This is the kind of passage we preachers would rather just skip over. If we talk about the end of the world we run the risk of being lumped with the end times loonies who construct elaborate chronologies by cutting and pasting Bible verses from here or there. If we talk about faithfulness in the midst of suffering we run the risk of presenting a melancholic Christianity that won’t exactly pack out the pews.
Mark 13, otherwise known as ‘the Olivet Discourse,’ is for a limited audience. The same was true even in Jesus’ day. This was not a teaching for the masses or even the 12 disciples. This teaching was given to Peter, James, John, and Andrew alone. Additionally, it isn’t just about predicting the future. It’s about revealing Jesus. Mark progressively reveals Jesus as Teacher, Prophet, Messiah, Son of Man, Son of David, and Son of God. It’s getting increasingly difficult to stomach the self-claims of this carpenter from Galilee.
On the one hand, the apocalyptic language about abominations of desolation (verse 14) or stars falling from heaven (verse 25) may cause you to think that Jesus comes from a subculture that you want no part of. On the other hand, there is a deep realism to the reality presented here. We know that the tame and tasty ‘Hallmark gospel’ so often presented is wishful thinking. In the name of the Good News, we promise people joy, peace, rest, and security. No such fairy tales here. Jesus tells it like it is, and we can relate.
- The breakdown of religion (verses 2, 6 and 9)
- Political failure, wars, and international violence (verses 7, 8 and 11)
- Natural disasters (verse 8 )
- Familial betrayal (verse 12)
Ahhh … this is the world we love and know. This is home. At least it is for a good many people who inhabit this planet.
So all this talk of the future isn’t so much about figuring out when the end will come. It’s about how to live as the end is coming. The disciples asked Jesus, ‘When will the end come?’ (verse 4) Jesus answered, ‘Beats me.’ (verse 32) Though many predict that the current economic trouble, the wars in the Middle East and Africa, and natural disasters all point to a soon end, Jesus says, ‘Nah … don’t sweat that stuff. This is just the beginning of sorrows.’ (verse 8 )
Thanks, Jesus. I feel better now.
But actually, there are four commands in this promise. Instructions on how to live during these times.
- Be careful of religious deceivers (verses 5-6).
- Do not be troubled by all the violence (verse 7).
- Watch yourself and your own testimony when it costs to be a disciple (verse 9).
- Don’t worry about how you’ll answer when you’re on trial (verse 11)
And these instructions are related to the hope – yes, hope – that Jesus offers. God will intervene in this mess of a world we live in. How?
- Through the preaching of the gospel that results from this persecution (verse 10).
- Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit who will give us words of courage and wisdom as we’re led to jail, the gallows, and the firing squad (verse 11).
- And that if we hang on to our faith through all this darkness, we will be saved (verse 13).
In his version, Luke says it in quite an ironic manner: ‘They will put some of you to death. But not a hair of your head will be lost.’ (Luke 21:16, 18 )
Huh?
One way to understand discipleship is to see it as preparation for living in a violent world that is opposed to those who choose to live under the reign of God. How well are we doing at that?
There’s another discussion about whether or not Jesus was referring to the coming destruction of Jerusalem, which occurred in AD 70 (the Jewish 9/11), or whether this describes entirely future events. I’d suggest that, like so many of the prophecies recorded in the Old Testament, it’s both/and.
Ironically, this is the passage we read as the movie 2012 is released in theaters.
And in contrast to the lectionary reading (see below), here’s a new video from the Global Conversation on prosperity gospel in West Africa.
The Prosperity Gospel from The Global Conversation on Vimeo.
The poor widow who gave her two cents to the Temple Treasury has caused me no little grief and guilt. How could I ever hope to live up to the standard she sets? If I only had two cents, I think I could do what she did. After all, giving my last two cents wouldn’t be so much of a problem after having lost everything else. The hard thing for me is that I have more than two cents. In fact, I have a lot more than nearly everyone on the planet. Seriously. You probably do too. You can find out … here.
So does God expect me to empty my wallet and my bank accounts? Max my credit cards for the kingdom of God?
In the first part of this passage Jesus draws attention to the scribes – religious people who were called ‘Teachers of the Law.’ Externally, they fit the profile of someone with God’s approval. But ironically, all their prayers and teachings were to gain the respect and approval of society rather than God. They had everything – money, education, religious approval – but in God’s eyes they would end up with nothing but judgment.
The widow, on the other hand, had nothing. But she gave it to God.
In spite of what I’ve been taught for years, I don’t believe this story is about ‘percentages.’ I think we miss the point if we use this to teach that God doesn’t expect just 10%, he expects it all. That’s religion, but its not what Jesus was all about.
Instead, this is about coming to God with nothing.
Only when we come with nothing in our hands is God able to do something with us. We remember this nameless widow 2,000 years after she put her last two cents into the treasury, but not as an example of whole hearted discipleship. Rather, we should remember her as a forerunner of Christ himself who ‘did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing.’ (Philippians 2:6-7)
This is the kind of person God can use.
It’s easy to criticize religion, but who can be against love? Ziggy Marley announced that love is his religion in his song by the same name (see video below). Jesus kind of said the same thing when he was asked to identify the greatest commandment in the Jewish law: love God, love others. Simple as that.
Though many people have issues with Christianity, I doubt its the love part that bothers them. Rather, its the rules. Rules divide. Rules judge. Rule keepers feel superior to rule breakers. Rules seem incompatible with love, and yet the Bible seems to be full of them. (This is one of my favorites. Trust me, its worth clicking.)
A ‘loving’ religion is one that is tolerant and nonjudgmental. One that includes rather than excludes. One that accepts rather than converts.
Is that the kind of loving religion that Jesus was talking about?
Interestingly, Jesus begins his answer to the Pharisee’s question by quoting the Shema (Deut. 6:4), which states, ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one God.’ Or, to put it more simply, there is no God but YHWH. Why begin with a theological statement? Because the kind of love that Jesus was talking about cannot be separated from truth.
The command to love God is not a command to love any old god, but a very specific God who has a name and a people. And the command to love others comes from this God who has already loved us in very specific ways and shows us how to love others.
It is a love that puts boundaries on our behavior and belief, which seems at odds with the conventional ideas of love (tolerance, freedom). But true love always requires that we lose some independence. As the apostle Paul wrote, ‘The love of Christ constrains us.’ Timothy Keller puts it this way: Freedom is not so much the absence of restrictions as finding the right ones.
Love limits us. But, ironically, it frees us as well.
So is love my religion? Well, if by love you mean the love that was revealed by the man from Galilee who gave his live for me on the cross, then yes.
Two days ago the Nicosia International Church held its leadership retreat in the beautiful Anglican retreat house in the village of Kapedes. 22 leaders – pastors, elders, and Ministry Team Leaders gathered for fellowship, prayer, and refocusing on our mandate to make disciples of all nations. We’re a multicultural church (just the leadership team consists of people from 13 countries) representing denominations as diverse as Roman Catholic and Independent Pentecostal. So I asked the group what was uniquely positive about belonging to this particular church family. Here’s how they answered:
- We listen carefully to one another because we can’t assume that we’re all understood.
- We’ve had to learn what’s really important and what isn’t.
- We’ve learned that Christians from other denominations are actually Christians.
- We have great pot luck lunches.
- We have real Christian community rather than community based on similar culture.
- We’ve learned to welcome sinners and those who fail rather than exclude them.
- The leaders are accessible to everyone.
- Everyone is respected and valued regardless of education, income, or race. Anyone can become a leader.
- People’s lives are changed by grace and love rather than force and manipulation.
- God’s word is taught in a way that changes our lives.
We also talked about the things that are hard about belonging to this church. It takes work, patience, and intentionality for such a community to exist.
I’m not sure that we’ve had a strategy to see this kind of church develop. In fact, most of our organizational strategies have failed. But we have been intentional in our discipleship, our commitment to unity, and our expectation that God will be sovereign and intervene in our lives both corporately and individually.
What’s been of human origin has fallen apart and drifted away. What’s been of God has remained.
Psalm 44 is a worldview that is foreign to me, though I’ve been a Christian most my life. The sons of Korah credit God with having intervened in amazing and supernatural ways:
- ‘You drove out the nations …’
- ‘You planted …’
- ‘You afflicted [other] people …’
- It was by God’s right hand and arm that Israel gained possession of their land.
- ‘You have saved …’
- ‘You have put to shame …’
Behind every success was the faithfulness and supernatural intervention of God.
But then the tone of the song changes.
- ‘You have cast us off …’
- ‘You do not go out with our armies …’
- ‘You make us turn back …’
- ‘You have scattered us …’
- ‘You sell your people …’
God is credited as being the cause of their deliverance and their affliction. God is behind absolutely everything. For the Israelite, God has chosen to intervene and involve Himself or He has chosen to withdraw and allow events to run their course. But either way, God has acted.
In our culture, we find it difficult to see God at work. Behind success we look for principles that if applied can guarantee ongoing repetition of success. Behind failure, we see random and meaningless forces of nature or economics at work. This is a reflection of both our modern and postmodern culture.
Maybe we need a little bit more ancient, Jewish culture that acknowledges the sovereignty of God in all situations.
From Edbahler.com:
- On average, 40% of church budgets are spent on facilities.
- Spending on buildings has increased 200% in the past 10 years.
- Church attendance has decreased from 49% to 47% in the same time period.
Seems that there are two responses to this. First, we need to discern how to be more redemptive in our use of facilities. Or second, we’re putting our resources into the wrong things.
In a paper published by the Global Network for Economic Research (which I don’t read), quoted in the Wall Street Journal (which I don’t read), quoted in the Kruse Kronicle (which I do read), it is suggested that a fundamental cause for the global recession is the globalization of the labor supply:
“The large increase in the developed world’s labor supply, triggered by geo-political events and technological innovations, is the major underlying cause of the global macro economic imbalances that led to the great recession,” the paper said. “The inability of existing institutions in the U.S. and the rest of the world to cope with this shock set the stage for the great recession.”
IOW, cheap labor markets – now accessible via technology and treaties – are globally lowering the depth in the wage pool.
If you’re interested in that kind of stuff, then click the links above. But that’s not the point of this post. My question is this: is there a similar phenomenon going on the ministry circles? Is access to spiritual information reducing the need for formal ministry structures?
You and I can both be spiritually fed online. As I was running this morning, I listened to Timothy Keller lecturing seminary students on Christ-centered preaching via iTunes University. I can access spiritual, devotional, academic, and worship resources from my flat. And its probably better stuff than what I’d hear at most local churches.
Maybe that’s why we’re hearing more about fellowship, relationships, and organic ministry these days. They can’t be as easily replicated via web-based technology. They continue to give us a reason to gather together when gathering is no longer necessary for receiving spiritual information or worship. But if relationships are the primary reason for gathering, then its no wonder we continue to see the fragmentation of more conventional local churches. We can fellowship over the fire pit or at the local watering hole. Why keep doing this resource intensive Sunday morning stuff?
And its impacting global missions as well.
Missionaries can’t count how many times they’ve heard things like, ‘We can support 20 Indonesian pastors who plant 600 churches every 18 months for the same amount of money as it takes to send an American missionary family who doesn’t know the language and will probably come home after 4 years having not planted a single church or even having led one person to Christ.’
Or options for short-term missions or media based evangelism and discipleship are touted as the ‘missions of the future.’
Each of these is a valid ministry, but each has a dark underbelly as well. Last night my girlfriend and I were watching Ben Stein in the film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed about the decrease in academic freedom in North America. One interviewee suggests that Charles Darwin took one observation and made it the answer to every question. I think we need to be careful of making a similar mistake in ministry. There’s not one mission or church growth strategy that trumps all the others, which becomes clear when faithfulness and obedience become the starting points rather than return on investment.
The world is changing and so is the way we function as the Body of Christ both locally and globally. Issues of trust and stewardship mean that we must be efficient and honest in our evaluation of ministries. At the same time, we must resist the temptation to become political in our support of one methodology or church growth theory. As I’ve observed over and over in ministry, it is possible to be entirely right strategically while simultaneously wrong relationally and spiritually.
In the economy of God’s kingdom, I believe He cares less about our strategies and more about our humility, generosity, faith, and love. Do you agree?
How does that work out, though, in deliberate and strategic ministry?
Life with no possibility of redemption. It all ends in the cemetery. What’s the Good News in response to these questions?
God gave me the sunshine,
Then showed me my lifeline
I was told it was all mine,
Then I got laid on a ley line
What a day, what a day,
And your Jesus really died for me
Then Jesus really tried for meUK and entropy,
I feel like its ****in’ me
Wanna feed off the energy,
Love living like a deity
What a day, one day,
And your Jesus really died for me
I guess Jesus really tried for meBodies in the Bodhi tree,
Bodies making chemistry
Bodies on my family,
Bodies in the way of me
Bodies in the cemetery,
And that’s the way it’s gonna beAll we’ve ever wanted
Is to look good naked
Hope that someone can take it
God save me rejection
From my reflection,
I want perfectionPraying for the rapture,
‘Cause it’s stranger getting stranger
And everything’s contagious
It’s the modern middle ages
All day every day
And if Jesus really died for me
Then Jesus really tried for meBodies in the Bodhi tree,
Bodies making chemistry
Bodies on my family,
Bodies in the way of me
Bodies in the cemetery,
And that’s the way it’s gonna beAll we’ve ever wanted
Is to look good naked
Hope that someone can take it
God save me rejection
From my reflection,
I want perfectionBodies in the Bodhi tree,
Bodies making chemistry
Bodies on my family,
Bodies in the way of me
Bodies in the cemetery,
Bodies in the bodhi tree,
Bodies making chemistry
Bodies on my family,
Bodies in the way of me
Bodies in the cemetery,
And that’s the way it’s gonna beAll we’ve ever wanted
Is to look good naked
Hope that someone can take it
So God save me rejection
From my reflection,
I want perfectionJesus didn’t die for you, what do you want?
(I want perfection)
Jesus didn’t die for you, what are you on?
Oh Lord
A series of rabbit trails while preparing a message on the rich, young ruler (Mark 10:17-31), led me to lists of favorite books for Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barak Obama. The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker (one of Clinton’s favorites) would appear on my list of most profound and disturbing books (Googling the book is what led me to the list). One of my favorite novels appears on President Obama’s list: The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene (see the 2008 post on the whiskey priest).
The list of favorite books for George W. included children’s books and books about Texas. The only one that I’d read was James and the Giant Peach.
