Just to be Clear

When it comes to communicating the gospel, I wonder if we provide a message that is blurred, thus often misunderstood. I am speaking here not just of “preachers,” but any of us who attempt to say something, anything, about God, Jesus, the Bible, or the Christian faith. Just how clear or even appropriate is our rhetoric when our motives are more concerned with winning than loving.

“If I speak in the tongues of…angels,” perhaps only angels will understand what I am saying. Furthermore, it is often the case that what we speak isn’t the real problem. “If I…do not have love,” what I am saying might be the noise of arrogance, pride, or selfishness. But, love transcends. Love goes deeper. Love clears the muddy waters. Love translates our foreign words into the native tongue.

Frederick Buechner puts it this way.

“English-speaking tourists abroad are inclined to believe that if only they speak English loudly and distinctly and slowly enough, the natives will know what’s being said even though they don’t understand a single word of the language.
Preachers often make the same mistake. They believe that if only they speak the ancient verities loudly and distinctly and slowly enough, their congregations will understand them.
Unfortunately, the only language people really understand is their own language, and unless preachers are prepared to translate the ancient verities into it, they might as well save their breath.”

Communicating the gospel takes more than just preparing our words, what we think, what we believe, and so on. We must prepare ourselves to love perhaps even before we speak.

Who knows? Maybe that love will translate our words into gospel.

What can you do that you’re not doing?

The lack of action to meet the needs of others is sometimes astounding. We play off acting responsibly as something that can’t be done because of our lack of ability. When it comes to serving others, we often ask the question, “should I?” I think a better question is “can I?” If the answer to the latter is “yes,” then action must be taken. I think this is the general idea of Bono’s commencement address to the 2004 graduating class of the University of Pennsylvania entitled “Because We Can, We Must.”

What can you do about the situation in Africa?
What can you do about poverty in America?
What can you do about politics?
What can you do about anything?

What's "more?"

One day this summer, I was driving to pick up my daughter from day camp. On any given day, you can find the radio dial in my truck set to listen to WUNC, my source for NPR, Car Talk, Prairie Home Companion, and Back Porch Music. This day was different. Having become bored with the news that Republicans and Democrats cannot get along, I switched the station to the Triangle’s "Hit Music Channel." I found that the cure to boredom is inspiration.

The song that rocked me back to my teenage days was “Meant to Live” by Switchfoot. The next day a friend gave me a copy of their CD, “The Beautiful Letdown,” and I have been inspired ever since. (My daughter has even enjoyed some head-bangin’ to these tunes and, like her dad, she likes it loud!)

Beyond their stimulating rock and roll music, their lyrics are deep and insightful giving (at least me) a glimpse of a postmodern perspective.

We want more than this world’s got to offer.
We want more than the wars of our fathers.

Critics of the first postmodern generation, Gen X, label us as the “me” generation. By this they mean that we are self-centered and only interested in getting more and more and more for ourselves. And one might see that message in these lines. I do not. The desire for “more” is qualitative, not quantitative. We want a deeper life. We want life that has more meaning. We want something better for the world than buildings that crumble, companies that are unjust, and institutions that corrupt. What’s “more?” One answer could be community. Community that is strong, just, and incorruptible.

What’s “more?” You tell me.

All Christians...

The basic premise of a course I took on Christian ethics in divinity school was “Ethics is the Essence of Christianity.” Without giving you even the slightest glimpse of the nature and direction of this class, I must say that this statement is a radical one. On the most basic and foundational level, Christianity is about what we do, our ethics.** This stands in contrast to the position that espouses Christianity is (only?) about one’s system of beliefs. What we as Christians believe is vitally important to how we describe ourselves or how we invite others to be a part of our faith communities. Furthermore, it might determine what is unique about us. However, what often happens concerning our beliefs is that they are used to divide us from others. This is neither a good description of who we are, nor is it inviting to others who may be seeking some kind of faith community. The question, then, becomes: “What is unique about Christianity?” A wide range of responses are the result.

What if it were easy to complete this sentence: “All Christians…”?

I do not suppose finishing this sentence is an easy task. But, I do suggest that a good place to look would be Jesus’ words in Matthew 25:34-36. Maybe then we could finish the sentence.

All Christians…feed people who are hungry.
All Christians…give a drink to the thirsty.
All Christians…welcome strangers.
All Christians…clothe the naked, take care of the sick, and visit those in prison.

This describes Christianity as driven more by ethics than beliefs.

It strikes me as ironic that even as Christians are dividing themselves based on beliefs, Jesus divides based on ethics.

Just what did those sheep believe that made them different from the goats?

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**I prefer a simple definition of “ethics” to mean one’s actions, values, morals, politics, etc., rather than another term for what one believes or what doctrines are held.