Christianity – Page 4

To Be Broadly Liked

February 6, 2017December 11, 2017 by The RevNo Comments

A good friend of mine once said, “To follow Jesus is to be loved or hated, not to be broadly liked.” I think about that often. Particularly in these days and times when everyone has a platform and if you speak truth to power or people you will offend someone. As I was reading the closing verses of Galatians the Apostle Paul wrote, It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. (Galatians 6:12, ESV) In our age I have to wonder what is our “circumcision” issue that draws us into making a “good showing in the flesh” so that we “may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ”? I am coming to the conclusion that we experience this in how we engage with culture. There are many hot button topics that “trigger” folks and so we...

Justice — It’s More Than Equity

January 25, 2017December 11, 2017 by The RevNo Comments

Waves of Justice by Pablo RoblesThere’s a picture that I have shared on more than occasion. It is one that I first saw in my children’s school. I really resonated with the point that it was communicating. Check it out… When I first saw this picture it came with a caption: “Equality is not justice.” I remember thinking, “Yes! Amen!” Recently, in my research and study on what biblical justice looks like I stumbled on a different picture. This picture is even better: That last caption describes justice well, in my opinion, “…all three can see the game without any supports or accommodations because the cause of the inequity was addressed. The systemic barrier has been removed.” I continue to think about and process this statement from the prophet Micah, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8, ESV)” The...

Joyful Proclamation!

December 15, 2015December 15, 2017 by The Rev2 Comments

Have you ever had that experience where someone made a promise to you and then they came through? What did you feel like? What if that promise came years and years earlier and was fulfilled when you were least expecting it? You would probably be filled with utter joy. This is what the third week of Advent is all about. The third week is when we light the “Shepherds Candle” which represents joy. Could you imagine being one of the young shepherds that evening? For your whole life you’ve heard the stories of Messiah coming from your father and grandfather. Now you’re out there trying to stay warm while you watch over your family’s flock, this thing that you do every night. Then… The skies explode in light and angels appear telling you that Messiah has come and where to find him! Your heart is bursting with excitement and you run. When you get there, you find it exactly as the angels say it would...

The War on Christmas

December 11, 2015 by The RevNo Comments

Did you know that there was a “War on Christmas”? Seriously, there’s a “War on Christmas”. It’s occurring in most churches. It breaks out in many hearts this time of year. Christmas is when we go out and buy friends and family lots of gifts. We spend lots of money on things people don’t need and some don’t even really want. A few of us even go to church on Christmas Eve and that makes us feel spiritual about spending all that money. When you look around at everything that we are inundated with every single day it’s clear what Christmas is all about. It’s about giving and receiving stuff. The war that is happening is happening in each heart. Some are uncomfortable with the battle that is happening in their heart and so they look for an enemy on the outside. That’s when some go to “war” with the “world”. Bemoaning the fact that “Christmas” parties at schools have become “Holiday” parties or...

Coming in Humility

December 7, 2015 by The RevNo Comments

The second candle we light in Advent is the “Bethlehem Candle.” It is the reminder of how the Bread of Life came to the House of Bread in humility. Jesus, King of the Universe, did not come to the world by way of power or exceptionalism but by humility. He was born in a hole carved from the side of a rock and his cradle was a hay filled trough. This King of glory was completely ordinary. This second week of Advent we consider the ordinariness of the glorious King. A helpless baby born to a young girl on the outskirts of a small town. He was nothing special to the unassuming eye. He was just a baby. The King of glory was a just a baby. The King of glory was poor. The King of glory was nothing to behold. The King of glory would have been considered to have little worth. What do we do with such a King? How do we respond? How does...

Kind or Nice?

December 1, 2015 by The RevNo Comments

Sunday night at our gathering we were spending time in Ephesians 4. During our conversation it struck me again how important it is for us to understand the difference between being “kind” and being “nice.” Verse 32 says, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Paul doesn’t command us to be “nice.” He commands us to be “kind.” This distinction is very important for our relationships. This command to be kind ties back to verse 15, “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ…” Kindness differs with niceness by the inclusion of truth. Kindness can be hard and can potentially cause pain. I asked the congregation what they thought was the difference between being nice and being kind. My son said this, “If your friend’s hair is messed up, the nice thing is to say, ‘Your hair is fine.’ But, the kind...

Tension

November 24, 2015 by The RevNo Comments

The Christian life is one of great tensions. Grace and truth. Mercy and justice. We live in the tension of these great ideas and concepts. Many of our theological debates center on which side is to have priority. In Ephesians 4:17–32 we see that this tension goes beyond belief. The very actions of the Christ follower is a life in tension. In this section Paul admonishes believers to “put off” their old selves and “put on” the new self. What is fascinating is that the new self is in some ways the old held in tension. Verses 26 and 27 say this, Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. (Ephesians 4:26–27 ESV) We often think of anger as being inherently sinful. How can anger be OK? Aren’t we supposed to be nice? You can’t really be both can you? This tension of “be angry and do not sin” is...

Big Tent or Single Issue?

August 11, 2010 by The RevNo Comments

As I mentioned in my previous post, I am on a study leave this week and a big part of that is preparing for the year that is to come. I am enjoying the time to think and plan. The Big Tent Synchroblog has been stimulating some of my thinking and has been a welcome distraction to punctuate my work chunks.My initial response to the blogs is that there seems to be a couple of main issues surfacing in the conversation. What are these issues you ask? It’s the issue of human sexuality. Chad Holtz, and Rachel Held Evans are good examples.The other issue is that of what do we do with those who disagree with us. David Adams, Greg Bolt, Julie Clawson are good representatives of this side of the coin.As I think about these two sides of the same coin I begin to wonder if we are missing the key issues that are potentially at stake in this...

Big Tent Christianity 1

August 10, 2010 by The RevNo Comments

So, I am a day late to the Big Tent Christiaity Synchroblog. Here is the theme that we will be discussing this week: What are your hopes and dreams for the Church? More specifically, what does “big tent Christianity” mean to you? And what does it look like in your context? Oddly enough I am in the midst of a study leave this week and one of the questions my counter part in ministry asked me to wrestle with was, “What are your hopes and dreams for the Church?” Brilliant!What are your hopes and dreams for the church?I think that before I can answer that question I need to ask a more fundamental question. What is the church? There are so many definitions running around that it’s hard to keep up. It used to be (back in the 50s in America) that the “church” was simply those folks who showed up and sat in their pew on a Sunday morning....

Review: Jesus Manifesto by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola

June 9, 2010 by The RevNo Comments

http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=FFFFFF&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=danielmroseco-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&m=amazon&f=ifr&asins=0849946018 Jesus Manifesto by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola, published by Thomas Nelson. Jesus Manifesto brings Jesus to the front and center. Sweet and Viola seek to highlight Jesus’ sovereignty and supremacy. This is a great little text that is worth the read. I found it to be very devotional and it met its goal of bringing Jesus front and center. It is always good to be reminded of the centrality of Jesus to the life of the believer.This not a book that wows you. There is nothing controversial or new. It is a book that you read and then you find yourself thinking about an illustration from it. It is a book you read and then find yourself mulling over some description of Jesus. It is a book you read and then find yourself quoting it to someone else in conversation.The only thing that twinged me as a downside was from the introduction. The comment made there is, “So...