St. John’s, a Mercersburg United Church of Christ church in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. A few months ago I would have through the concept of a children’s communion service as being a bit strange and even questioned its soundness but that was also before I had given the issue much thought. When it comes to the Sacraments the inclusion of children of Christian parents is a matter of debate in the church today. Such as the debate over if the church should baptize infants of Christian parents or adults and older children who have personally accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior who died on the cross and rose again from the dead to make atonement for their sins before God. Yet at at the next level comes the issues surrounding who should be offered the sacrament of Holy Communion. Should one have to be baptized first and if so is an infant baptism good enough or does one need to be either baptized as an adult believer or affirmed their baptism through confirmation when they came of age first? Or better put is it proper to serve Holy Communion to a baptized baby of Christian parents as soon as the baby is old enough to be able to handle solid food? I am sure some people will object to serving Holy Communion to baptized babies upon the grounds that they are clearly not able to partake in the Eucharist in a reverent manner given their inability to understand what is going on. Yet at the same time why is it also viewed by some of the same people as proper to baptize infants into the covenant community of the Church when they also have no idea of the nature and meaning of baptism at the time? It seems a bit strange how the many people have no problems flipping between the competing philosophies in regards to infant vs believer baptism yet change side in regard to baptized infant vs believer communion. At the same time how far does the ability to understand play a role in one’s ability to receive communion? Does that mean that even while somebody who was born mentally retarded might be able to be baptized as an infant into the church yet never be allowed to receive the sacrament of communion due to their mental handicap of being stuck at the emotional maturity level of a 5 year old for life? Likewise how about the flip side when one ages and begins to slowly down mentally or falls to Alzheimer’s disease require us to slam the church door of access to Holy Communion to elderly lifelong Christians who faithfully served God with their life for decades simply because their mental capacity is not what it used to be? Does it not make the most sense to lump these special case adults with the children into Jesus’ declaration that we should not hinder children for such belongs in the Kingdom of God and that whosoever does not become like a child will not enter into it. As the Kingdom of God is a place of equal opportunity where all are welcome be they Jew or Gentile, white or black, adult man or woman or young child. So why not do the same with the Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion?

God’s Underwear

Thus says the LORD to me, “Go and buy a linen loincloth and put it around your waist, and do not dip it in water.” So I bought a loincloth according to the word of the LORD, and put it around my waist. And the word of the LORD came to me a second time, “Take the loincloth that you have bought, which is around your waist, and arise, go to the Euphrates and hide it there in a cleft of the rock.” So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the LORD commanded me. And after many days the LORD said to me, “Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take from there the loincloth that I commanded you to hide there.” Then I went to the Euphrates, and dug, and I took the loincloth from the place where I had hidden it. And behold, the loincloth was spoiled; it was good for nothing. Then the word of the LORD came to me: “Thus says the LORD: Even so will I spoil the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. This evil people, who refuse to hear my words, who stubbornly follow their own heart and have gone after other gods to serve them and worship them, shall be like this loincloth, which is good for nothing. For as the loincloth clings to the waist of a man, so I made the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah cling to me, declares the LORD, that they might be for me a people, a name, a praise, and a glory, but they would not listen.
~ Jeremiah 13:1-11 ESV

I was sorting through piles of papers yesterday when I was cleaning up and came across a page of notes from seminary which I had considered blogging about on the day of the lecture but never got around to it. So here it is for all who are curious about what types of talks go on within seminary classes from the classroom of Dr. David Lamb a professor of Old Testament at Biblical Theological Seminary in a class on the Prophetic books of the Bible. The talk started with the discussion over what was meant by a “loincloth”, which is also rendered as a belt, girdle or sash in various Bible translations. To which Dr. Lamb said that a loincloth is basically underwear and suggested boxer sorts as a good alternative contemporary English translation choice. To which he recapped the passage as God telling Jeremiah to go out and buy a new pair of boxer shorts, and to put them on right away without washing them first. Then Jeremiah was told to take his boxer shorts and hid them in some rocks outside for a time before being told to go back and get them. To which he asked if any of us were ever walking outside and came across a pair of underwear on the ground that we wanted to pick up and take home with us to wear without even bothering to wash them first? Something that seemed unthinkable yet it gets even more shocking when later on in the passage God refers to His people as His underwear. What a shocking imagery of the intimate nature between God and His people which is described as clinging to Him as our underwear clings to our most intimate parts. Yet in our sin and unrighteousness we become to God like a pair of underwear that is left outside among rocks after a while, soiled and corrupted to the point of being useless. So this gives us another interesting way of looking at the Bible’s command for us Christians to be holy in how we live our life because God is holy. After all as the underwear of God it would be very bad news if we allow ourselves to become so soiled with sin that we become unwearable as it would be very bad news for us if it gets bad enough for God to go commando on us in judgment. Just like what happened to Israel in the time of the Babylonian Exile which occurred later on during Jeremiah’s ministry.

Maundy Thursday reflections

The Maundy Thursday service at Wentz’s left me thinking about a few things. Pastor Tony’s sermon made some interesting points about washing. Starting with how as a child his mother would make him wash up before dinner and would always ask him two questions. First if he used water and then if he used soap and how he could not understand it at the time until he was older and learned the value of personal hygiene. This led into the imagery of water for cleansing and its role in baptism. Along with the very Reformed remark about how depending upon the pastor doing the baptism the poor child might end up soaked. Before I never realized the potentially double aspect to Jesus washing his disciple’s feet before the Passover/Last Supper meal. Sure there was the given point of service in humility when the others felt too good to wash the other’s feet because it was considered a slave’s job so Jesus stepped up or should I say down and did what needed to be done. Washing the feet of both his loyal friends and his enemy Judas who he knew was about to betray him. Before instructing the disciples that as their Lord and Rabbi who washed their feet they should do so in turn and wash each others feet. Jesus’ call to serve others does not only extend to friends who we like but also to strangers and even people that we do not like. True while foot washing has lost its meaning today but the deeper service in humility behind it has not. Driven in by Pastor Tony’s joke about asking the ushers to bring out the basins of water so everybody could wash each others feet, when there was none to demonstrate how the idea of service and humility makes us uneasy.

I was grateful for Pastor Tony’s wash up illustration and tyeing it in with baptism as it made me realize how confession ties into the context. Sure the waters of baptism cleanses away our sins, yet the Disciples were already baptized when Jesus washed their feet before the Last Supper. Yet the dirty filth upon their feet was brought before Jesus who washed away the dirt and made them clean but only when their dirty feet were brought within His presence. Like how John later wrote that if we confess our sins Jesus is faithful to forgive us and cleanse away our unrighteousness. Along with Paul’s warnings against taking the elements of the Eucharist in an unworthy manner without examining ourselves will result in us eating and drinking judgment upon ourselves. So how fitting it was for Jesus to also symbolically wash away the dirt from the disciple’s feet before the Last Supper and the first Communion service of the Church the night before going to the cross. If mere dirt was unfitting upon the feet of the disciples at the Last Supper, how much more would it be for me to have unconfessed sins upon my soul when partaking of the bread and the wine of the Eucharist. Yet just like hand washing without water and soap is useless so is confession that falls short of being completely open and honest and genuinely wanting to improve instead of falling into cheap grace in feeling free to enjoy sin knowing that God loves you and will forgive you.

A Tom Sawyer Gospel Allegory

Most people do not consider Mark Twain’s writings to have much spiritual value, but I found an exception which even though could be an unintentional allegory. Like all allegories it is imperfect and breaks down if pushed too far as I mean by no means to promote Tom Sawyer as a Christ figure. I want you to read the picture below and focus upon seeing yourself as Becky Thatcher, who clearly did not deserve the grace that was given unto her in escaping being whipped in the front of the one room school house. We are all Becky Thacher’s before God, fully undeserving of any grace from the God who we have scorned with our rebellion of sin. Yet despite our complete unworthiness, love and grace proved to be stronger than justice and wrath in the eyes of God and Jesus Christ died for your sins upon the cross in your place. Below is section from chapters 18 and 20 of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain taken from the public domain text found on Project Gutenberg.

So the boy halted, wondering what he could have done–for she had said
she would look at pictures all through the nooning–and she walked on,
crying. Then Alfred went musing into the deserted schoolhouse. He was
humiliated and angry. He easily guessed his way to the truth–the girl
had simply made a convenience of him to vent her spite upon Tom Sawyer.
He was far from hating Tom the less when this thought occurred to him.
He wished there was some way to get that boy into trouble without much
risk to himself. Tom’s spelling-book fell under his eye. Here was his
opportunity. He gratefully opened to the lesson for the afternoon and
poured ink upon the page.

Becky, glancing in at a window behind him at the moment, saw the act,
and moved on, without discovering herself. She started homeward, now,
intending to find Tom and tell him; Tom would be thankful and their
troubles would be healed. Before she was half way home, however, she
had changed her mind. The thought of Tom’s treatment of her when she
was talking about her picnic came scorching back and filled her with
shame. She resolved to let him get whipped on the damaged
spelling-book’s account, and to hate him forever, into the bargain.

…

He started to school and had the luck of coming upon Becky
Thatcher at the head of Meadow Lane. His mood always determined his
manner. Without a moment’s hesitation he ran to her and said:

“I acted mighty mean to-day, Becky, and I’m so sorry. I won’t ever,
ever do that way again, as long as ever I live–please make up, won’t
you?”

The girl stopped and looked him scornfully in the face:

“I’ll thank you to keep yourself TO yourself, Mr. Thomas Sawyer. I’ll
never speak to you again.”

She tossed her head and passed on. Tom was so stunned that he had not
even presence of mind enough to say “Who cares, Miss Smarty?” until the
right time to say it had gone by. So he said nothing. But he was in a
fine rage, nevertheless. He moped into the schoolyard wishing she were
a boy, and imagining how he would trounce her if she were. He presently
encountered her and delivered a stinging remark as he passed. She
hurled one in return, and the angry breach was complete. It seemed to
Becky, in her hot resentment, that she could hardly wait for school to
“take in,” she was so impatient to see Tom flogged for the injured
spelling-book. If she had had any lingering notion of exposing Alfred
Temple, Tom’s offensive fling had driven it entirely away.

Poor girl, she did not know how fast she was nearing trouble herself.
The master, Mr. Dobbins, had reached middle age with an unsatisfied
ambition. The darling of his desires was, to be a doctor, but poverty
had decreed that he should be nothing higher than a village
schoolmaster. Every day he took a mysterious book out of his desk and
absorbed himself in it at times when no classes were reciting. He kept
that book under lock and key. There was not an urchin in school but was
perishing to have a glimpse of it, but the chance never came. Every boy
and girl had a theory about the nature of that book; but no two
theories were alike, and there was no way of getting at the facts in
the case. Now, as Becky was passing by the desk, which stood near the
door, she noticed that the key was in the lock! It was a precious
moment. She glanced around; found herself alone, and the next instant
she had the book in her hands. The title-page–Professor Somebody’s
ANATOMY–carried no information to her mind; so she began to turn the
leaves. She came at once upon a handsomely engraved and colored
frontispiece–a human figure, stark naked. At that moment a shadow fell
on the page and Tom Sawyer stepped in at the door and caught a glimpse
of the picture. Becky snatched at the book to close it, and had the
hard luck to tear the pictured page half down the middle. She thrust
the volume into the desk, turned the key, and burst out crying with
shame and vexation.

“Tom Sawyer, you are just as mean as you can be, to sneak up on a
person and look at what they’re looking at.”

“How could I know you was looking at anything?”

“You ought to be ashamed of yourself, Tom Sawyer; you know you’re
going to tell on me, and oh, what shall I do, what shall I do! I’ll be
whipped, and I never was whipped in school.”

Then she stamped her little foot and said:

“BE so mean if you want to! I know something that’s going to happen.
You just wait and you’ll see! Hateful, hateful, hateful!”–and she
flung out of the house with a new explosion of crying.

Tom stood still, rather flustered by this onslaught. Presently he said
to himself:

“What a curious kind of a fool a girl is! Never been licked in school!
Shucks! What’s a licking! That’s just like a girl–they’re so
thin-skinned and chicken-hearted. Well, of course I ain’t going to tell
old Dobbins on this little fool, because there’s other ways of getting
even on her, that ain’t so mean; but what of it? Old Dobbins will ask
who it was tore his book. Nobody’ll answer. Then he’ll do just the way
he always does–ask first one and then t’other, and when he comes to the
right girl he’ll know it, without any telling. Girls’ faces always tell
on them. They ain’t got any backbone. She’ll get licked. Well, it’s a
kind of a tight place for Becky Thatcher, because there ain’t any way
out of it.” Tom conned the thing a moment longer, and then added: “All
right, though; she’d like to see me in just such a fix–let her sweat it
out!”

Tom joined the mob of skylarking scholars outside. In a few moments
the master arrived and school “took in.” Tom did not feel a strong
interest in his studies. Every time he stole a glance at the girls’
side of the room Becky’s face troubled him. Considering all things, he
did not want to pity her, and yet it was all he could do to help it. He
could get up no exultation that was really worthy the name. Presently
the spelling-book discovery was made, and Tom’s mind was entirely full
of his own matters for a while after that. Becky roused up from her
lethargy of distress and showed good interest in the proceedings. She
did not expect that Tom could get out of his trouble by denying that he
spilt the ink on the book himself; and she was right. The denial only
seemed to make the thing worse for Tom. Becky supposed she would be
glad of that, and she tried to believe she was glad of it, but she
found she was not certain. When the worst came to the worst, she had an
impulse to get up and tell on Alfred Temple, but she made an effort and
forced herself to keep still–because, said she to herself, “he’ll tell
about me tearing the picture sure. I wouldn’t say a word, not to save
his life!”

Tom took his whipping and went back to his seat not at all
broken-hearted, for he thought it was possible that he had unknowingly
upset the ink on the spelling-book himself, in some skylarking bout–he
had denied it for form’s sake and because it was custom, and had stuck
to the denial from principle.

A whole hour drifted by, the master sat nodding in his throne, the air
was drowsy with the hum of study. By and by, Mr. Dobbins straightened
himself up, yawned, then unlocked his desk, and reached for his book,
but seemed undecided whether to take it out or leave it. Most of the
pupils glanced up languidly, but there were two among them that watched
his movements with intent eyes. Mr. Dobbins fingered his book absently
for a while, then took it out and settled himself in his chair to read!
Tom shot a glance at Becky. He had seen a hunted and helpless rabbit
look as she did, with a gun levelled at its head. Instantly he forgot
his quarrel with her. Quick–something must be done! done in a flash,
too! But the very imminence of the emergency paralyzed his invention.
Good!–he had an inspiration! He would run and snatch the book, spring
through the door and fly. But his resolution shook for one little
instant, and the chance was lost–the master opened the volume. If Tom
only had the wasted opportunity back again! Too late. There was no help
for Becky now, he said. The next moment the master faced the school.
Every eye sank under his gaze. There was that in it which smote even
the innocent with fear. There was silence while one might count ten
–the master was gathering his wrath. Then he spoke: “Who tore this book?”

There was not a sound. One could have heard a pin drop. The stillness
continued; the master searched face after face for signs of guilt.

“Benjamin Rogers, did you tear this book?”

A denial. Another pause.

“Joseph Harper, did you?”

Another denial. Tom’s uneasiness grew more and more intense under the
slow torture of these proceedings. The master scanned the ranks of
boys–considered a while, then turned to the girls:

“Amy Lawrence?”

A shake of the head.

“Gracie Miller?”

The same sign.

“Susan Harper, did you do this?”

Another negative. The next girl was Becky Thatcher. Tom was trembling
from head to foot with excitement and a sense of the hopelessness of
the situation.

“Rebecca Thatcher” [Tom glanced at her face--it was white with terror]
–”did you tear–no, look me in the face” [her hands rose in appeal]
–”did you tear this book?”

A thought shot like lightning through Tom’s brain. He sprang to his
feet and shouted–”I done it!”

The school stared in perplexity at this incredible folly. Tom stood a
moment, to gather his dismembered faculties; and when he stepped
forward to go to his punishment the surprise, the gratitude, the
adoration that shone upon him out of poor Becky’s eyes seemed pay
enough for a hundred floggings. Inspired by the splendor of his own
act, he took without an outcry the most merciless flaying that even Mr.
Dobbins had ever administered; and also received with indifference the
added cruelty of a command to remain two hours after school should be
dismissed–for he knew who would wait for him outside till his
captivity was done, and not count the tedious time as loss, either.

Tom went to bed that night planning vengeance against Alfred Temple;
for with shame and repentance Becky had told him all, not forgetting
her own treachery; but even the longing for vengeance had to give way,
soon, to pleasanter musings, and he fell asleep at last with Becky’s
latest words lingering dreamily in his ear–

“Tom, how COULD you be so noble!”

Fine Literature For Busy People

Fine literature and books that are worth reading is a touchy issue to bring up to a lot of people. People often confess with their lips that they value fine literature and books that are really worth reading yet their lives show that they do not value it enough to give it enough time to make it happen. True people are busy but if something is valued enough one will always fine time to make it happen. Yet so often it is not a lack of desire but a lack of planning that is the downfall of many or as it has been said that to fail to plan is to plan to fail. As was my case which runs back to my time in middle school when looking through a mail order catalog and saw a product a product headline entitled: “Acquire and apply the wisdom contained in the 100 greatest books, without a lifetime of study.” It was promoting this product which is pretty much a set set of 30 to 45 minute audio summaries of what have been deemed the 100 greatest books of Western Civilization, only it was tape instead of CD and it listed both the title and author instead of just title in the description. Not wanting mere cheat sheets on the list I tore the page out of the catalog and carried it folded up in my wallet next to my library card for years without looking at it.

The time and effort and possibly money needed to track down great classical works to read at either a bookstore or a library is another reason why I believe that many people do not read them. The advent of ebooks has in some ways made them more assessable through sites such as Project Gutenberg, a collection of free ebooks, the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for Christian classics and other including Classic Reader and Bartleby Great Books online. While plain text file ebooks can be ackward to read there are free solutions such as Tom’s eTextReader, designed to make ebooks look and read more like traditional books on the screen complete with bookmarks. But this will only get one so far as one can fill up their computer hard drive with ebooks but unless they take the time to read them they do not do them any good. I am not saying that downloading ebooks is without value just that they require an added level of discipline that many lack. Finally there is a solution which I think would work for anybody who is disciplined enough to stay caught up with their email more times than not as that is what DailyLit is build around. DailyLit lets you select the ebooks that you want to read and it then delivers them via email one manageable big at the time on the schedule you choose (ie daily, weekdays, weekends, etc), with the option to receive the next installment right away if you want to keep on reading after you finish the current installment of the book. Also for those who think something like this would be great for Bible reading there are similiar free Bible reading plans via email services at Bible Reading Plans and Bible in a Year. While reading books over email might not be seen as being as ideal as being able to set aside the time to read them on one’s own; it is more important to find a system that works for you. So if email is what it takes for you, don’t feel bad about it, be glad that there are good people out there who want to help you get in the reading you want to free of charge over email.

United Church of Christ of Seneca Valley

Last Sunday I attended the United Church of Christ of Seneca Valley, which further amazed me at how wide the diversity is among the UCC as well as making me realize that I’m likely much more high church than I thought before. The UCC of Seneca Valley is probably liberal to moderately liberal and on the lower end of the high church spectrum and a bit higher than Bethesda. Seneca Valley had a choir with choir robes, but also struck me as it was the first time that I had seen a guitar used in the same service as a robed choir. The pulpit was also upon a raised platform at the front and the majoirty of the service liturgy was conducted by a liturgist instead of the pastor, Rev. Carolyn Roberts. Another UCC first that I encountered was the presence of a blank page in the bulletin with the header sermon notes. Nothing wrong with that and in fact I think it is a wonderful idea and if anything was surprised that more UCC churches (or at least the ones that I’ve seen) do not do so likewise.

Rev. Carolyn Roberts sermon was on the social justice with emphasis upon the church’s part in the civil rights movement. While personally I would have spend a bit more time talking about the Biblical basis for engaging in social justice, her sermon was still good despite being from a stronger liberal perspective than I’m accustomed to. Although her main point of how anger toward social injustice alone is useless without also presenting an alternative and better way of doing things really stood out to me as a powerful message. As all too often I think the church just like politicians are quick to complain and make an outrage about things but without proposing a better way of doing things. Sure it is safer to just get angry and complain about the need for change but unless one has a vision of change for something better it is questionable how much if any good one will be able to accomplish in the end.

Saint Patrick

Today is Saint Patrick’s day so what better day to write about the man behind this day as compared to what it has become. As while many people celebrate Saint Patrick’s day with large parties, going all out with green clothing and alcoholic beverages associated with the Irish of beer, stout and whiskey often colored green and Irish Coffee, a mix of coffee, whiskey, sugar and cream. Along with the traditional throwing Lent out the window for the day, especially if falls on a Friday often refereed to as a “corned-beef indult”. Often to the point of insanity such as dying the Chicago river green every year for Saint Patrick’s day. Which in some ways is ironic considering that up until very recently it was a darker blue and not green that was most often associated with Saint Patrick as was found on older Irish flags.

So I ask what exactly are we celebrating today as Christians on Saint Patrick’s day? To which I believe the best answer is the legacy of a successful missionary who was in a sense an apostle to the Irish much like Paul was an apostle to the gentiles within the Roman Empire. Historically there are only two acceptable primary sources about Saint Patrick that have survived, a pair of letters in Latin that he wrote and gave a brief testimony about his life and call to ministry. From the first we learn that: “Patrick was born at Banna Venta Berniae. Calpornius, his father was a deacon, his grandfather Potitus a priest. When he was about sixteen, he was captured and carried off as a slave to Ireland. Patrick worked as a herdsman, remaining a captive for six years. He writes that his faith grew in captivity, and that he prayed daily. After six years he heard a voice telling him that he would soon go home, and then that his ship was ready. Fleeing his master, he travelled to a port, two hundred miles away he says, where he found a ship and, after various adventures, returned home to his family, now in his early twenties” (wikipedia). In the second a few years after being home he recalls the following vision: “I saw a man coming, as it were from Ireland. His name was Victoricus, and he carried many letters, and he gave me one of them. I read the heading: “The Voice of the Irish”. As I began the letter, I imagined in that moment that I heard the voice of those very people who were near the wood of Foclut, which is beside the western sea—and they cried out, as with one voice: “We appeal to you, holy servant boy, to come and walk among us.” (wikipedia) To which Patrick was faithful in setting out as a missionary to the very people who had previously kidnapped him as a child and made him a slave as a sign of radical forgiveness and obedience to Jesus’ command to love one’s enemies and to pray for those who persecute you. Converting and baptizing the masses, ordaining priests to serve in the new churches and becoming a bishop in Ireland. And the rest is history or should I say legend as we know that the Celtic Church arose and viewed Saint Patrick as its founder. The other stories such as Patrick using the shamrock or three leaf clover to teach about the trinity, the creation of the first Celtic cross and driving all snakes out of Ireland (possibly figurative for druids and their serpent symbols given the lack of evidence that there were ever snakes in Ireland) along with the collection of prayers credited to him may or may not be true. But what matters most is that he was a man who impacted the culture of Celtic Ireland enough that he was remembered as a worthy man to be associated with such things.