Fractured Saints - never beyond mending - a christian blog for the broken ones

I try to avoid discussing eschatology because, to be honest, the subject depresses the heck out of me. It really does. However, with all the earthquakes that have been going on lately, I can’t help but think about Matthew 24:7-8.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to be an alarmist. I hate it when Christians run around saying, “OMG, the end is near! Don’t get left behind!” They sound too much like Chicken Little. Having said that, though, there is a chance that the Second Coming will be sooner than we thought, and the Bible does tell us to be prepared. But let me explain what “being prepared” means, based on my understanding of Matthew chapters 24 and 25.

First, I need to stress this point: WE DON’T KNOW WHEN JESUS WILL RETURN. I don’t know why Christians keep trying to calculate the day and time Jesus will return, because He clearly says that only God knows that day and hour. (Matthew 24:36) So please, put your calculators down!

Second, that whole “pre-tribulation rapture” thing? Yeah, I think Tim LaHaye got that wrong:

“For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.” (Verses 38-41)

Correct me if I’m wrong, but it looks like the “two men in the field” part happens after the Son of Man returns.

Third, because we don’t know when Jesus will return, the Bible does tell us to keep watch. (V. 42) If your boss gives you a specific project while s/he is on vacation, and you don’t do it. Do you think the boss will be happy when s/he returns and finds out you didn’t even start the project? I don’t think so.

Which brings me to my fourth point, which is what we should be doing now. In chapter 25 Jesus tells us two parables. The first one, founded in verses 14 through 30, is about a man who gave his servants certain amounts of money before his journey. When he returned and found that the servant with the smallest amount buried the money, he was thrown “into the darkness.”

The second parable is found in verses 31 through 46. In this parable, Jesus describes Judgment Day as separating the goats from the sheep. The sheep are allowed into the Kingdom because they fed the hungry, clothed the naked, visited the prisoner, etc. “What you did for the least of these brothers of mine,” the Lord says, “you did for me.” The goats, on the other had, didn’t do anything, so they are cast off.

So, to wrap it all up, instead of focusing on when it’s going to happen, let’s just continue doing God’s work. I don’t think calculating the end of the world is going to help all the people who are suffering right now.

Hebrews 3:12 – 14

(12) See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. (13) But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. (14)We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.

This past Sunday, we had a sermon on the verse above and were challenged to take up the task of “encouraging” one another daily.  While this is very much what I think that we need, I am often at a loss in what encouragement even means.  In relationships that are established and healthy, encouragement seems to fit and really serve an end, but if there is no real relationship undergirding the encouragement, it seems almost trite to me.  With the verse in mind above, I am asking God that I am not being hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.

How has encouragement worked for any of you?  I want to encourage my brothers and sisters in Christ, but I want to do so authentically rather than just a “hey I think you are swell” kind of fashion.  Is the person you are encouraging a big factor in how you pursue them?  Should you pursue friendship first before really trying to provide generic affirmations?

God has a high calling for His church and it is clear that the enemy would like nothing more than for us to remain disconnected and hardened.  I am praying through it and appreciative of any hints from your experiences?

It snowed. It snowed in March in Hotlanta. It was beautiful. I love how pure everything looks when its covered in snow. It’s like Christ and how he covers our sin, but instead of heading down that path I want to go a different direction. As I stood looking outside yesterday, I saw what God had made and I saw his handy work. I get the same feeling every time I see my daughter smile.

Where do you see evidence of God and His handy work?

Normally I am a little worried about throwing up hard to answer questions or questions that might not have an answer here. There are a couple of reasons for this: 1. I don’t want to cause any of my brothers to stumble, 2. I don’t want anyone who doesn’t know Christ to be mislead or confused, 3. It usually doesn’t lead to a heavy response, in fact in usually leads to no response at all. Throwing all that aside though I think this is a good venue for me to ask those questions, but feel free to let me know if you think I am wrong.

So as some of you know, lately I have been struggling with understanding the character of God and who He is. The latest piece of character that has come into question in my life is this aspect of him being unchanging. I wasn’t really sure what all aspects this unchanging characteristic covered but I assumed that it went so far his decisions. But I don’t understand 3 instances off the top of my head in the Bible (listed below chronologically).

First there’s Job, Satan comes to God and says let me screw with Job and God’s like ok you can mess with everything in his life but don’t touch him. Ignoring that I don’t get why God would allow Satan to have his way with anything, Satan comes back after laying waste to Job’s family, flocks and all that he owns. And even though Job did just as God said, Satan talks God into letting him afflict Job and then tortures him for a while.

Second there’s Moses. when the Israelites were down at the bottom of the mountain God says that He will just wipe them out. Moses pleads with God and God decides to spare them.

Third there’s Jonah, God sent Jonah to Nineveh to let the people know that God was going to destroy them. The people turn from their wicked ways and God forgives them and spares them.

While I am not saying that I am irritated by the last 2, because I think that anytime people are spared from being punished for their stupidity and easily falling into sin (because I am often part of that group) it’s a good thing, I just don’t understand how someone can change God’s mind. I understand that Moses appealed to God’s character and reputation, the people of Nineveh repented and turned from their wicked ways and God is forgiving, but I still can’t get God having a sit down with Satan and being like sure why not you can torture one of the guys on earth whom I consider my own, even one of my best. Can anyone help me out here?

Which is more important: Christmas or Easter?

I ask because Easter will be here in a little over a month, and I found myself today comparing the state of things right now with the state of things in any given mid-November. A month before Christmas, there are 17 radio stations doing 24-hour carols (both religious and secular), and a lot of churches have switched to all Christmas music all the time, too. People are acting stressed out, sure, but that peace and goodwill thing is not imaginary; lots of folks start increasing their charitable giving, preparing celebrations with family and friends, trying to be nicer, getting ready to hail the birth of the savior.

And here we are, with Easter coming up on April 4 — crap, Easter is April 4? Well, no biggie. I’ll worry about it the week before. Wal-Mart has some bunnies on aisle 63. The church will probably do the same-old, same-old, until a week or two before Easter, when maybe the pastor will start a special short series on the crucifixion in which I’m sure a montage from The Passion of the Christ will play a part.

Maybe I’m alone in thinking this is a big deal — after all, I go to a Baptist church, and we Baptists don’t celebrate Lent or Ash Wednesday or Palm Sunday, all of which help prepare folks in other denominations for Easter. Do you guys think this is an issue? Am I being unfair to think maybe our priorities are a little skewed? Is the birth of Christ (which plenty of non-Christians believe happened, even if they disagree about the specifics) more important than His death and resurrection (on which rest all our hope)? Does the secularization of Christmas that so many people rail against every single year actually (*gasp*) play a teeny tiny role in the importance we place on that holiday? Is it even appropriate to compare?

I originally posted this on my own blog a few weeks ago.

As you know, I am not a big fan of fundamentalism. To me, it’s theological school yard bullying. However, sometimes my hatred of fundamentalism makes me do stupid things, like hurt people.

First, let me start with my definition of fundamentalism. To me, a fundamentalist is some one who thinks that their interpretation of the Bible is the infallible word of God. Folks who believe that they’re always right and if you don’t fit into their cookie-cutter image then you’re a bad person. Those judgmental, holier-than-thou, authoritative, pious, “I’m right, you’re wrong, get used to it” folks. In the words of Barney Frank, trying to have a conversation with them is like arguing with a dining room table. I’d much rather have a conversation, and rethink a lot of the things Christian culture usually takes for granted.

(Of course when I say “a lot of the things Christian culture usually takes for granted,” I am NOT referring to the three biggies that are, to me, the fundamentals and Christianity: the Divinity of Jesus, His atoning death on the Cross, and His resurrection.)

Maybe it’s just my rebellious punk rock nature, but I always like to question things. If I don’t ask questions, how will I know that what I believe is legit? How can I separate what’s really biblical and what’s just a man-made doctrine? With fundamentalism, however, there is no room for questions. Either you accept everything they believe and fit into their little mold, or you’re not a true Christian.

I’m the first to admit that I am not perfect. I know I’m messed up. I know I haven’t gotten it all figured out. I’m still learning, and I’ll always be learning until the day I die. Yeah, I make mistakes along the way, but I keep learning. Don’t make me feel like a piece of crap just because I haven’t gotten it all together.

Having said all that, though, sometimes I falsely accuse people of being fundamentalist nut jobs. Sometimes I get so angry that I say things that are mean, hurtful, and unfair. I’m so defensive that I refuse to let down my guard and really listen to what the other side has to say. Even though I’m always saying both sides should talk to each other, I secretly don’t believe it.

I’ve been hurt by Christians in the past, but that doesn’t make it right for me to attack people. It’s like the bullied becomes the bully, and then the cycle continues. I need to learn how to stop the cycle, listen to the other side, and make peace with others.

So I have always enjoyed the TV show LOST which has serious themes of good vs evil, redemption, guilt and the consequences of our choices, but this season has helped me to understand God a little better.  Let’s see how fast this community can tear this up.

Last week, Slice of Infinity ran a great article on Plan B (http://www.rzim.org/usa/usfv/tabid/436/articleid/10511/cbmoduleid/1133/default.aspx ) which presented a great way of looking at God’s plan for our lives.  I remember as a teenager in the youth group community / college community and frequently the question of “What is God’s plan in my life?” came up.  The article addresses this question in the following unique way.

A wise friend of mine once wondered if following God was not something like following the directions on a GPS system. At the beginning of the journey, the plan for arriving at the desired destination is set before you. But when you accidentally turn left or are forced to take an unforeseen detour, the computer doesn’t scold you. It doesn’t force you to start over or announce that you can no longer make it to your final destination because you have ruined the route. In fact, it doesn’t even make you feel guilty. The end still in mind, it simply adjusts the plan from that point onward, as if the “wrong” turn was a part of the journey all along. The destination has not changed. Plan A may have switched to Plan B, but the outcome will be the same.

With this in mind, LOST got me thinking about alternate realities.  My Old Testament professor in college always said that reality, especially in terms of sinners coming to faith in Christ, is “100% man’s free will + 100% God’s sovereignty”.  While this understanding lines up with Scripture, it is hard to wrap your head around.  Using the GPS analogy and LOST’s alternate realities from this season, this is how I am thinking about the conflict now.

So my changed understanding is this.  God is not constrained by time and therefore can see / is sovereign over all possible alternate realities of our lives.  This could be seen in the book of Jonah where God says He was going to destroy Nineveh, yet does not when the people repent.  Being that God is unchangeable, this posed an issue for me.  Now, the way I think about it is that God saw 2 alternate realities, was completely in control of both, and responded as He had planned in that reality.

The post is long, but what is people’s thoughts on this?  Helpful or not?  May God be glorified as we search for Him and His nature.

Has anyone else looked at the Doable Evangelism website?  I find the idea really intriguing.  I first heard about it on an episode of This American Life entitled “Bait and Switch.”  They were interviewing a guy who described his former involvement with bait and switch evangelism projects through the years.

I’ve always known how important it is to spread the Gospel, but I have never really wanted to evangelize.  When I was a teenager, I remember learning about telling others about Christ using a kind of sales technique.  The problem was that the other person really needed to know the script we were using or they would never get saved!

Most of the other times that I have looked at any evangelism material it all seems like sales programs.  Though instead of selling a product we hope to close the deal and get someone saved.  To tell you the truth, I have never been able to memorize any of the points that you are supposed to use with these approaches.  I remember, there is one where you use the five fingers of your hand, something where you try to get someone to name ten beers and then the ten commandments, and  something with a banana.  It isn’t like I’m dumb,  I have memorized lots of stuff in my life.  I think it is a matter of  my lack of connection with the programs that make it hard for me to learn, much less to actually try.  And don’t even get me started on the tracts!

Anyway, the point is that I like the “doable” approach that is about living intentionally and making ordinary attempts to reach the lost.  One of the ideas that I heard on the radio that suck with me was the idea that we are to make disciples and not just converts.

If you have time, check out the site: http://doableevangelism.com/ and see what you think.

The digital realm has been a mainstay in my life for as long as I can remember. I have “friends” who I have never met in person, that I have known for 10 years. The internet, mainly social networking sites like facebook, have created a new classification of relationships that I sometimes confuse with actual relationships.

Facebook is to relationships as porn and phone-sex is to intimacy. It gives off the sensation that this is real and we really do have a good relationship, but its all fake. I’m not saying that you can’t keep up with old friends and family who you no longer live near on facebook and things like that. I’m just saying it can never replace real relationships and don’t decieve yourself into thinking it has.