Japan, Jesus, and Judgment

The title of this post will likely remind you of comments made by Pat Robertson (American televangelist) after the Haiti earthquake. He posited that God allowed the Haiti earthquake as judgment over a "pact with the devil" made by Haiti's founders. He also attempted to explain reasons for God allowing tragedies such as Hurricane Katrina and 9/11. He is certainly not the only one to make assertions like this, but he is one of the most prominent (You may read of a few of his infamous blunders here).


When tragedies happen, God-believing humans want to know why such things have occurred. We feel better if there is a specific & known reason for cataclysmic events. The recent earthquake and tsunami is Japan is one such event. We'd, frankly, like to know what God was thinking in allowing such a tragedy to occur.


It is a common thought that if a tragic event occurs, it must be a judgment of God. But that thought process is The Jews of Jesus' time also struggled with such questions, and they also wanted answers. 


Luke 13:1-6 recounts, "There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”


There were two tragic events that these Jews were wrestling with. 1) Pilate apparently had some Galileans unjustly killed while they were offering sacrifices. 2) A tower in Siloam collapsed, killing 18 people.


While these 2 events were not immediately viewable on YouTube minutes after they occurred, the theological questions that Jesus deals with are the same ones that we deal with in light of Japan. Did this happen because they were being specifically judged? And, what should my response be?


Jesus' response was simple. Tragedies like this do not mean that they were worse sinners than you. You were not spared because of greater intrinsic holiness, since you are all sinners. God will not give humanity specific reasons for why most events like this occur, so don't bother speculating too much. Tragedies like this are meant to remind you, here and now, that the judgment of God is coming to everyone someday. We shouldn't spend time speculating why this happened; rather, we should spend time thinking of God's judgment. Therefore, repent and make yourself right with God.


We have many thoughts and emotions over tragedies like Japan, 9/11, Katrina, Haiti, etc. In addition to our thoughts, prayers, aid, and missions to the suffering, let us also soberly think of the judgment of God, a tsunami coming to all humanity not bound by geography. And also think of the lone way to escape this judgment: the grace and forgiveness of Jesus, bought for you on the cross.

Quick Thought- Truth & Emotions

Good afternoon.

I just had a quick thought on TRUTH and emotions. In various discussions with friends, sometimes we talk about tough issues- those things we may disagree on. (This conversation could be Christians talking about theology or a conversation with an unbeliever.) What I want to stress is that the way we feel about a topic is not a good test case for the truth of that topic. For example, I may not like the topic of death. However, death is a reality and my negative feelings about death don't change the reality of death.

Same with Jesus. You may not feel great about his claim over your life. You may not feel great about God's standard of holiness. You may react adversely to God's 100% true Word. But those feelings do not change God's truth OR your responsibility to submit to God's truth. 

Kapish?

Spurgeon Quotes on the Church

Below are 2 great quotes from Spurgeon on the church. I hope they edify you. I came across them in Josh Harris' book Stop Dating the Church.


On the necessity of being involved in a local church for Christians...


"I know there are some who say, 'Well, I have given myself to the Lord, but I do not intend to give myself to the church.'
Now why not?
'Because I can be a Christian without it.'
Are you quite clear about that? You can be as good a Christian by disobedience to your Lord's commands as by being obedient?
What is a brick made for? To help build a house. It is of no use for that brick to tell you that it is just as good a brick while it is kicking about on the ground as it would be in the house. It is a good-for-nothing brick.
So you rolling-stone Christians, I do not believe that you are answering your purpose. You are living contrary to the life which Christ would have you live, and you are much to blame for the injury you do."


On the priority of the gospel in the local church...


"Do not go where it is all fine music and grand talk and beautiful architecture; those things will neither fill anybody's stomach, nor feed his soul. Go where the gospel is preached, the gospel that really feeds your soul, and go often."

Becoming a community of disciples...

I came across this quote in Josh Harris' Stop Dating the Church, a phenomenal little read. The fact remains that Jesus did not merely call us as individuals to be worshipers, evangelists, ambassadors, and disciples, but rather he called us to be a community of disciples. Josh Harris quotes Eric Lane as saying...


"To be a member of a family is to belong to a community bound by a common fatherhood. To be a stone in his temple means to belong to a worshiping community. To be a part of a body means to belong to a living, functioning, serving, witnessing community. Put together, you have the main functions of an individual Christian. Evidently, we are meant to fulfill these not on our own, but together in the church."


Josh Harris concludes...


"He's right. We can't live out our Christian lives on our own. When we're saved from our sin, we become part of something bigger than ourselves- a family, a body, a temple."

On Intentional Living in an "Always Connected" World

I have been reading this excellent book on how facebook (and other forms of social media) help and hinder life and community. It's called "The Church of Facebook", and the section below highlights how being constantly connected to the internet (and therefore, to one another) can hinder truly living with a purpose.


"There is no such thing as an unintentional life. All of us have, at times, felt like we were drifting through life or wandering aimless. Perhaps that's exactly where we find ourselves this moment. It is a common experience, but it does not mean we do not have intentions. It simply means we are not conscious of our intentions. We are not aware of them, even though they are present and determining the direction of our lives as much as a well-thought-out list of goals. This is what is meant by the old saying, 'Those who fail to plan, plan to fail.' When we are not aware of our intentions, we find that passivity and restlessness (most often in the form of boredom) take root and sprout up like weeds, covering over a clear life path until we are thoroughly lost.


The great challenge in being always-on [i.e., always connected to people and information via the internet, facebook, etc.] is that it rarely enables us to be consciously intentional. More often than not, it thwarts on-purpose living by creating in us a need to respond to what is most urgent rather than what is most valuable. In other words, hyperconnectivity can lead to hyper-reactivity."

Persistent Prayer

Enjoy the below from John Wesley on being persistent in our prayers.

"Lord, teach us to pray" (Luke 11:1). Immediately after our Lord answered this request of His disciples, He showed them the absolute necessity of using prayer if we would receive any gift from God. 

He told the story of a man who begged his friend at midnight to get up and lend him three loaves of bread. Though his friend would not rise and give him because he was his friend, yet because of his troublesome persistence, his friend will rise and give him. Jesus said, "And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given to you."

How could our blessed Lord more plainly declare the means- persistently asking- by which we may receive of God what otherwise we should not receive at all?

"He spoke also another parable, to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not lose heart" (Luke 18:1) - to persevere until they receive of God whatever petition they have asked of him: "There was in a city a judge...and there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, 'Avenge me of my adversary.' And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, 'Though I fear not God, nor regard man; yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her'" (Luke 18:2-5).

Our Lord Himself made the application for those who cry day and night to Him: "I tell you that he will avenge them speedily" (Luke 18:8)."

What a penetrating truth- God doesn't answer lackadaisical prayers; he answers persistent ones.

Loving Jesus

A group from my church has been reading Francis Chan's Crazy Love. We have recently wrestled with the question, What does it mean to love Jesus? We talk loving Jesus alot, we sing about it in songs, and I know that many of us have experienced it, but how do we define it? Forgive me if the following raises as many questions as it does answers!

As I talk to fellow believers about our walks with the Lord, often time they say things are going well or not well because "I have (not) read my Bible and prayed daily." I often analyze my walk in the same way. Now these are good and necessary spiritual disciplines without a doubt, but we can't say that daily Bible time and daily prayer is the definition or sum of loving Jesus. Also the following verses and comments affect my thoughts...

John 14:15- "If you love me, you will keep my commandments..." This doesn't means that the essence of love is necessarily commandment-keeping. Or does it? It seems that commandment-keeping is a result of love for Jesus. For example, "If I love Kelley, I will pray for her..." Praying for her is not the sum or essence of love, but a result (or proof) that love is present. Maybe, maybe not?

1 John 5:3- "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome." Here it seems that John does equate love for Jesus with obedience/commandment-keeping. However, he adds that this obedience happens in such a way that it is not a burden! What does that mean? True love for Jesus, it seems, is obeying His commands- and being glad to do it! But then, if that's the case, how do we ever love Jesus through trials and hard times that are very "burdensome"?

1 Corinthians 13:3- "If I give away all that I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing." This seems to argue against many definitions I've heard of "agape" love, that it is simply and heartlessly choosing to sacrifice. Paul uses grand examples of willing sacrificial acts (giving away all possessions, giving oneself over to horrible death), but says that those crazy things can be done - without love.

I ask and struggle through all this because I am simply unsatisifed with equating my spiritual walk and love for the Lord with a few daily hoops to jump through. Feel free to comment.