"The Body Of Christ" - I Corinthians 12
Friday, August 28, 2015
New Sermon - "The Body Of Christ" - I Corinthians 12
Last Sunday I had the privilege to preach at Crosspoint Community Church on
You can listen to the sermon audio at: http://www.crosspointcommunity.com/sermons/
Monday, August 24, 2015
To live and Pro-Life in Anchorage (Remix)
" But I tell you to love your enemies, and pray for those that persecute you"
- Jesus (Matt. 5:44)
"Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse."
- Paul (Rom. 12:14)
In light of the headline on the cover of today's (Aug. 24, 2015) Alaska Dispatch News that reads "Anchorage Gunfire: Four incidents leave 1 dead, 2 teens in critical condition" I am re-running this post from 2/17/15.
To date, there have been 18 homicides (five more than in all of 2014) in Anchorage in 2015.
- JK
Violence and death seem to be everywhere these days, or at least it feels like that to me. 2015 has opened with the national and international news being filled with ISIS beheadings, terror attacks in Paris and Copenhagen, the "war" on terrorism, and the residual coverage of Ferguson and Eric Garner. The local news in Anchorage hasn't been any better. Daily it seems the we hear of a new shooting or murder in the city. In fact after 2014 being the lowest year for murder in Alaska's largest city in 20 years (1), 2015 started with 31 firearm incidents with "credible evidence," 11 shootings, and 4 murders (all in one week) in January (2). As of this writing the city has seen 10 homicides this year after a total of 13 last year (3). It has been a violent year around the world, and close to home.
How do we respond to all this violence and death? It is a question I have been asking myself a lot in recent weeks. I have watched online where the typical (maybe even the prevailing) response seems to be the establishment of blame. I have overheard the citizens of my city recoil in shock that the gunfire has erupted in their neighborhood. I have noticed the tendency to quickly dismiss the departed as drug dealers, gang members, terrorists, targets, or Muslims. In each case the "othering" of the victims and/or those doing the shooting has left me feeling empty. The reactions that support the idea of redemptive violence do nothing to fill the void. The trite dismissal of those departed as getting what they deserve only makes the chasm in my soul larger.
I grew up in a world were I was taught to be "pro-life." In the context of that upbringing this meant believing that life starts at conception and that no baby should be aborted - something I still believe. Also while I was growing up I was taught that we didn't just kill animals unless it was for population control (deer) or they were raised for the purpose of food (cows, chickens, etc.). I was taught that all life sacred and not disposable. However, when I think back to those formative years, and reflect on what I'm hearing now, it seems that those of us who would say we are "pro-life" often value life more in some circumstances than others. It appears to me that if you are a fetus the value on your life is high, but if your a 14 year old kid shot in a drug deal your life is less valuable or even expendable. If you are a person of authority (solider/police officer) your life is deemed more important than others. I get the feeling that if your a Christian your life is somehow more valuable than a Muslim. It appears to me that we are often/always ranking the value of other peoples lives. What changed since conception? Does personal choice, circumstance, beliefs, or position change the value of ones life?
How should we be responding to the violence in our world and our city? Is the biblical response distancing ourselves from those involved based on proximity, perceived guilt, difference in beliefs or color - in short their "otherness."? Is the righteous response more violence, with the hope that it will bring about an end? Is the correct response to just continue on like nothing has happened? How do we live a life, and faith, that is holistically pro-life?
In Genesis 4 we read about the murder of Able by Cain. A couple things in that passage cause me to wonder about our response. First of all God does not kill Cain. Cain is punished, but God does not enter into redemptive violence. Furthermore, God marks Cain so that no one else will kill him for his sins either. God does not see the answer to Abel's murder to be more violence. Second, Abel's blood cries out from the ground and God hears it. How often are those that are killed in war, in terrorism, in a parking lot in our city just a news story to us? Who often do we see the death around us as a statistic? Do we stop to hear the blood of those slain crying out to God, and to us, from the ground?
Around the globe and around my city there is blood crying out to us from the ground. What is it saying? How do we bear witness to those departed? How do we honor life, and life lost? Can we choose to mourn those who have died without establishing blame...just mourn that a human life - a life created by God in in His image - that has ended? When was the last time we stopped in our Sunday worship services, or in our daily lives, to pray for the people we often think of as crime statistics? Can we open up our eyes and hearts to bear witness to the violence around us? Can we pray for the victims and the perpetrators? Can we cry out to God to make it stop?
Joel K
"War what is it good for? Absolutely nothing"
- Edwin Starr
(1) - http://www.adn.com/article/20150103/anchorage-sees-13-homicides-2014-fewest-2-decades
(2) - http://www.adn.com/article/20150129/spike-violent-crime-be-met-police-shakedowns
(3) - Number based on a search of http://www.raidsonline.com linked from the Anchorage Police Department website.
- Jesus (Matt. 5:44)
"Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse."
- Paul (Rom. 12:14)
In light of the headline on the cover of today's (Aug. 24, 2015) Alaska Dispatch News that reads "Anchorage Gunfire: Four incidents leave 1 dead, 2 teens in critical condition" I am re-running this post from 2/17/15.
To date, there have been 18 homicides (five more than in all of 2014) in Anchorage in 2015.
- JK
Violence and death seem to be everywhere these days, or at least it feels like that to me. 2015 has opened with the national and international news being filled with ISIS beheadings, terror attacks in Paris and Copenhagen, the "war" on terrorism, and the residual coverage of Ferguson and Eric Garner. The local news in Anchorage hasn't been any better. Daily it seems the we hear of a new shooting or murder in the city. In fact after 2014 being the lowest year for murder in Alaska's largest city in 20 years (1), 2015 started with 31 firearm incidents with "credible evidence," 11 shootings, and 4 murders (all in one week) in January (2). As of this writing the city has seen 10 homicides this year after a total of 13 last year (3). It has been a violent year around the world, and close to home.
How do we respond to all this violence and death? It is a question I have been asking myself a lot in recent weeks. I have watched online where the typical (maybe even the prevailing) response seems to be the establishment of blame. I have overheard the citizens of my city recoil in shock that the gunfire has erupted in their neighborhood. I have noticed the tendency to quickly dismiss the departed as drug dealers, gang members, terrorists, targets, or Muslims. In each case the "othering" of the victims and/or those doing the shooting has left me feeling empty. The reactions that support the idea of redemptive violence do nothing to fill the void. The trite dismissal of those departed as getting what they deserve only makes the chasm in my soul larger.
I grew up in a world were I was taught to be "pro-life." In the context of that upbringing this meant believing that life starts at conception and that no baby should be aborted - something I still believe. Also while I was growing up I was taught that we didn't just kill animals unless it was for population control (deer) or they were raised for the purpose of food (cows, chickens, etc.). I was taught that all life sacred and not disposable. However, when I think back to those formative years, and reflect on what I'm hearing now, it seems that those of us who would say we are "pro-life" often value life more in some circumstances than others. It appears to me that if you are a fetus the value on your life is high, but if your a 14 year old kid shot in a drug deal your life is less valuable or even expendable. If you are a person of authority (solider/police officer) your life is deemed more important than others. I get the feeling that if your a Christian your life is somehow more valuable than a Muslim. It appears to me that we are often/always ranking the value of other peoples lives. What changed since conception? Does personal choice, circumstance, beliefs, or position change the value of ones life?
How should we be responding to the violence in our world and our city? Is the biblical response distancing ourselves from those involved based on proximity, perceived guilt, difference in beliefs or color - in short their "otherness."? Is the righteous response more violence, with the hope that it will bring about an end? Is the correct response to just continue on like nothing has happened? How do we live a life, and faith, that is holistically pro-life?
In Genesis 4 we read about the murder of Able by Cain. A couple things in that passage cause me to wonder about our response. First of all God does not kill Cain. Cain is punished, but God does not enter into redemptive violence. Furthermore, God marks Cain so that no one else will kill him for his sins either. God does not see the answer to Abel's murder to be more violence. Second, Abel's blood cries out from the ground and God hears it. How often are those that are killed in war, in terrorism, in a parking lot in our city just a news story to us? Who often do we see the death around us as a statistic? Do we stop to hear the blood of those slain crying out to God, and to us, from the ground?
Around the globe and around my city there is blood crying out to us from the ground. What is it saying? How do we bear witness to those departed? How do we honor life, and life lost? Can we choose to mourn those who have died without establishing blame...just mourn that a human life - a life created by God in in His image - that has ended? When was the last time we stopped in our Sunday worship services, or in our daily lives, to pray for the people we often think of as crime statistics? Can we open up our eyes and hearts to bear witness to the violence around us? Can we pray for the victims and the perpetrators? Can we cry out to God to make it stop?
Joel K
"War what is it good for? Absolutely nothing"
- Edwin Starr
(1) - http://www.adn.com/article/20150103/anchorage-sees-13-homicides-2014-fewest-2-decades
(2) - http://www.adn.com/article/20150129/spike-violent-crime-be-met-police-shakedowns
(3) - Number based on a search of http://www.raidsonline.com linked from the Anchorage Police Department website.
Monday, August 17, 2015
Like Painting a Mustache On the Mona Lisa
Most Sunday's during my formative years the church service in my tradition ended with a four line song people referred to as simply "The Doxology." The real title was "Praise God, from Whom all Blessings Flow" which in reality is the last four lines of a longer hymn ("Awake, My Soul, and With the Sun"). The words of the "The Doxology" were written in 1674 by Thomas Ken and put to a tune from the Genevan Psalter (Old 100th) that was composed in 1551 by Louis Bourgeois. Thus, "The Doxology" has been serving the worshipping church for 340-465ish years.
In 2008, another Thomas - Thomas Miller - decided, that after continual service for longer than the United States has been a country, that the "The Doxology" needed new lyrics. Mr. Miller penned a new set of words, in particular a chorus made up mostly of "Praise God" and then copyrighted it. Let's notice two things here.
First, is the audacity that it takes to re-write a song that has stood the test of time - a LONG time. It is very much like someone deciding to paint a mustache on the Mona Lisa. Who, after 500 years thinks, "I don't think Leonardo da Vinci got it right, I need to fix his painting"? So it is with "The Doxology." Why does a classic, used for over 300 years, need a re-write and who has the guts to say "I can improve on this masterpiece"? We don't let people paint over masterpieces of fine art (or even touch them, or stand too close to them) - we leave them as the master works they are so that people can enjoy and admire them. We don't allow people to take large chunks of another person's writing and create a new work (which is plagiarism in the literary and academic world) that can be published or copyright protected.
Second, is the very matter of these hymn re-writes being under copyright. It smacks of pure profiteering for praise song writers to take a well known and popular hymn, tweak it (often slightly), and then be able to list it as an original work in order to receive royalty payments. Re-writing a popular song is a guaranteed way to get your work attention, it is a bit like rappers that sample in parts of other songs that are easily identifiable (they pay the other artists). The re-working of a hymn is sure to generate a ton of interest, use in worship, and if protected by copyright in your name, a pretty good revenue stream.
Maybe I'm too cynical, but I'd love to see priceless works of art, literary genius, and age old hymns left in a preserved and original state and not re-done for profit. Maybe I'm too idealistic, but I'd like to see our songwriters craft their own classics that can serve the church for 300, 500, or more, years. So here's to history and creativity!
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Straight Outta Dimond Estates...the Clash, Rob Bell & a sense of place.
Should I stay or should I go now?
Should I stay or should I go now?
If I go there will be trouble
An' if I stay it will be double
So come on and let me know
Should I stay or should I go?
- The Clash
I have been thinking about place a lot lately. Part of it has been in relation to the work I'm doing for school - thinking through cities as places and what makes a city. But more acutely I/we have been thinking about my/our physical place in this world. Nine years ago, armed with little more than good intentions, my family and I moved into Dimond Estates trailer park. As I woke up every day that summer my mind would flood with the thought "Crap, I live in a trailer park." Something about moving into a home that has wheels and a title filed with the Department of Motor Vehicles brought me face to face with some basis and feelings I didn't know had woven into my psyche.
Over the years I learned to love our neighborhood. It is a multi-cultural urban environment tucked away in South Anchorage's commercial district (a seemingly endless landscape of strip malls). On the other hand the park is a ramshackle collection of over 500 units of mostly sub-standard housing. There in lies the battle of place that has been raging inside of me. I love my neighborhood but I have developed a disdain for my house.
Starting last fall, when a broken shower fitting leaked water all over our bedroom and enhanced by a broken sewer line this spring, a discussion has been ongoing about moving into a new house. Our youngest daughter, who can't remember living anywhere else, has repeatedly stated that the trailer is home while my wife endlessly browsed for a new home on the Internet. Meanwhile I became the living embodiment of The Clash's song Should I Stay, Or Should I Go?
Nearly two weeks ago we looked at a house (this was the only house I personally have been interested in during this entire process due to the fact the Anchorage is LOADED with UGLY homes that cost a TON of money). The house was one of the 10 oldest homes in Anchorage. Built in 1914 to house government employees that had been brought to Anchorage (fresh off their work building the Panama Canal) by the federal government to build the Alaska Railroad. The house was awesome! A cute 960 square foot, two story, house on the bluff above Ship Creek in the oldest neighborhood in Anchorage. My historian side was alive, but my practical side won out. We simply could not move 5 people into that tiny house after living in our palatial 1300 square foot double wide (450 square feet ends up being a lot). So in the end that dream died.
This past Monday night I went for a run. As I stepped out the door I clicked on the newest episode of Rob Bell's (1) Podcast - The Rob Cast - as my workout soundtrack. Rob was talking about being from where you are. He was unpacking the idea of loving the place you are in, and if not moving. It was a version of the struggle my soul has been engaged in for nearly a year. As I ran, and listened, I was washed over with the feeling that our 1973 Kentwood doublewide is still home. I was baptized into the idea that we can stay - we can continue - we can love the place we are from.
Facebook this week has been loaded with images like the one above generated by a website promoting the upcoming movie Straight Out Of Compton and Beats Audio. I've seen a good many friends generate images declaring their pride in place. So I guess, in the end, what I'm trying to say is that I'm straight outta Dimond Estates...
(1) Ok, I know I just lost a bunch of readers right there because I mentioned Rob Bell. I'm coming out of the closet. I like Rob Bell. I'm not interested in debating Rob's theology (especially with those who have not read his books - in particular "Love Wins") with anyone so I won't be responding to comments posted about that.
I have learned a great deal from Rob over the years. At points in my life his teaching has rescued me from despair and given me hope, and frankly isn't that is what pastors/teachers/preachers are supposed to do? So I said it, I like Rob Bell.
Over the years I learned to love our neighborhood. It is a multi-cultural urban environment tucked away in South Anchorage's commercial district (a seemingly endless landscape of strip malls). On the other hand the park is a ramshackle collection of over 500 units of mostly sub-standard housing. There in lies the battle of place that has been raging inside of me. I love my neighborhood but I have developed a disdain for my house.
Starting last fall, when a broken shower fitting leaked water all over our bedroom and enhanced by a broken sewer line this spring, a discussion has been ongoing about moving into a new house. Our youngest daughter, who can't remember living anywhere else, has repeatedly stated that the trailer is home while my wife endlessly browsed for a new home on the Internet. Meanwhile I became the living embodiment of The Clash's song Should I Stay, Or Should I Go?
Nearly two weeks ago we looked at a house (this was the only house I personally have been interested in during this entire process due to the fact the Anchorage is LOADED with UGLY homes that cost a TON of money). The house was one of the 10 oldest homes in Anchorage. Built in 1914 to house government employees that had been brought to Anchorage (fresh off their work building the Panama Canal) by the federal government to build the Alaska Railroad. The house was awesome! A cute 960 square foot, two story, house on the bluff above Ship Creek in the oldest neighborhood in Anchorage. My historian side was alive, but my practical side won out. We simply could not move 5 people into that tiny house after living in our palatial 1300 square foot double wide (450 square feet ends up being a lot). So in the end that dream died.
This past Monday night I went for a run. As I stepped out the door I clicked on the newest episode of Rob Bell's (1) Podcast - The Rob Cast - as my workout soundtrack. Rob was talking about being from where you are. He was unpacking the idea of loving the place you are in, and if not moving. It was a version of the struggle my soul has been engaged in for nearly a year. As I ran, and listened, I was washed over with the feeling that our 1973 Kentwood doublewide is still home. I was baptized into the idea that we can stay - we can continue - we can love the place we are from.
Facebook this week has been loaded with images like the one above generated by a website promoting the upcoming movie Straight Out Of Compton and Beats Audio. I've seen a good many friends generate images declaring their pride in place. So I guess, in the end, what I'm trying to say is that I'm straight outta Dimond Estates...
(1) Ok, I know I just lost a bunch of readers right there because I mentioned Rob Bell. I'm coming out of the closet. I like Rob Bell. I'm not interested in debating Rob's theology (especially with those who have not read his books - in particular "Love Wins") with anyone so I won't be responding to comments posted about that.
I have learned a great deal from Rob over the years. At points in my life his teaching has rescued me from despair and given me hope, and frankly isn't that is what pastors/teachers/preachers are supposed to do? So I said it, I like Rob Bell.
Thursday, August 6, 2015
How dare you? (part II): Thoughts on Jeb Bush & Donald Trump
Tonight is the first Republican Presidential debate. While I will not be tuning in, I find two of the personalities debating to be very interesting. (1) The first candidate is Donald Trump. Trump has been gaining a great deal of attention because he has been leading in the polls. Let's be honest, The Donald would be getting attention no matter what. If you saw a guy with that hair in the grocery store it would get your attention, as would anyone who yells most everything he says and spouts off racist and objectionable phrases. Trump just gets attention, sort of like a screaming toddler at the mall or a car on fire next to the highway.
However, Trump has been getting a bunch of attention not just for his unique look or his paint stripper like personality, but because of what he has been saying. While announcing his candidacy he stated, "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. They're sending people that have lots of problems. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists, and some, I assume, are good people." (2) The Donald lost some business from that statement, notably Univision and NBC's contract to air the Miss USA pageant. (3) Trump hasn't just been out spoken about Hispanics, but also has stated that John McCain was not a war hero (4). There has been plenty of other criticism of Trump, but I'd like to contrast him with another candidate on the stage tonight, Jeb Bush, on the issue of Hispanics and race in America.
Jeb Bush (Jebcito as he's known) is fluent in Spanish. NPR notes that he, "grew up in Midland, Texas, he summered in Maine and went to prep school in Andover, Mass. And it was in high school that his path home really began. He met his wife, Columba, on a high school exchange trip to Mexico. In college, he majored in Latin American Studies. He converted to Catholicism, and he worked briefly in Venezuala. But the place he chose to put down roots was Miami." (5) By the mid-1980's Bush was viewed as "one of the most prominent members of the Hispanic community." (5) If Trump is firing his verbal weapons at Hispanics, Bush, by contrast has moved into the neighborhood drawing fire.
While Jeb Bush's appropriation of Hispanic culture raises eyebrows a bit in the wake of Rachel Dolezal (see my post on her here), he does offer a stark contrast to Trump. With the racial unrest America has been experiencing in the recent weeks, months, years, and decades, (or past 200+ years for that matter), do we really need a casino building blow-hard campaigning on racist ideals, or someone who can learn a culture and learn from those different than themselves? I am aware that at least one Christian magazine has promoted Trump as God's trumpet to the American people (6), but it is Jeb Bush that gives us a look into how one might live in a world with multiple cultures, and because of that, could offer a glimpse into what a plan forward might look like in a multi-cultural America.
There are signs all around us highlighting our inability to get along across racial lines - Charleston, Baltimore, Ferguson, etc. Those images are in contrast to the Bible which shows us a vision of Heaven where every tribe and every nation is gathered around the throne of God. I'm pretty sure that we don't get to that reality by scapegoating anyone. I am sure that the diversity God seeks doesn't happen through shouting that those people over there - those people different than me - are rdrug-dealing, criminals and rapists (7). What I do know is that if we want to make progress toward that heavenly vision, we better learn how to learn from those around us...no matter how different we think they are.
(1) I am in no way endorsing any candidate or political party. Period.
(2) http://www.npr.org/2015/06/29/418641198/nbc-dumps-donald-trump-over-comments-on-mexican-immigrants
(3) http://www.npr.org/2015/06/25/417516490/univision-cancels-miss-usa-over-donald-trumps-mexico-comments
(4) http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/07/19/424382469/trump-doubles-down-on-mccain-criticism-refusing-to-apologize
(5) http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/06/15/413927208/he-was-born-republican-royalty-but-jebcito-is-from-miami
(6) http://www.charismamag.com/blogs/prophetic-insight/23916-prophecy-donald-trump-shall-become-the-trumpet#comment-2163756669
(7) The historical precedent for this type of scapegoating shows that it doesn't end well by-the-way. Hitler anyone?
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