Lent Examination: Fear

This week we’ve been talking about becoming too familiar with the idea of Jesus.  The question being: is the gospel an active reality in our lives, or have we accidentally reduced the message of forgiveness, peace with God and the Kingdom of heaven to the realm of inspirational fairy-tale?  There is a tendency to become inoculated to power of the gospel by exposure to shallow, selfish versions of the gospel.

Inoculation is subtle.  Tiny little introductions that render us immune.  Take the Chicken Pox vaccine: our children get just the tiniest exposure to Chicken Pox so their bodies naturally avoid a full-blown case of the disease.  Inoculation is a great idea for Chicken Pox.  Terrible for the message Jesus promoted: the Kingdom of God.

Fear is a great antibody and indicator.  It’s presence ensures against a Kingdom outbreak.  It seems everyday I have conversations with people who are owned by some fear: economic, environmental, political or otherwise.  While some of these fears are natural and perhaps even warranted in some cases, fear compels people of “faith” to fight or flight, both quite opposed the message of Jesus.  Let’s face it, behind every fear is some face or collection of faces upon whom we’ve thrust responsibility for what we fear.  “It’s their fault!”  Fear makes easy enemies.

Look, I’m not suggesting that everyone will magically join the Kingdom of God.  But I think an examination of ourselves is in order.  Who do we run from?  Who do we believe we are fighting?  Why have we excluded them from the transforming power of the gospel?  Is the way I speak about _________ helpful to the gospel, or am I promoting my own fear?

I am broken by the idea that we may have heard the message of the gospel in doses so small and so selfish that they have left us underwhelmed and completely able to avoid it’s power.  If the resurrection is a reality that we will also one day experience, why bother with fear?

“If we cannot be transformed, we will settle for being informed or conformed.” – John Ortberg

Reading John 2 and 3…

(BTW, I’ve spoken on this in a couple of churches, so if we’re real live friends you may have heard me talk about this already.)

John 2:23-3:2 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust (same word we translate as “have faith“) himself to them, because he knew all (people) and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.  Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him…”  (same word “anthropos” in the Greek)

So Jesus is doing some miracles; we don’t know exactly what, only one is recorded: the water into wine miracle.  Then there is the temple tirade.  People began to believe on him based on his actions.  Apparently Jesus was not impressed by this kind of belief.  One way of interacting with this scripture might be to read it as, “He did not put his faith in them.”  He didn’t find their faith genuine.  He knew what was in a man; knew their countenance.

When the first of the recorded Nicodemus conversations begins, John, the author wants his readers to know that Jesus knew what this guy was about.  Chapter 2 concludes with, “(he) needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.”  Chapter 3 begins, “Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus…”  Jesus already knows him.  This might be the reason Jesus feels so comfortable changing the conversation from Nicodemus’ questions to what lies behind those questions.

Nic says, “You are from God.”

Jesus replies, “Yeah… you have to be born a second time.”  It’s not the same thought.  But Jesus knows what’s in a man.

Then Nic waxes silly, “Like I’m going to return to my mother’s womb.  You’re a funny one, Jesus.”

Now the rabbis of the time described converts to their religion as being born again (or born from above).  I find it doubtful that Nicodemus completely misses Jesus’ implication that this ruler of Israel needed to experience a transformation similar to the one a Gentile convert might undergo.  This is not a spiritual additive or a correction to Nicodemus’ behavior.  This is utter renewal by water and the Spirit (editors note: there is much scholarly discrepancy as to the meaning of the word “water,” but for our purposes today, we’ll simply use it in conjunction with the work of the Spirit).

Jesus knows what is in a man.  He knows what lies behind the surface of my questions and yours.  Thankfully he doesn’t offer a system of actions to be performed, but rather complete, heavenly transformation.  “Born-again” isn’t a tag to describe ourselves.  It is a condition we inherit when we are honest enough about our own “man,” our own countenance, to accept the change he offers by the breath (Spirit) of God.

Remember your need.  Remember your transformation.  As we embrace this season of repentance consider, “Jesus knows what is within me,” and respond accordingly.

Ream Reader and Blogger Chris Swenson sent me the following.  I think his thoughts on the beginning of Lent ring true for a lot of us who have an Evangelical background and have begun searching for deeper, older ways of connecting with Christ…

I can honestly say that I have never observed Lent.  Not because I don’t care about, it just never fit into spirituality.  As I get older, I’m learning that these practices that I used to consider as “religious” have a true meaning to them. 

Lent represents the time Jesus spent in the desert battling temptation on OUR behalf.  The more I think about, the more I feel selfish for not observing it.  I’m new to this whole Lent thing and hope I can take away something from it.  I also want to give something of myself up…but what?

Please take some time to visit Swen’s blog…

Tomorrow – Reading John 2 and 3… by reamofpaper

I am surrounded by noise.  Not how I hoped to begin this season.  Everything crowds out this ancient Jesus who speaks more quietly than everyone else I know.

Today if John the Baptist announced, “Behold the Lamb of God,” I’d miss it.  Simple as that.  For me, this season of repentance begins with the realization that I stop up my own ears from hearing the proclamation.

My grandma, GrammaMona, passed away this morning at her home.  She had been battling cancer for a couple of years.  Some people are so lucky, and I am one of them.  Over the past month I have been writing bits of her story to hopefully share with a wider audience.  GrammaMona thought I could have chosen a better subject, and snickered a bit when I told her I was compiling her stories.

Molly, GrammaMona and me.

She obliged nevertheless.  Grandmas are famous for caving to the whims of their grandchildren, even when they are in their mid-thirties.  I know that she is human and has her share of flaws, but I could never find many.  If God is love, as the Bible states, then I’ve known no one else to be more like God.

Below is a bit of a snapshot of my grandmother, that I’ve been working on for the last month or so.  (It begins in the middle of a thought and only partially concludes as it is part of much larger work…)

“…Being the eldest of her grandchildren I gave her the moniker “GrammaMona,” though the rest of the world referred to her as Ramona.  As the words of eldest grandchildren often do, this is the name that lasted, and one I believe that she has enjoyed.  It earned me the accidental nickname Keith.  (Keith is my uncle, this is described earlier in an unpublished portion of the story)

At some point during our younger years I suppose we all are annoyed by the confusion of the aging mind.  We somehow believe that we will be the kind of person who is granted marvelous clarity as we age.  I only minded being called Keith for a period of about 3 years in my mid teens.  During my 3 year mild-resentment to being referenced as “Keith…er…Ryan” I recall a time or two when I noted to her my brilliant individuality.

As these irritations do, it passed with time.  I got used to it.  Then I kind of thought it was funny, and finally I liked it.  Eventually, when she wouldn’t catch herself, forgetting to scroll through the list, leaving me as “Keith,” I stopped caring all together.  I began to understand that my grandma’s name confusion was simply a reminder of my high-ranking in her heart.  Years later, upon the birth of my third child, I realized that the accidental listing of names comes quite honestly.

Now whenever I laugh or bark commands or get angry or express my love, my eldest son is always named first regardless of who it might be that I am addressing at that moment.  Even though I have yet to turn 40, my mind is slipping away at a glacier’s pace.  I notice it most acutely when I am expressing some great emotion.  The people I accidentally address are the ones I love most; who live more richly within my own heart than in their reality.

That is how my grandma thinks of me.  Knowing this brings a sense of calm to even the darkest hours of my spirit.  It is a familiar feeling, an old one I have always known.  When you always know something, you rarely take notice of it in real-time.  To have always known a love that can reach deep within your soul is a blessing beyond measure, and yet, like having a foot at the end of your leg, or a moist tongue behind your teeth, you rarely consider what life might be like without it.

It is this sort of knowledge that humankind was created to believe in.  The hope of attaining that knowledge is frequently sold to acquire some thing cheaper and more tangible.  Once this hope becomes a commodity life loses a little meaning, unless one realizes their own desperation for the thing they just traded away, and searches to regain that fleeting glimmer of a promise.

I am speaking only of the hope of knowing great and loyal love; not of that love itself.  Even the hope of discovery is powerful.  For if you have experienced or lived in the reality of that kind of piercing, life-altering love, you cannot sell it or trade it.  It is more valuable than any possession or title or greatness to which one could aspire.  A man would sooner live without a roof than without the depth of meaning that this love offers.

It is in the context of this love that the grand questions, the meaning of life and its God are, if not answered, at least rendered less severe.  It is a glimpse of that Being, and a purpose larger than one’s calling or station.  It is an understanding that is unteachable.  But if you have ever known this kind of love, it must be extended and shared…”

Miss you already; and thank you.

Invitation to Lent…

We’re gearing up to walk through the season of Lent together.  As you know, Lent is the time of year on the church calendar when believers contemplate Jesus’ 40 days of fasting and temptation in the wilderness as we approach the cross and the empty tomb.  The Lenten season is marked by increased prayer and fasting, as individuals examine their own lives with humility and repentant hearts.

Ream of Paper has invited you to share your reflections as blog posts so that we might encourage one another as we journey towards Jesus’ death and resurrection.  To participate, simply send your writing to ryan@reamofpaper.com.  We’ll edit it as needed for spelling, punctuation and clarity, but we will not change your message (though we may not publish all articles we receive).  We want to encourage all manner of writing: poetry, essays, reflections on scripture, short stories or what-have-you.  Shorter is better, but if you’re a regular at Ream, you’ll know we don’t always hold to that standard!

Each week from Wednesday to the following Tuesday, we will be exploring a particular idea together.  The daily writings on Ream of Paper will reflect our weekly theme.   In addition to a weekly theme, we encourage you to participate in a weekly practice tied to the theme.  These are simply suggested disciplines, not religious requirements.  If you are following another guide, perhaps provided by your church, great!  You don’t have to participate, but why not give it a shot?

Consider doing the following with your family or with a couple of families…

Week 1 – Feb 25-March 3

Theme: Too familiar – Odd as it may sound, sometimes we become so familiar with the Jesus story we lose the impact of God clothing himself in flesh, experiencing life as a human and dying in our place.

Practice: Read the Gospel of John this week as if you’ve never read it before.  Set aside time and space to pray and be thankful.

Week 2 – March 4 – March 10

Theme: Too full – This week and the week that follows it, we’ll focus on our comfort.  While comfort isn’t inherently bad, it does tend to disconnect us from a suffering world.  Time and again the gospel’s report that “Jesus had compassion on them.”  Comfort crowds out compassion.

Practice: Almost half the planet lives on less than $2 a day.  We are going to join them.  In her 2009 Lenten Guide, Dr. Christine Sine refers to this project as the Mutunga Challenge.  You may choose to donate the money you save to a local food program or to the Mutunga Project.

Week 3 -  March 11 – March 17

Theme: Too Entertained – Who doesn’t enjoy being entertained?  Again, there is nothing wrong with entertainment!  This week we’ll examine ourselves to see if entertainment keeps us from 1) connecting with Jesus, 2) connecting with our world.

Practice: Live this week without the TV.  Ream posts this week will be short.  Check them at work.  See if unplugging creates a new awareness in your life.

Week 4 – March 18 – March 24

Theme: Too busy – Many Christians slow-down their pace of life for the whole season of Lent (something we’d suggest).  How many devices and cords do you bring home to continue working?  Work is great; it was part of creation even before sin entered the world.  In our culture of production, I wonder how many kingdom-promoting opportunities we bypass in order to increase our output.  Here’s an idea to consider: Jesus loves you the same when you are not producing.  Men especially, rediscover who God has created you to be apart from your career.

Practice: Quit when the sun goes down.  Devote that time to family, friends and neighbors.

Week 5 – March 25 – March 31

Theme: Too Consumed – Notice advertisements.  Tied to production is consumption.  “If I can produce this much, then I can consume this much.”  Consider all the false messiahs we are sold to save us from our personal ideas of hell.  What are we told will make us much happier than we are right now?

Practice: Avoid unnecessary purchases.  Rather than consuming practice giving without the possibility of receiving in return, except from God.

Week 6 – April 1 – April 8

Theme: Towards the cross – This week, let’s consider what Christ has redeemed us from and into whom the Holy Spirit is transforming us.  Ask the question, “Saved from what?”  In preparation for Easter Sunday, began thinking about the nature that has been put to death.

Practice: Write out your personal redemption story.  Share it in anticipation of Easter.  Meditate on the things you have learned over the last 5 weeks of prayer and devotion.

Thursday, April 9th will be a silent day on Ream of Paper.

Friday and Saturday we’ll consider the darkness and despair of the world, and remind ourselves of the hope that was promised…

Then Sunday we’ll rejoice in the light of the resurrection.  Because Jesus has been raised from the dead, we’ll anticipate our own resurrection and eternity in God’s presence.

Easter week, we’ll share resurrection stories, which we’ll live out for the remainder of the year.

So my friends, start writing even now.  I’m hopelessly excited about doing this project with you all…

If you read the daily bread post, you have to read Kristin’s comment (scroll to the bottom of the page to read comments).  Some day’s your “daily bread needs” are bigger than others!  As if God is freaked out by size…

Thanks for sharing that story Kristin.