Contrast Society

The back end of Ephesians chapter 4 starts a train of thought that has been set up for us in the previous chapters. As a people called to mission there is to be something noticeable about our community. It can't simply look like the Gentile life with a Christian veneer (v17), that would not be worthy of our calling (v1).

So its our lifestyle choices (e.g. pension fund allocation), and a whole lot more. There's a whole new way of thinking to take on board here.

But before we reach for the 'bullet-list' button on this blogging tool to create a list of cans & can'ts, lets remember what Paul is on about and why.

The point is that God is calling people to be a contrast-society (Lohfink, 'Jesus and Community' is helpful here). Not withdrawing from society but staying within it while maintaining the contrast. This maintains the trajectory we saw earlier, being holy and blameless from way back in 1:4. This is going to affect the way we relate to each other (we will return to this in the future), our diligence, what we do and what we say.

The point is, as in 5:1 to be imitators of God, living a life of love. And of course that continues this trajectory of mission once again, since God is a God of mission, not just a holy club.

Clean up your act

How many of you have checked your pension funds recently?

No, not to depress yourself about how poorly they are performing (that seems 'guaranteed' these days!), but to see what ethical investment options are available.

It came to my mind since one of my myriad pension providers sent their annual ethical investment newsletter. They also annually survey, to see what the ethical issues really our in our minds, not just what they think they should be. Sounds quite good practice really.

Many of us with pensions in a portfolio of funds have flexibility to move our pot of gold around between different funds. We should use that luxury to favour ethical investments where we can, or at least take the option seriously.

To not do this is surely another example of talking about loving our neighbour, but not actually doing anything about it. Okay we probably can't be completely clean with our money (just about everything is tainted, it would seem), but maybe there are steps we can take, as part of 'living a life worthy of your calling'.

Newbigin Article

This article from Community Mission (formerly Shaftesbury Society) is (in my opinion) very, very good pulling out salient points from Newbigin's works.

I suggest reading the full article, but the two salient points are:

1. A proper confidence in the gospel - as the 'event' of Jesus Christ that is inherently social and political as well as just being individual. This is a movement of God in society we are talking here, not just a proposition for people's personal beliefs.
2. The doctrine of election - echoing the 'people for a purpose' seen in the trajectory in Ephesians I have been harping on about recently.

To say more would detract from the original article, except to point to the concluding paragraph:

... the missionary task lies at the very heart and purpose of what it means to be Church

Resourcing for Mission

Interesting isn't it, that in Eph 4:11 Paul gives a list of gifted-roles from God's empowerment and enabling for the church. Does the list convey any order, or is it randomly and arbitrarily ordered?

Well you can argue that as much as you like. Many commentators at least start with the foundational aspects of apostles and then prophets, with Eph 2:20 providing good support for the argument. Thing is, if you follow the logic of that implied order then you are led to conclude that pastors & teachers are at the bottom of the list.

So if such an ordering was Paul's intention, then it would seem by today's church standards that he holds a minority viewpoint!

Looking across the church in the UK, at staff positions, vacancy lists and team profiles (both with stipends and volunteer), one might be forgiven for thinking that the prevailing consensus is that the priority order is the other way round. And thats even before you factor in bishops and their free-church equivalents.

Just food for thought ...

Love without Boundaries

Our detour into 1Cor 13 fits surprisingly well with our look at Ephesians. Paul prays for the Ephesians in 3:17-20 that they may have the power to grasp the full scope of the love of Christ in all dimensions.

The thing is, in the past I have always interpreted that to be a grasping for one's self benefit. If only we could know Christ's love better, then how much better our walk with God would be. Sounds like a perfectly good prayer for Paul to pray.

But I am now persuaded that Paul had a bigger goal in mind. If we would only grasp Christ's love better, we would be better equipped in our mission. Such a grasping would challenge us of the limits and boundaries we have erected around Christ's love, calling us to go beyond them.

This fits with the trajectory of Ephesians I have already charted. Guder, in his 'Continuing Conversion of the Church' [1], claims we as Christians need this ongoing challenge. I agree with his claim.

Too often we think we know it all, and thus who needs what. These verses trash that, with Paul praying we grasp Christ's love better, and this love will surpass such knowledge. The boundaries we thought were correct, will have to come down.

[1] Guder, The Continuing Conversion of the Church, (Erdmans 2000)

Valentines Day

So today is Valentines day, so lets take a break from Ephesians and check out the obvious: 1 Cor 13.

First off, the way of love spelt out here is not your average gushing fluff, with pink wrappings and Fairtrade chocs. Its hard. Try applying the following to everything you do, to every person you meet:

• being prepared to wait (even when it is clearly your turn ...)
• always looking for the best (even when clearly the other person gets it all wrong ...)
• not being envious (even when the other person is getting it all their way ...)
• not puffing up yourself, nor pointing to yourself
  
• being well-mannered, not going off on one
  

And is if all that weren't difficult enough, try the completion of v5 by being loving enough to highlight a wrong when its appropriate, but without using past wrongs to bring home the point!

Exhausted? Well there is more: now try seeking out the truth in all situations (and not just the convenient truths), seeking to protect, and conveying trust and hope even when these seem to gain little ground.

So thats the spec. Remember that this kind of behavior is not just for when interacting with other Christians, but when dealing with everyone. Paul always has witness to the world in view.

Letter for Mission

So I've rambled about some basic bits of pieces, like making time, LSP, typical fears and the like (see earlier entries). So what now?

Well I would like to start considering mission by turning to a part of the Bible that may surprise you - to what many consider a 'pastoral' epistle, i.e. Ephesians.

How can that be?

Well to get my point, you have to come with me on what I see as a trajectory through Ephesians. We'll start here with the first three chapters.

Chapter 1 talks about a 'chosen people', why is that? Its part of a plan to bring all things together under Christ (see v10), ultimately for His praise & glory (v12). There is a power at work here which Paul hopes we can know better (v15).

This plan, amazingly, is seen in constrasts. See chapter 2 and the contrast of what people are saved from, from being lost to God's riches ... to do God's work. That 'to do ...' is all important! Continue the chapter, you have contrast of former hostility to todays reconciliation made possible in Christ. Its stirring stuff!

Whats it all for? Well in chapter 3 we see God's wisdom purposes. You might argue that v1-9 is a bit of self-qualification for Paul, but it soon leads back to the wider people through whom God's wisdom is revealed. Those same people chosen back in chapter 1, having transitioned through the contrasts of chapter 2 are those in which the power of God is now at work (see v20-21). This is God at work, through His people, for all to see, not just those on the 'inside'.

Chapter 4 goes on to talk about living up to this calling, but more on that later. There's something big going on here - God, people, revealing, transformation ... to bring all things in heaven & earth together under one head, Jesus Christ.

The 20-30s question

My good friend and colleage Joe highlights an article on 20-30s leaving the church. I go with Joe on this - integrity counts big time in this arena.

Now dealing with youth and young adults, that L-S-P thing of mine comes into play. Lets listen to what our young people are saying, and hear where they are coming from, rather than assuming we know whats best and simply try to download.

From this conversation there will be wisdom, resources and good places we can usefully sign-post people towards to help them on their journey, and engage meaningfully in the Christian Way.

And such dialogue will inform our prayers for our younger colleagues, so we are not praying for cloning, but for the Spirit to release the emerging generation into a hurting world in ways that we are simply not equipped to imagine.

Called to be a Super-Hero?

If we take on board our calling to share God's love, and tell people about that love, I wonder if we then find ourselves thinking that to do that properly we would need to become some kind of super hero? A person who has all the answers, all the Bible knowledge with verse references ready to hand, and the ability to boldly proclaim where no-one has proclaimed before ...

Now it might sound strange, but the Bible doesn't actually call us to be any of that. It simply requires us to be ourselves – the person God has made us to be, the person now in Christ. Now that doesn't necessarily mean that we don't have to change, but the change required is more along the lines of our willingness to share than what we perceive as our ability. 1Peter 3:15 exhorts us to be ready (and therefore willing) to explain the hope that we now have in God, and equally reminds us to do that gently and in a way that respects the enquirer.

Perhaps our starting point should therefore be 'Here I am Lord', rather than 'Here's what I can do, Lord', or even 'Here's what I think I've been told to do, Lord'. Being ready and willing then allows God to present the situations so that we can act appropriately when they arise. I'm confident that as each of us presents ourselves to God with a simple prayer like 'Here I am Lord, help me to be ready and able' will end up working itself out in all kinds of situations in what we pray, what we say, and what we do.

Three Typical Fears

Ask a group of Christians about sharing their faith with others, and the chances are that there will be comeback in several areas. Of those, the three most typical are the following: that you will be faced with questions you can't answer, that people will judge you, and that you will somehow blow the friendship.

These are natural enough. Very few of us want to stand out unusually in the crowd, risking the prospect of looking silly, or having people thinking of you as somehow different. And of course none of us wants to lose friends, or offend in any way.

It is a mistake, however, to assume that sharing your faith must always involve these outcomes. For a start, if someone does ask a tricky question then why not simply say 'I don't know the answer to that – that's a good question to be explored'. You will be surprised to find how relieved people are when they realise that us Christians don't have all the answers. It also paves the way to explore the question together, for more discussion and dialogue.

Secondly it helps others in the long run if we make ourselves vulnerable, and admit that actually we do make mistakes and get things wrong, even as Christians. Its about being real with one another, not needing to project some image of ourselves that is in fact to be found wanting. Now if we are open and honest in this way, I cannot guarantee that there will not be some who judge you. Yet if we are real with people, and they still want to judge and pick fault with us, then that is their prerogative. It will be hard for us, perhaps quite painful to face, but ultimately we must give people space and freedom to disagree, even if their accusation seems unfounded.

Finally such openness ought to imply that there will be moments where we honestly and straight-forwardly indicate that we have faith in Christ. That need not mean that we insist our friends to instantly follow Christ themselves, still less become exactly like us in our life choices and what we do on a Sunday. It is important that we give our friends permission and space to be our friends even if they don't believe the same as us.

Bearing all this in mind, sharing our faith with our friends and the people we meet need not be such a fearful experience. It is about being open, and so yes it is about being vulnerable, but coupled with a respect for the other person and a desire for the best for them.

As easy as ... L-S-P

Sign-up for fitness clubs, fastest broadband to choose, best mobile phone deal, which pension fund, cheapest car insurance, what clothes are 'in' this year? Life, it seems, presents an ever-wider myriad of choices. So how to decide ... and does faith have any part to play in any of this? Tough question, especially if we take seriously the call to live lives worthy of the gospel.

Yet these questions are likely the same questions that our friends, our colleagues, those we chat to occasionally when our paths cross, are asking. Deep down, perhaps we are all wondering simply how to get through life?.

Jesus commissioned us to make disciples as you go (Matt 28:16-20). Note the 'as you go' - in other words as we ourselves walk a path of discipleship: following and learning from Jesus. He didn't say 'work out all the answers, then get cracking', but rather 'learn on the job'. All sound too daunting? Remember that in the same instructions He said 'I am with you always' - we don't have to do this alone!

So with our friends, where should we start? How about doing some serious Listening. What are people really asking, what are the real questions below the surface? God works with people where they are at, so try to understand where that place is.

Everyone likes a little bit of help to point them in the right direction, so be ready to do a bit of Sign-posting. That's dropping hints, laying down markers, that give others a chance to see a different way of thinking. Remember, we are all free to heed this advice or not, so give people the space to do that.

Finally Pray: ask God to reveal Himself, and do His work of convincing people. Don't be easily discouraged - remember that God probably had to do quite a persisting for you to start following!

So its L-S-P, not as easy as A-B-C, but Jesus never promised it would be easy. As we follow, we find Him to be trustworthy, which gives us good reason - when we hear of our mates struggles - to give pointers to something more, and to talk in faith to Him who travels with us.

Getting Started

Well lets get started shall we. Base one, its all about relationships - getting to know one another. Without that there is unlikely to be any community, and without that the Kingdom will surely not be the Kingdom.

But for relationships we need a scarce commodity - time.

Spending quality time together is going to figure highly. Sorry, no quick fixes here. In fact there really is no substitute. In practice there are many ways of doing this: nowadays a natural setting is the coffee shop, but equally talking over a pint can be effective. For some, doing an activity together might make more sense, and on occasions going with someone through a specific difficulty may be required. In all cases the key is being in an environment where you can touch on and share in each other's worlds. The ability to understand what makes someone tick, and what their typical week involves, opens the way to be able to ask the question 'Where does God fit in all this?'.

From that one short question, all kinds of possibilities can crop up ...