What is Man? Really!

I have been intrigued for quite some time with how we (Christians, atheists, liberals, conservatives, etc.) tend to misuse scripture for our own purposes. We so seldom see that our culture, history, family, theology, church, etc., affect how we read scripture. I have tentatively entitled my series of thoughts, "The Most Misused Texts in the Bible" (I know, not very original). My first foray into the topic was a look at Jer. 29:11. (See my earlier blog.) We often read Jer. 29:11 as a promise that God has a specific, detailed, individualized plan for each of our lives (One our doctoral students recently called this concept, "The White Board God"). Maybe God has that plan, maybe God doesn't, but Jer. 29:11 is about something else. Let me move on. 

Along the same lines, I am intrigued by our interpretations of Psalm 8:4. I first thought about this a few years ago when I realized that three current contemporary worship songs included the line "Who am I?," followed by some allusion to Psalm 8:4, something like "Who am I that God is mindful of me?" (from Israel Houghton and Michael Gungor, "Friend of God," ©2003 Integrity's Praise! Music and Vertical Worship Songs). Now, I am not trying to insult these songs (the others were by Mark Hall (Who Am I?") and Mary MacLean ("Creator King," sung by Kathryn Scott), not lightweights in Christian music). I actually like the songs, songwriters, and singers. In fact, "Creator King" is a great statement about the Creator God. These songs simply reflect how we read the Bible. We read the Bible through the eyes of individuals, while the Bible was typically written from community eyes. But that should be a different blog. Here are my thoughts on Ps. 8:4. 

Psalm 8 is a hymn of praise to the majestic creator of heavens and earth. The psalmist marvels at the wonders of creation. In the face of the heavens and earth, the moon and stars, the psalmist asks why has God placed humanity in the important place in creation--in God's image, a "little lower than the heavenly beings" (Ps. 8:5). The ESV translates Ps. 8:4, "What is man that you are mindful of him?," which is similar to King James and NASB. NIV does better with "What is mankind that you are mindful of them?" In his new commentary on Psalms, Bruce Waltke translates the verse, "What is a mere mortal that you are mindful of him?" This is a nice translation, that seems to me to address the point of the verse. A bit freer translation can be found in The Voice, which reads: "I can’t help but wonder why You care about mortals—sons and daughters of men—specks of dust floating about the cosmos." While some literal purists might scoff at the freedoms taken in the translation, particularly the italicized text that was added for clarity of meaning, I think that The Voice gets exactly to the point of the verse. 


You see, when we stare out at the skies at night, when we consider the majesty of the cosmos, when we reflect upon our seeming insignificance in the universe, we should exclaim, "WOW! And God loves us!" This psalm is about God, not about humans. It is about the great majesty of God, and also the amazing choice of God to place humans at the top of the food chain. When we consider the creator God, we should think not of our privilege, but of God's choice--God's sovereignty--God's love. And then, we will conclude with the psalmist, "O Eternal, our Lord, Your majestic name is heard throughout the earth" (The Voice).

Great job, kid! Lessons from the Stanley Cup!

This is my favorite time of the year. The Stanley Cup! When the cup was in Duluth one day while we lived there, the line to see it was several hours long. And, some of my southern friends--right now--are asking, "What's the Stanley Cup?" While some of my friends may disagree (if they like), the Stanley Cup is the greatest sport tradition in the world! OK, at least in North America. It was first awarded to the top amateur hockey team in Canada in 1893, and it has been awarded all but two years since, for the past 70 years to the National Hockey League (NHL) champion. 


You might ask, "What's so great about it?" Well, here are a few things. First, the same cup is used every year. The winning team keeps it for one year. Oh yeah, and each person on the team gets his name inscribed on the trophy. Second, there's a tradition in the presentation ceremony. I will never forget when Ray Borque was finally on a cup winning team. The captain of the Avalance, Joe Sakic, deferred his right to hoist the cup over his head for the first victory lap and let Borque skate first with the cup in honor of his many years of greatness in the league. I watched that ceremony on TV live. It was an unprecedented act of deference. Even if the visiting team wins, the fans stay for the presentation. It's that important to the hockey fans. Everyone wants to see the Cup presented. Third, there is the hand-shaking tradition. After each playoff game, both teams line up and shake hands. Some hug. Some give congratulatory words. 


This brings me to the point of this blog. Last night, after the Washington Capitols dispatched the defending champion Boston Bruins in overtime, Boston goalie Tim Thomas said to the Caps' goalie Braden Holtby, "Great job, kid." Tim Thomas is 38 years old, and voted the best goalie in the league more than once in his career. Holtby is 22 years old. This is his first season of significant playing time. Even this year, he spent much of the year in the minor league (AHL). It was an interesting moment. You could actually hear Thomas say, "great job, kid," in the camera microphone. There is a tradition of appreciation for great play in the NHL. There is the unexpected. But after pushing, fighting, and smashing each other up, the players line up, shake hands, congratulate the winners, and console the losers. It can actually be quite moving. It is a sincere act of honor and appreciation for the game of hockey and for each other as hockey players. 


Many of you are wondering where this is going. Well, here it is. Jesus said, "Everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (NIV). If NHL players can appreciate, congratulate, and console the other team's players, even after a hard-fought seven-game playoff series, surely we could learn to appreciate, congratulate, and console each other in the church. Followers of Christ beat each other up (usually emotionally, psychological, and spiritually, rather than physically), insult each other, and leave brothers and sisters lying in the gutter. I'm sure this should not be so. So, even if we see things differently than others, let's say, "Great job, kid," to encourage the good qualities and hard work of others. Let's learn a lesson from Lord Stanley! (Lord Stanley is the person for whom the cup was named.)


Just thinking! 

Easter clothes

I wonder how many of you bought new clothes for Easter. I know that many people do. Grandmas (and great-grandmas) always buy the grandchildren new clothes for Easter. It seems to be a time to put on new clothes. I happened to be reading Ephesians during Easter week, and ran across one of the passages where the apostle Paul tells his readers to take off the old and put on the new. Here is Ephesians 4:20-24 (see also Colossians 3) from The Voice. 

      But this is not the path of the Anointed One, which you have learned. If you have

      heard Jesus and have been taught by Him according to the truth that is in Him, then

      you know to take off your former way of life, your crumpled old self—that dark blot of a

      soul corrupted by deceitful desire and lust—to take a fresh breath and to let God renew

      your attitude and spirit. Then you are ready to put on your new self, modeled after the

      very likeness of God: truthful, righteous, and holy.

These texts have always fascinated me. Just like we change clothes each day, we are to take off the old and put on the new. In these texts, the object of taking off is a variety of unacceptable behaviors, such as lust, immorality, wicked thoughts, greed, slander, and the like. I dare say that we all have a few things worth taking off. And, what do we put on: love, peace, compassion, patience, and truthfulness. We take off the clothes of the old life and put on the new life in Christ. OK, there is the nice clean spiritual discussion of these verses. But what about the ugly, hard-to-discard, old clothes. 

As always, for me, this comes back to a song, and not surprisingly, a song by Randy Stonehill. He recorded a song in 1990 called "Old Clothes." Here are part of the lyrics. 

      SO MANY HEROES THAT NEVER CAME THROUGH
      TOO MANY ROADS GOING NOWHERE
      AND JESUS WAS WHISPERING "I STILL LOVE YOU"
      AND WITH A LOVE THAT MAKES ALL THINGS NEW



      SO I'M PACKING UP MY OLD CLOTHES WITH MY OLD AND FOOLISH WAYS
      THEY DON'T SEEM TO FIT ME ANYMORE
      I SEE THE LIGHT OF MORNING WITH DIFFERENT EYES TODAY
      AND I'M GIVING MY TOMORROWS TO THE LORD


So often we wear the old clothes of hurt, anger, and frustration. Because we have moved on to a new place, those old clothes don't fit. In fact, we know that they don't fit, but we wear them anyway. Sara Groves spoke of this same phenomenon in her song, "Painting Pictures of Egypt."  The song includes these lyrics: 

      I’ve been painting pictures of Egypt, leaving out what it lacked 
      The future seems so hard and I want to go back 
      But the places that used to fit me cannot hold the things I"ve learned 
      And those roads closed off to me while my back was turned. 


We escape an old life that we longed to leave, but we hold onto the old clothes--the things that keep us from moving forward into the brave new world that God has for us.We cling to the old because it is comfortable, even if it is outdated, dirty, and full of holes. 


But sometimes, it becomes even worse. On the CD "Second Hand Clothing," Eli laments the clothes left behind by his father, found in an old box. These lyrics are painfully poignant to many people that I know: 
      I'm looking through a box my dad just sent me
      Filled with hand me downs and things he once wore
      He passed along his blessings and his curses
      But mainly scraps and nothing more ... no nothing more
      And I pray to God his shoes will never fit me
      And I pray this isn't my inheritance



      I've spent my lifetime dancing with his demons
      They're constantly comparing him with me
      They tell their lies as they look into my eyes and say
      The apple doesn't fall far from it's tree ... and I pray oh Lord not me



      Old man didn't gimme much more than second hand clothing
      But Jesus wants more for me than second hand clothing, second hand clothing


Our world--whether our former way of life, our addictions, our choices, our failures, others' failures, our parents' failures, or just the challenge of the present and the future--leaves us a lot of second-hand clothing. But, we don't have to wear them! That is the miracle of Easter, isn't it? Jesus said, "Not my will, but yours be done," then he died, and then he rose from the death. He threw off the grave clothes, and now we can wear new clothes. 


We can wear the new clothes of new life. The problem is that we often must peel off layers of the old clothes--layers of hurt, disappointment, abuse, pain, betrayal, and self-inflicted destruction. Let's make that our prayer this year. Let's live in our new resurrection lives. Let's leave behind the old, ragged, dirty clothes to wear the new clothes that Jesus has for us. Let's refuse to put the old clothes back on. Let's remember the pain, the stench, the suffering of the old clothes and leave them off, wearing the new clothes of Jesus instead. Will you join me? 

Our "Hypocrite Song"

Sometime in the 1990's, I ran across a singer named Paul Falzone. I loved his wit and poetry, as well as his gritty voice. I never heard from Paul Falzone again. However, a few years later, I heard a singer named Eli. He sounded a lot like Paul Falzone--mainly because he was Paul Falzone. He had taken Eli as his stage name. Why the history? Well, good question. But I was reading in Galatians 2 tonight and thought about an Eli song, called "Hypocrite Song."  The lyrics are worth reading. Here they are:

     I've been quick to point a finger, At things I find outrageous   

     Well, I wonder who I'll point at, When I read my life on pages 

     When I've played my final number, It really won't take long 

     To realize I sang a hypocrite song 

     Chorus: 

     I thank the Lord that there's a Heaven full of hypocrites like me 

     So tell the angels to get ready, Cuz it may not be too long 

     Until I come and sing my hypocrite song 

     I preach about redemption, As I look you in the face 

    Then I'm convinced I must be dyin', But it's just somethin' that I ate 

     But it's Jesus who gives mercy to make a weak man strong 

     So he can stand and sing his hypocrite song 

     (Repeat Chorus)

     I can't wait to see my Savior, and look Him in the face 

     Shake His hand and plainly thank Him for forgiving my mistakes 

     And for helping me remember, that even when I'm right I'm wrong, 

     Then we'll rejoice and sing this hypocrite song 

     (Repeat Chorus)

     (copyright 1999 by Eli, Forefront Records)

I never wanted to see myself in these lyrics, but I did. And, I guess that is why I thought of this song when I read Galatians 2 tonight. In Gal. 2:18, the apostle Paul wrote, “If I reconstruct something I have worked so hard to destroy, then I prove myself a sinner.” Apparently the apostle Peter had come to Antioch to visit his fellow apostle, Paul. Peter visited with Paul and the Christians in Antioch, many of whom were not of Jewish heritage, nor did they keep Jewish law after becoming Christian. Earlier, Peter, Paul, and the leaders of the church in Jerusalem (see Acts 15 and Gal. 1) had agreed that Gentiles who became Christians did not have to become Jews to follow Christ, since salvation was not found through faith in Christ rather than following the Jewish laws. Peter freely moved within these Gentile circles, even eating in their homes--until some Jewish Christians from Jerusalem arrived in Antioch. Now Peter had to decide who to offend--the Jews from Jerusalem or the Gentiles from Antioch. He chose to placate the Jewish Christians, who apparently believed that Christians still must maintain Jewish purity laws to faithfully follow Christ. Gal. 2 records Paul's rebuke of Peter for his hypocrisy. Unfortunately, I can see myself in Paul and Peter--depending upon what spot in my life you want to look at! 

Isn’t this all of our hypocrisy? OK, maybe I'm generalizing too much, and most Christians have no problem with this. I just haven't met them yet! We turn away from people God sent us to love. We rebuild walls as quickly as God tears them down. We celebrate our freedom in Christ only to enslave ourselves again to the rules. We lay down our heavy burdens in worship of our God, just to pick them right back up again. (This reminds me of a song by Jeni Varnadeau, "Why Would You Go Back?")

We are not much different than Peter. Who are the “Jews from Jerusalem” who cause us to display our hypocrisy?  What are the stones that you pick back up? Even more importantly, what are the stones that you cannot lay down at all? What blocks you from hearing from God? What blocks you from the life of obedience and fullness? Imagine a life without them!! Imagine a life of faithwalking! I am! 

That One Samaritan

In Luke 17, Jesus heals a group of lepers. After the healing, in Luke 17:16, one of the former lepers returned to Jesus to say, “Thank you.” Then, the text says that this man was a Samaritan, not a Jew. This is obviously another statement that the Jews were missing who Jesus was. How can it be anything else? We can easily say, "Yep, that's the point," and move on. However, I wonder about the further application of the verse. 

For instance, where are missing worship of Jesus today? Amy Grant sings a song, "Better Than a Hallelujah," written by Sarah Hart and Chapin Hartford. Here are the lyrics (and a YouTube video): 

     God loves a lullaby in a mother's tears in the dead of night

     Better than a Hallelujah sometimes

     God loves the drunkard's cry, the soldier's plea not to let him die

     Better than a Hallelujah sometimes

     We pour out our miseries, God just hears a melody

     Beautiful, the mess we are, The honest cries of breaking hearts

     Are better than a Hallelujah

     The woman holding on for life, The dying man giving up the fight

     Are better than a Hallelujah sometimes

     The tears of shame for what's been done,The silence when the words won't come

     Are better than a Hallelujah sometimes

     We pour out our miseries, God just hears a melody

     Beautiful, the mess we are, The honest cries of breaking hearts

     Are better than a Hallelujah

     Better than a church bell ringing, Better than a choir singing out, singing out

I have seen God in the honest cry of a broken heart, in silence, in pain. Yet, we live our comfortable lives as if we have it all--like the Levite and priest passing the injured man in the Good Samaritan parable (yes, I know that I have mixed parables--forgive me!). I remember the first time that I heard Buddy Guy's song, "Skin Deep." It was at a concert at the House of Blues--not the place where you expect a powerful worship experience. However, there in the midst of the drunks on the general admission floor, I worshiped God. This is a powerful song about how we should treat one another. This is particularly pertinent to the text with which I began this discussion. 

Also, where could we see things that would glorify God if we were attentive, but we miss them because they are from people who are not “Christians,” or not religious? When I was a young follower of Jesus, as a teenager, I found Jethro Tull's album "Aqualung" to be an inspiration. In fact, I once wrote a song because of the way the album spoke to me. Among other things, the album is an indictment of the church, and of the caricature that the church has often made of Jesus. The song that probably hit me the hardest was called, "Hymn 43." 

     Oh father high in heaven -- smile down upon your son

     whose busy with his money games -- his women and his gun.

          Oh Jesus save me!

     And the unsung Western hero killed an Indian or three

     and made his name in Hollywood to set the white man free.

          Oh Jesus save me!

     If Jesus saves -- well, He'd better save Himself

     from the gory glory seekers who use His name in death.

          Oh Jesus save me!

     I saw him in the city and on the mountains of the moon --

     His cross was rather bloody -- He could hardly roll His stone.

          Oh Jesus save me!

Those words still strike me as amazingly poignant. Ian Anderson is not the model for Christian inspiration--a theological outsider, if you will. But he can speak words that we need to hear. We need to hear from the "outsiders," which I guess would make them "insiders." Well, just thinking. 

The Rich Man, Lazarus, and Hell

Do you have a biblical text that haunts you? I don't mean a text that you struggle to understand. I don't mean a text that you wish people did not regularly abuse. I mean a text that really gets inside of you and makes you troubled. Actually, when I read Jesus' teachings in the gospels slowly and carefully, I keep saying, "Did he really say that?" But there is one text that really bothers me. It bothers me because it is abundantly clear. There is really no doubt what Jesus says because he does not hide the point. He announces it. The text is found in Luke 16. 


He tells the story of a rich man. This was a very rich man. He had the finest of everything. No worries or anxiety here. More than enough food to eat. However, outside the gate of his home was a poor man named Lazarus. This poor man was suffering greatly--with leprosy (or something similar) and hunger. He is so hungry that he longs for the scraps from the rich man's table. But the text tells us that the dogs licked his sores, presumably after eating the scraps. (The text does not say this, I am just embellishing a bit.) Perhaps we are to think that the dogs cared more about this poor, suffering wretch of a man than did the rich man. (Again, the text does not explicitly say that.)


Fast forward, and the poor man dies. He is taken away by angels to Abraham's "bosom," meaning in a place of comfort with Abraham.  The rich man dies and goes to the burning place of torment--which is Hades in Greek. From that place, the rich man cries out to Abraham for help. He does not get help, but he does get a succinct explanation of the seemingly explicable situation--inexplicable because this rich man was certainly a good man deserving something better, while the poor man..., well you get it. Here is Abraham's explanation to the rich man: 



"Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish" (Luke 16:25 ESV).



"Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony" (Luke 16:25 NIV84). 



“Son, you seem to be forgetting something: your life was full to overflowing with comforts and pleasures, and the life of Lazarus was just as full with suffering and pain. So now is his time of comfort, and now is your time of agony" (The Voice). 


I have included more than one translation so that you can see that I am not exaggerating in my struggles. What is my struggle, you may ask? Well, the poor man is with Abraham and the rich man is in Hades for one reason: they were poor and rich in this life and now in the future life the tables are turned. The only reason that the poor man is with Abraham is because he was poor in life. The only reason that the rich man is in Hades is because he was rich in life. We typically avoid the difficulty of this text by making it about the greed of the rich man. Most people that I talk to about this text have never struggled with it because they have jumped to that conclusion. And, this explanation may well be true, but it is not the explanation that the rich man receives. He is told that he is suffering because he was rich. Jesus offers no explanation that would soften this message (although he does talk about the impossibility of worshiping both God and wealth in the next chapter). The message simply stands there is stark contrast to our lives. 


So, what do I do with this text? Do I think that all rich people are going to hell? Fair question. If I believe this, then I suppose that I am going to hell, too. After all, I have never been hungry to the point of suffering. I have never longed for the scraps off the floor. I have never lain on the ground suffering while the dogs licked my oozing sores. I am sitting in the comfort of my nice, air-conditioned house, smugly saying that my house is well below the median price of houses in the Houston area. Therefore, I am certainly not guilty of greed, right? 


So, first, I try to balance the text with the other teachings of scripture about wealth.  I know that not all teaching on wealth is negative (although much, in fact probably most, of it is). Second, I work at being generous. I want to give to those in need. Third, I try to avoid living in guilt. Guilt can be a positive motivator, but it can also be a hindrance to growth. Fourth, I try to avoid ignoring guilt. If I am not being as generous as I can be, then I am guilty. If I am ignoring the poor around me, then I am guilty. Jesus is abundantly clear at this point. In fact, Jesus said that when we ignore the poor, we are ignoring him. Hmmm. I suppose then, that the rich man was guilty of ignoring Jesus as his gate. (Again the text does not say that.) 


So, my friends, struggle with me. Let's not be smug and defensive. Let's not be frozen and stuck in our guilt. But, let's hear the hard teaching of Jesus and serve the world, building the Kingdom of God. For, as Jesus also said in Luke 17:25, "You want to see the kingdom of God? The kingdom of God is already here among you" (The Voice). Will we have ears to hear? 

Experience Hendrix?

Went to a concert tonight--the Experience Hendrix tribute tour. Artists included Jonny Lang, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Eric Johnson, Brad Whitford (of Aerosmith), Robby Krieger (of the Doors), Robert Randolph, Bootsy Collins, Bobby Cox (of the Jimi Hendrix Experience), and several others. They played over three hours of Jimi Hendrix songs. These artists range from their 30s to their 70s. I asked myself why these guys were on stage performing these songs. Well, perhaps because they were good songs. Perhaps because they enjoy playing together. Perhaps to make a living. Well, maybe all of these, except that probably none of these musicians need this gig to pay the bills, and it is a lot of work to tour with that many people and play only 3-5 songs. So, I think there is a bigger reason for the show. 


The tour is called a tribute tour, and that is exactly what it was. All of these guitar players know that they owe something of what they do to Jimi Hendrix. Hendrix was an innovator. He tried new things with the guitar. He played a different style of riff. He used different combinations of effects. Any rock or blues guitar that followed Hendrix is musically indebted to him in some ways. (Now, just for the record--to hopefully avoid some mean comments--I do know that Jimi Hendrix was not a good role model and is not a person whose lifestyle should be emulated, esteemed, or followed.) This tour, then, is a way to show their gratitude to this innovating guitar player who had such an impact on their craft, their profession, and (probably) their lives. 


This, along with my blog last night, has challenged me to ask, "How have I shown gratitude to those who impacted me?" Thinking about the Christian music influences in my life the past few days in this blog has reminded me of some people who influenced me. I came to faith in Christ at 15 years old in 1976. In the years that followed, many people helped me to become a disciple of Jesus. Jeff Rankin and Jeff Taylor took a few of us leaders in the local high schools and discipled us in a small group. Jimmy Womack hired me at United Saints Bookstore and allowed me to be his friend and partner in the store for several years. Through Jimmy's influence, I met Kemper Crabb and Ray Johnson. These three men (who were about 10 years older than me) were an invaluable influence on my life as a teenager, and I am sure that I never thanked them--and they may not even know it. 


Jimmy trusted me to run his store when he was gone. He introduced me to countless Christian leaders around Houston. He taught me to be a ethical businessperson and better Christian. Kemper let me hang out with Arkangel at Rivendell Studios. He came and spoke to our early morning Youth for Christ group at my high school. Arkangel even came and played one early morning. Ray had an impact on many people's lives--many who probably do not even know it. Through his New Earth Concerts ministry, Ray allowed me to hear Phil Keaggy, Second Chapter of Acts, Sweet Comfort Band, DeGarmo and Key, Petra, Chuck Girard, Resurrection Band, and many others. He knew most of these people personally, and introduced many of us to his friends, believing (I think) that their ministries were worth being a part of our lives. Ray and Jimmy (and others) later started Aslan's Delight, a coffeehouse in Pasadena, TX. I was 18-19 years old but was treated like a partner and friend by these men. Through this ministry, I met Randy Matthews, Resurrection Band, and Servant. All of these ministries had a profound impact on me--encouraging my faith and my desire to know and serve God. 


So, Ray, Jimmy, and Kemper: Thanks for befriending, teaching, and encouraging this young man over thirty years ago. I love you guys and appreciate what you did for me and many others! 


If you've read all the way to here, maybe you have someone to thank!