Last week we were treated to the president’s State of the Union Address before live television and a joint session of Congress. Donald Trump brought us up to speed on the progress we’ve made in areas of economy, employment, defense, border security, and foreign relations. And he reminded us of the work that still needs to be done, calling all Americans to unite for the common good of the nation.
I wonder if maybe we could use a “State of the Creation Address.” Of course Jesus – our Servant King – would be the one to deliver this important speech. He might tell us about the progress we’ve made in feeding the poor and lifting them out of their poverty (1), of the innovation and creativity of the human race, of the progress we have made in healthcare and medical research, and of the growing peace and stability among the nations. (2) Yes! All these things are true! He might mention that life expectancy and freedom are on the rise across the world, and that faithful missionaries are pushing deeper and deeper into the most unreached places on our planet, translating scriptures and planting churches of happily redeemed people.
But then he would certainly remind us that much is yet to be done: that vast populations struggle under oppressive belief systems, that human trafficking still flourishes and millions of unborn babies are being murdered every year in their mother’s wombs while divorce, greed and crime deface his beloved people. He might lament our political hostilities, or the plague of ignorance that stubbornly holds many in bondage. And I’m pretty sure He would remind us that we truly are our brother’s keeper and that there are dozens of broken people within walking distance who still haven’t heard the good news of His glorious reign!
In the end, I feel sure our compassionate King would remind us that He still loves his world, and has delightful plans for it’s redemption. “For as truly as I live”, (He might say), “my glory WILL fill the earth as the waters cover the sea. So let us redouble our efforts to see the work finished. With prayer and faithfulness we CAN do this together because I am with you even to the end of the age.”
All posts by Don Stephens
Vocation and calling
Skye Jethani tells us in his wonderful book, Futureville that every Christian has three callings: The “highest call”, the “common call”, and the “vocational call.” It’s an idea that brings welcome clarification to me, especially as we begin the new year.
Our Highest Call is the calling to Jesus. Human were specifically designed to function in a living relationship with Him. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of man.” (John 1:4) To attempt life apart from Jesus is an empty, dead-end street of frustration no different than trying to drive a car without gas. The highest call is where everything begins, it’s where we discover our true personality and purpose for getting out of bed in the morning.
The Common Call: Once reconnected with the Source of life the common mission of every disciple is to apprentice himself to Jesus and become like him in every way. This is our call to love our neighbor, to forgive our enemies, to pray and feed the poor, to serve one another and to bring glory to God in all things. All believers have these first two callings in common.
But finally we have the Vocational Call: This is where God reveals and develops His unique gifts and contributions in us to serve the world around us. I’m a musician and a teacher. But as I write this post there’s a friend across the room who is gifted in business and hospitality. He manages this little coffeeshop, makes each person feel like the most important person in the world and serves his customers with joy. Others who come here are nurses, construction workers, truck drivers, artists, policemen, and sanitation workers. The Kingdom needs every one of these vocations because each one brings order, beauty and abundance to the world around us. And here is the mind-blowing thing about vocations: They matter! Where would we be if the cooks, the truck drivers, the plumbers and the musicians disappeared from among us? In the Kingdom everyone and everything matters!
May you experience a fresh understanding of God’s calling in your life as we enter 2019.
PS: Futureville is about the Kingdom. It’s a great read and covers much more than just calling and vocation.
Second floor windows
“Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” (Matthew 25:34).
Author Bob Goff points out in his wonderful book, Everybody Always, that the second floor windows at Disney World are dedicated to the people who helped make the Magic Kingdom a reality: the architects, builders, artists, and accountants who’s dedicated work moved the dream from Disney’s imagination to a real, geographical place.
- Photo from http://www.findingmickey.com
Several Bible passages suggest that our rewards in the Kingdom are very much like these windows, except that a Kingdom inheritance is way better than a cool-looking window.
Hopefully we don’t need to be reminded that our rewards and inheritance must never, ever be linked to our salvation. Adoption into God’s family is initiated and sustained entirely by grace. But once we’ve been received into the Kingdom, the One who is “making all things new” has plenty of work for us to do. And he promises rewards for those who are faithful.* Scripture doesn’t spell out exactly what our inheritance will look like, but certainly it’ll be sweeter than a window at The Magic Kingdom.
Bob suggests there might be some value in imagining what our Kingdom “window” might say: “Lover of outcasts, and healer of bodies”, “Teacher of children, and a vessel of cheer”, “Builder of homes and leader of men”, or “Fixer of cars and example of love”. The happy souls in Matthew 25 seemed to have been surprised about their own rewards: “‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality?’… And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you were doing it to me!’’”
However it plays out, we can be certain that God has plenty of work for us to do, and that everything we do matters: “Therefore, my dear friends, stand your ground, and don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort.” (1 Corinthians 15:58)
*1 Corinthians 3:1-13 & Matthew 25:21.
Building Disneyland
In 1964 Mom and Dad packed up our Ford station wagon and drove us across country to Disneyland, the epic fulfillment of my eleven-year-old dreams. The magic kingdom with it’s pirate ships, jungle cruise, talking animals and Matterhorn was no disappointment. It set my imagination on fire.
Two weeks later when we returned home, bone-tired of travel, I set out to build a architectural replica of Disneyland, complete with waterways, rides, avenues and, of course, the Fairytale castle. (Especially the castle). I gathered an old model train platform, paper mâché, clay, lights and pumps and spent the remaining weeks of Summer building and wiring until I ran out of capital and returned to school where my young imagination was powered down and my psyche was crushed into adolescence.
I share this childhood memory to point out something deeply human that was happening in my young heart: I was dreaming of a perfect world, and of helping to make that world a reality. The success of Disneyland testifies to a universal vision we all share. “Uncle Walt” intuitively knew that if he built his fantasy kingdom, the masses would come year after year to experience “the happiest place on earth”, where beauty surrounds like oxygen and adventure beckons from every direction. It’s doubtful he realized the origin of his concept, or that His success was built on a dream God placed in our human soul. Yet with all it’s delight, Disneyland will never rise above a hazy, commercialized reflection of the true Kingdom; for there is no King within the castle’s fiberglass facade, and it’s magic begins to dry-up like grass clippings before we’ve exited the parking lot.
But every time we pray the Lord’s prayer are we not calling on God to build the real thing right here on earth? “Let your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven!” “For as surely as I live, (says the Lord), all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord… the wolf will lie down with the lamb… a little child will lead them… and they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks… Nation will not lift up sword against nation, and never again will they learn war…”* Just as Disney built his magic Kingdom on worthless, Florida swamp land, God will build His on the tired, bloodstained soil of this earth. Piece by piece and person by person He is quietly at work, inviting each of us into His eternal vision. Today I understand that my eleven year old imagination was never far from home!
* Matthew 6:10; Isaiah 2:4; Isaiah 11:6; and Numbers 14:21
Bring your kid to work day
When God created Eden He filled it with beauty, order and abundance. Adam, in turn, committed treason and delivered the world into the hands of the enemy. From that instant everything began to disintegrate into chaos, ruin and scarcity until the glorious moment Jesus declared, “The Kingdom of God is at hand.” In one grand sweep of genius love, God began the reconstruction plan of the ages. He would do the work that only He could do, redeeming the world from the powers of sin and death, and then he would bring us back into the act of restoring the earth to it’s original beauty, order and abundance.
The great philosopher and scientist, Sir Francis Bacon wrote, “Man by the fall fell at the same time from his state of innocence and from his dominion over creation. Both of these losses, however, can even in this life be in some parts repaired; the former by religion and faith, the latter by the arts and sciences.” It seems to me that God gives to each of us vocational callings that are meant to restore His beauty, order and abundance to the world. Musicians and artists are tasked with filling the world with beauty; farmers, businessmen and industrial workers are called to produce abundance, and policemen, politicians, and judges bring order. Still others, like teachers, builders, and sanitation workers bring some combination of the three.
Regardless of our vocation, work matters; it serves a greater purpose than we dared to think. And to those who have eyes to see the Kingdom, every day is “Bring your kid to work day.” What a joy to work beside Papa in the restoration of all things!
Stumbling disciple
Sleeplessness picked at my brain and tickled my body last night until I finally gave in and retreated to the recliner and my old journals. Stretching back over forty years, these journals have become my counsellors, my instructors and often my accusers. They remind me that an honest working title for my life thus far would be, “Stumbling Disciple.” I’ve vacillated from mountain heights of glory and inspiration, to lonely valleys of failure and despair; from exotic places and experiences of God’s faithfulness, right down into hopelessness and crushing doubt. I’m amazed at the glorious, giddy truths the Holy Spirit has given me, and appalled at the scope of what I’ve already forgotten. These writings keep my life in perspective.
Last night I noticed that under the steady passing of years, one cadence seems to drone like a soundtrack to my life: “Not enough!”: Not enough prayer; not enough worship; not enough accomplishment; not enough practicing, writing, compassion, exercise, serving, witnessing, faithfulness or creativity. The nagging voice of “not enough” seems to greet me in the morning and chatter on until I fall asleep at night.
Whether friend or foe I’m not certain, since it both condemns me and pushes me forward into action. But this I know: today my sufficiency is in Jesus alone. I am clearly and without question, inadequate without Him. I’m only a stumbling disciple trying to get it right. Yet He has told me, “‘My grace is sufficient for you, for (my) power is perfected in (your) weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”
Today I’m choosing to boast in God and to rest in the adequacy of His promise: “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” And my soul says “Hallelujah!”
Misdiagnosis
Note: I know I’ve been AWOL from this blog for too long. It’s not because I haven’t written, but rather because I worry that what I’ve written isn’t fresh enough or inspiring enough. Nevertheless… here goes another determined attempt to do better.
The great missionary and statesman, E. Stanley Jones said, “The Kingdom is God’s total answer to man’s total need.” But tragically in Western Evangelicalism we have replaced the “Gospel of the Kingdom”, (which is what Jesus actually taught), with “The Gospel of God’s answer to guilt”, (which, although it’s implied, Jesus never actually taught).
A close examination of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation reveals that God’s salvation means a total healing of the wretched mess we’ve made of God’s creation since the fall of man. From the moment of Adam’s rebellion, nature became uncooperative and filled with “thorns”, brothers murdered brothers, violence marshaled armies and war machines, bodies and souls became diseased, and suspicion and alienation supplanted love and trust. Sin is a cancer that ruins everything it touches, and a misdiagnoses will guarantee certain calamity.
Hosea the prophet saw with the eyes of God and pronounced a full, accurate diagnoses:
“… there is no faithfulness or kindness
Or knowledge of God in the land.
There is swearing, deception, murder, stealing and adultery.
They employ violence, so that bloodshed follows bloodshed.
Therefore the land mourns,
And everyone who lives in it languishes
Along with the beasts of the field and the birds of the sky,
And also the fish of the sea disappear.”
(Hosea 4:1-3)
Sounds like a pretty accurate assessment of our condition doesn’t it? Lack of kindness, adultery, deception, bloodshed, people languishing, fish dying, animal life being stressed; Seems like I just read about all this in the morning news. THIS is our problem! The cancer is much worse than we imagined: Sin has metastasized and poisoned the entirety of creation, and what we need is a radical cure that reaches into every part of creation with it’s healing balm. The Kingdom is that cure: Jesus has redeemed all things beginning with the hearts and souls of people. Coming to him in faith is the first life-changing step, but the full cure lies in carrying His healing into everything we touch until the world shines with glory and grace.
How do we do that? By drinking deeply from the well of Christ and becoming purposeful, intentional disciples of Him. Apart from these, we have little to offer our sick world.
The four relationships
At it’s core the Kingdom is relational. Regardless of who we are, we each carry a degree of brokenness in our four primary relationships – with God, with others, with ourselves, and with the world. But the good news of the Kingdom restores us in every way:
Relationship with God: (Theology)
We are born into confusion about God, steeped in misunderstanding of His character, and drowning in anxiety about His posture towards us. Jesus steps into our darkness and gives us a clear picture of His Father, a God of love and sacrifice, a God who would go to any extreme to reclaim his children from alienation and death. A God who carries on Himself the guilt that once blinded our eyes and clouded our relationship with Him. “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.” (John 14:23)
Relationship with ourselves: (Psychology)
We are born into confusion about ourselves: our worth, our purpose, our motivations and our design. The Kingdom was inaugurated when Jesus came to live among us and modeled human nature as it was intended. He revealed human motives, asserted human worth, assuaged human fears, and set us back on the track of meaning and fulfillment. “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture says, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'” (John 7:38)
Relationships with others: (Sociology)
We humans have a consistently horrible track record in our relationship with others: Wars, feuds, anger and broken relationships not only define our history but they stubbornly defy our most noble attempts to live at peace with others. But the Kingdom lays animosity to rest: “Love your enemies…” (Matthew 5:44) “…They will beat their swords into plowshares And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation will not lift up sword against nation, And never again will they train for war.” (Micah 4;3)
Relationship with the world: (Ecology)
We are universally broken in our relationship with the world: how do we enjoy a material world without becoming materialistic? How do we enjoy the environment without trashing and abusing it? How do we find fulfillment in our work without it becoming drudgery? “Seek first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these other things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)
These few examples only scratch the surface of the answers Abba offers to those who embrace His glorious Kingdom.
Keeping it simple
I’ve been thinking recently how the teachings of Jesus can be captured in a few simple ideas that even a child can understand:
“Believe in me”:
Throughout history God has spoken through prophets, angels, scriptures, stone tablets, and even a donkey. But in his final attempt to reach our darkened hearts He sent His Son. “The Word became flesh and lived among us”. He loved us, taught us, and showed us the true face of His Father. God did not reveal himself as a philosophy, a set of commands, a book, or a religion, because none of those means could accomplish the task of “making all things new.” Only Jesus could could accomplish such a thing. And so He presented Himself in evidence and issued a simple invitation: “Believe in me”.
“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” John 7:37-38
“Seek first the Kingdom”: (Matthew 6:33)
Jesus didn’t come to simply save us from our sins. He came to remake the world; to offer the human race a “do-over”. He is not merely the Savior of my soul or the centerpiece of the church; He is the center of ALL things. “[God] planned to bring all of history to its goal in Christ. Then Christ would be the head of everything in heaven and on earth.” (Ephesians 1:10) We modern believers are still weak on this concept, wanting to reduce the gospel to a personal experience and roadmap to a future in Heaven. But that is not the Kingdom! The Kingdom is that universal dream for a perfect world that every person carries in his heart. Newsflash! God carries that same dream!
Love one another: (John 13:34)
Nothing could be more simple. Jesus said the world would actually recognize us by our love. So they do, right? Not quite. They sometimes recognize us by our judgments, boycotts, and religious pride. Other times they don’t recognize us at all. If we were to actually demonstrate this one thing – loving others supremely – the world would virtually throw open it’s heart to the Gospel!
Make disciples:
And finally – after we’ve begun to master these first three commands, we are called to make disciples of others who will make disciple of still others in this rich and living way that puts the world back together again and fills everything with glory.
Peacemaking in an angry world
One of my prayers for 2017 is that I will grow in the area of discernment. All the “fake news” talk we’ve been hearing about lately isn’t really news for many of us. We’ve known about partisan sites, conspiracy sites, and sensationalist sites forever, but the problem lies in spotting them when they support the very same ideas that I hold so dear. So as one who deeply cares about Truth I’ve been asking God for the spiritual gift of discernment. How amazing it would be to clearly hear the Spirit whisper, “No son… don’t fall for that. It’s a lie”.
I’m also learning that Truth seldom resides at the extremes. C.S. Lewis says, “The Devil sends lies into the world by pairs”, and of course he does it to divide people and communities. The “free will” versus “God’s sovereignty” debate has kept the church tied in knots for centuries. But what about today’s “liberalism” versus “conservatism” debate? Does the Truth reside at the extreme end of either of those worldviews? Lewis suggests that the Truth often lies in the tension of the middle. It’s not that God is mushy in regard to Truth, but he certainly is neither a political conservative nor a liberal. He is the solid reality behind our foggy ideas.
A second prayer commanding my attention is that I will become a peacemaker. In a world so fractured by anger, accusations and finger-pointing we Believers are called to be agents of peace, looking for opportunities to bring healing and grace into each situation. Saint Francis captured it flawlessly in the prayer we’ve treasured for centuries:
“Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.
O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life.”
