A Fresh Perspective

You have heard me say a number of times, “Religion can be the best thing in the world, and it can be the worst thing in the world.” And that’s as much true of our own religion, Christianity, as any other religion. Our Christian worship, scriptures, rituals, and practices can be liberating or suffocating. Paul, it seems, wants to get that message across to the Galatian Christians, some of whom, want to shackle themselves with the lesser and unnecessary aspects of the Mosaic law. Paul reminds them that he brought to them the way of true freedom in Christ, but now they want to settle for a yoke of slavery. In our text Paul contrasts two ways of life. One way leads to life and true freedom; the other way leads to death and bondage. I am speaking of life and death metaphorically. One way is a healthy, redemptive, healing, transformative, and liberating way of life. The other is an unhealthy, non-redemptive, destructive and enslaving way of life. Paul identifies the two different ways ...

Nicodemus comes to Jesus by night. In this Gospel most everything has some symbolic significance. Words have multiple meanings. Nicodemus coming by night points to where he is in his own spiritual journey. He is in the dark, but he is drawn to the light. He clearly recognizes something real and authentic in Jesus: No one can do the things you are doing, Jesus, unless God is with us. Nicodemus recognizes that Jesus is of God, that he connected to God. We know this, says Nicodemus. But what Jesus knows is that there’s a lot that Nicodemus does not yet know. What Jesus knows is that Nicodemus, who stands in the text as a representative of so many religious and secular people today, has a major obstacle to overcome in his quest for the truth. And what Nicodemus needs is what so many Christian and non-Christian people need today, namely, a birth from above or a new birth (the Greek word can mean either above or anew). Many Christians, I believe, miss the intent of this story because th...

Philip Gulley tells about pastoring a small Quaker meeting not far from where he lived when he was still in college. Several months into his tenure there, an elder in the congregation approached him with the news that a man and a woman in the congregation, both of whom were widowed, had begun living together. This elderly couple had met and developed a deep friendship that blossomed into a deep and mutual affection. This elder confronted Gulley: “Did you know they weren’t married? I think you should talk to them. They’re living in sin,” he said. Gulley says that like many people of his generation, he’d been taught that couples who were romantically involved and living together should be married. It was a principle he had never questioned, so he agreed to visit them. Tom and Maggie welcomed Gulley into their modest home, ushered him to the most comfortable chair, and offered him refreshments. Pictures of their respective children and grandchildren lined the walls. Gulley asked ...

"After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), 'I am thirsty.'" The Gospel of John is characterized by a very high Christology that is often read back into the stories of Jesus. This is undoubtedly at least one of the factors that guides the way the author (John’s community) shapes and reformulates the sayings of Jesus into lengthy dialogues and monologues. Sometimes in John’s narrative the divinity of Jesus trumps his humanity. This brief word of Jesus from the cross found exclusively in John’s Gospel is a case in point. Jesus’s expression, “I am thirsty,” on the surface seems to reflect a very human Jesus, but in introducing these words, John presents Jesus as being in complete control, intentionally fulfilling Scripture. (All the Gospels emphasize the fulfillment of Scripture in the passion story, but John does this more than the others. The reference here seems to be to Psalm 69:22, which in the LXX (t...

Almost two decades ago I went through a crisis in my faith where the conservative Christianity of my early training left me dry and empty and wondering if I had made a huge mistake with my life. Rather than abandoning the faith, I discovered some “progressive” options that were more credible and transformative. Surprisingly, an evangelical philosopher and theologian helped me with my transition. Dallas Willard’s book, The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God prompted me to rethink my views about salvation, the kingdom of God (which was the central theme in Jesus’ preaching and teaching), discipleship and the spiritual life, the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross, and the reality of heaven. This is a book progressives could benefit from. I certainly do not agree with all that Willard taught, especially his view on biblical inspiration, but I benefited immensely from his teaching at that critical time in my life. I wish more evangelicals would read Willard...

“And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:16–17). The baptism of Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels is more of a theological proclamation by the Gospel writers about Jesus, than it is a historical recollection or narration of an actual event. The heavenly voice echoes a combination of Ps. 2:7 and Isa. 42:1. Jesus is hereby proclaimed at the very beginning of his ministry as the Son of God who is God’s agent of redemption in the world and the Servant of God who is faithful to God’s will and cause. And yet, I think that the imagery used to describe what Jesus saw and heard echoes the kind of deep spiritual experiences Jesus must have frequently had. The symbolism of the heavens opening and the Spirit descending and the Voice proclaiming Jesus to be...

The radio stations I normally listen to are playing all Christmas music; one can handle “White Christmas” and “Frosty the snowman” only so many times. I turned 55 last week and decided, less I get stuck in old ways, to broaden my music appreciation (after all, Bob Dylan and James Taylor are older than I am). So, I have been listening to different types of music lately.   I came across the song called “Demons” by the group “Imagine Dragons” which is currently listed at #6 in the Hot 100 Billboard charts. It’s kind of dark, but speaks to the human condition.  Some of the lyrics are: I want to hide the truth I want to shelter you But with the beast inside There’s nowhere we can hide This is my kingdom come This is my kingdom come. When you feel my heat Look into my eyes It’s where my demons hide It’s where my demons hide Don’t get too close It’s dark inside It’s where my demons hide It’s where my demons hide. Another verse reads: No ma...

When we open our lives to the Spirit and the Spirit finds a home where the Spirit can express herself freely, we discover the joy, beauty, power, and meaning of community. Unfortunately, we often read the letters of Paul from a post-enlightenment, westernized mind-set, which means that we tend to privatize and individualize much of what he says. In actuality, Paul is addressing the community corporately and should be interpreted and applied to the whole body, the church, not to individuals privately. Yes, much of what he says can and should be applied to our individual lives, but it’s important to first read Paul in a communal context. In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul talks about singing psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit “among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts” (Eph 5:19). The emphasis here is on community—“among yourselves.” The dominant emphasis in this letter is on encouraging, uplifting, growing, and edifying the body (the commun...

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul instructs: “Do not get drunk with wine . . . but be filled with the Spirit” (5:18). He compares the Spirit’s fullness to drunkenness. One who is intoxicated is under the influence of alcohol and that influence impacts and affects one’s thinking and behavior. By way of analogy, the one who is filled with the Spirit comes under the influence of a different Reality, a Divine Reality, and that Reality impacts and influences one’s thinking and behavior. This command is an active-passive command. Paul exhorts the faith community to be filled with the Spirit, yet the filling of the Spirit is not completely within the community’s control. In John’s Gospel, the Spirit is compared to wind that blows where it will. It’s beyond human coercion and manipulation. Yet, there are things we can do to set our sails in the direction that the wind is blowing and live within the flow of the Spirit’s power. A River Runs Through It  was a book from which a mo...