Out of Commission

This is in response to what God has been revealing to me these past couple weeks (as I attempt to connect seemingly unrelated messages). I just got back from an invigorating Spiritual formation class. My spirit feels restless/excited/joyful so I thought some reflection on the themes of my life were in order. Also, forgive me, I jump all over the place, as is my mind's custom. A lot of stuff is being said that's been hitting me, so I write it down as I remember it through free association.

To start: my recent Facebook Status:

If A) I cannot lose my salvation (and fairly certain I am in the process), and if B) God exists outside of time (meaning all things that were, are and are to come are already to God), then does C) I am already worshiping God in heaven with all the angels and saints logically follow?

If time began when the universe was created and will end when Jesus comes back and the fullness of God's kingdom is seen on this earth, then this period known as "time" is just a blip in God's eternity. This must be true in order that God may be outside of time, hence unchangeable. Creation then, is a story with a beginning and a end, as told by the Bible, and through the history of the early church, up to the present day until the return of Christ (as told in revelation). If this is true, then the Fall of man had to happen to bless us with free will. If the story is already told, then God knows us well enough to know every single choice we'd make in all circumstances. Freedom becomes then not an instrument of choice, but rather an ability to become that which God requires of you in the story, unencumbered by sin and the slavery tied with it.

If this seems scary to you, it's because it is. Am I suggesting you just resign to your fate, if it is already written? Yes, but do you know why? God is a benevolent God. He wrote the story of your life. He wants to write a great ending for you if you resign the right to write your own story. It would be scary as Hell if God was a passive God, but this is the Gospel, that God came down to Earth to act on our behalf. And you best believe that God will use anything and everything (including permitting evil) to transform you to be the person God made you to be (this is what I meant when I said "freedom to become"). I count every struggle in my life past to be a blessing for without those, I would not be who I am today, redeemed in Christ from so much. Giving up your life, you will receive blessings far beyond those you could think you could want, but you will face hardships bigger than you could ever imagine, except now you have a powerful ally beyond all comprehension. God's imagination, unlike ours, is infinite. He just has to speak his Word and it come to be. If you don't think so, look at all the multitudes of animals, plants, fish, molecules, atoms, particles, planets, galaxies, and stars far beyond what someone could count. Each one was made, and each one is unique somehow. Though God may lead you through hard times, you know He leads you to salvation. Therefore do everything you can to make sure that the path you are on and the story you are in is God's epic tale, written in His Book of Life. God help those who reject this word, I pray it is not too late.

Now the question becomes, do you know what story you are living out? Is it a story of unconditional love and great sacrifice leading to redemption, or a bitter tale of misery after the pursuit of material things that you can't take with you in death. You get to choose the kind of role you want, but God already knows both what is best for you and what you will inevitably choose (and since God is love and truth, God will not manipulate you into loving Him. It must be your choice.). He weeps over every soul, for all must stand before him before being sentenced, if only so that Christ himself may see the face of his fallen child one last time.

When you die and jump into eternity, it is the same as waking up from a dream. You do not know how much time has passed since your death, but you will see all the saints and all the angels, all the prophets and the apostles, and the Triune God in full Glory. Knowing the truth such as this, who could deny the power of the gospel to save? Certainly Jesus believed in his message, and so did Paul, as they taught fervently. As Jesus said in Mark 1:38 "Let us go somewhere else-- to the nearby villages-- so I can preach there also. This is why I have come" He said this many sick people were seeking him out for healing. He left them unhealed. Was it lack of compassion? No, but Jesus had a mission. He not only proclaimed the Gospel, he WAS the Gospel.

Jesus prayed for future believers who would believe on account of the Apostle's message (John 17). That's us! Jesus prayed for US, that by our love Christ would be deified. That by our love we would show the world that Jesus is the one true God. With today's communication age, mass evangelism and spreading the gospel message has become so easy. We have Christian TV, radio, podcasts, websites, and sermons. The list goes on, but there is one problem. Jesus didn't call us to convert others with the Gospel. Matthew 28:19-20 "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very ends of the age."

Let's look at the phrase "in the name of the Father..." The word "name" isn't just a label. If you do a word study on how the "name" is used culturally, it is his very presence. In the name of God means in the presence of God to Hebrews. God is actually there doing the baptizing! Miracles in the name of God! There is power in Jesus's name! There is no power in saying the word Jesus; that is magic, not faith. Jesus is just a Spanish boy's name, but rather it's Jesus's presence in us and with us and that is power! Going back to John 17:24 "Father, I want those You have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world." Jesus dwells in us, so that when we love (for God is love), we are in Christ as Christ is in the Father, hence proving Jesus's status as Lord so that "all may believe".

Getting back to the original point, Jesus didn't say go make converts, but go make disciples. What is a disciple? One who has been disciplined. I can tell a million people about Christ dying on a cross, convert a few, and yet disciple none of them. What this communication age has enabled us to do as far mass evangelism, it has equally crippled us in terms of authentic personal discipleship. There is only one thing you need to do the will of God: The human voice. No projectors, no guitars, no amps, no microphones, none of that is needed. Are they bad? No, just extraneous. You know why discipleship is lacking? It's hard because love is hard. Discipleship takes a lot of your time to put up with a disciple, to love them to pay attention to and listen to them even when they are being a nuisance and you have others things you want to do. I became a Christian because someone really took the time to love me, even when I knew I was being overly clingy and attached. What Jesus said was true, that through love, unbelievers will know Jesus Christ is Lord and God. All it took was for someone to show me the love of Christ. Love is not any emotion or feeling. Any narcotics junkie can feel the same emotional high you can on a weekend retreat with God. You don't need God for fleeting feelings, but if you want to love, a love that takes patience and kindness, that does not envy or boast, then you need discipline. You need God.

If your Christian walk is easy, it's wrong. Are you not struggling with sin? Do you say you have a pretty good faith? Do you feel like your life is up to standard? Chances are you aren't doing what God requires of you. John 6:29 "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." To believe in Christ is to believe in his Word, to believe in his word is to obey his teaching, to obey his teaching is to be his disciple, to be his disciple is not inherit the Kingdom of God. Did Jesus say easy things? "I have come with a sword to turn a man against his father..." "If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off..." "Sell all of your possessions..." "Deny yourself and take up your cross..." Is this your response: "He couldn't have meant that literally! That is too hard! Who could survive if they just left everything they had to proclaim his name? Jesus would never sacrifice my happiness (or my iPod!) for the sake of the Gospel!" Awful things happen when people get too comfortable in their faith. The more comfortable you are, the less you pray, the less you seek God, the more you feel in control of your own life, the more you write your own way to destruction. "How hard it is for the rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven!... Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of heaven! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God!" "But small is the gate and narrow is the path that leads to life, and only a few find it" (Mark 10:23-25) (Matthew 7:13)

Jesus said there will be persecutions if we leave everything for Christ's sake and the sake of the gospel, but that is one thing America lacks. Why? Why do I want persecution? I don't just want it, I pray for it because it is harder to be a Christian in America than in any other country without religious freedom. Your life is literally on the line if you preach the gospel in China. You risk social shame and imprisonment. In America, everyone thinks they are saved because they prayed the sinner's prayer once and wrote down the date in their Bible. Everything is alright, everyone is a Christian. In China, you must have faith, you must be committed to and know what you believe. In America, you just have to go to church. So many Americans are lulled into a false sense of security because they figure as long as they do what everyone else in the church does, they are good. It keeps me up at night thinking about how many Americans are in danger of Hell. Our churches don't help the problem. Our churches are more influenced by the culture than are influences of culture. Good financial stewardship means budgeting your money appropriately towards the capitalist goal so you can have an SUV and a house in the suburbs (which count as "God's blessing"). Evangelism means handing out groceries once a month to inner city families without caring about who they even are. Giving your possessions to the poor means donating the stuff you don't want or that doesn't fit you anymore so you can buy new stuff. We have always had an interesting way of twisting scripture to serve our purposes (Read Mark 7)

I am also afraid that you do not need God for truth. Before I get stoned for saying that, I am not saying God does not provide divine and perfect truth (as he plentifully does as pertaining to Scripture), but he reveals only what is necessary for us to know to work out our salvation in fear and trembling. In terms of Epistemology i.e. "What is true", Buddhists have a limited understanding, although their Ontology i.e. "What is real" is flawed. What is real precedes what is true. For example, say you know someone has the flu. You then know what must be true (that person has a fever, is achy, etc.) If you first knew what was true, you may arrive with any sort of realities that could fit that (a flu, a cold, malaria, etc.) Christians know what is real first (the Great I AM, the boldest statement of being), and Buddhists arrived at what is true first. I think they understand some aspects of truth better than Christians. I say this because if there exists universal truth, it is true for all and can be discovered by all (to varying degrees of totality). I've studied Buddhism in light of Christianity, and I can honestly say it helped me understand Scriptures on a deeper level. It only magnified Christ to me. What troubled me was the fact that another "religion" could stumble upon any truth without Christ who is "the truth". We could learn something from them as they emphasize spiritual experience, vibrant inner life, and fervent practice (things I feel modern Christianity lacks).

So what does Christianity offer us that is unique? What about communion (conversation, eating and drinking) at the same table as the God who created the heavens and the Earth? What about a personal relationship with a loving God who cares about someone so insignificant? What about a mentor who can teach us how to love so that we can restore this fallen world and thus usher in the Kingdom of God? If I didn't believe God could redeem this world, then I don't believe God can redeem me, and if God can't redeem me, then I have no business being here working towards useless goals. This body is as good as dead, for that is the only thing I can expect in life.

Jesus said Heaven and earth will pass away, so the kingdom you will be in will be the fullness of the kingdom God that He is building "now" (to us who are caught in time) to descend upon Earth with Jesus as it's rightful Lord and King. The victory is already won, the Kingdom of God is near! It will be already finished in eternity, you will be in a place where time has already ended, i.e. the world is no more, heaven is no more, just God and his Word in everlasting worship. If Abraham died, Isaiah died, and someone died 20 minutes before the rapture, they all will wake up to a Kingdom where everyone who will ever be there will be there already (if it is indeed outside time).

Of course this is contingent on a few things: 1) God being outside of time (the Eternal God) as opposed to the "Evolving God" model proposed by process theism and 2) God's sovereignty over all things in conjunction with the Truth of Human Free Will.