CHRISTISNOWHERE: How Can Jesus Be King Of Your Christmas? - Fourth Sermon of Advent

Lectionary Reading for the Fourth Sunday of Advent: 

2Samuel 7v1-11 & 16 // Luke 1v47-55 // Romans 16v25-27 // Luke 1v26-38

Advent is that season of the church which precedes Christmas. 

It's when we remember a time when Christ was nowhere. We are the Christmas people, believing and giving witness to the world that Christ is now here. But there was a time in the world when Christ was not. And that is how it still feels for too many people. It can feel that way in the church too. 

Often it feels like Christ is nowhere, but we choose to believe that Christ is now here. 

There is a word that describes this Advent experience. Prolepsis. 

Prolepsis is not a word used much around my house. Never, actually. 

For those in speech or debate class, you may be familiar with prolepsis. It's the anticipation and answering of a possible objection to a point you are making in your presentation. 

For those that are story-tellers, we use phrases that are tap int prolepsis. When we use a phrase like: "he was a dead man walking" - he's not really a dead man yet, but he will be, and he is seen as a dead man now, though he is not yet. 

I was in jail the other day, thinking about prolepsis. Following my sermon study, I made a visit to the county jail. While waiting for the inmate to be brought out for our visit, I was standing against the cement wall pondering how to explain prolepsis. 

I got to thinking of all the inmates I have visited in jail. There are some inmates who are truly imprisoned. For them, the past, present, and future are wrapped up in being imprisoned now. They feel trapped, they don't know how to avoid being jailed, and though they don't want to stay in prison, they don't know what to do different to stay out of prison once they get out. 

But there are the prisoners I visit with who are free. They may be on the other side of the glass, but they are with me in spirit. When we talk, we talk about what will be different, and what is already different. They are ready to do the work that will both lead to freedom and keep them free. 

They are not just living in the future, they are doing now what they will need to do in the future to be and stay free. Though they are not as free as they want to be, they are as free as they can be. They are so certain of becoming an staying future, that they live and act now as if they are free. 

That is prolepsis. The future present now, but not yet. The present that is yet to be. The future unfolding in the now. 

Prolepsis in Scripture is scripted by promises. 

Prolepsis helps us see the Christmas story anew, because Christmas is about promises made and promises kept. Christmas is about the present that is yet to be, about a future that is unfolding in the now. Christmas is about Jesus as king now, but not yet. 

You can see this so clearly in Mary the mother of Jesus, as written down in the Gospel according to Luke. The messenger of God proclaims good news to Mary: you shall bear a son who will save his people from their sins. You will name him Jesus, and he will lead his people out of exile. Jesus will become king of Israel, he will sit upon the throne of his ancestor King David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom shall come and it will never end. 

What does Mary do? A few things. First she wonders why the angel is even there. Then she wonders how all this will happen. But then, in wonder and delight, she responds with faith and faithfulness: "May it be to me as you have promised."

Then she hurries off to hang out with her cousin Elizabeth, who had a similar encounter with a messenger of God. While there, Mary bursts into song, and it's full of prolepsis. 

Mary's song envisions a world where what God has promised has already come to pass. All the angel did was announce the birth of a king, and Mary is singing about the downfall of the proud. Mary believes a savior will be born, and now she is lauding the Lord for having lifted up the poor and humiliated. She's not even pregnant yet, and Mary acts as if the promises to Abraham and David have already been fulfilled. That is prolepsis. Believing a promise so strongly you behave as if it is fully true now.

King David had a promise-making moment with the Lord, one that is very relevant to Mary's song and our proleptic examples.

He finally had rest from warring against his enemies. David sat firm and secure on his throne. But as he looked out from his palace, he realized that God dwelled in a tent. Whereas David sat in royal splendor, God's house was a stitched together of animal skins. Maybe David felt guilty? Maybe David felt bad for God? Whatever the reason, God wasn't impressed. He didn't need a new house, didn't want a new house, and didn't ask David to build anything for him. 

Actually God put David in his place: who are you to decide what kind of house is good enough for God? But then God followed up with a string of promises to David: God will build a house for David that lasts forever. The God of Israel who established David's kingdom will cause it to never end. It's an extraordinary promise to David, who is completely humbled by this turn of events. David breaks into song and prayer, praising the Lord for making this promise to his house, to Israel. But David sings as if the promise is already fulfilled, he prays as if the kingdom is an eternal one already. 

It's like when a bride and groom pledge to uphold their vows to one another, promising fidelity forever. In that moment, they are caught up in savoring an eternal promise. Right there and then they experience the feeling of a promise of forever fidelity. 

For sports fans out there, everyone knows that elite athletes practice prolepsis. The basketball shooter at the free throw line can see himself putting the ball through the hoop before he actually does it. The future point is already present in the now, but not yet. The quarterback can already see his wide receiver making the catch in the end zone before the throw has been made. The sprinter has already crossed the finish line in first place before he is out of the starting blocks. In their minds they are victors before the contest has begun. They practice in prolepsis, seeing themselves holding the trophy while they prepare for it as if it had already come to pass, but not yet. 

This is what the church does when we share in Eucharist together. The bread and the cup of communion is a present experience of a future reality, the Great Banquet with the King. We eat and drink now as if the Great Banquet has already started. We believe we are having a communion with the Lord now as if he had already set the table. 

Or take baptism: we go under the water and are brought up from it as if we were dying and being resurrected from the dead. Baptism is death and resurrection now, but not yet. It is believing the promise so strongly, we live now as if we have already died and been raised bodily from the grave. 

Prolepsis is powerful and transformative. Prolepsis is the name we give to the experience of believing the promises made to us, and living in the light of them. 

Advent is a proleptic event. It reminds the church that we are a proleptic people. If you have been baptized, you are living in prolepsis. If you partake of Eucharist, you are doing prolepsis. If you believe the promises God made to Israel were fulfilled in Jesus and are given now to you, you are doing prolepsis.

Christmas is prolepsis. The First Christmas being prolepsis of the Last Christmas. Jesus coming to Israel as their king was a now - not yet reality. He was God reigning over the world in Jesus of Nazareth, who was king of Israel and lord of all nations, but not yet. The crucified, resurrected, ascended Lord Jesus Christ was, is, and shall rule in truth and grace forever; he does so now through the church, but not yet. 

He has promised to rescue us from sin and death, we experience it now, but not yet. He are so confident in Jesus keeping his promise to save us, that we act as if it has already happened; the future present now. Our trust in the Lord is so strong that we live now as if our forgiveness on Judgment Day has already occurred; the present that is yet to be. The faith we have in God is so vibrant, we believe that his reign has already begun on the earth;  

Christmas is about promises made and promises kept. Christmas is about prolepsis. Do you believe?

For those with searching eyes and yearning hearts, it too often feels like Christ is nowhere. That's what it felt like to the inmate I visited in jail, as she poured her heart out to me. How does God feel so far away? Why doesn't he feel close?

But to those who have heard the promise and believe it, Christ is now here. 

That is prolepsis. 

And that is what Christmas is all about.

CHRISTISNOWHERE: How Jesus Can Be King Of Your Christmas - Second Sermon of Advent

Lectionary Reading for the Second Sunday of Advent:
Isaiah 40-1-11, Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13, 2Peter 3:8-15a, Mark 1:1-8

Why do we need to prepare for Christmas with Advent?

Advent means "to come"; it implies waiting for the arrival of someone or something. It can also be an impetus for preparation; much like the work we do around the house to decorate and clean for Christmas Day festivities.

But Christians know that Christmas means much more then family and food, it is also about the bedrock of our faith. But what, exactly, does Christmas and Advent have to reveal to us about our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ?

It helps to retell the story of Christmas - not just the one that starts in the Gospel according to Matthew or Luke, but the one that we discover in the sermons of the prophet Isaiah, or the stories of King David in books of Samuel, Kings and Chronicles. And even further back to Joshua and Moses, Abraham and even Adam.

Matthew and Luke give all sorts of obvious cues that we need to know the OT stories to make sense of the Christmas story - the genealogies kind of give it away! But each gospel-writer also makes it clear that Jesus is to rule over Israel as a descendant of King David, that he will sit on the throne of the twelve tribes of Jacob and his reign will never end. If this identity of Jesus as King is central to our understanding the Christmas story, then how did Jesus become King at Christmas?

Delving into the story of Jesus will help us discern how Jesus can be the king of our Christmas.

There is a very interesting story in 1 Samuel 8, where the elders of Israel reject God as their king and demand for the Lord to provide for them a human king, like all the other nations, to lead their people into battle when attacked by their enemies. God's kingship hadn't been overt over Israel, like having a human king would be. God was the king they couldn't see, but he was the most powerful king in all the universe. And they would rather have a limited human king they could see then an almighty king they can't see.

How long had God been the king of Israel? When did it happen? Why did they rejected him?

For a few hundred years God had been appointing judges to rule over the tribes of Israel. These judges were his representatives, servants of the king, so to speak, to dispense justice and deliver the tribes from the surrounding enemy nations. Over the centuries the judges became more corrupt and the people often did what was right in their own eyes.

At the end of the story comes Samson, the worst of the judges, and then Samuel, the best. But Samuel's sons were completely unfit for judging, they took bribes and abused their priestly duties in the tabernacle. It was Samuel's sons that the elders were rejecting, but they were also rejecting God's judges, and thus rejecting God as their king.

God was the one that had delivered the twelve tribes from slavery in Egypt. There God had a showdown with the king of Pharaoh, who considered himself a god. God won the duel with Pharaoh, establishing himself as a more powerful god and king. His people were released to go worship God in the wilderness, and there God made a covenant with his people, much like a king covenants with the subjects of his kingdom.

Prior to God's people becoming enslaved in Egypt, they had been the descendants of the powerfully wealthy and blessed patriarch Abraham. God had appeared to the Abraham, calling him out of Ur and promising to bless him with land and descendants, a nation and kingdom through whom God would bless the world.

Abraham believed God, and he followed the call and did become a blessing. Though Abraham reigned as a king in his portion of the promised land, it was clearly God who was the one with the authority and power, making him the ultimate king over Abraham.

But Abraham wasn't the first man whom God called to serve as a king on the earth on his behalf. We read in the book of beginnings, Genesis, of God calling Adam and Eve to serve together as his kings and priests in the world, ruling with goodness and blessing in God's name, for the flourishing of all creation. From the beginning, God's relation to humanity was like that of a king and citizens of his kingdom.

But we know how the story still goes, the citizens rebel and reject their God and king, again, and again, and again. Sometimes because of envy or jealousy, other times because of pride and ambition. But it also happens because we are incited to sin, we become deceived with half-truths and are led to doubt and mistrust God as king. That's what happened with Adam. And it's what happened with the people of Israel towards God and Moses. It's what happened with the twelve tribes and the God-appointed judges.

When the elders of Israel rejected Samuel's sons as judges and God as their king, the Lord was used to this pattern of rejection. But, because of God's covenant with Israel, he was going to stay faithful to them no matter how unfaithful they became. But the covenant relationship bound Israel to their God, thus faithfulness resulted in blessings and unfaithfulness resulted in curses. God warned the elders of Israel that if they rejected God as king and followed a human king, they would still come to the same fate: their covenant unfaithfulness will destroy them.

The elders went with a human king, and God worked with the kings to ensure that they still kept the covenant. The first king was a flop, but the second king, David, and his son Solomon, were two of the best kings Israel ever had. During their reign, Israel seemed to be fulfilling the promise to Abraham: the nations were being blessed by the justice and wisdom of the kings.

But then David and Solomon were enticed to sin, to commit adultery, to murder, to enslave, and for Solomon to fall into idolatry. Injustice descended upon the royal families, and the human kings of Israel were no better then the judges who had ruled earlier. Go sent prophets to the royal and priestly families, warning them to turn away from their idols and return to serving and worshipping only God.

God warned them that their injustice, immorality and idolatry would result in them becoming defenseless against the Assyrians and Babylonian empires. The kings and priests of Israel were sent into exile for 70 years for their sins. Eventually some of the ruling and priestly families were able to return and rebuild the Temple and Jerusalem. Thought they came home, they had no king, there was no one on the throne, and they were not able to rule their own land as they saw fit.

And so the laments and groans continued, the cries increased in intensity: O Lord, turn your face to us, come and save us! Send us a king, like you promised, that our land and people may flourish! Restore us and the land!

The lectionary readings of last week focused on these cries for deliverance while they waited in continued exile. The legionary readings for this week, though, point to God's call to his people to prepare for his coming! Good news! Behold, your God shall come to you! Prepare the way with righteous justice!

You can hear the hopefulness in the words of Isaiah 40:1-11.

Notice the power of the words of the poem: "Behold the Lord God shall come with a strong hand!"

This is the gospel announcement of Christmas! The prophet proclaims: you who bring good tidings!

This is what the shepherds heard from the angels. Good tidings, good news, the Gospel of the coming king to reign upon his throne, to end the exile and establish righteous justice and peace. Believe the good news that the king is coming, that God himself will take up the throne of Israel again and rule in a new way!

This is what Jesus himself announces as he begins his ministry! What had been announced to exile Israel at his birth was now being fulfilled, following his baptism by John the Baptist! Today's Gospel reading complements today's first Scripture reading - Mark refers to this whole passage when he quotes it in the beginning of his gospel of Jesus the King of Israel.

What is Christmas? It is the good news of the arrival of the king of the kingdom of Israel who are the people of God, set apart to be royal priests to bless the world through their righteous justice.

Isaiah was calling Israel to prepare for the coming of their God and king. The angels did the same thing on the night of our dear Saviors birth, John announced it on the dusty hills of the flowing Jordan. Jesus did it as he crossed over the hills of Galilee and the mountain of Jerusalem. And it was the early Christians believed in as they looked for the ascended king of kings to return from the heavens and establish his kingdom on earth.

So how can we let Jesus be the king of our Christmas?
When we let the first Christmas prepare us for the last Christmas. We are part of the same people of God, just as Israel was preparing for the Lord and King to come in power (which Jesus did, but not in the way they expected...), so we also as the people of God prepare for King Jesus to return and fully establish his kingdom on earth.

Like Israel, the Church looks for a day when righteousness will rain from the sky and truth shall spring up from the earth; when righteousness and peace kiss. That is what the first and last Christmas are all about.

Don't let this Christmas be only about nostalgia, or religious piety about that first Christmas. Let the first Christmas, which was for Israel, reveal to you what the last Christmas will be about, which is for Israel.

The church is the people of God in-between the rejection of their Lord in the past, and their embrace of their Lord in the future. The Lord is the God of Israel, and we Gentiles are adopted into the family of God through their rejection of their king and our allegiance to him. Jesus is the crucified king of Israel who was resurrected by the God of Israel, and he know reigns over the people of God at the right hand of the Lord Almighty. That is the season in which we are celebrating Christmas.

So how can you prepare for the last Christmas through letting Jesus be king of this Christmas?

Pay attention. It's not hard to notice the injustice that swirls around us. The temptation is to notice but not pay it attention. It's over there, it's not my problem, I already have enough on my plate, I don't want to get involved, etc.

But it's paying attention to the wickedness in our world that makes us groan for deliverance, it's what prompts our prayers for Hosanna and Maranatha. But paying attention isn't about fueling despair. It's about fueling faith: we believe that this wickedness will one day end, justice shall triumph over injustice some day - and we will prepare for that day by participating this day.

We believe that the good news which Isaiah preached and Jesus fulfilled is still at work today in our generation: the gospel of the kingdom of God is continually breaking into the world through the people of God, the church, the body of Christ, the students of King Jesus who imitate his ways and obey his commands.

The Psalm that will be read for Communion ends with these words: Righteousness will go before him, And shall make his footsteps our pathway. Our righteousness prepares us for the return of the Lord.

The epistle that Karen will read by 2Peter builds on this theme: the apostle writes that our holiness and godliness can actually speed the day of the return of the Lord. Why would't we want a kingdom of righteous justice to flourish in our world? The wickedness is so prevalent and blatant, whether oversees or in our own cities, injustice and immorality reveal that there is massive idolatry.

Peter goes on to write that the Lord is putting off his return so that more people have time to repent, to turn way from their sins and turn towards his salvation. It's ironic: the more unrighteous the church is, the longer the Lord tarries; the more righteous and just and holy the church becomes, the sooner he will return.

It might sound a bit odd to put it that way, but think about it: if you don't really want justice to prevail on our earth, you don't really want God to return, for when he does he will judge everyone according to their deeds. If you really do want justice to prevail on our earth, then you are preparing yourself and our world for his return, and you are eager for his return.

How would you know that you are ready for God to return and establish justice upon the earth? By doing your part to establish righteous justice in your world, in your church, in your workplace, in your home, in your heart.

You want Jesus to be king of your Christmas? Then pay attention to the wickedness in our world. Let the overwhelming evil that infects everything and everyone prompt you to get on your knees and thank God that he is rescuing you from it.

Hear the gospel and believe it: Jesus is King and he has come to establish the kingdom of God through the church, through all those who will be loyal to him and do as he instructs for the flourishing of humanity, blessing the world with righteous justice and enduring peace.

The wickedness of the world now can cause despair, but it can also prompt us to cry out for salvation. Just like Israel in exile, so we, the church, today, hear the word of the Lord: Behold the Lord your God shall come with strength to rule! Turn away from your folly and turn towards the Lord! Commit to holiness and godliness, mercy and truth, faithfulness and justice.

Idolatry is when you turn away from God and turn towards anything else besides God to give you guidance or protection, strength or help, blessing or deliverance.

Immorality is when you turn against God and do with yourself whatever you want, doing right in your own eyes; unrighteousness always leads to valuing self above others, which leads to using and abusing others for your own gain and preservation. Your immorality is connected to your idolatry; whatever you worship you become, whatever you serve becomes your master, whatever you desire will demand your life.

Injustice is when you turn against your neighbor, it is the outcome of our immorality and idolatry.

Injustice takes on systemic forms, becoming embedded in our governments and institutions of education, health, law, public works, science, art, and all else political and cultural. It becomes a kingdom of darkness with a power all it's own that transcends and yet it immanent throughout humanity.

But God has been at work to destroy the works of darkness through this kingdom of priests. Though it may seem that the darkness of sin and death are prevailing, we believe the gospel of the kingdom of God, that the light of the son is shining through, that his goodness is overcoming evil, and that he is preparing the church, his people, for his return to the world, where he will restore all things.

We prepare for what only he can finish.

CHRISTISNOWHERE: How Jesus Can Be King Of Your Christmas - First Sermon of Advent

Lectionary Reading for the First Sunday of Advent: 
Isaiah 64, Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19, 1Cor 1:3-9, Mark 13:24-37


What is Christmas?
What is Christmas really all about. Sometimes we can become so familiar with a story that we forget or forgo the details of the story, which is what originally made it so compelling and transformative.

And that's what the Advent season is for in the church calendar. There is wisdom in the church taking a few weeks to prepare for our Christmas celebration. And if you think that odd or overkill, then that may be a sign that you've become unfamiliar with some of the key elements that make the Christmas story so enduring.

What is Christmas? It's the story of Jesus coming to fulfill the story of Israel in the most radical and unexpected way possible: their God will become their king to personally deliver them from exile and place his Word in their heart that they might become the nation they were called and created to be: a blessing and light to the world. And so God emerges into the world through the infant Jesus, born into scandal and poverty, into a diminished, oppressed, and powerless family of royal descent. 

But what is the historical situation behind this Christmas story? Why does Israel need a savior? Where is their king? Why are they in exile? Where has God been? Why has he been absent? 

In the days of Caesar Augustus, the people of Israel were enduring their fourth empire, and it seemed to them that God was no where. So when the angels announce that in the birth of Jesus that God is now here, it was good news indeed! And yet the arrival of God was not like they had expected, nor did it initiate the rescue they had prayed for. 

In our day, the church is the new Israel, we are the people of God, those who pledge allegiance to Jesus as King, our Lord, Savior and Christ. We are into our 21st century since the ascension of Jesus to his throne at the right hand of God the Father. And though God the Father and Jesus the Son sent the Holy Spirit to be in us, it still feels at times like Christ is no where. Christ came unexpectedly and saved his people in an unexpected way. And now we who yearn for Christ to return can begin to empathize with the waiting of Israel as they waited for God to rescue them. They had no idea how much longer it would be until God came to save them. We have no idea how much longer it will be until Christ returns and set the world right. 

Do you ever get tired of waiting for God? Do you ever lose hope about all that is wrong in our world? In your life? Do you ever grow weary of waiting for Christ to show up and save you from your troubles? You do and Israel did. The season of Advent is a time of preparation for Christmas. What is preparation? Active waiting. You work while you wait, you prepare as you anticipate. And our four weeks of preparation and anticipation are to be a picture of what our larger life is to be like as we wait and work for Christ to return. 

When it seems like Christ is no where, that's when faith becomes crucial and you choose to believe that Christ is now here. We can all be like Thomas, and refuse to trust that Christ is here; and yet like Thomas, we need to hear the words of Jesus to him: you believed because you could see, blessed are those who do not see and yet believe. 

I don't know what you're waiting on this Christmas. I don't know what you are waiting on God to do for you this Christmas. I don't know what what you are praying and pleading Christ to fix for you. Maybe it's health, or your job, or family, friends, your habits, your heart? Maybe you want Christ to do something about the loneliness of Christmas, the grief and sadness of Christmas, the hassle and hustle of Christmas, the unfulfilled hopes and expectations of Christmas, the stress and busyness of Christmas, the commercialism and shopping of Christmas, the pain and suffering of Christmas. 

To prepare properly for Christmas is to be honestly aware of what you want rescued from in your life.  For Christmas to be a proper preparation for our anticipation of Christ's return, we must be clear on why we yearn for Christ to come back now and not later. 

The people of Israel had word that was both a cry of suffering and a cry of hope: Hosanna! Lord save us! It's a word you pray, it can be a word you shout, it was a word on Israel's lips and hearts as they labored and lived under the oppressive cruelty of the empires - Rome, Greece, Persia, Babylon, Assyria. 

The early Christians had a word for that pain and yearning: Maranatha. Come Lord! It's the perfect word for Christians at Christmas. Depending on how you see and say the word, you can say it Marana tha: Come Lord Jesus! Or you can say it Mara natha: Our Lord has come! The first Christians looked back to Christmas and declared: Mara anther: Our Lord has come! And then they would look ahead and declare: Marana tha: Come Lord Jesus. 

For you, when you begin to feel like Christ is no where, you can cry out like Israel, Hosanna, Lord save me! You can cry out like the early Christians, Marana tha: Come Lord Jesus! And when you have been reminded that Christ is now here, you can declare with faith, hope and love: Mara anatha: Our Lord has come! 

And this begins to get at the heart of what it means for Jesus to be king of your Christmas. It means understanding his story and the story of Israel so that you can grasp the first story of Christmas. By delving into this original story of Christmas, you begin to remember what Christmas is all about, and thus you can prepare and anticipate properly. Christmas is not about celebrating a day, but an event.

But more then that, it's celebrating and remembering the one who caused the event, and the one about whom the event is about: the God of Israel who becomes King through Jesus. Christmas is the beginning of the reign of God through Jesus in the world. That's what we are celebrating: the genesis of the kingdom of God where Jesus becomes Lord and Christ and establishes the church through whom he will be present in the world. 

No wonder we need words like Hosanna and Maranatha at Christmas. 

If God became present in the world through Jesus, and now God and Jesus are present in the world through the Spirit, and if God, Jesus and the Spirit are present in the world through the Church, which is the body of Christ, no wonder we despair and feel like Christ is no where. It's easy to see how the church has failed God and humanity and us in so many ways. But we must remember that our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against dark powers and evil forces throughout the heavens and the earth.

The church is the one people on earth where God chooses to dwell by the Spirit of Christ to demonstrate his redeeming love. God's design for the church is that they be a people on earth through whom he can bless all the peoples of the earth.

The church is to be a light to the world of what the kingdom of God can look like - a community where righteous justice prevails alongside humble mercy.

The church is the one people on earth that calls on Christ as their Lord, learning to be led by him, learning to serve him, and be his servants of blessing and rescue from evil.

When the church fails, we cry out Hosanna,  and when the the church gets it right, we can cry out Maranatha!

When we lose our way, we can look back to Christmas and remember where our story begins, but then we can also look ahead and remember where our story goes: just as God come once through Jesus to renew the kingdom of God through the church, so God will come again with Jesus to fully establish the kingdom of God on earth, and finally justice and peace will kiss. 

Move Forward In Your Understanding of the Bible: the Creation stories

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

It's a compelling and famous first line to the Bible. It's also the first word about God.

When Israel compiled the Hebrew Scriptures, the stories of Genesis, of their beginnings, they start with their dramatic and poetic retelling of Creation. But they do it in a unique way: they chart out the unfolding of creation in accordance with the days of the week, which culminates in the Sabbath, the seventh day becoming holy, set apart for rest, since the work is done.

Clearly the Creation story of Genesis chapter one is about much more then a scientific accounting of how the universe was formed. Israel clearly makes the claim that YHWH is the Creator of the whole universe - he is the one and only true living God who forms a universe where life begets life.

This is against the competing creation narratives that shaped the cultures around them. Whether they be Assyrian or Babylonian creation narratives, the story of Genesis is a stark contrast. Compare it to the remarkable and ancient Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh, which dates back to around 1800BCE. Though the Hebrew Scriptures weren't gathered together in their final form until around 300BCE, the Genesis stories date back to the era of Gilgamesh. And it's easy to see the similarities. But it's the differences that matter. And understanding the culture and aims of ancient Israel will help us understand their poems and stories, their theology and beliefs, which is crucial to us in our believing and living in accordance with the Bible.

If we are going to move forward in our faith in Jesus Christ and our love for one another based on what we understand from the Scriptures, we need to move forward in our knowledge of the Bible. Not just what the Bible says, but why it says what it says. To best understand Jesus of Nazareth, we read the Gospel according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. To better understand the Christian context in which the Gospel was recorded, we read Acts and the Epistles of the New Testament, which predate the actual compilation of the Gospel according to MMLJ, but historically flow from the events recorded in them about Jesus. To better understand the early development of the church and the beliefs and culture of Jesus, we need to move forward in our understanding of the Old Testament and its world.

To help us move forward in our understanding of the Old (or First) Testament, I've identified five key stories that provide an overarching flow of the narrative in the Hebrew Scriptures. They point us forward to Jesus, who fulfilled the story of Israel in his life, death, resurrection and ascension.

The five stories are: Creation (Genesis 1-11); Covenant (Genesis 12-Deuteronomy); Exodus (Exodus - Ruth); Kingdom (1Samuel - 2 Chronicles/Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Songs) and Exile (Ezra - Malachai/Job and Ecclesiastes)

This is the first of five blog posts on each of these five over-arching stories. Gaining understanding of Israel through the stories, poems, and laws that they selected to be part of the Hebrew Scriptures gives us great insight into their life with God. Especially the story of Creation, of which their are at least three different accounts of the beginning of the world in Genesis 1-11.

If you notice, chapter 1 of Genesis seems to be a poem of sorts. It's not really a story, it's not a law-treatise, it's not your typical poem. But there are some unique features among the six days of creation: they are a move from chaos to order, of emptiness being filled, of work that is good and moving forward towards more life. It's obvious that the creation culminates in a day of rest, the seventh day is made holy, work - even good work that creates life - ceases and relaxes and enjoys the fruit of its labor. Clearly this chapter is not about science, but about an understanding about life and God at work in this world of ours. It's not an exhaustive recounting of Creation, for it has an emphasis all its own centered around the days of the week and the rhythms of life.

It is an interesting contrast to chapter 2 of Genesis, which is an obvious story about Creation, but one that ends in tragedy and even an early narrative of exile. There is very little overlap between the the first two chapters on the order of Creation, from a scientific point of view they don't correlate. But they are not meant to convey science, they are meant to convey knowledge about humanity and God and our relationship and purpose on Earth. It's a beautiful story that reveals much about how Israel understood God and themselves and humanity. It's beautiful and it resonates as true because we can see how those stories still play out today between men and women, husbands and wives, brothers, and humanity towards God (see chapters three and four.)

There is yet another Creation account in chapter five, a genealogy that traces history of humanity from Adam to Noah (and later one we'll have another genealogy that traces humanity from Noah to Abraham, the father of Israel). Genealogies are how you remember where you came from, they are a connecting of names and memories that shape your identity, that reveal your past so that you can better understand the direction of your life and those connected with you in your community. Without genealogies we have little sense of where we came from.

And that's one of the goals of Genesis: to lay out for Israel their understanding of where they came from, where the Earth and universe came from. We have recorded in elegant, sophisticated, brilliant form their Creation narratives. Even the dark story of the flood recorded in Genesis 6-9 is a creation story of sorts, for in it the whole world is destroyed by water due to God's anger towards humanity and their rampant evil that had corrupted his good creation. Through Noah and his sons, God makes a new covenant with humanity that he would never destroy the world by water again, no matter how full of evil it becomes. This is a new beginning for God and the humanity, with Noah, who is like another version of Adam. God binds himself to humanity, requiring massive creativity in his response to the unending, exponential infection of evil throughout the Earth.

Chapter ten is like another version of chapter 5, giving the forward looking genealogy of Noah, which ends up providing the introduction of the origins of Israel's arch-enemies: Assyria and Babylon. Chapter eleven becomes a very interesting chapter: it is our first story of Israel's enemy Babylon constructing an ingenious tower - but in defiance of God and fueled by human pride and ambition.

How does God respond to this evil but technically advanced collaboration now that he's made the covenant with Noah? Instead of destruction through violence, the story reveals the introduction of multiple languages such that the people were confused and could not communicate and thus not collaborate on their temple project. They then despaired of their tower and dispersed across the land.

This is Israel's accounting of why there are multiple languages, of the origins of Babylon, and a revelation of their belief about how God works in the world: he comes down to us. The men of Babel were seeking to go up to God in the heavens in an effort to exert power and dominion over humanity - which is in stark contrast to God's intentions that humanity work together for the flourishing of all creation and one another.

From a scientific approach to these eleven chapters, there are all sorts of conflicts. Whether it's geology or astrophysics or biology or botany or anatomy or anthropology or linguistics or any other branch of science, there are multiple points of disagreement with the narratives of Scripture. To insist that Genesis 1-11 must completely correlate with science is asking too much for what ancient Israel intended to convey. They sought to make sense of the world as best they understood it - not only accounting for the natural reality of the world, but the social, moral, spiritual, political, economic, domestic, and legal realities of their world.

We are doing similar work as they are: seeking to make sense of our life and world. We are building upon what they have started. But does the new knowledge we have gained about the origins of the universe and all that is in it made Genesis 1-11 less true? No. The sub-structure of the narratives, the ultimate points they seek to make about living are outside the aims of science. The narratives do point to a real reality of humanity in which the God of Israel is at work in the world as it actually exists.

There is more to learn about humanity and God from Genesis 1-11, we've only scratched the surface of what the narratives are seeking to reveal. It's not primarily scientific knowledge, but knowledge of life which profoundly shapes those who seek the truth - not only men and women of science, but for our community and for love, as revealed by the Lord.

We are introduced to the God of Israel through Genesis 1-11, and since Jesus is both a son of Israel and the son of God, we must submit ourselves to that reality as we seek to move forward in our faith and love of the Lord and our neighbor.

If nothing else, these Creation narratives should move us forward in our awe of the natural world and the vastness of the universes, humble us as we consider our place in the galaxy, but inspire us as we learn about a Creator who initiates life and a world that he made to be good. It is a dangerous world that has been infected by evil, and violent destruction is it's hallmark, but not the answer. There is a way to peace, but we don't learn about it in the first chapters - if nothing else we learn of it's origin and our desperate need for it. Which sets the stage for the unfolding story of Jesus.

A few takeaways for us: 

* science and faith in God do not need to be enemies. It is beautiful when our scientific inquiry reveals the complexity and wonder of the world. This can bolster our faith and gratitude towards God. It can both strengthen our faith in God the Creator while deepening our knowledge and curiosity of the universe. We can vigorously believe that the God of Israel is the Creator of the universe without being compelled to lay out the exact way he did it.

* reading the Old Testament is a task which pulls you into an ancient world that is intriguingly and confusingly different from our own, and yet full of similarities. To enter into the Old Testament with the expectation that it will speak directly and easily into our post-modern American life is naive and lazy. We must humble ourselves to learn about them in order for the narratives of the OT to speak into our existence. And they have much to say to us, if we will work and listen.

* the Hebrew Scriptures are trustworthy for revealing knowledge of God and for pointing us forward to Jesus. The Gospels repeatedly record Jesus teaching from the Hebrew Scriptures in order to help people see Him in it. The Apostles all teach from the Hebrew Scriptures to help people move forward in their faith in Jesus. We can benefit richly from the Old Testament when we make the effort to understand it on its terms.

* many of the stories and poems of the Old Testament have multiple layers of meaning. There is a thick richness to the truths and realities being conveyed to the reader about the Creator and Creation. Be open to always moving forward - in depth and in insight - as you immerse yourself in these old but true words of Scripture.

What Is God's Will For My Life? (a very small e-book with helpful comments for a very big question)

That's the question we ask when we want clarity and certainty about currently confusing circumstances or confirmation about hopes and ambitions for the future. I think God is pleased when we inquire of him what he wants for us. For anyone that has ever prayed The Lord's Prayer, we ought to be seeking answers.

But how do we get answers?

The original question can presume that you have no idea what to do next, or that your future is a complete blank. Or it implies that you know what you would do but you are not sure what God would have you do, as if they were two very different courses of action. But we can know quite a bit already about God's will when we start praying. 

The Scriptures obviously contain many stories, teachings, opinions, instructions and commands of God about his will. Becoming a student of Jesus opens up the Scriptures for you, helping you discern what God has already revealed to humanity about his will.

By becoming familiar with the Scriptures as a student of Jesus, you can begin to more confidently discern what is God's will for your life. As you begin to see the arc of God's covenantal work in the world, you put pieces together about what God is doing and why. Scripture teaches us that God is in a covenant relationship with Israel and all who follow Jesus. For those in a covenant relationship with God through Christ there are many promises and pledges made to us. There are also many words of wisdom for how to live and what to live for. These instructions deal with the here and now as well as the looming future.

Maybe you've been reading the Scriptures as a student of Jesus and you're still not sure what to do or think or feel. That's where finding a mature Christian friend or pastor can be so helpful. Connecting with others who have spent much time and energy studying the Scriptures as a wise student of Jesus can be a way forward in clarity. Both by their experiences in life and prayer they can help you sort out decisions and the will of God. They will provide more perspective for your situation - not only theirs but the perspective of others that have shaped their life. These conversations can open up the Scriptures to you in new ways, helping you see more clearly what God's will has always been for humanity, and what it is for today.

In letting Scriptures and other mature students of Jesus helping you discern God's will for your life, you are drawing upon experience, history, tradition and reason. Clearly the emotions of the moment can cloud your thinking, so letting others use reason to help you sort out conflicting ideas and confusing experiences is a gift. But sometimes the logical analysis leaves you paralyzed, and a friend can help you tap into those inner desires and passions that you believe come from God. But this is within the context of how God has worked through the years, the decades and centuries and even millennia. We need that perspective and wisdom to better understand God's will for life. 

You might have been hoping there was an easier way to know God's will for your life. Can't you just pray to God and he can just tell you the answer? If he knows the answer, and it's a good - even crucial answer, what kind of God would make you work for it or withhold it and make you wonder and wait? If God knows everything, and he sees so many people messing up, why doesn't he make his will more obvious and easier to access? Wouldn't people do the right thing more often if God was more obvious and effective in communicating his will?

That's where becoming with familiar with the Scriptures will give some insight into how humanity works. The people of Israel experienced God in mighty ways, they knew that their leader Moses was a friend of God, and yet they doubted God, rebelled against him, grumbled against him and tested him, despite the obviousness of God's provision and presence.

So it was again with Jesus - God in the flesh to teach us his will. Even when God became one of us, he was still misunderstood and mocked for his instructions about his will. And so we must learn from history and human reality. 

The context for asking God what his will is for your life happens within the context of a covenant relationship. A covenant is where two people (or in this case God and Israel and the disciples of Jesus) commit to a relationship with certain terms. God initiated this covenant with Abraham, solidified it in stone with Moses, and demonstrated his determination to keep it and even renew it with Jesus.

The deal of the covenant could be summarized like this: God's part of the covenant is to bless Abraham and all his descendants (which includes all those who believe in Jesus). God will bless them, he will make them a blessing, and he will bless the world through them. What was Abraham and his descendant's requirement for the covenant relationship? To be loyal to God, to follow his instructions, and be faithful to the covenant.

So what is God's will for your life? To let God bless you, that you might be a blessing, and so the whole world can be blessed because of you. How awesome is that life?! 

This obviously also means that God's will for your life includes wholehearted loyalty to Him and no other idols, that you will diligently understand and follow all his instructions for life, and that you will persevere in keeping your end of the covenant relationship.

In other words, love God, love your neighbor, and never give up on either.

Maybe you were looking for more specific guidance on particular current issues or complex problems affecting future situations? 

In light of what we've just reviewed, let's be honest about the nature of what we tend to ask God when we seek his will. At one level we want assurance that we will be making the right decision for our success. But we ask out of fear. 

We're afraid of making the wrong decision. Think about it: you are coming to God in fear that you will make the wrong decision unless he makes clear what he wants you to do. You then in your fear put the future decision in God's hands, relieving yourself of responsibility for it - if you make the wrong decision it's God's fault for not being more clear, and if it goes well, then clearly God answered your prayer.

But what is God's will for you? To trust him! How can you learn to trust him if you are asking him about your future in fear of failure?

We ask God's will for assurance in making the right decision. But, honestly, sometimes we ask God to reveal his will for issues and decisions that are pretty much about our personal ambition and accumulation of material goods that provide either more status or security. "Dear God, should I buy this house? This car? Go to this school? Take this job? Have kids? etc." If you want to know God's will so that you can get help in order to achieve the American Dream, then you may be on your own. God wants to bless you with something bigger and better then the American Dream. He has his sights on the Kingdom. 

For a lot of people I know, asking God for direction and help is an act of desperate trust. It comes from lives that are trying to survive their way through the world as best they can, hoping God can maybe help them out once in a while.

All I can say is that God wants to bless you and use you to bless others. It may not solve all your problems or always make everything easier, but God's will is definitely rooted in love for you and loving others through you. What do you want in your life? Success? A life of ease? Less problems? Happiness? or Love? For those that want more love in their life - and the power and energy and vision to love deeply and richly - that's what God's will is ultimately for everyone. 

At one level, it doesn't matter where you live, where you work, where you go to church, what you accomplish. If it is not done in love for God and neighbor, it will come to nothing. If you aren't seeking God's kingdom ahead of your own, you won't want God's will to prevail in your life. 

But at another level, everything you do and decide matters. People matter. Life matters. Our world matters. Our society matters. Where civilization is going matters. How your city and country is doing matters. This is our Father's World, and we believe that Jesus is the Lord and King, working to set everything right. Our work as students of Jesus is to learn from him in how to lead and love in this world that he is rescuing from evil and redeeming for good. It's here that every decision matters. But rather then creating more pressure to do the right thing, it opens up a freedom known as grace and peace. 

God's will is prevailing in this messy world through his love as demonstrated in Jesus. It's a messy world. If we're trying to avoid the mess and set ourselves up for success, we may asking God for direction that he's not interested in guiding. But if we're willing to let God use us to enter into the mess of this world - of our family and neighbors - with a commitment to upholding our covenant relationship of love, we will know what God wants for us. Once we gain clarity on the bigger picture, it will shine as light into our murky atmosphere.


Here are some wrap-up observations:
1. God will never reveal his will in such a way that it diminishes your trust in him. Whatever answer you are seeking from God, what he shares will then require more trust in him, not less. If you are looking for assurance for the present or future so that then you can go on your merry way and not really take God into consideration for awhile, well then you'll just have your luck to go on.

2. God wants you to dig deep and give more love to the people he has placed in your life. Whatever decision you are considering, is it motivated by love, will it enable love to flourish, or will it just help you get what you want.

3. Jesus is our best illustration of what God is doing in the world and what his will is for individuals and humanity. Bypassing Jesus and his life in the Gospels and just asking God for information - well it won't work. If you are looking for clarity for God's will in your life, but you aren't interested in learning more from Jesus, you misunderstand the point. God's will for you is rooted in following the way of Jesus. Will what you're asking for enrich your following of Jesus or just enrich you?

4. The Spirit of God that filled Jesus is present within us. We are not asking a God who is far away on the other side of the universe what he wants us to do now or next. We are pondering a decision with God who's Spirit is within us, making it's home in us. This Spirit of Jesus is who we are learning to let rule and lead our life. Which then means our questions about direction are more about submission then support for our ambitions. Which is it for you?

5. God's will for your life is that you will become more holy. When it comes to morals and ethics (money, power, sex, appetites, desires, lusts, vows, etc), God commands you to be holy. Not much squiggle room there. You'll know that you're resisting holiness when you're looking for loopholes. Or confident that you're more holy then everyone else. We can't become holy without God. He's the one who makes us holy. So if you're asking for wisdom on complicated and confusing situations, know that God wants to help you do more then just make the right decision, he wants you to desire holiness. 

6. God's will for your life is to be full of thanksgiving in all circumstances. Every good gift is from God. When you begin to see how much good is already in your life, you'll see how generous and present and active God is already in your life. Which increases your confidence about what ever is next.  Odds are you're confused about the present or near future because you're unclear about God's presence in the past. Begin to identify all the good that has been given to you - acts of grace from God that you didn't deserve but are from the one who is Love. (and if you think you're the main one responsible for what is good in your life, well then you probably won't like what God wants you to do next anyways...). As you begin to discern how big and beautiful this covenant relationship with God is becoming, how can you not be grateful always? 

7. God's will for your life includes being a blessing for your neighborhood and city, your friends and all the people Christ has connected to you. If you get the answer you are looking for, who all will be better off because of that gift? God's will for Israel was to bless the world. God's will for the Church (all Christians) is to join Israel in blessing the world through Christ. Is the direction of your life one of blessing for your community? Do the day to day decisions and desires result in you bringing more good gifts to the people in your life, or mostly just for you? Is the holiness and gratitude that is pouring out of you like a redemptive blessing for your neighbors and family and friends and enemies?

Look: with a God like this committed to blessing you and blessing the world through you as he transforms you into a blessing, you can't go wrong! 

He takes all your mistakes and sins and unholiness and he is the one that transforms it - that's what he promised to do. With the help of God's Sprit we daily choose loyalty, we can moment by moment choose obedience, and as we choose to persevere, we both learn our frailty and thus deep dependence on Jesus. But this adds a new kind of energy and hope and power from the Spirit of Christ which makes new things possible.

And isn't that what we really want when we wonder what is God's will for life? 

A few more details:
* If you ask God what his will is for you in a specific situation, he will probably not tell you the answer in the manner or time-table you desire. But when and how he does it will be brilliant and on time. Never early though, nor late.

* God wants you to know and do his will for your life - he will test you to see if you really want to know it. The harder you fight for it, the more you'll value and do what you asked God to tell you. The bigger the issue, the longer you'll need to spend in prayer with God about his will. If you want the answer, put in the time and energy.

* God answers by his Spirit through Scripture, other Christians, experience and circumstances, reason and emotion. It can be a slow dawning of realization or a sudden burst of insight. It might be a whisper or a clear command of direction. It's up to God on how he communicates it. We can trust that he never has a problem making his will known.

* When you ask God to reveal his will, remember that he is your Father who is working for his will to prevail throughout all the universe, including planet Earth. He's hearing your prayers and a few billion more. And he's working to answer them all at the same time, knitting together an unfathomable number of hopes and dreams so that His Kingdom comes in their lives. Our lives.

Remember: what ever direction you want for your life, the answer he provides is somehow tied up with the prayers and future of others. Keep that in mind when you wonder why it's taking so long or why it turned out the way it did. The answer God gives is impacting many more lives then you envisioned.

So there you go. Now you know more about what is God's will for your life. But, you probably still have more questions. Post them below in the comment. I'd love to interact with you about them.