Sure It Does A Body Good, But First You Have To Taste And See

In We’re Not Like That Church Down The Street, Richard points out that most churches believe that they are less watered-down than all the rest of the churches.

As a matter of fact, in a particular consulting season, I asked about ten churches in a row if they considered themselves “deeper” than the other churches in their community. Ten out of ten, despite being from different denominations and of different sizes, all claimed to be “deep”. Go figure! Maybe those are just the churches that hire marketing consultants . Maybe it’s that we all value depth and feel as though we’ve nailed it. Either way, we might just be missing it if we feel we have a unique claim on truth—or assume that others fall so short.

Recently Ryan addressed this issue as well in Neglecting The Weightier Matters.

I think it rather comical/ignorant that so many Christan’s  in the first category think that the Emerging church is taking over and that liberal/humanistic and social theology is on the rise. Yet, if they visited  any churches at all in America or just in the south, they would not hear anything about change at all towards being emergent or social, they would hear the same old thing they’ve heard for years, with a little bit of church growth techniques thrown in every once in a while.

With all the discussion about Calvinism and Total Depravity going on lately, I realize that the church seems to be divided into a few different camps.

1. Focus on Church Growth (Evangelism)
2. Focus on Spiritual Health (Edification)
3. Focus on Temporal Needs (Missions)

There is value in all three of these, but there must be a balance involved as well. More than balance, we need to remember Christ’s primary mission.

And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham, for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” — Luke 19:10

Salvation is the principle work of the Bible. The entire Bible is a love of story of God’s heart to redeem miserable, fallen humanity.  Too often we get bogged down in service, and forget to learn.

But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away.” — Luke 10:40-42

How many times do churches read that and then try to pass along the guilt trip to those who aren’t serving, because if they helped out a little bit, the busybodies wouldn’t be so bogged down.

But they miss the whole point.

The busybodies don’t need less to do, they need to do less.

So it’s better to sit at the feet of Jesus than it is to serve?
At times, it is better. But we must also remember that if all we do is sit around, we will lose our ability to do much else. “Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies” (1 Corinthians 8:1).

We know that love is not merely an emotion, but it is a state of mind. It is action.

Love sufers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. — 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

So it’s important to evangelize. It’s important to grow spiritually. It’s important to serve help the poor. But all of our service to God and man must be done with love at the core.

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have no love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. — 1 Corinthians 13:1

Paul is saying that if we exhibit great external signs for all the world to see and yet do not have God-given love, we are simply making noise.

And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. — 1 Corinthians 13:2

Paul is saying that no matter how much we edify and strengthen other believers, if it is done for anything other than purely selfless motivations, there is no benefit to us.

And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. — 1 Corinthians 13:3

Again, if we devote our lives to meeting the physical needs of the poor and needy in this world, and yet are not doing it out of a loving heart, we miss the whole point.

The Colors of Advent

My friend Amber sent me a big long thing with tons of information about Advent. I am not sure what its original source is, but I figured it would be interesting to repost it piece by piece.

In the four weeks of Advent the third Sunday came to be a time of rejoicing that the fasting was almost over (in some traditions it is called Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin word for “rejoice”). The shift from the purple of the Season to pink or rose for the third Sunday Advent candles reflected this lessening emphasis on penitence as attention turned more to celebration of the season.

In recent times, however, Advent has undergone a shift in emphasis, reflected in a change of colors used in many churches.  Except in the Eastern churches, the penitential aspect of the Season has been almost totally replaced by an emphasis on hope and anticipation.

In many churches the third Sunday remains the Sunday of Joy marked by pink or rose. However, most Protestant churches now use blue to distinguish the Season of Advent from Lent. Royal Blue is sometimes used as a symbol of royalty. Some churches use Bright Blue to symbolize the night sky, the anticipation of the impending announcement of the Kingʼs coming, or to symbolize the waters of Genesis 1, the beginning of a new creation. Some churches, including some Catholic churches, use blue violet to preserve the traditional use of purple while providing a visual distinction between the purple or red violet of Lent.

With the shift to blue for Advent in most non-Catholic churches, there is also a tendency to move pink to the Fourth Sunday of Advent.  It still remains associated with Joy, but is increasingly used as the climax of the Advent Season on the last Sunday before Christmas.

Red and Green are more secular colors of Christmas. Although they derive from older European practices of using evergreens and holly to symbolize ongoing life and hope that Christʼs birth brings into a cold world, they are not used as liturgical colors during Advent since they have other uses in other parts of the church year.

The word Advent means “coming” or “arrival.” The focus of the entire season is the celebration of the birth of Jesus the Christ in his First Advent, and the anticipation of the return of Christ the King in his Second Advent. Thus, Advent is far more than simply marking a 2,000 year old event in history. It is celebrating a truth about God, the revelation of God in Christ whereby all of creation might be reconciled to God. That is a process in which we now participate, and the consummation of which we anticipate. Scripture reading for Advent will reflect this emphasis on the Second Advent, including themes of accountability for faithfulness at His coming, judgment on sin, and the hope of eternal life.

In this double focus on past and future, Advent also symbolizes the spiritual journey of individuals and a congregation, as they affirm that Christ has come, that He is present in the world today, and that He will come again in power. That acknowledgment provides a basis for Kingdom ethics, for holy living arising from a profound sense that we live “between the times” and are called to be faithful stewards of what is entrusted to us as Godʼs people. So, as the church celebrates Godʼs inbreaking into history in the Incarnation, and anticipates a future consummation to that history for which “all creation is groaning awaiting its redemption,” it also confesses its own responsibility as a people commissioned to “love the Lord your God with all your heart” and to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

Historically, the primary sanctuary color of Advent is Purple. This is the color of penitence and fasting as well as the color of royalty to welcome the Advent of the King.  Purple is still used in Catholic churches.  The purple of Advent is also the color of suffering used during Lent and Holy Week.  This points to an important connection between Jesusʼ birth and death. The nativity, the Incarnation, cannot be separated from the crucifixion. The purpose of Jesusʼ coming into the world, of the “Word made flesh” and dwelling among us, is to reveal God and His grace to the world through Jesusʼ life and teaching, but also through his suffering, death, and resurrection. To reflect this emphasis, originally Advent was a time of penitence and fasting, much as the Season of Lent and so shared the color of Lent.

Drumming Technique