Cwillz Spills

If you are worried that this is going to be a post about economic theories and the all that, I assure you that it is not and you are safe to read on without having to sharpen any axes for the elephants or the donkeys.  This post is a commentary on two happenings in Luke’s account of Jesus’ life. To get the most out of this post, please read along with me Luke 18:18-19:9.

Luke chapters 18 and 19 contain two stories that when considered together are quite confusing.  They are known as “The Rich Ruler” and “Zacchaeus the Tax Collector”.   I’ve never considered the stories in relationship to each other, but looking at these stories, I am convinced that people would have been pretty pissed at Jesus for acting the way he did.  What do I mean? Well, He treats good people harshly and bad people kindly. Understatement. Here is the story:

The Rich Ruler – Luke 18:18-23

A certain ruler asked [Jesus], “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’”

“All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth. Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Let’s get the story straight. This rich ruler knew and kept all the Law’s commandments, even since he was a kid. That means he had never cheated anyone out of money and his riches were properly “his”, made either by simply the Lord’s blessing and a life of work in a clean conscience. Yet Jesus looks at him and gives him little hope at the eternal life.

There were people they that overheard what Jesus said and asked the natural question, “Who then can be saved?”

How many rulers and rich people get that way or stay that way by doing the right thing? This man had done everything the Law required, kept his nose clean, and Jesus still dealt harshly with him.  Who else stood a chance?

Jesus has his own way.  He is the King.  He answers the question in both word and deed.  The word is “What is impossible with men is possible with God“.  He describes how it is possible with God privately to his disciples in the next few verses. It is by his death and resurrection according to the scriptures that it is possible with God.

In fact, this power is demonstrated in an event that takes place between the two stories of the Rich Ruler and the Zacchaeus.  Jesus heals a blind guy:

As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”

He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.

⁴²Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” ⁴³Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.

Hold commentary on this bit for a while. Press on to Zacchaeus (yes this is the “wee little man”).

Zacchaeus the tax Collector

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a ‘sinner.’ “

But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”

Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

I’m laughing just thinking about the contrast between the story of the Rich Ruler and Zacchaeus.  Jesus pretty much denies the Rich Ruler, who had done the right thing and kept the Law, even came to Jesus asking how to get eternal life. Yet with Zacchaeus, who had made his fortune swindling and coercing, Jesus almost gives him no option but to come into salvation.  I can just imagine the frustration of the people around these two powerful men.  In their eyes, the one who had never done anything to hurt them and was a good ruler was treated like dirt, and the one who had literally stolen money from them shared a meal and salvation with Jesus! Scandal!

Not fair! By their own merits, the man who deserved grace is seemingly denied, yet the one who deserved to be condemned had his whole house saved!

Observations:

1) Jesus decides on whom to show mercy.

2) Both men were sinners.  One believed it, the other did not.  The Rich Ruler thought there was something he could do to get eternal life.  He thought himself capable.  Jesus’ direction to him to sell everything and give it away would have reduced this man to nothing in his own eyes – and the ruler was unwilling to do it.  Zacchaeus knew that he was incapable of saving himself, and had even embraced embraced his sin (he knew exactly how much he had stolen!), yetwhen the Lord came to his house that the Lord could save him and it was a game changer.  His generosity did not earn his salvation – it was a fitting response to the grace the Lord showed him.

3) The Rich Ruler sought personal gain (eternal life, even with Jesus, can be desired selfishly).  The Blind Man sought to be able to see, but knew Jesus already to be the Messiah, and therefore capable. That is why he yelled out for the Son of David. Zacchaeus went out looking for Jesus, but it never says why.  Either way, He was looking, and Jesus came to him.

4) The conclusion of Jesus’ parable in 18:9-14 explains these stories better than I have:

“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Did you make it all the way down here?

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillZ

Skinny review: Worth the read, answers problems within pop atheism and combative Christianity.

In late February, Ed tweeted about having some books available for bloggers to review.  I had him send me Becky Garrison‘s “The New Atheist Crusaders and Thier Unholy Grail: The Misguided Quest to Destroy Your Faith.”  The point was for me was to read and review in on my blog, and I imagine that it was supposed to happen faster, but here goes.

I didn’t know much about Becky before reading this book.  After reading the book, I am glad that has changed.  Why? Because she is smart, witty, confessional, and has a deep love for Jesus Christ.  By the title of the book, you can expect it to be a defense of faith against the “enemy” pop-academic atheists or agnostics like Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and people who contribute to blogs like “Why Won’t God Heal Amputees?”.  She has something to say to these people, while remaining sensitive to the sincere questioning and seeking going on by most people.

A main point of the book is that you cannot disprove the existence of God by the bad behavior of those who claim his name.  This bring the believer and unbeliever alike into the stark reality that not all who claim the name Christian have really considered what it means to follow Jesus Christ with not only thier minds but also their lives.  Garrison asks the same consideration from both those “in” and “out” of the faith: read the New Testament and consider the God that is there.  Then, ask yourself if this is what you follow.  If you want to follow this God, leave the rest behind.

I really was hesistant to read this work becasue I have been caught in the crossfire of those who have been wronged by churched Christians and those who are still finding grace in that context despite of the pain that comes through those within the instituions.  At any rate, once you catch a glimpse of the ugliness coming from both sides of the culture wars, a book with this title tends to repel you.  After all, the proverbs warn “Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
or you will be like him yourself.”  How many times have I wanted to “defend the faith”, when I could have been following Jesus by loving others instead?

However, this book seems to be more about encouraging us to join in God’s mysterious salvation and favor through a life lived with and in Christ instead of proving once and for all that aetheism sucks.  Since the church is also a great love of mine, I would like to provide this quote from Garrison as a conclusion:

As we all seek what it means to be the church in the twenty-first century, I’d love to take the New Atheists along for the ride. Maybe then they will see that we’re not black-and-white, cookie cutter, stereotypical Christians.  Rather, we’re a living, breathing body that, despite our earthly infirmities, seeks to be the embodiment of Christ here on earth.

Thanks Becky! I am better for reading it!

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillZ

The words and actions of Jesus have once again intersected with my present reality and thoughts in such a way that I want to record publicly.  This all kinda gelled together last night during our 20-somethings gathering’s discussion on the 6th chapter of John.  In this chapter, Jesus walks on water out to the disciples in the middle of strong weather.  For someone who has never experienced God by faith, this account is fairly far-fetched.

But for those of us that have been given the grace of noticing God’s redemptive work in our lives and all creation even, the fact that Jesus walks on water should be nothing.  Perhaps the greatest miracle in life is the warming of human hearts, whose fires are prone to be stifled by the worries and troubles of this world.

When Jesus calls his 12 closest disciples (students, followers, life-coachees), he asks these two brothers who were fishing to leave what they were doing and follow Him.  He says something peculiar: “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”

So I am trying to learn the art of fly fishing.  The interesting thing about fly fishing is that you try and “match the hatch” or use flies that look like the ones that are hatching from the river or that are landing on it.  Sometimes when you pick our which fly you want, it may not look exactly like the fly you want.  However, from the fish’s perspective it may look exactly what you need.

So the glorious moment comes when fish strike the fly.  The rise to the surface to grab it, sometimes breaking the plane of the top of the water.  In the most dramatic and exciting cases they will leap completely out of the water.  Glorious.

Sometimes when God’s grace is presented to people, we think that it will happen like when we are fishing on top of the water, expecting people to be completely hungry for God’s grace and jump out of their lives into a new life in faith.  When that happens, it is glorious.  However, when the world is a muddy river, the best and prettiest fly on top of the water will not always be seen.

However, Simon Peter and Andrew were fishing with nets on the sea of Galilee.  It seems that Jesus’ and the disciples way of fishing meant going deep into the unknown with nets.  Like the days after Pentecost when the “Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved”, it seems that results come from when people imitate Jesus, who risked everything to dive into our world to save us from our sins, and then risked everything again by putting a handful of broken people in charge of taking God’s message, love, grace to the world and forming His people, the Church.  Wow.

Now with the power that raised Christ from the dead working in us, may we seek to do his will.  Let us who have been walking on top of the water by faith consider holding onto life on top of the water something to keep for ourselves.  Let us dive deep into the unknown and dare to love people where they are and show them the top of the water, being pulled up with them in the inescapable clutches of God grace.

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillZ

Krista Tippet and Zondervan recently teamed up to host a discussion with Charles Colson, Greg Boyd, and Shane Clairborne about Evangelicals and politics.  There is great input from all three, exploring the tensions that I like to  flesh out with my friends like Neil, Adam, Jennifer, Scott, Ben, Dauthan, Bryant, my small group, and others.  Here is a small taste:

The full versions are available(web stream or MP3 download) on the Speaking of Faith site and on iTunes for free.

A few of my thoughts:

1) I want to be like all 3 of these men when I grow up.  Each has been very faithful with what God has given them.

2) I felt a little bad for Chuck Colson because I think he didn’t get a chance to speak as much.  Maybe that isn’t true, but I really wanted him to say more.

3) Notice there are honest and somewhat should-be abrupt disagreements between these men (the most obvious being Shane’s blatant anti-military stance), but it is clear  that these guys are on the same team.  Hopefully the core group of people that follow each of them agree on that.

4) Greg’s story about mixing nationalism and faith really hits home with me.  It bothers me deeply that many Christians I know’s view of Christ is inseperably entangled in Americana.  See this post.

5) Where are the women? Momma T!

6)Where are the minorities? Discussion about Dr.King does happen quite a bit in the session, which is a starting point for the necessary inclusion of minority voices.

7) Colson is a tough old man and I love his fatherly tone when he suggests that others need to have the courage “take a political stance” and go from there.

There seems to be a big tension between Augustinian thought and Jesus thought, or at least the expressions from those who emphasize one over the other.

Which one of these men would you vote for if all three were running for president?

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillZ

Our posture to the world needs to be one of hands raised in support, open, steady, and supported by the fear and love of God.  All too often we start with open, supportive, weak-yet-empowered hands that influence out world and fellow humans towards love, justice, peace, and godliness–only to later close our fists to grasp control, not realizing that a closed hand will eventually lead to a closed heart and a saltless life that is only a shell of the Gospel which once was allowed to live through us.

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillz

This might be a disappointment to some of you, but the question I asked today was not about the future of America nor of out newly inaugurated President. I would like to give reason for the lack of blogging recently. My explanation for this behavior is simple: sometimes it is good to think out loud so that everyone can read it, and other times it is necessary to do one’s sorting in private or with close friends. Anyway, it is my blog, right?

Down to it. What I have been learning in a very real, very meaningful way over the last few months is that each and every moment of our lives is an opportunity for us to trust in the goodness of God. By “goodness of God” I mean that He loves us and I have no clue how. More on that the “goodness of God” means later (see C.S. Lewis’ “The Problem of Pain” Ch. 3 for more). What it means to trust in the goodness of God for me right now is this:

The next phase of my life will be spent teaching, pastoring, preaching, or learning how to do those things better in the following location: right where I am, the Czech Republic, China, Spain, any one of a smattering of communities new to me across the United States, seminary, or itinerant preaching. Also, don’t forget to account for variable change.

So today I was a little fried about trying to imagine what the next step may be. After requesting that my fellow staff members at church pray for wisdom and discernment, and then venting for about 20 minutes to a close friend, I finally came to the point where I took it to God in prayer. (this is backwards and frankly stupid, but real).

I have been learning to pray with child-like faith. Today that child was a little girl. With my face on the floor, a pouty lip and erratic kicking of the legs I asked God the question. “Where do you want me?”

If you have ever asked this question you may at first, like me, be proud of yourself for making yourself available to God. This is a good thing, but for me it contains some pride. Just because I am talented, available, and stunningly good looking doesn’t mean that God has to want me to do anything for him. Where did I get this entitlement from?

God’s answer, which I barely heard through my erupting case of LGS, was humbling and loving at the same time.

“Right here, in My arms.”

Please pray that my heart would be open, warm, and vulnerable enough with God to be able to be right where he wants me. However and whenever that may be.

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillz

This is one of those words I have read time and time again and pretended to know what it meant.  Malleable.  I looked it up about a week ago and have been thinking about it since.

Malleable means “able to be hammered or pressed permanently out of shape without breaking or cracking.”

In January I sat around a table with other Christian Ed seniors from Taylor.  Somehow the conversation turned to motivation and how “God got a hold of us”.  Our professor highlighted the extremes (paraphrase):  “For some people it like God just whispers in their ear, for others it is like God knocks them flat on their face.”  When he said the last part, I involuntarily agreed aloud and my contemporaries noticed laughingly.

God is a good father and knows what we need much better than we do.  At just the right time, He will move in our lives in innumerable ways.  I hear God in whispers, but God also gets a hold of me driving me to my knees and face. Sometimes — sometimes often–it is like God needs to pound us out to shape us like a metalworker beautifies his art or makes a tool for a specific job.  I often imagine my close friends watching what God is doing with/to/in/through me and cringing like parents who have to let their children go into surgery.

Malleable.  Able to be pounded on without breaking or cracking.  Sometimes I wonder just how hard and how long God needs to pound.  I think that the next blow will break me.

“Just trust me,” He says.  He works and works.  It hurts.  The work is all his.  It’s like getting a root canal.  When he is done, its often sore for a while, but its better. Again, its what you need/ed.  When the hammer falls, it is our option to surrender and ask that His will be done.  In surrender, we love and trust that His pounding is making us into what he wants and needs.  His pounding will not break or crack us if we surrender to Him.

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillZ

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14

This verse was the focus of a book that an informal group of friends and I read in high school called The God Chasers by Tommy Tenny.  We read the book together, prayed for each other, served our community, had fun (at times way too much).  This was just one of the ways that God got a hold of a group of us as young people in Columbus, IN.

Often this motley crew would hang out or meet without specific agenda, sometimes just to pray for each other, people close to us, our city, our country, our families, against spiritual attacks.  We longed to see God come and have His way.  We also spent time studying the Bible and digging into things that were important to us.

Some of our prayers were answered immediately, others seemed to be ignored.  From what I can remember, many of mine got answered in a much better way than what I asked for.

I remember several of our leaders in the various ministries that we were involved in would often tell us that they really thought that God was going to use our generation of young people in big ways.  In those few years, we saw many of our friends come to follow Jesus for the first time — all to the glory of God. 

Today I think about where that group is and what God is doing with us.  I rejoice that many of us our still about the business of the Kingdom, many of us in some form of ministry.  Here is where a few of us from this group are serving today:

John Bundick is Youth Director @ Hartford City UMC.  He has an iPhone and pushes students to love without ceasing.

Jon Boriss is a doing a creative arts internship @ 2|42 Community Church in where he claims to work with the best middle and high school students ever in Whitmore Lake, MI.

Tim Hollowell teaches at John Marshall Community High School (IPS), in Indianapolis.

Lindsey Bodine continues to love students at North View Assembly of God in Columbus, IN.

Katie Proctor is Youth Director @ Faith Luthern Church in Andover, MA.

Many of our friends continue to faithfully seek God and love others in their churches, communities, and online.

I am very happy to be a part of a generation of people who started as young people and are now spending our lives advancing the Kingdom by leading and loving others. 

On behalf of all of those mentioned here and the countless others, thank you to all of our youth workers, pastors, volunteers and parents.  Every time you hosted a club, youth group, donated, prayed for us, took phone calls, or encouraged us you were teaching us how to love and live. 

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9

A note to all of us:  Keep going.  It is worth it.

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillz

Someone told me this, and its a good story.  I have changed the names to protect the identity of the teller.

“I realized today that I have been looking down and wading through all the bad things I have been dealing with.  I have been saying, ‘Look at how nasty this crap is.  Why is this so bad? Look at all this crap!’

“Then it was like God said, ‘Filex, look up’.  When I looked up I saw a rope dangling just within reach above my head. I had hot had time to notice the rope because I was so focused on the crap.”

What a great story. There are so many time that life is like that.  It makes me think of when Peter was walking on the water towards Jesus.  As long as he looked at Jesus, he was fine, but when he became afraid of the winds, he began to sink.

May the Lord’s will be done,

CWillZ