So when Paul says that the fruit of the Spirit is love (Galatians 5:22), what does he mean? Is there a type of love that is uniquely Christian? A kind of supernatural love that is the fruit of the Spirit of Christ?

Luke 6:27-36 is a useful though unlikely starting point. In this short course on discipleship, Jesus reveals the essence of love that is uniquely Christian.

He describes three kinds of love:

1. Common love: ‘If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.’ This is a love that all are capable of because all are made in the image of a loving God. It’s a love that can be found among Muslims, Buddhists, and atheists. It’s a love of a mother for a child, a husband for a wife, a citizen for a nation.

2. Uncommon love: ‘Love your enemies.’ Here we get to the heart of distinctively Christian love. No other religion or religious teacher demands we love our enemies. Jesus’ command goes way beyond pacifism. He doesn’t merely say, ‘Deal justly with your enemy’ or even ‘Respond to your enemy non-violently.’ He says we must love our enemies. Just as God took extreme measures to love us, we must go to extreme lengths for the welfare and well-being of our enemies.

3. Triumphant love: ‘Love your enemies … and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High…’ Jesus’ teaching is not directed to governments, armies, or police forces. He’s speaking to disciples. To be a disciple Jesus says we must abandon our rights to security and self-preservation and attach ourselves solely to him. The kind of love Jesus calls us to cannot be imitated, it cannot be done without him. It is only possible through radical attachment to him through humble and vulnerable faith. It is the fruit of the Spirit, the cross, and the word of Christ.

“We shall match your ability to inflict suffering by our capacity to endure suffering… Throw us in jail and we shall still love you.” Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martyr: Is proud of it.

Fortune teller: Denies it.

Disciple: Finds God in it.

Maybe she’s right. Compare the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23 with the works of the flesh described in verses 19-21. If we’re honest, flesh beats fruit any day of the week. But Paul warns that if we follow that path, it won’t lead us to a place where God is (5:21). And that can’t be good.

Rihanna may think that love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control are boring, but there’s an even more significant issue when it comes to the fruit of the Spirit. Is it really possible to live this way – even if we wanted to?

Is it possible …

1. To love in a culture motivated by greed?
2. To be joyful when there’s so much to complain about?
3. To be peaceful when nothing seems to work?
4. To be patient when we feel the pressure to produce?
5. To be kind to those who use us, criticize us, and put us down?
6. To be good when surrounded by temptations to lust, hate, steal, and cheat?
7. To be faithful when nothing is permament?
8. To be gentle when others are aggressive?
9. To be self-controlled when addictions are so easily fed?

In verse17 Paul says that the desires of the flesh keep us from doing what we want to do. IOW, even if we want the fruit of the Spirit to be evident in our lives, there are forces within us so powerful that we lose the battle for love, joy, peace … every time.

This Sunday we’re beginning a series on the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) by asking the questions:

Do we want it? (Hint: Most prefer devil’s food cake to carrots.)

Is it possible? (Hint: The fruit of the Spirit is about more than just good character.)

How do we get it? (Hint: Romans 8:13-14)

May your purse always hold a coin or two

May the sun always shine upon your window pane

May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain

May the hand of a friend always be near you

And may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you

Happy New Year to all in exile – and to those who sent them there.

1. Vision: confidence in the power of the gospel and the God who speaks through the written word.

2. Conviction: ability to hear God’s voice for a particular people in a particular time from a particular passage. What is God saying?

3. Method: skills to exegete and communicate the biblical message correctly.

Another (probably better) way of saying it has been proposed by Tim Keller. Every sermon should have as goals:

1. Exegesis: What does this say about Jesus?

2. Application: How is my life better if I apply this truth? What are the consequences if I don’t?

3. Adoration: How am I loving and worshiping God more because of this? What am I worshiping him for?

(Quoting Keller from memory, so forgive me if I’ve gotten it wrong.)

I cannot tell how He whom angels worship
Should stoop to love the peoples of the earth

Or why, as shepherd, He would seek the
wanderer
And his mysterious promise of new birth
But this I know, that He was born of Mary
When Bethlehem’s manger was His only
home
And that He lived at Nazareth and
laboured
And so the Saviour, Saviour of the world
is come.

I cannot tell how silently He suffered
As with His peace He graced this place
of tears
Or how His heart upon the cross was
broken
The crown of pain to three and thirty
years
But this I know, He heals the
broken-hearted
And stays our sin and calms our lurking
fear
And lifts the burden from the heavy
laden
For yet the Saviour, Saviour of the world
is here.

I cannot tell how He will win the nations,
How He will claim His earthly heritage,
How satisfy the needs and aspirations
Of east and west, of sinner and of sage.
But this I know, all flesh shall see His glory,
And He shall reap the harvest He has sown,
And some glad day His sun shall shine in splendor
When He the Savior, Savior of the world, is known.

I cannot tell how all the lands shall
worship
When at His bidding every storm is stilled
Or who can say how great the jubilation
When every heart with perfect love is filled
But this I know, the skies will thrill with
rapture
And myriad, myriad human voices sing
And earth to heaven, and heaven to
earth will answer
At last the Saviour, Saviour of the world
is King!

Likewise, I’ve discovered that following the Christian Year is an excellent way to keep the gospel at the heart of a local Christian community. It’s not possible to preach on Advent, Lent, Good Friday, Easter, Ascension, Pentecost, and Christ the King without remaining firmly embedded in the person and work of Christ.  And is there really anything else to preach about?

I challenge non-liturgical churches to try it for a year and see what happens.

The book reveals that there is substantial unity between evangelicals and Orthodox concerning the person of Christ, nature of the Trinity, and necessity of redemption. Questions remain concerning the authority given to Tradition and Scripture, the relationship of justification and theosis, the nature of apostolic succession (is it based on continuity of office or continuity of Spirit/gospel?), and whether or not there is only one expression of church allowed by God. As James Stamoolis asks, ‘What differences are permitted, and can new churches be recognized as true churches?’ Important questions.

In his chapter, Bradley Nassif argues from an Orthodox perspective that evangelicalism and Orthodoxy are compatible. Using a definition of evangelical belief proposed in a survey done by the Angus Reid Group, Nassif defines core evangelical beliefs as:

1. Crucicentrism: ‘Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, God provided a way for the forgiveness of my sins.’
2. Biblicism: ‘The Bible is the inspired word of God and is to be taken literally word for word.’
3. Conversionism: ‘I have committed my life to Christ and consider myself to be a converted Christian.’
4. Activism: ‘It is important to encourage non-Christians to become Christians.’

While many evangelicals would argue that this is minimalism to the extreme, Nassif suggests that these basic elements of evangelicalism can be found in Orthodoxy.

Michael Horton suggested from an evangelical perspective that a major point of incompatibility between evangelicalism and Orthodoxy is the doctrine of justification by faith. In Orthodoxy, justification is subsumed under theosis (if it is discussed at all).

Of course, the conversation was all the more difficult in that we evangelicals have a wide degree of beliefs concerning these things among ourselves. Occasionally, such as in discussions on the Eucharist, Reformed and Lutheran evangelicals had more in common with the Orthodox than they did with Baptist or Pentecostal evangelicals.

In addition to theological considerations, the contributors offered personal anecdotes from their own experiences. Nassif said that, though Orthodox, he came to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ through evangelical Christians. George Hancock-Stefan, a Baptist pastor and theologian from a Romanian Orthodox background, expressed his appreciation for all the Scripture that saturates the Divine Liturgy and how his heart is filled with worship whenever he attends Orthodox Easter and Christmas services with his family.

Occasionally the authors vented their frustrations. Orthodox caricatured evangelicals as shallow and the evangelicals accused the Orthodox of confusing ethnicity with faith. The Orthodox complained of evangelical attempts to convert them, and the evangelicals expressed their hurt at the discrimination and even persecution that they face in predominantly Orthodox countries. Of course, all these accusations are true to an alarming degree, but by and large the contributors tried to judge the other churches by what they could be at their best rather than what they are at their worst.

In the epilogue, James Stamoolis, a convert from the Greek Orthodox Church to evangelical Protestantism and the former theological secretary for IFES, addresses the issue of conversion (both ways). Interestingly, he suggests that Orthodox become evangelical and evangelical become Orthodox for similar reasons. This is true in my own experience with converts (both ways). I’ve noticed that my evangelical friends who converted to Orthodoxy and my Orthodox friends who became evangelical generally all ended up in better places spiritually. There’s something to be said for conversion, regardless of which way. In a separate post I’ll summerize Stamoolis’ observations.

The church I pastor (Nicosia International Church) is an interdenominational church. We deal with issues of cross-denominational compatibility every Sunday. Our faith is most accurately described in the World Evangelical Alliance Statement of Faith, the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed (allowing for diversity concerning the filioque clause), and the Definition of the Council of Chalcedon. We’re broadly Protestant in that we adhere to the ‘5 solas.‘ We’re charismatic in that we practice the gifts of the Spirit.

Yet we’ve discovered that the evangelical message, mission, and mindset is attractive to people from a broad spectrum of church backgrounds, which is why our church attracts such a diverse group of people.

In the introduction to the book, J.I. Packer acknowledges that full communion and structural integration between churches is highly unlikely. But he asks if we can cultivate vision of partnership in proclaiming Jesus Christ as the Savior whom everyone needs, work together to disciple converts, provide pastoral care for all in need, and uphold Christian standards in society.  He calls it a ‘mission-focused ecumenism.’

The questions the book raises are not easy to answer. Yet the discussion itself is progress. My hope and prayer is that some day we can have similar discussions with such respect in Cyprus.

‘How would you describe Macedonian spirituality?’

‘At what point does the gospel connect with Macedonian people?’

As an American, I often find myself confused about European spirituality and religious identity even though I’ve lived in Europe for more than a decade. I hoped these questions would provide some answers, at least in a Macedonian context.

Like so many countries of southern Europe, religious and national identity are intertwined. To be Macedonian is to be Orthodox.  Yet religion, belief, and spirituality aren’t necessarily identical. As a Macedonian pastor confessed, ‘Many here don’t feel the contradiction between being atheist and Orthodox at the same time. Our spirituality is a mix of Orthodoxy, atheism, paganism, and materialism.’ Over the years, Paganism, Christianity, Islam, Communism, and Capitalism have each left their mark.

Few Macedonians think consciously about eternal life or guilt. Yet those tend to be the starting points for evangelical theology and evangelism.

But though they may rarely think about heaven or hell, they do think about the present. To influence their circumstances, many practice a variety of superstitious rituals that find their roots in pre-Christian paganism. Whereas American evangelical spirituality exists in big questions about the hereafter and the purpose of life, Macedonian spirituality is much closer to earth. For Macedonian Christians, discipleship may not be so much about the big existential questions, but about the intervention of God day to day.

Additionally, the pastor suggested that evangelism must begin by convincing Macedonians that matters of eternity and guilt are important.

I’m writing this from Ohrin on the border of Macedonia waiting for a friend to pick me up. In a few minutes the 5^th chapter of this trip will begin as I cross over into Albania.

In John 15:11 Jesus says that there’s the fullness of joy in loving others.

So could there be a link between the multiplication of local, micro charities such as food banks, clothing collection boxes, dog shelters, etc. and the lack of mission (read: joy) in the local churches? When the Church loses her mission, do people look for it elsewhere?

Just wondering.