Hearing the Music

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Real Life

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I love the real life situations in the scriptures. This coming Sunday we begin a new sermon series on the book of Philippians. Philippians is filled with very real human drama. There is Paul's imprisonment in Rome and his chained-up preaching to the Imperial household. There is his friendship and yearning for the Philippians, who in turn have sacrificially cared for Paul during his imprisonment. There are other external trials and internal conflicts that are besetting the Philippian church. There are specific people named - Epaphroditus, Timothy, Euodia and Syntache. It is all very real.

In the midst of these very real situations, Paul speaks of the irresistible movement of the Lord that has begun the good work in lives of the believers (Phillipians 1:6), a good work that abounds in love, joy, wisdom, patience in suffering, and humility. It is a movement of grace and peace FROM Christ that has located us IN Christ in order that we might be servants OF Christ (Phillipians 1:1,2). There is so much in this little book and I can't wait to dig into it together!

Like the Philippians, we need what Paul, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, had to say. For our lives are just as real as the Philippians. We too know the external pressures and internal disagreements of 21st century America. We too feel the effects of living in a religiously pluralized, secular society. We too have many relationships with real people that are broken or interrupted and we yearn, with the affections of Christ (Phillipians 1:8), for them to be restored. We too are desperate for the grace and peace which comes from Christ, that locates our lives in him and enables us to be his servants.

As a holdover from the gathering of our Presbytery (which we are hosting Friday and Saturday), Jon Medlock and Don Guthrie will be leading us during our Adult Institute hour as we contemplate what healthy church ecosystems look like. These are indeed challenging times for the church, but God gives much grace. Jon and Don have also co-authored a study for the denomination that point us in the direction of that grace.

Posted by Andrew VanderMaas

Are You Ready?

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Now that Labor Day has come and gone, Christ Church stands poised on the threshold of a fall semester ready to reincorporate many of the activities of our prepandemic life. Sunday school begins this week for children and adults, youth ministries have two retreats this month, C-Groups are back, we are sending a van to pick up college students who are meeting regularly, Wednesday nights are in view for October, and we even have mixed in an all-church retreat the first weekend in October. Whew!

The question comes to mind, "Are we ready?" For some the answer is an unequivocal, "Yes!" These things have been missed in the course of life and their return is welcome. Others are not so sure. As Sam Bush writes in a recent article, "Getting a child dressed and out the door felt like an Olympic event long before the pandemic. For young families especially, church used to be simply another thing to be late to, but now it’s too much to ask. The spirit is willing but the flesh isn’t just weak; it’s depressed, it’s irritable, and it couldn’t find a babysitter last night. As Dan Sinker wrote in his essay in The Atlantic, 'Parents aren’t even at a breaking point anymore. We’re broken.'" Do I hear a few "Amens" out there?

Two things by way of observation. First, wherever you happen to be on the readiness spectrum, much grace to you. These last 18 months have done number on us physically, socially, psychologically and spiritually. Not one of us is the same as we were before. But secondly, this is why we need to come together under the banner of the restorative love of Jesus Christ. It is as we study, pray, preach, teach, weep with, rejoice with, serve with, and generally engage in life together, that we experience the healing grace that we need. I like how Paul links interpersonal connection to spiritual growth in his letter to the Philippians, "For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." (Philippians 1:8–11). 

 

Photo by Shelbey Fordyce on Unsplash 

Posted by Andrew VanderMaas

Rest for the Worker

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For many of us Labor Day serves as the unofficial "end of summer" holiday. But where is the celebration in that? A little digging into the history of Labor Day will find that it arose in the late 1800's, near the height of the Industrial Revolution. The move from an agriculturally based society to a manufacturing based society saw a rise in long factory hours, harsh conditions and generally bad morale, especially in the lower classes and among immigrants. Labor Day began unofficially and eventually was signed into law in 1894 by President Grover Cleveland as a way to celebrate the working class and their accomplishments. 

Celebrating workers and their accomplishments is a worthwhile endeavor. Over the last few years we have been highlighting the role that work plays in the life of the Christian. We were created to tend the garden and keep it, to bring about the flourishing of creation in all that we do. For sure, as a result of the fall, our work has taken on a quality of toil, but that does not eradicate the inherent goodness of work. May we take some time this weekend to THINK of all the ways that we are laboring in the re-Edenized world of the New Testament. Then, THANK the Lord for the good work, paid and unpaid, that he has given us to do both as individuals and as a community. And while we are on the topic of work, why not make plans to join us next weekend for the Faithfully Working discussion with Dr. Daniel Doriani?

In the previous paragraph I mentioned the re-Edenized world of the New Testament. What I have in mind here is the way that God is renewing what was lost and broken in the fall. In Exodus, particularly with the tabernacle, there is a calling back to creation and a movement to restore what was lost. This renewal culminates in the resurrection as Jesus essentially brings about a renewed creation, with a renewed humanity. We are now heading toward an eternity where Paradise lost is Paradise regained (see this in reading the first 2 chapters of Genesis and the last 2 chapters of Revelation, and note all the connections!). Re-Edenization will be in view this Sunday as we finish our look at Exodus. We will see God's glory finally come and fill the tabernacle in the midst of the people. In so many ways this signals a foretaste of the reversal of Eden, where Adam and Eve were driven out of the garden and lost the intimacy with YHWH. But now we have intimacy with the living God. His glory can be seen all around! What a story to celebrate!

 

Photo by Angelina Kichukova on Unsplash

Posted by Andrew VanderMaas

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