They're Coming!

Recently I was “introduced” to an email purported to have originated from a pilot.  Perhaps you’ve seen it… been sent it… or sent it yourself.  In the email the pilot expresses in rational, articulate language his fear of Muslims… 

The letter itself has an interesting provenance… it actually dates back to late 2001 where it appeared (attributed to a different author in an American newspaper.  It then jumped to the world-wide-web where it has been in circulation for some 13 years.

Rather than provide my personal response to the email let me try to provide what I hope is a pastoral response to some of the issues raised within it.  My initial thought, of course, was what would Christ’s response be…? Maybe I’ll come back to that…

I think what hit me most was the “aroma of fear” I could “smell” as I read.  As I read it seemed so clear to me that the original author (whomever he or she may be) was writing out of a deep and creeping fear (see 2 Timothy 1:7)… It’s a common fear, a fear that has existed since the days that Cain murdered his brother Abel.  The fear of anything that looks, acts, sounds different from me. 

It’s a misplaced fear.    

See, the issue is not ethnicity, race, religion or nationality – our fight is not with our brothers and sisters whatever their nationality, creeds, religion or race… the battle we wage is a spiritual one (See Ephesians 6:12).   And if we are losing this battle the blame rests not with politicians, not with immigrants old and new… not with religious extremists…

According to 2 Chronicles 7:14 the fault rests squarely with those who claim to be followers of Christ…  Our nation is in its present condition, fear runs rampant because we (those who claim Christ as Lord) have not humbled ourselves…

…we do not pray…

…we do not seek God’s face…

…we refuse to turn from our self-centred ways…

…we do not respond to each other in love and grace…

…when reviled we revile back…

…when offended we seek to return offense…

We have forgotten the words of our Saviour (Matthew 5:11)… the battle we wage is to be engaged with truth… the good news of shalom… a renewed mind… righteousness… faith… the Word… and above all, prayer (Ephesians 6).

So what would Jesus do?  Precisely what He did…  He would walk into the danger zone with a message of love and hope, grace and healing…  He would take the abuse, the name-calling, the fear and anger and respond with Truth and mercy.. He never once raised a hand to harm another, never wrote a letter much less a book –He had no time too.  He was too busy living it!

And when His oppressors brutally beat Him and nailed Him to a cross one of the last things He said was, “Father, forgive them… they have no idea…”

The truth is Christians have come to the mistaken conclusion that they deserve comfort, safety, ease, even affluence! … and we are more disturbed when these things are threated than we are by injustice, greed, poverty, pain… which seems so unlike Jesus.

…just sayin’

A Prayer

Isaiah 50:4–10 (ESV)

⁴ The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught,

that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary.

Morning by morning

He awakens;

He awakens my ear

to hear

as those who are taught.

⁵ The Lord God has opened my ear,

and I was not rebellious;

I turned not backward.  […]

⁷ … the Lord God helps me; […]

⁸ He who vindicates me is near. […]

⁹ Behold, the Lord God helps me;  […]

¹⁰ …Let him who walks in darkness and has no light

trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.

Raise up O God a generation!

Raise up a generation that is not bound by pain or plans, by predictions or by purposes rooted in flesh. Raise up a generation O Father that will shake of the shackles of promises or powers of the past.

Raise up Yahweh a generation that absolutely refuses to be restricted by faithlessness or by futility, by the frivolous, by fiction, friction or unforgiveness.

Raise up a generation that will not be silenced, governed driven or stopped by idolatry, disobedience, curses from within or without…

We need You Father and You are calling for a people!

A people of humility

A people of prayer

A people set to seek your face

A people repentant

…may I be among their number.

…just prayin’

What if it's not for you?

The name of the church doesn’t matter…  let’s say it’s your church.

And let’s imagine that back in the day - just as the church was beginning - there was a miraculous pregnancy and a child was born.  I don’t mean miraculous as in a virgin birth or anything,  maybe a difficult pregnancy that turns out OK, perhaps a healthy child is born in spite of concern on the part of the medical professionals. 

The family are consistent, devoted, passionate disciples and so regularly show up at church.  They are faithful in giving and service and so their child – indeed all their children – grow up as regular, joyful, energetic parts of your church family.

Maybe you look after this child during their early days in the nursery.  Or maybe you listened to them recite verses in Bible Quizzing.  Maybe you were one of the drivers for a youth event or would see them as you dropped of snacks for youth events.  Perhaps you saw them greeting, or ushering, or singing on the music team from time to time maybe they even had opportunity to preach the odd time on a Sunday.   So, let’s say this child graduates high school, leaves home for higher education and after a year or two stories begin to trickle back about miraculous happenings that seem to follow them around. 

Let’s say the trickle becomes a flood and news reports, newspapers, blogs, youTube videos all give accounts of the most amazing things that God is doing through this “home-town phenom”.

Then one day s/he returns home for a visit and (as is their custom) shows up for church on Sunday.  The pastor invites them up to share and as s/he speaks the power of God becomes tangibly present.

“Amens” and “Hallelujahs” are raining down like never before, some folks are weeping quietly in their pews – everyone can sense it!  Something is about to happen!

There is a pause in speaking that seems to be lasting a little longer than the norm and in a few seconds everyone has their eyes open and is staring at the young home-grown prophet.

S/he stands there quietly with head bowed for what seems to be far too long.  Then leaning forward into the microphone you hear them say, ““No doubt you’re all anxious to see a sign… well… you’re not going to get one.  You know why?  Because you are disobedient, faithless and self centred.  You think I don’t know that the only reason you’ve given me any hearing is because of the reports you’ve heard from others.  You think I don’t know that you’re looking for entertainment?  Wanting me to do something to impress you and prove God’s anointing on my life?  Well… you’re not going to get it.

The message… the miracles are reserved for the folks out there people who haven’t been stuffing their faces at the religious feeding trough while living in faithless disobedience.”

How would you react?

Luke 4:28-29…

We’re not much different are we?

…just sayin’