Jesus saves, unless you’re an Episcopalian?

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One of the more bizarre sermons I’ve found lately comes from the presiding bishop of the Episcopalian church, which is the presiding church for Anglicans in the United States. This may a good example of why there is a shift in that loyalty and more Anglican movements are popping up in North America.

The full text needs to be read, but here some fun excerpts.

As she was talking about the need for diversity, she brought up the episode in Acts where Paul tosses out the demon from the slave girl. A drastic mistake, apparently.

“There are some remarkable examples of that kind of blindness in the readings we heard this morning, and slavery is wrapped up in a lot of it.  Paul is annoyed at the slave girl who keeps pursuing him, telling the world that he and his companions are slaves of God.  She is quite right.  She’s telling the same truth Paul and others claim for themselves,”

“But Paul is annoyed, perhaps for being put in his place, and he responds by depriving her of her gift of spiritual awareness.  Paul can’t abide something he won’t see as beautiful or holy, so he tries to destroy it.  It gets him thrown in prison.  That’s pretty much where he’s put himself by his own refusal to recognize that she, too, shares in God’s nature, just as much as he does – maybe more so!,” the presiding bishop said.

Paul, tossed into prison, had to repent of his attitude. This is what led to the earthquake, in her view.

But here is the really fun stuff: It is not JESUS that saves… it is DIVERSITY.

She concluded her sermon by stating that we are not justified by our faith but by our respect for diversity.

“Looking for the reflection of God’s glory all around us means changing our lenses, or letting the scales on our eyes fall away.  That kind of change isn’t easy for anyone, but it’s the only road to the kingdom of God.”

I know it is not ALL Episcopalians that believe this. (Blog titles are important to drive up my numbers.) :)

And the end of the article notes the harsh criticism.

But when the HEAD of your church is butchering the gospel…

 

Language Shifts Indicate Cultural Shifts

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David Brooks has a column today reflecting on language shifts over the last 50 years. His observations are interesting. 
 
Usage of humility words like “modesty” and “humbleness” dropped by 52 percent. Usage of compassion words like “kindness” and “helpfulness” dropped by 56 percent. Meanwhile, usage of words associated with the ability to deliver, like “discipline” and “dependability” rose over the century, as did the usage of words associated with fairness. 
 
And this:
 
On the general subject of demoralization, he finds a long decline of usage in terms like “faith,” “wisdom,” “ought,” “evil” and “prudence,” and a sharp rise in what you might call social science terms like “subjectivity,” “normative,” “psychology” and “information.” 
 
Brooks has some interesting conclusions on this matter:
 
Over the past half-century, society has become more individualistic. As it has become more individualistic, it has also become less morally aware, because social and moral fabrics are inextricably linked. The atomization and demoralization of society have led to certain forms of social breakdown, which government has tried to address, sometimes successfully and often impotently.
 
Those are his observations, and certainly can be argued. True or not in the culture, those are things that should be of concern in the Church. Cultures shift and moral awareness does shift and even fade. This is a place where the Church should be different. The sad news to me is that we are often as unaware as the culture.  We too often seem to be drifting along. 
 
Brooks makes some conclusions as to what this means for conservatives and liberals in politics. That may all be well and good as well, but the conclusions for the Church need to be considered as well. In my opinion, we SHOULD be doing better.  
 
 

Are you a cracked pot?

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We have the treasure of Christ, but that treasure is not to show US off. It is to show JESUS. Paul says we are simply cracked pots so the true glory of Christ can shine through.

When we understand the Kingdom is not about us, our ego, or our glory, Christ can truly shine through. When we think it is our glory, pressure co.es and we crumble. When it is Christ in us, the pressure comes and Christ shines through.

“We are knocked down, but we aren’t knocked out.” (2 Cor. 4:9b, CEB)

The Astonishing Reality of Christ

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The issue we need to face in our lives is not getting the answers “right” in our Christianity. It’s not about a test we take to see if we have the right answers about Jesus.

When someone comes to a college, I shouldn’t give them instructions just so they have right answers. If I am doing my job right, I am helping students find the right questions.

Jesus wants us discovering the right questions.

The Radical Love of Christ

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1 Corinthians 13. I usually avoid this chapter because it was so abused at weddings over the years. Coming back to this chapter as an “ancient well” in my spiritual reading is always the toughest passage to visit.

But it is so needed. Especially in the Body of Christ. Especially in this day.
The Corinthians church was into spiritual superiority. They were taking different gifts and treating them as marks of superiority. The powerful manifestation gifts (tongues, healing, prophecy, etc.) were treasured and exalted. Yet, other groups would take their favorites (or the ones they loved but were getting beat up by the other groups) and would whack away at their “opposition.”
Opposition in the Body of Christ. It’s an ancient tale.
It seems this is the game we play. We know the greatest commandments: Love God. Love the neighbor.
But today, I would ask, “Who is my neighbor?”
And for the Church, Jesus might give a different illustration. The reason I say that is today we, as believers, seem more intent on loving our neighbor who isn’t a believer than loving our neighbor who just may be a believer… just not “our kind” of believer.
In this, the words of Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 ring a bit more true.
“If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.” (1 Cor. 13:2-3, NIV)
No one is without excuse.
“Who is my neighbor?”
It’s the Pentecostal you can’t stand because he talks too much about praying for healing. It’s the Episcopalian you can’t stand because she’s involved in “dead ritual.” It’s the Lutheran you can’t stand because they always want to help the poor. It’s the Catholic, because… It’s the Presbyterian, because…
We spend so much time yipping at each other, we forget the very mark of Christ that is supposed to distinguish us from the rest of the world! “See how they love one another.“
May we finally hear those words of our Savior and our King, and actually work by the power of the Spirit to make them real.

Day of Pentecost

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When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:1-4, NIV)

Prayer: Almighty God, on this day you opened the way of eternal life to every race and nation by the promised gift of your Holy Spirit: Shed abroad this gift throughout the world by the preaching of the Gospel, that it may reach to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Transformational Living — Romans 12

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I am given grace for MY life. There is a measure of faith given TO ME. I cannot measure my life in Christ against someone else. I cannot live my life in Christ in front of the world as a marketing tool.

Judging yourself with sober judgment is near impossible in a Facebook gazing, self-marketing world. But that is our call.
We need to live in this powerful realization: “I am part of the Body of Christ and what I contribute matters. It may not be noticed or blogged about or trumpeted by others. It may not go viral. But it matters.”
God has given me a measure of faith for my assignment. I am to understand my gifts and live in my assignment. 
 
When all is said and done, Jesus isn’t going to look at how many “Likes” I had on Facebook. He is going to examine how I did with the faith measured out to me. Do I understand the gifts Christ has given to me? Am I being equipped in those gifts? Am I using those gifts?
The power of transformational life is the ability to live joyfully for Christ alone without regard to the measures others may have in their lives, or the measures others may want to put on our lives.
Lord, I need renewed thinking in my life today. May my body, my spirit, my mind be laid before you so you can do with my life as you will. You are King… I am your apprentice.