Attempts at Honesty

Reflections on the interplay of the Bible and Culture

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Life as an ambassador

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Ambassador of Light
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When Joseph was propositioned by Potiphar’s wife, he responded by saying,

“. . . How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9)

Joseph had the understanding that he had a responsibility to God to behave according to God’s standards of conduct. His first allegiance was to God. He made the right choice in a difficult decision even though the short term cost was huge.

Fast forward about 1,900 years and there is a guy formerly known as Saul who found himself in many difficult situations. What is remarkable about this is that the Apostle Paul referred to himself as an Apostle (one who is sent) and am ambassador (see 2 Cor. 5:20 and Eph. 6:20).

It is the role of the ambassador to represent a government or king while traveling in a foreign country. Sometimes the ambassador has to represent his king in an environment that is difficult or hostile.

Like Paul, those of us who claim allegiance to Jesus have been given the responsibility to represent Christ in every situation in which we find ourselves. Jesus warned us that we would find tribulation in the world (John 16:33), so we should expect that we will sometimes find ourselves in difficult situations.

My guess is that every one of us has at least one difficult situation to deal with. It may be a family member, coworker, neighbor, church member or even a government. Aside from people problems, unemployment, underemployment, sickness or unfulfilled desires can cause frustration and difficulty.

When faced with difficulty (I admit that I have had relatively few real difficulties) I have a tendency to whine to God about the situation. My default position is one of self-pity and defeat.

Yet, if God is who Jesus represented him to be, then that God desires my well-being and the difficult situation is not an accident. Like Joseph, I may not see the reason for the difficulty while it is happening. I may not even see the reason for the difficulty while I remain in this life. But I can remain confident of two things: Jesus is with me in the difficulty (Matt. 28:20) and the difficulty is not random or meaningless (Romans 8:28).

Let’s return to the idea of being an ambassador. Perhaps part of the reason that God allows difficult situations in our life is so that we can be used to show His love in that situation. Rather than joining in the complaints against the terrible boss, I could work to make the situation better for all, including the boss. Rather than feeling aversion to interacting with a difficult person, I can live as a window that allows the light of God’s grace to shine through. Rather than whine to God about the difficulty, I can ask Him what I am to learn from the situation and ask for strength and wisdom to represent Him well.

I am writing as one who would like to do this well, but has failed so many times to do so. Yet, behind all my failures is a God who is big enough to redeem those failures.

What is the source of your glory?

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Glory“. . . for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.” (John 12:43, ESV)

What would the church look like if all of us were more responsive to God and less concerned about what others think of us? Let’s be honest, we care about what other people think. We want to wear the right clothes, drive the right car, eat the right foods and we work hard to gain the admiration of our family, friends and neighbors.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to be liked and admired, until it comes at the cost of going against what we know God wants us to be or do. If I allow others to derail me from God’s leading in my life, then I have a problem.

Can we be honest about our failure in this? Pastors experience burnout because they are trying to please a bunch of unruly, selfish sheep rather than be obedient to the God they signed on to serve. Those sheep often put unrealistic pressure on those pastors because we are more concerned about our own position, status and comfort than we are about completing the mission that God has given us to make disciples.

It seems to me that if we focus on God and become more responsive to him, much of the garbage that happens in churches would be eliminated. Much of the garbage that happens in families, workplaces and the public square would also be eliminated.

If Christians started living as though God’s opinion is the only one that matters, it would have a huge impact on our social structure.

But what would it look like if I was more concerned about what God thinks than about what people think? Here are some benefits that come to mind:

  • I wouldn’t be defensive when I am wrong about something.
  • I wouldn’t be offensive when I am right about something. I would not feel pressure to prove I’m right.
  • I will be more likely to do the right thing even when it is difficult.
  • I will be more likely to do the right thing even though no one but God is watching.
  • I wouldn’t waste my resources on things with no eternal value.
  • I would be more willing to stand up and say what needs to be said even though it may not be popular.
  • I would be more likely to speak on behalf of God as opposed to promoting myself.
What would you add to the list? Use the comment form below to make your addition.

On the source of your passion

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The source of passionIn 2 Corinthians 5:14, the Apostle Paul tells us that it is the “love of God that controls us.” The love of God was the source of Paul’s passion in ministry and it is to be the source of all that we do in the church.

Our passion cannot come from love of correct doctrine. We are not to be motivated by obligation. A desire for societal reform (however necessary) is not to control us. Our actions cannot be fueled by a desire to be seen doing the right thing. The one and only correct source of passion for ministry is the love of God.

There is something to be said in support of being obedient, even when I don’t feel like it. But, that obedience must be fueled by love that has been poured into my heart by God. Otherwise, that obedience will end in resentment or Pharisaic pride.

Anything other than God’s love, if given control of us, will feed our inner Pharisee and the result will be legalism and bondage. Why is this the case? It is so because any  motivation other than a response to the love of God will become idolatry.

If you have been in church for any length of time, you’ve heard the pleas regarding staffing of various church programs, using guilt to motivate people into service. Or, perhaps you have run into self appointed doctrine police who are ready, willing and able to make sure that you are completely correct in your interpretation of Scripture. At the other extreme are those who make an idol out of inclusiveness and ignore the bits of Scripture that confront society in a quest to be relevant to the surrounding culture.

But, we are not called to worship doctrine. We are not called to worship church organization or programs. We are not called to embrace the norms of society.

We are called to the mission of loving God and loving our neighbors. But as John reminds us in 1 John 4:19, our love for God and neighbor is in response to the love that God has demonstrated to us.

The love of God is the only proper source of passion for ministry.

Whence the lack of peace?

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Peace sign“And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”” (Luke 7:50, ESV)

Peace is the one thing that is lacking in many churches today. Perhaps it is because it is one thing that is lacking in many believers today. Maybe I am projecting this on others because of a lack of peace in my own life, but I think not. Very few of us, including Christians, exude a sense of peace and calm.

Notice that Jesus does not say, “your service has saved you, go in peace.” Nor does he say, “your confident statements about the quality and quantity of your faith have saved you.” It is the woman’s faith that is demonstrated by her actions that have saved her.

The result of that faith should be peace.

Why, then, is peace missing from the Christian experience?

One reason I have observed is that I place unrealistic expectations on myself and others as to how a Christian should behave. Any time you begin a sentence with “Good Christians don’t . . .” or “Good Christians do . . .” stop and reevaluate what you are about to say. Those unrealistic expectations lead to frustration that will destroy peace.

Another reason for a lack of peace is a distorted view of the Gospel. When I understand the enormity of the debt I owed but could not pay, and further understand that Jesus has satisfied that debt, it should bring a great relief that leads to peace. Yet, perhaps because I think myself better than I am, I attempt to earn enough to satisfy my own debt. This is a little like a child breaking his piggy bank to pay the trillions of dollars of debt that irresponsible politicians have accrued.

Tim Keller has given a short summary of the Gospel that I have found helpful. I may not have it word-for-word because I cannot remember where I found it, but it goes something like this:

I am more deeply flawed than I ever dared believe, but I am more deeply loved than I ever thought possible.

Faith brings us under the umbrella of that love, a love that cannot be put off by our flaws.

That understanding should allow us to go in peace.

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