Charlie Wear’s Notes

Via Alan Hirsch:

Our central lie is in the discrepancy between the language of worship and the actions of worship. We confess “Jesus is Lord” but only submit to the part of Christ’s authority that fits our grand personal designs, doesn’t cause pain, doesn’t disrupt the American dream, doesn’t draw us across ethnic and racial divisions, doesn’t add the pressure of too much guilt, doesn’t mean forgiving as we have been forgiven, doesn’t ask for more than a check to show compassion. We “sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” expressing our desire to know Jesus, but the Jesus we want to know is the sanitized Jesus that looks a lot like us when we think we are at our best. Despite God’s Word to the contrary, we think we can say that we love God and yet hate our neighbor, neglect the widow, forget the orphan, fail to visit the prisoner, ignore the oppressed. Its the sign of disordered love. When we do this, our worship becomes a lie to God.
–Mark Labberton, The Dangerous Act of Worship: Living God’s Call to Justice (Downers Grove: IVP, 2007), 71

Pastor Rick Warren invited the candidates to an unusual event, an interview by a pastor in a church. Although, I think that Pastor Rick got what he wanted out of the forum, I am not sure that the civility of the political debate will be raised. There is no doubt that people are pretty angry on both sides of the aisle. It’s interesting that there remain such large segments of the population that can be galvanized into divided camps over issues.

The price of gas is a hot button issue, which galvanizes a division between those who support offshore drilling and those who don’t. But, in the meantime the gas prices are going down.

The policies of the Federal Reserve may be sparking inflation and have weakened the dollar, but with no change in the policies the dollar is getting stronger.

Timetables for withdrawal are either good or bad, but now they are a non-issue, because the Iraqis want them, and withdrawals have already started.

Pastor Rick asks when a human baby has rights. Obama gives a "beat around the shrubbery" answer, and galvanizes a group, and McCain says that life begins at conception and loses all of the pro-choice voters, or does he? I mean, isn’t the question of when life begins or ends way above the "pay grade" of all of us? And who decides who has rights? What kind of rights. I think that was a pretty clever question.

Guess what though, I am guessing that there is going to be a lot of conversation about the 140 orphans worldwide in the next year.

I am guessing that the Civil Forum began the most non-civil election we have had in years.

At my ripe old age (pushing 60 pretty hard), I have managed to gather a rather impressive set of luggage that I pull behind me. You can’t really say it is a matched set, having been acquired at various stages of my life. Each bag contains some life experience that has shaped me. There are some bags containing the DNA passed on to me by my parents. Some of the bags have wheels, and some just drag along. Okay, enough with the metaphor, you get it right?

In my body I carry extra weight, probably more than 100 pounds. Sometimes I wonder why, but even if I knew why it wouldn’t change the facts, it’s a lot to carry.

In my "church" life I carry extra weight, the legalism of my mother church, the hyper-charismatic nature and autocratic leadership style of my adopted church, the expectations that come with the notion that it is Sunday School and Church Services that shape my connection with God.

Jesus said:

"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly." Matt. 28-30 The Message

Maybe only now, at this stage of my life, am I beginning to get the idea of what it means to walk with Jesus, work with Jesus and watch how Jesus does it. I guess that is what following Jesus would mean right?

Maybe then I could get rid of the baggage that is heavy, and live life free and lightly.

Contentment: happiness with one’s situation in life. (WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University)

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. Philipians 4:12 NIV via BibleGateway.com

I know this is probably way too psychobabbly to make an sense, but it is what I am thinking about this morning.

Praying for rain…

Scott Bane and I are talking about what it means to be a disciple and the art of disciple-making. Our conversation springs from our dissatisfaction with the general state of discipleship in our own lives and in what we can see in the Christian sub-culture.

So, we have started by beginning to list the traits of a disciple. We’ve got two so far and here they are:
A Disciple of Jesus:
1. Abandons all other pursuits to follow Jesus.
2. Listens to the Holy Spirit and obeys.

This is just our beginning, but I would be happy to hear what you think…

I was in my 20s when I first prayed the sinner’s prayer. It was a fluke really. Raised in a denomination that was more about believing in doctrines and refraining from sinful practices, I had been baptized at the age of 13. I certainly believed that I was a member in good standing of my denomination. I was active serving in my church. Our church was big on performance and not so big on assurance of salvation.

So when I found myself on an airplane flight to Washington, DC, I was honestly unable to answer the pointed questions of my seatmate about my eternal destiny. Now, don’t get me wrong, I didn’t think I needed to be "born again." But the persistence of my neighbor, and honestly, the desire for some peace and quiet on the rest of the trip, caused me to go along with him and pray the "sinner’s prayer." "Good," I though, "I got that out of the way."

The "decision" I made on that plane flight wasn’t really that deep or that committed. With no follow-up care my discipleship quotient didn’t go up very much. I have had many more decision points to bring me to my current place on my "journey." But I still remember that first "sinner’s prayer."

Years later I was discipled by John Wimber. Now, this discipling was not the one on one or small group kind of mentoring that people need. I had become interested in church growth and was visiting the Vineyard in Anaheim regularly on Sunday nights. The bookstore had lots of recordings of conferences and teaches by Wimber and piece by piece I bought the entire inventory and listened to hours of John Wimber’s teaching. One of his sayings that came through from time to time was, "I want to grow up before I grow old." Another was, "Sometimes you need to be born again, again."

These days the sinner’s prayer has fallen out of favor with some folks I know in the emerging church. They have rightly criticized the reduction of the gospel to praying a prayer to insure heavenly reward without making the commitment to discipleship and obedience that is so clearly taught in the Bible. They talk about spiritual disciplines and transformation. I don’t know what they would say to a crowd gathered in a stadium if asked to preach the gospel, but I am pretty sure they wouldn’t think it was a good idea to have an altar call.

Really, the first altar call was on the day of Pentecost when Peter told the gathered crowd, "Repent." A large group of people decided to accept and follow Jesus that day and they were immediately (if you can read between the words) assimilated into a newly formed body of believers, fellowshiping, praying and learning to follow Jesus.

As I watched Greg Laurie closing the memorial service for his son Christopher, I was strangely moved by his altar call. And once again I prayed that sinner’s prayer along with Greg. You see, even for an old man, from time to time I need to be born again, again.