"Therefore go..."

For those of you who browsed my blog a while ago you may have noticed that on my "Currently Reading" section I had posted Vaughan Roberts' book 'Distinctives'. The book did not sustain my interest although generally I liked and agreed with the concept of each chapter. However, the other day I was flicking idly through it when I came across a small paragraph which seemed to click in to place with a lot of my recent thinking. The chapter title is, "Certainty in a world in which everything is relative" in which Roberts explores our response to the Great Commission set by Jesus (Matthew 28:19-20)

Here Roberts makes what I found to be a very acute observation of church evangelism.

"It is tempting to respond to that pressure by limiting our evangelism to the 'Christianized' - those who have a church background but have drifted away from church activities. That, in effect, is what most churches have done. Evangelism means inviting those on the fringe of church life to attend an event in our building. We have turned the 'go' of Jesus' Great Commission in to a 'come', and we interpret the 'all nations' as 'those like us'." (p.85)

How right he is. It would seem that sometimes in a desperate attempt to prove our evangelistic capablities we are tempted to reach out soley or mainly to those on the periphory of church life. Why is this? Perhaps it is because we know they are already familiar with the gospel and we can skip over explaining 'the basics'. Perhaps it is because they are less likely to put up a resistance to hearing the message and we can appeal to their already-Christianized nature. Let me be clear that it is important that we should continue to reach those on the edges of our church as they are no less important. However, if we are to be following the Great Commission as it was given then we must be going out before we start inviting people in. The word 'mission' translates from Latin roots meaning 'to send'. Therefore the Great Commission was not a command to invite others to our church but to take the church to the community and the nation.

As Roberts points out very few people in Britain are actually church-goers now compared to the last century. Church is an unfamiliar, uncomfortable place and many would rather not darken our doors. Why then is it that we expect them to come to our place of worship to hear the gospel? How ineffective waiting around inside the church may prove to be if this our only strategy for mission and evangelism.

All of this struck a chord with me because of the aforementioned challenge from Luke, where the disciples went out to the place Jesus sent them to catch fish. Jesus did not say, 'Sit about in the boat just here and I'll herd the fish over to you'. No. Jesus said, 'Get out there - I know you don't think it's going to be productive, it's not a likely place for a catch, but get out there!'. If we followed such a command with even greater faith, we truly could be 'fishers of men'. We cannot simply wait in our comfort zone and expect Jesus to send the nation to our doors. No. We must go to the empty places, or indeed the places where there are so many other destructive pressures that there hardly seems to be room for the gospel. If we go out, commissioned by Jesus, we need not fear that our efforts will be fruitless. The fishermen were sceptical yet Jesus displayed his power despite their doubts. How much more could Jesus do if we went out, encouraged by such a message and inspired by such a commission?

Roberts, V. (2005) Distinctives. Milton Keynes. Authentic Media.

Job

Following my last blog I felt that my knowledge of the book of Job wasn't very sharp and that it would pay to do a little digging. I found my study guide to the Old Testament and looked at some of the questions there to help guide my thoughts.

The book of Job was first drawn to my attention during the summer. I was idly flicking through my bible one night and came across one of Job's speeches. I found it compelling. The intensity of his anger, his suffering and his situation just seemed so real. As I read it felt almost as if Job was in the room, yelling out with frustration. The whole passage just resonated with my feelings at the time. Here is a small excerpt as translated in The Message:

"Let God step on me - squash me like a bug, and be done with me for good.

At least then I'd have the satisfaction of not having blasphemed the Holy God, before being pressed to the limits.

Where's the strength to keep my hopes up?

What future do I have to keep me going?

Do you think I have nerves of steel?

Do you think I'm made of iron?

Do you think I can just pull myself up by my bootstraps?

I don't even have any boots!"

(Job 6:8-13)

If we're honest, how often do we feel like that? There are times where we feel there is little to go on and we might as well give up. It is not a favourable situation to be in. The reality of the whole situation became clearer as I studied the book of Job and began to unravel the context in which it was set and the different perspectives from which the story can be told.

God: He is proud of Job. He knows that Job is a good, honourable and loyal servant. He has give Job many blessings and is proud of the faith which Job has maintained. So proud in fact, that he can boast to Satan of the faithful servant that he has.

As a point of reflection we could ask ourselves, "What would God boast of us? Anything?" I often wonder, if God were to discuss my faith with Satan (which I very much doubt) who would be prouder of the work they have achieved in my life? A scary thought.

Satan: He's convinced that Job is only a fair-weather follower. He believes that Job is only faithful because God has only ever blessed him.

Should we ask ourselves, "To what extent are we only fair-weather friends of Jesus? Are we only faithful when the blessings have been bestowed?" Being a Christian is difficult and it is a challenge which we endure from the day we are saved until the day we die. Throughout the course of our life time there will be many high points (one would hope) and also many lows. But just how faithful are we in the times of darkness and desperation? Do we talk God up to our friends as long as he's giving us blessing to boast about? Are we even prepared for the fact that suffering will approach because we are in a relationship with God? I'm not sure that I always am.

Job: Job is convinced (and he was right) that he has lived a life worthy of God's approval. He has been loyal, honest, faithful and even repentant on behalf of his sons on the occasions that they 'might' have sinned. Therefor, in some respects, it is understandable that when unexpected suffering comes he is not at pleased and feels that such suffering is a good deal less than what he really deserves. His challenge to God is simply, "Tell me what I did. Tell me what I have done to deserve this and I will pay my dues." He believes that the suffering set upon him is deserved because of some sin he has unwittingly committed. The irony is that his trials were brought about because he was such a faithful servant. When things go wrong in ourselves, how much do we question ourselves and question God? If we were Job could we really have even begun to work out what was going on? Do we automatically presume that God is bringing punishment on us or being unfair? I admit that there are times when I do.

Job's friends: on the other hand, were far less than helpful. It is important to note that the 'theology' of Job's friends is far from accurate in many ways and God makes a point of saying so.

To begin with his friends did well. They sat with Job and identified with his pain. However, it's all downhill from there as they attempt to either prove Job guilty or second-guess God's plans. Neither of these approaches gained much and only made Job feel worse.

"When desperate people give up on God Almighty, their friends should at least stick by them," Job says. "And you, my so-called friends are no better - there's nothing to you! One look at a hard scene and you shrink in fear."

Tough words. Would our friends say the same about us? When we are suffering just how helpful are our friends? Do they sit, as Job's friends initially did, and identify in our suffering? Do they bring themselves to where we are and look out with the same perspective or do they second-guess God's working, standing on the dock presuming that we are at fault? Do we as friends do the same to others? Do I?

I am in a situation where I currently do have friends who are grieving, who are suffering, who are lost. Reading Job has made me consider my approach and my attitude as I try to help them through. I would hope that Job's description of his friends would not be one that would easily reflect me. The challenge now is to working on applying what I have learned from my brief study of such a telling story. There are great lessons to be learned from Job about being a Christian, about suffering, about God, about being a friend and about Judgement. I still feel that I have a lot more to learn fromJob and am looking for a better study guide to work with. Roll on ICC. In the mean time let's see how much of my learning I can apply to myself - not as a means of becoming a better person in the eyes of God or anyone else, but so that I can provide comfort and care that is truly of use to those who need it. How can I identify with them and stop myself from judging? Perhaps I also need to think more carefully about how I how I respond to my own situation and how I approach God with my complaints. There's much to be learned here. It's all part of growing and learning.

Blind Faith

As noted on my ‘currently reading’ list I have been reading Ben Elton’s latest book, Blind Faith. My Gran gave me the book with a wonderful note attached: ‘To Amie. A subversive book from a subversive Gran.’ My Gran is consciously atheist and no doubt wished to expand my thinking beyond that of my faith. Quite right. Always in favour of expanding my thinking (and quite frankly, being short of a good novel to read) I took up the challenge with enthusiasm. It is a very post-apocalyptic story which in many ways reflects the direction of our current society. The main character, Trafford, asks a question that is the pinnacle or point of the whole story. His question is this:

“Wouldn’t faith itself be more valuable if it was arrived at through question and doubt? What’s the use of blind faith? Seriously, it’s not difficult saying you have faith if the alternative is being burned alive. But does that mean you really have faith?”

A valid question, I feel.

Coming from a Christian background and church based up-bringing I would further that question by asking, “Do we allow ourselves to question and to doubt? Do we allow others to do the same?” Having a lot of Christian friends I have seen many of them (and myself) struggle, facing sometimes what can be a deep crisis of faith or a need to challenge what they have always believed. There can be a tendency to try and make people avoid this, to take their questions and throw back the answers that we feel they should already know. Is this helpful in maintaining their relationship with God or is it simply promoting blind faith? It is easy to be scared that if people begin to question or doubt what they believe in that they will find other answers or some other truth – one that is far less desirable. However, I know from my own times of crisis or from questioning my own values and beliefs, that very often I come back to the original conclusion but with a far better understanding of what I believe and why I believe it. Sometimes I have also come to the conclusion that the things I had being doing were pointless and yes, based on blind faith but of no real benefit to my relationship with God or others.
Job was as guy who really questioned God. He remained faithful through significant trials and did not speak a word against Him despite the hardship that he faced. However, there came a significant point where he could not go undoubting any longer and with some fervour, really question his faith and his God. The book of Job reflects a conversation between Job, his friends and God. He questions what he has been doing and believing in for so long. His friends are not of much use. They give him the kind of answers that just attempt to shut him up and stop him from challenging things. They provide the kind of answers that yes, are based on scriptures and true on many counts but they’re given in a know-it-all nature. They stand on the other side of the fence telling Job how it is. Their answers do not seem to come out of any kind of compassion or even admission that they do not know the answers either. They provided all the religious wisdom they could muster and yet had no impact on bringing Job closer to God in his time of suffering. In the end, it was God who provided the answers and God alone who could reveal any truth to Job. Not only did he reveal the truth but he rebuked Job's friends for spouting rubbish and speaking untruths about God when they really hadn't a clue.
I am not suggesting that when our friends are doubting or questioning that all our attempts to bring scriptural truths or our own words of wisdom to the situation will be futile or worthless but I do feel that, rather than standing at the side shouting out the answers, we should attempt to walk with our friends through their challenges, to give them freedom to ask questions and explore new territories and remain faithful in prayer for them throughout. God may use us to bring people to (or back to) faith through our relationships with them and we should be ready for that.
If a person is really seeking the truth of God we should trust that God himself can and will reveal what needs to be known in His own time, which we cannot second-guess. Surely if we believe that God is all-powerful and the only real truth in this world, we know that he can reveal the answers that people need to restore their faith. We should journey with them and help them to build a solid foundation of understanding rather than a life built around a lack of questioning.

So, from this line of thought what is the challenge for me? To provide my friends with support, freedom, comfort and, where I can, wisdom in their times of doubt and questioning. Questions are dangerous, oh yes, but are they any more so than blind faith?