Point 1: Immigration

I know, it’s a touchy subject for most people. I am not going to lie to you by saying it’s not a problem. If we really look at it, it’s causing certain problems that need answering. I am also not going to pretend to have the answers for this country at this time. There are quite a few theories on how to handle it that haven’t been tested and prove (whether it be sending them back, making them all legal, or whatever). But I do have a slight idea is how the ancient Israelites were expected to treat the immigrants that crossed into their lands unannounced (much like the immigrants of today). Even the New Testament shows some recognition that aliens choosing to reside in the community must be given a way in, which means creativity.

I’ll go ahead and point out that some verses give us a view that the covenant continually gives provisions for the alien/stranger. (Ex. 12:48, 49; Lev. 24:22; Joshua 8:33, 35; Isaiah 14:1; Ezek. 14:7; Eph. 2:12, 19). The alien, though with stipulations, could be allowed to participate in a ritual that defined a nation. I know it seems hard to find any connection, but I think it’s a start in understanding the foreign relations in the ancient times and maybe we can take some pointers from them. The one covenant, even the old version, gave provisions for the foreigner. Even the Sabbath was something that the foreigner could find participation in on some level (Ex 20:10, 23:12; Dt 5:14, 16:11, 14, 26: 5, 11, 12, 13). Most would think that the Jews only allowed blood lines from Abraham to be in on the fun, but it’s just not true. Though the religious were very strict by the first century A.D., it’s obvious that the Law came from a belief in God who cares for the needs of the alien as well as One who asks for them to contribute to the community.

A major point I would hit on is an idea of oppression(Ex. 22:21, 23:9; Dt. 1:16, 10:18, 24:14, 17, 27:19; Psalm 94:6, 146:9; Jer. 7:6, 22:3; Ezek. 22:7, 29; Zech. 7:10; Mal. 3:5). I’m not going to push like the guys back in the civil rights days because I am not up to date on current treatment of immigrants and the views of the veteran citizens compared to the newly arrived Hispanic community (or any other community for that matter). But I do want Christians to be very cautious on how they treat immigrants. It is one thing to demand justice (which is more about equilibrium, than it is about getting what some term as “fair”), but it is another to seek control over what a political or ethnical entity considers rightfully theirs (which sounds more like what people call “fair”). Whatever Americans choose, Christians in America must step in a way that shows that we expect people to act in responsibility in a new land, but not at the cost of oppressing the alien. If we return them, we must show that we mean no true harm to them. If we let them stay somehow, we should not cheat them out of fair earnings. I honestly do not think that the Christian agenda is primarily whether to send the immigrant away or keep them around. I would propose that it is actually that we should seek to treat them with care and support despite the government’s decision since our obedience belongs to a higher authority and our loyalty belongs to a kingdom/nation whose lines of membership far exceed geo-political boundaries and far outweigh laws of this world.

The final point is that those who are in God’s Kingdom are expected to share in what we have with those who are not from our place and care for them (Lev. 19:10; Dt. 10:19, 14:29, 24:19, 20, 21; Joshua 20:9; Ezek. 47:22, 23; Matt. 25:35, 38, 43, 44; Romans 12:13; Heb. 13:2). It is imperative that we have provisions ready for those who are not from here. It is important for both parties to share in what they can offer each other. I do believe that such a generosity would be the answer to our problems and we probably wouldn’t have any problem at all had that been the case at the start. If you are an immigrant, fight to be a contributer to those in your community. If you are a resident, you should do the same.

So to both, I would like both side of the issue to listen to an alternative route to both. Let’s encourage responsibility, but do it in a way that is just and righteous.

This isn’t to tell which political stance. It is a Christian perspective on how to approach any political stance.

Christianity is a stance that is far beyond any political stance (Democrats or Republicans should pay close attention to that).

It’s just some food for thought.

I hope that everyone can get something from this.

Grace and Peace.

 

New Series

In my next few posts, I am going to try to give Christian advice to government problems. Some political conservatives aren’t going to like it, and neither will some liberals either. What the point is is to create and conservative CHRISTIAN position might be. I don’t claim to understand this, but I am giving some advice from what I know to be Scripturally true.

 

Fruits of the Spirit

I was thinking on Galatians. I can’t wait to take the class this upcoming semester. I’ve been doing work on it before hand. I noticed that in chapter 5 that this is the letter that lists out the fruits of the Spirit. Many have tried to make this a simple list of virtues and the list of effects of the flesh as a list vices. I’ve been wondering if that was necessarily the case. I have been trying to move toward looking at Scripture as more about the community known as the Church rather than so much about the individual. There are a few places where I have to accept that the individual is important, but here I might not have to, thanks to the use of an Anchor Bible commentary on Galatians.

When I look at the lists, they seem to follow a pattern of actually being general and ambiguous.

“Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these.”

I noticed that this list starts with 3 sexual elements, a reference to open sexuality, a violent sexuality, and a bragged about sexuality (subtleties of Greek), all of which are the abandonment of God’s purpose for sexuality (which was a Jewish opening to speech against gentiles).

“idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy”

And then we move to a list of a very religious matter but very peculiarly moves into an obvious list of things that are bad for the community. But I noticed that most of this list is in essence or things that could be viewed as bad for a community. Which leads to the next part of the list.

“drunkenness, carousing, and things like these”

The first part is directed toward how alcohol can bring a person to only look at himself and ignore the needs of others. If this is a list of rules, it makes sense to say none of these things, but it seems as if the following words imply a general ambiguous list of things that point to a stronger point: the destruction of the community.

“I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God”

The point of this is that those who try to disrupt the community and do not find value in the Church instead of themselves will be judged as not fit for the Kingdom of God, meaning that no matter how “on fire” for God some might think you are, if you do not love your brother as the Torah commands, then you will not be allowed into God’s presence when he fully takes over things here on earth. Paul does not imply that when God gives grace that He steps down from his throne. That would be a form of Deism.

“By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control”

This verse sometimes puts the fruits as “borne” by the Spirit. In it the Spirit and who is led by it produce something, particularly something that is in contrast to what came before (the works of the flesh). It’s not an exhaustive list. Just look at how ambiguous it is. But it does have one core element, love reflected in a way that can only be seen in community. And anything done in love among those in community Paul describes as follows:

“There is no law against such things”

Very well said, Paul. No law against, and without saying that there is something free yet goal oriented about Christianity and how it performs community. It’s not a list of virtues, but an incomplete list of things springing from Godly community.

“And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires”

So, then, we can choose to do something about this. We notice that there is a group of people (Christians) who belong to the Christ, who is Jesus. The crazy part is that these people have crucified the flesh. Many think that this is talking about crucifying your own flesh, but the flesh is actually seen as a cosmic power and is put as another entity which has it’s own will. So is the Spirit. As a community of God, we have already crucified the Flesh (or so we should have). This is rhetoric stating how it should be. It is something that is the way it should be, but things Word (will) of God always be fulfilled in order to be a reality.

So when you look at these lists, don’t just reproduce it.

See it’s meaning,

and then live it out.

Live out community in love.

Don’t just look at these fruits as something you get as an individual and as virtues that you as an individual, but look at these things as not the point at all, except for the words love, joy, and peace in the old Jewish sense (Deuteronomy 6:4-5, Leviticus 19:18).

So when you find someone else this week.

Look at them.

Find some worth in them.

And see that we belong together as people.

Let’s find value together in the Lord, our Lord, God.

Grace and Peace.

 

New Book

I’m reading N. T. Wright’s Simply Christian. It has been interesting so far seeing him taking an alternative approach to truth in a conservatively Christian manner. He has started moving away from focusing on winning people by arguments based on absolute truths that much of the Western Church has taken. He wants to focus more on Justice, the unseen that we seek, relationships, and beauty to help us get to even the concept of God. He seems similar to C. S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity, which is apologetic in a Modern sense. But Wright is differing on some levels since he is interacting with more post-modern critique than Lewis ever did. I look forward to this.

I’m also reading Umberto Eco’s Foucalt’s Pendulum, Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game, and Henri Nouwen’s In the Name of Jesus. So far, the reading is excellent.

Grace and Peace.

 

July 4th (America and the Church)

I wanted to post on this again, since we just got past the Fourth of July. I struggle with the idea that America is the nation of God. It doesn’t seems to make much sense to me. I have been looking at references to the Kingdom of God/Heaven in the New Testament and there are a few things that stand in the way of calling this nation the nation of God.

1) America wasn’t around during the time that scripture is spoken of. If Jesus was representing the Kingdom of God, Heaven (which is defined as the place where God dwells), and America had not been born, then it would have to follow that there might not be parallels. The events leading to America started much later in world history. Jesus also was speaking to the only political entity to ever be given such a title, which was Israel. The title has changed, since Israel is not necessarily the nation of God, since that has fallen to the Church, which has opened the membership to everyone across nations, kinships, races, etc. God has merely favored America, but the frightening question is why He has done so.

2) The Kingdom in the times referred to in the Bible is ruled by God. There is nothing in the founding documents, or in current American law that gives God the ruling of President of the USA (God can actually only be totalitarian since His rule is conditioned on the complete obedience of those under him).

3) The Prophets, Jesus, and the writers of the letters continually mention or reference the kingdom coming. If the Church has fulfilled the messianic hope of the new kingdom, then it must follow that America can fall in line and recognize our commissioning by God (my apologies to the Republican platform). Although I am American, I must say that when it come to representing either this country or the nation of God, I choose God.

This is not a post of rebellion, but of perspective. I do not condone anyone seeking to use God as an excuse to defy what is not evil in itself. God has told us that governments are meant to promote order and peace (though they fail, and that is the exception) in Romans 13. Although it is assuming the correct actions of the governing, it still stands as a testament against fulfilling your selfish desire for anarchy or pointless liberation.

In Revelation 21:24, John shows us that God is not about destroying the nations, but having them follow him (and that would mean one world government ordained by God for the ones who thing one world government is evil). Also in 22:1-7 states that the end times are a time of healing the nations, which means that we should be about healing the nation with the healing we have to offer. If a nation is being heavily taxed, lets offer advice of mercy. When it is oppressing, let’s bring words of challenge. When the people are violent against their rulers, let’s offer creative consequences that teach and do not kill. And remember…

The Church

Not America

is the Nation of God,

and we will see vindication and glory.

So go out and do the gospel to the world. I hope we see many great things in these end times (which, to clarify, has been that last 2000 years, give or take).

Grace and Peace.

 

Virginia Visit

I was up in Virginia this morning in the Hillsville area, and I got to say, a rocking chair in the mountains is quite nice. It was a cool morning and I spent it talking with my brother, aunt, uncle. It was the first time in awhile that I have been awake before my parents. It was interesting when I ended up the final one sitting in the rocker thinking about things. Thinking about my summer so far spent working. Finding new people to hang out with. Trying to find a better social network, since I get miserable when there aren’t many people to spend time with. I like my alone time as much as the next guy, but I don’t like living out of the way. I just thought I would try to describe how nice it was to have a mini-retreat to the mountains this morning. It makes me want to plan a retreat for a week in Kentucky since I know about a place where some people live (I think they’re monks) and they offer retreats. I don’t agree with completely separating yourself from reality, but it is good to step away every now and then. Who knows, maybe I would come out of it with a refreshed mind and heart.

Also, my cousin was married today. I truly wish him the best and hope that his marriage ends up more successful than the statistics would have them believe they could be.

grace and peace.

 

New Book

I finished N. T. Wright’s book Paul. It was an intriguing work that seemed to propose that the great majority of Paul’s writings are focused on God and His creation, which was shortly followed by eschatology, which was far different from the “End Times” theology in the North American Fundamentalist and Evangelical churches. Although they may have things to say to us theologically, Biblically, they are unsustainable considering evidence from the sources that speak on Second Temple Judaism. I usually am cautious about saying that these people are wrong in what is going to happen, but most of their biblical support does reflect a lack of Biblical study. The reference to certain mentions faith and what they mean in a certain context is interesting too, but I’ll leave that for those who choose to benefit from this book.

I liked this book, and I recommend it for people in the ministry. It’s not too hard to follow, although at times, there are linguistic references that would take some back-study, but they are explained in a way that you can catch Wright’s meaning. The socio-historical references are explained up front. It is a challenging book for the modern American Church. It is challenging, so I warn the reader to be open to the ideas and there consequences. I hope you enjoy.

Grace and Peace.

 

At Home…

I am sitting at home this week. I got to meet a few friends again. One really got me with his story. He’s really made some decisions that weren’t the best. The other friend is somewhat on his way. I can’t help but admit that the first had searched for some inspiration and guidance and has maybe found it now, but his search has taken him to places he never should have been (where no one should be for that matter). But grace has found him and he is being pointed in the right direction. My other friend has had guidance and although he has come a long way as in making a great deal of money, he has been quite successful as far as following the guidance of our Lord. It is interesting to see the comparison and contrast.

I see that both contrast on the note of guidance. I’ve heard some friends talk about how cool a parent was for letting kids do whatever they wanted. I have seen people scorned for trying to show kids some sort of boundary. I have heard people say that they don’t want to tell their kids what they need to do. I can’t help be disagree with them. I’ve met these kids who have no boundaries or live a life with no boundaries, and they are many of the times impatient and annoying to everyone. They have no sense of how to survive in relationships, and even when they do, they act miserable. I have to say that history teaches us that kids are in need of guidance. Granted, not just any kind of guidance, good guidance that teaches them that they are not alone in the world and that they should treat all the world with respect and love. To the parents who teach that, thanks. To the kids who have been taught this, you’ll be thankful.

The other part I want to note is that both don’t have all the answers. Both conversations made that quite clear. Both told me stuff that they made mistakes on. They told me that they didn’t know it all, and I gave them a two cents worth but encouraged them to keep up the search for what is better.

So don’t be afraid to tell people that they should or should not do something. It’s our responsibility to show what God has taught us is good. If we see someone living contrary to Christian living, and they are Christian, then we should say something. If they are not Christian, don’t sweat over what they are doing wrong. But the fellow believers are family. Make sure that it is not just opinion, but truly what brings about good things. If you say not to meddle in anything, I say that you are very naive. God spoke through Moses, Samuel, the other Prophets, Peter, and Paul. Even Jesus worked this way. They did not say something that was moral opinion, but what was the core of God’s word (which is not necessarily the Bible, but more so His will).

WAKE UP.

Being a moderate in everything, this is something I have to take heart as a challenge myself. Hope it speaks to someone.

Grace and Peace

 

Delirious is Ending :(

Delirious

I saw Delirious perform their final concert in Kentucky. It was at the Ichthus musical festival. I remember liking them before Hillsong United and even before Passion. Hearing them was quite refreshing and now has me remembering how good they really were with praise and worship. So to all the American and Australian praise and worship authors, aside from just a number I can count using 1 (maybe 2) hands, Britain is quite possibly better at praise and worship than we are.

 

Middle Eastern Concerns

I noticed some things on an article online (Another explanatory article of Iranian politics here). They are pictures of the current unrest within Iran. This unrest might be what eases the American nuclear concerns, but like most international struggles, we’ll probably forget this. Remember that we had our own concerns throughout history. First through the debates concerning the votes of colored people, but also in the Bush vs. Gore election. The level of the failure within the system was at an undefinable level which no one now can figure out. What is important is that the American people began to seek ways to hear everyone’s vote and discover the consensus of the American public. We went through our beatings of those we saw as different and challenging. But today we have progressed past fire hoses and the unrestrained usage of batons and bullets.

The problem, it seems, with Iran is that they are at the stage where the challengers to the status quo are being slighted. Many of the pictures depict college students which is a spark of hope for the future of that country. The country could be at a breaking point and at a time of change or a time of failure. The one thing that struck me was the first pictures of the protesters who support the reformist party (supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi). Then showing how the conservative party (supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad) beating the reformists, but later there are some pictures of some reformist protesters protecting a riot officer who might have beat some of the protesters. Some of the reformists might have gone awry and abandoned peaceful protests, but there were some who protected him.

I haven’t studied on the challenger to the current president, but I noticed the polls showed a substantial lean for him over the president. We will just have to see what happens. I would just encourage people to pay attention instead of feeling safer since they will not have to worry about a nuclear explosion. Any smart leader would never fire a nuclear weapon knowing that his own people would not survive the aftermath. Even the fundamentalist of Islam would hold back (although there are a good number I fear would not think about that since they are willing to die). Just pay attention and know that we need to deliver whatever good and helpful things to the “righteous”. The Torah would by far support the ones who are being slighted. Even Jesus was partial to those who were slighted, even those who were not considered followers of his Father. These are just things to look at. Make sure to look at the pictures and see that the pacifists seem to be closer to God in helping someone who is suppressing them rather than the fundamentalists who are acting in violence

Just some food for thought.

Grace and peace to you all.