northpoint notes

When the children of Israel crossed the Jordan (on dry land) God instructed Joshua to have twelve men pick up one stone each from the middle of the Jordan (where the priests had stood as they crossed; put the stones on their shoulders and to carry them to the place they were camping that first night. These stones were to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever. Whenever future generations passed by and asked why these stones were stacked in a pile they would be told that they had walked across on dry ground. The stones were a memorial of what God had done. There are other places in Scripture where they followed a similar practice.

Several months ago I visited the cemetery where my parents are buried and found the grave markers – stones place there to mark where they are buried and give the dates of their births and deaths. Standing at the foot of their graves, my mind was flooded with memories. Every stone in the cemetery marks more than a burial plot. They represent stories – stories of sadness, of joy, of relationships.

I have tried to think about markers in my life – what memorials are there to remind me of those things God has done? I thought of several:

• We have boxes and albums and computer files of pictures. Every picture tells a story. I was recently given a packet of pictures that included my parents’ wedding picture, pictures of my grandparents, great-grandparents and great-great grandparents. Each one tells a story – a wedding – a war – a man of prayer – simple farmers.
• We have certificates, diplomas, ribbons representing seminars attended, degrees earned, events entered – all are reminders of events requiring trust in God.
• I have received plaques recognizing years of service in particular ministries. While my name is on them, they really are the story of God and what He has done through the years.
• Perhaps the most significant for me are the containers of cards received through the years. There are expressions of appreciation for a particular ministry, graduation invitations, funeral cards. Once in a while I look through those cards and remember someones story and what God did in that life.

We need those memorial stones – those prompts that urge us to tell stories to our children and grandchildren. They need to hear about the events – lessons learned – experiences in our lives and the role of faith in our journey.

I have been trying to understand this ministry of making disciples and have been trying to grasp the relationship between Jesus and His followers. 12 traveled with Him and there appears to be an inner circle of three (Peter – James – John). We know there were more than 12 because Luke records (chapter 6) that after spending a night in prayer, Jesus called His disciples to Him and chose 12 to be with Him.

One of the questions I’m wrestling with is, “why did they follow?” What was there about Jesus that caused them to follow? Was it the miracles? The Message? Was Jesus a compelling, charismatic personality that naturally attracted people? Was it the promises – promises they would do greater things? promises regarding the Kingdom of God? Promises of eternal life? Was it a combination of all of the above?

At what point did that grasp mission? When did they understand that His ministry was about more than miracles and preaching truth but about multiplying disciples? Did they grasp it through  His teaching? Through what He modeled? Or did they not comprehend until the Holy Spirit came on them at Pentecost?

We live in a culture in which the majority of the population claims to be “Christian;” but what does that mean? Do we claim Christianity because we are not something else – Hindu, Islam, etc. Do we follow Christ because of the promise of eternal life or the  hope of miracles? As I listen to many, their faith is all about trusting God to change circumstances to make their lives more comfortable. There seems to be little sense of mission. We tend to expect things from God rather than offering ourselves to God to be spent in reaching the world for him.

What will it take for the church in North America to have a great sense of mission and a lesser sense of entitlement from God?

I think there must be an organization somewhere to save every imaginable species on earth. We are all about saving whales, owls, woodpeckers and salmon. People are paid good wages to monitor the health of plant species and insure their environment does not change lest the plant die. We are now working to “save the planet” from ourselves no less. It seems like a rather large task for such finite minds but nevertheless we try.

We take on these projects – these causes because “they can’t help themselves.” Whales and owls and woodpeckers and salmon and plant species can’t help themselves so someone must step in and help them. We celebrate when a species rebounds from the brink of extinction.

But I have been wondering. Why do we work so hard at saving plants and animals but allow relationships to erode and be dismissed so easily. I have had conversations with couples whose marriages are in trouble – who are thinking of ending the relationship. I have had conversations with those who are on the other side of a broken marriage. I have seen the pain – heard the cries and have wanted at times to scream “WILL SOMEONE RALLY TO SAVE RELATIONSHIPS” and in particular, marriages?

People get upset when they see a beached whale. I weep when I see couples wounding each other and walking away from a relationship that began with hope and trust and commitment. I watch as children wonder if they are the problem and if they will have to choose one parent over another.

Just as it takes work to save the whales, it takes work to save a marriage. It requires time, energy, vulnerability, humility and a desire to make it work. I’m sure life without whales and owls would be different but life without relationships would be tragic. The most sacred of relationships (marriage) deserves every effort to make it work.

Even as I wrote these paragraphs I received a phone call regarding another person who has taken steps to destroy a marriage and I grieve.

Prayer is typically viewed as a very passive activity. It can be done anywhere – anytime. We may lie down, sit, stand, kneel, walk or drive and pray. We can pray silently, audibly, or loudly. It doesn’t require us to “do” anything except have a conversation with God. Perhaps that is the greatest miracle of prayer is that it requires nothing of us except a conversation with God and then we leave the results of our praying in His hands believing that God is able to do more than we can imagine or think.

With that in mind, a team of 5 spent the day yesterday at a children’s camp of more than 400 campers and counselors. We met with chapel speakers and prayed for them. We walked the camp and prayed – prayed for students – prayed for counselors – prayed speakers and other staff. We prayed for protection – for blessing – for relationships – for refreshing – for strength – for campers to understand the message of Jesus and trust Him.

We didn’t counsel. We didn’t participate in any games. We had limited interaction except for the occasional “thank you for being here,” from counselors and staff.

We watched God work to build relationships, to ignite faith, renew strength, and equip chapel speakers.

When we left, we were tired. We did nothing except walk, sit, stand and pray. Our work was mostly an invisible work – the results were visible but the work – the battle was invisible. We were standing in the gap between the forces of an invisible enemy and a God who was seeking relationship with 400+ people at a children’s camp.

I can be nostalgic at times – especially when I am with siblings. It is a way of connecting with them through shared experiences. We recall childhood games, houses we called home, pets we shared, disappointments and achievements. We remember loved ones who have died and even talk of those whose stories we have heard but never met.

Our family has boxes of pictures collected through the years by our mother. My sisters have sorted and tried to make copies for each of us of any pictures we might want. This last week-end I was given pictures of my grandparents, great-grandparents and great-great-grandparents. I knew three of the six – have heard stories of the prayer life of my great-grandfather, but know nothing of my great-great-grandparents (Aaron and Martha). I like hearing their stories. It gives me a connection with my heritage.

Jesus talked about remembering – at the last supper, He told them to remember Him every time they ate of the bread and drank of the cup. This was more than a nostalgic recollection. It was a re-commitment – a renewal of the covenant relationship.

The Apostle Paul urged the Ephesian (2:11-22) church to remember what they once were. It was to show them what Christ had done for them. Since I can’t return to ancient Ephesus, I’m trying to understand what Paul was saying and why. Paul was in prison. Ephesus was a rather cosmopolitan city on the western edge of modern Turkey. It had an estimated population of 250,000 with a sizable enough Jewish population to support a temple (Paul taught there) and an estimated Christian population of perhaps 1,000. There were temples for the worship of Artemis (primary religious focus) and temples for the worship of the Roman ruler of the day.

Some questions going through my mind:

• Were these believers discouraged and in need of a reminder of what God had provided through His grace?
• Were they in danger of returning to the worship of Artemis or the Roman rulers and in need of a reminder that God had provided something Artemis or the Roman rulers could not?
• Were they simply having difficulty in their new faith and in need of instruction about what God was doing to build them into a temple for His dwelling?
• Were they in danger of integrating Christian faith with the worship of Artemis and ruler worship and in need of a clear call to pursue Christ.
• Are there parallels for the Church today?

I have tried to imagine being a believer in a culture that is 4/10 of 1% Christian – an incredible minority – in a culture where other faiths are hostile to Christianity. It would be easy to be discouraged. Perhaps the setting of the church is not as significant as Paul’s setting. Paul writes from prison and essentially tells them that regardless of their setting, God had done, is doing and will continue to do a work in their lives and that following Him provides a future and a hope.

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. – Matthew 9:36

Throughout my ministerial training there was a great emphasis on the importance of pastors caring for the “flock” – the “sheep” God had entrusted to them. “Sheep” were those people who were members or faithful attenders of the local body of believers. References to Jesus’ instructions to Peter in John 21 (feed my sheep) were almost always used to admonish pastors to teach the Word faithfully to the flock gathered on Sundays, Wednesdays and any other time they assembled.

While I don’t totally disagree with that responsibility for the flock that assembles, it is obvious that Jesus saw His flock differently. He recognized that some were lost, harassed, caught in the stuff of life and unable to assemble with the rest of the sheep either because of distraction or because they weren’t aware there was a safe place for sheep to gather and feed. So sheep gather in dangerous places or wonder alone – lost and helpless.

The “sheep crossing” sign was a gift – not because I am a pastor but because I once raised sheep. It has served to remind me that nearly every where I turn, there are sheep. There are sheep at the local Walmart, in the neighborhood park, driving down the interstate, sitting in government offices, attending classes at the local university or public school. Some are harassed, caught in addictions and unhealthy relationships and totally lost.

We have this incredible opportunity to seek the lost sheep and show them a Shepherd who can lead them to green pastures and still waters and to places of safety.

Scriptures tell us that Jesus was tempted in every way as we are. 

Because He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted. – Hebrews 2:18

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. – Hebrews 4:15

In addition to temptation, Jesus had other experiences that helped Him identify with the human experience:

• He experienced 1st century family life - a self-employed father, mother and siblings (and perhaps sibling rivalry).
• He experienced a family of faith – parents who believed the word of the angelic messengers and fled to protect their son. Parents who certainly had to trust in God for provision for a trip to Egypt. Was this the reason for the gold, frankincense and myrrh? Did the Magi arrive just in time for them to leave for Egypt?
• He experienced work in the carpenter’s shop.
• He experienced relocation – uprooting of family when they fled to Egypt and when they returned – assuming he had boyhood friends, He experienced the sadness of leaving them behind.
• Knowing that He was without sin would He have experienced teasing as a teen for not participating in activities that others may have been doing?

If He was fully man and His heavenly Father was able to provide for Him, meet His needs and keep Him from sin, is our heavenly Father able to do the same for His children who trust in Him today? Can He keep us faithful? Comfort us when wronged? Encourage us during times of disappointment? Provide those just-in-time resources?