Clothesline April 2007

Greetings to all on 6 APR 2007

Word for the Day
Metamorphosis - a marked change in appearance, character, condition, or function.

Quote for the Day
Following Jesus doesn’t get us where we want to go. It gets us to where Jesus goes, where we meet him in Resurrection surprise: “My Lord and my God.” [1]

Website for the Day
Check out Terry Rush (Tulsa) at www.terryrush.blogspot.com
and Mike Cope (Abilene) at www.preachermike.com

Thought for the Day
When we are traveling and unsure about our route, it is me who insists on asking for directions and Pam who assures me that we can find our way without help. In that respect, we are the reverse stereotypical couple. Another common male stereotype is that we don’t read assembly or instruction manuals. Well, at least not until we’ve screwed all the pieces together and discovered that it doesn’t work! Or, it works but we have several parts left over and that doesn’t even bother us. We just assume there were extra items in package C.

This male characteristic prompted Pam to observe a paradoxical corollary. We refuse to read the instructions or ask directions because we are in a hurry to see the result or arrive at the destination. And, I suspect, we also hate to admit that we might need help! So why is it that only for our “church manual” do we insist on reading, assimilating, and painstakingly following all the instructions? It’s as if, all of a sudden, we believe that it is up to us to get it all right. Although, we do seem to retain the practice of sorting out some parts as extras that weren’t really intended for our use.

Most of you are aware of the many debates conducted over the past 150 years. The work of Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit), a cappella versus accompanied singing, and divorce/remarriage have all been openly contested as part of our effort to get it exactly right. For most of the 19th and 20th centuries we believed that rational men (not women) could read the text and come to absolute agreement.

The mortar of the wall is crumbling and allowing the bricks to fall out of place. In our post-modern world, I believe, the Ruach HaKodesh is moving us toward unity - not uniformity. Yes, there are absolute truths, but I contend not as many as we have claimed or, at least, implied. Requiring Sunday School is not an absolute truth. Meeting twice on Sunday is not an absolute; neither is a full-time staff. And those are just some minor points.

Perhaps having a few parts left over isn’t so bad as long as we are making progress toward completion. As one old preacher used to say, we suffer from the “paralysis of analysis.” When asked about the two greatest commands, Jesus’ response was consistent, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets.” [MAT 22.37] I know that we can agree on that. The question is, how do we show love to our neighbor? Notice the stark absence of most of the commands that we have codified in our instruction manual. Could it be that Jesus’ words and life show us that if we focus on these two primary commands, we will be getting it right?

We have always read and taught that the word is “living and active;” we just never reflected on what it means to be alive. Living implies breath (Holy Spirit), growth (change), and maybe even metamorphosis. Isn’t that the path along which God calls us to travel? Even when we don’t know the destination. Using today’s language, we are called to an Extreme Makeover. My result will not be identical to yours. We have different starting points, different natural talents, and different Spirit imbued gifts. Paul says that we have received the Spirit of God, “that we might understand the gifts bestowed on us by God.” [1COR 2.1-13] My study of the text may not lead me to exactly the same conclusions as you; not because the Ruach HaKodesh is flawed, but because we each receive our own message - custom tailored just for us - if we are willing to listen. Some of you might remember an old gospel preacher named Harvey Starling. I can still see him pause, lean out over the pulpit and punctuate his point with, “Are you listening?”

May God Bless
Mike Toole
Lori Moores, ed.

1. Eugene Peterson, The Jesus Way, found in Christianity Today, Apr 2007, p.78