internetmonk.com | conversations in the Great Hall

Time 2020-09-22 15:04:55

Web Name: internetmonk.com | conversations in the Great Hall

WebSite: http://www.internetmonk.com

ID:55881

Keywords:

conversations,com,internetmonk,

Description:

Another Look: The End of the Anthropocene, by Damaris Zehner22 Sep by Damaris ZehnerThe End of the AnthropoceneBy Damaris ZehnerPicture a car, speeding along a highway in the morning.A voice on the radio is gabbling about some crisis.The driver’s cell phone is on, lying on the console next to her;She’s shouting at someone. In her hand is fast food,Wrapped in greasy yellow paper.A coffee cup in its holder develops wavesAs the car swings onto a street slick with tar –A tunnel through skyscrapers, smog,Car horns, wires, and metal signs.Picture behind the car, miles away, then closer, then closer still,A wall of water surging faster than a car can drive.Trying to change lanes, swearing at the traffic,The driver looks in the mirror.Like Pharaoh on the Red Sea floor, like Noah’s neighbors,She sees the future become her present.A rush of water through the city canyons,A jumble of cars stirred into foam –The wall moves on.Picture: on the surface of a silent sea, oil spreads its peacock tail.Cars, a couch, bottles, bags, one purple Croc, a paper diaperBob, briefly.Like snags in a river, like compound fractures,Office buildings, phone poles, and billboards break the surface.The car sinks, releasing one last gasp of air;The couch subsides. The garbage drifts on.Slowly the snags tip, then crumble,Splashing briefly as they succumb.Unbroken surface;Unbroken silence.❧Photo by Neil Cummings at Flickr. Creative Commons LicenseFiled Under: Damaris Zehner, Poetry or Lyrics Leave a Comment Reconsider Jesus The Response (Mark 1:14-15)21 Sep by Mike BellReconsider Jesus A fresh look at Jesus from the Gospel of MarkA devotional commentary by Michael SpencerCompiled and Edited by: Michael BellTable of ContentsThe Response14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”Mark 1:14-15 RSVWe return to this important summary of the overall message of Jesus to look at the conditions for entering the Kingdom. We must prepare to grapple with the essence of what Jesus is telling every person who will listen. We cannot pretend to understand Christianity if these words do not have life-anchoring significance for us.“Repent and believe the good news!”The first condition is repentance. In Christian theology, repentance has two aspects. First, we must abandon our loyalty to whatever holds authority other than God. Second, we must turn and move in the direction of obedience to God. Some misunderstand repentance as a perfect abandonment and an absolute obedience. In our fallen state, such is not possible for us. Therefore, the Bible tells us that repentance is also a continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christian.59 The call to repent continues in the life of every person who follows Jesus. We are to be serious and lifelong repenters as the Holy Spirit reveals more and more of those things that hold our hearts more than the love of God. This call is not simply to believe some short form outline of “How to get saved,” but is a reorienting and rebirth of life at fundamental levels.It is not the gospel if we preach repentance without Jesus; it is not the gospel if we preach Jesus without repentance. Jesus was a preacher of repentance, much like the Old Testament prophets. To call to repent is to confront the deadly fact of sin and the absolute necessity of abandoning our loyalty to sin in all its aspects if we are true disciples. The message of repentance is not comfortable. It is only good news to the person who is affected by the convicting power of the Holy Spirit and sees the truth about his/her spiritual condition.60 Jesus doesn’t say to the racist, to the greedy person, to the abuser, or to the addict: “Keep going the way you are going and be saved.” Instead his call is to repent, turn from your sin, and go in a new and different direction. You are not saved by repentance, but you are never saved without it. Faith and repentance are joined together as one thing. Belief without repentance is not true, saving faith. The importance of repentance is taught throughout the New Testament. In Jesus’ most famous parable, “The Prodigal Son”, repentance is a major theme.61 Jesus also condemned whole cities for not repenting.62 Peter’s first instruction on the day of Pentecost was “Repent!”63 Paul states that God’s kindness to undeserving sinners is what should lead us to a desire to repent.64 Some churches, in seeking to avoid being heavy-handed about requiring repentance, have discarded the requirement entirely. The surgical removal of this aspect of the Gospel message is serious! I would go as far as to say that any Gospel that does not clearly proclaim repentance is a false gospel worthy of condemnation. So let me be very clear about this: One of the most spiritual destructive mindsets among Christians is that grace is so free and unconditional to sinners that repentance is not necessary. Christianity has been cursed and millions of Christians’ lives have been rendered empty and powerless because they have never been told in no uncertain terms that it is time to stop and go in a different direction. We have seen this distortion of Christianity preached by person after person on the national stage. Cheap grace. Cheap forgiveness without repentance. It is shameful, and Jesus wouldn’t recognize it. Jesus wouldn’t recognize a person that said my response to my sin is simply to blow it off and go do whatever I want. God is not calling us to sackcloth and ashes, though I’ll tell you what, in many of our lives a little sackcloth and ashes wouldn’t hurt us from time to time. You can’t take hold of the salvation that Christ offers unless you let go of the wrong direction you are going. So Jesus echoes the message of John. John preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin. Jesus calls us to recognize we are sinners at war with a holy God. We must stop, lay down our arms, throw up the white flag, and say I am through with that direction, and I am ready for a new one.The second condition for entering the Kingdom is to believe the Good News. We discussed the Good News quite a bit in the previous chapter, but I think it is important to reiterate just what we are to believe. Notice the parallel between verse 1 and verse 14. Mark has told us that his entire book will be good news about Jesus the Son of God. Jesus is preaching the good news of the Kingdom of God. Is there a difference between the good news about Jesus and the good news of Jesus? I do believe many Christians excuse themselves from dealing with the message Jesus preached because they think believing in Jesus is sufficient. Mark would not understand such a distortion. For him, there is no separation between the message of Jesus and the person of the Savior. In the mind of the inspired author they are the same. Now that the Messiah has arrived, the Good News becomes the announcement of not just what God is doing but through whom all is being done.The Good News is the message of Jesus and the message about Jesus. It includes the arrival of the Kingdom, but also contains the cross of Christ, his empty tomb, his current reign and his future return. This is not Good News to those who live as God’s enemies, but it is the greatest news to those who are ready to lay down the weapons of rebellion and surrender to the one, true and only King.So what does Mark mean by belief? The New Testament uses a word for belief that cannot be reduced to the sort of belief so common today. Modern vocabulary has given belief the connotation of a personal opinion that one adheres to for reasons entirely of your own. Have you ever heard someone say “You mean all I have to do is believe in Jesus in order to go to heaven?” Such a question shows the modern definition of belief as a sort of optional, minimal assent to a proposition that may have nothing whatsoever to do with truth. We “believe” in politicians, sports teams and UFOs. I want to assure you that this is absolutely not what Jesus means. New Testament belief has more in common with the sort of belief we associate with life commitment. Marriage is the best example. The persons giving their lives to one another “believe in” the other person with a totality of their being, their future and their possessions. This is the sort of belief expressed by the person who chooses to jump out of a plane with only a parachute between himself and death. Jesus is asking, in short, for a life-altering, life-anchoring bet on the truth of who he is.Understanding this as simply “a point in time action with continuing effects into the future” is probably misconstruing the meaning of belief. Belief in Jesus that does not continue is not true belief. Perseverance is one of the characteristics of true faith.65 Faith may be a long and winding journey with many peaks, valleys and seasons of more and less fruitfulness, but genuine faith continues to believe in Jesus and to seek to follow him. The Bible offers no comfort to the person who once believed but does so no longer.Does this belief differ from that expressed in John 3:16? Not really. The Eternal life that is spoken of in John is the life of God that is available beginning in the present. As such, it is John s version of saying The Kingdom of God is upon you. In passages like this, where Jesus seems to be inviting decision, he is in reality inviting a reordering of life based on recognition of the Kingdom of God and recognizing the Messiah as God with us. N.T. Wright has rightly pointed out that this is a proclamation telling us about a whole new world.66 Our response to it truly amounts to either entering, or refusing to enter, a new creation . For the person who accepts the Bible as authoritative, this is why we need both John and the Synoptics. In their quite different approaches to Jesus, they present the whole picture, which will not allow any separation between belief in Jesus and following the message of the Kingdom.Repentance and belief must go hand in hand. So, when someone asks me what they must do to go to heaven, I give an honest answer: Admit your sin, repent and surrender all you know of yourself to all you know of Jesus.Oops. The following paragraph was accidentally copied from the previous post.Understand Jesus Christ in the fullness of the Gospel presentation: mediator, kingdom-bringer, reconciler, teacher, Lord, discipler… and you will have understood all the “good news.” -Footnotes:[59] See for example 2 Timothy 2:25[60] Luke 5:32; 2 Cor. 7:9-10[61] Luke 15:11-32[62] Matthew 11:20[63] Acts 2:38[64] Romans 2:4[65] Matthew 10:22; 24:13[66] N.T. Wright, Surprised by Hope, HarperCollins, 2008.Notes from Mike Bell:1. What questions or thoughts come from your mind from what you have just read? What stood out to you?2. Would you be interested in a paper or Kindle version of the book when it is available? Please email us at michaelspencersnewbook@gmail.com so that we can let you know when it is ready.3. Find any grammar or spelling errors, phrases that are awkward or difficult to understand? Also send these type of comments to the email address above.Filed Under: Bible Study, Jesus Shaped, Michael Bell, Michael Spencer, The Gospel, The New Testament 20 Comments The Daughters and Dad20 Sep by Chaplain MikeAdapted from a photo by Jeff Robinson at Flickr. Creative Commons LicenseThe Daughters and DadI participated in services this weekend for a family that I have known almost ten years now.Our relationship began when I served as hospice chaplain for a woman who lived at home with her second husband. For some reason, we made a strong connection, and I visited often. I recall spending an entire overnight there with our nurse, tending to her symptoms and trying to help the family come to terms with her dying.It was during and after that time that I met her four daughters. A couple of them lived in town and the other two flew in from their homes elsewhere. Four women, their mother and their step-father it was a lively, talkative crew that welcomed us into their home at a significant moment in their life.Mom died, and I officiated the funeral. In the course of helping them through all that and in their season of grief afterward, I heard about their troubled lives.Their mother s first husband, their biological father, had left her after a dozen years or so of marriage, with four little girls. She did her best to take care of them, but it was too much for her. She essentially abandoned them on the front steps of their grandmother, who tried but soon became overwhelmed also. So four young daughters were shipped out into various homes and forms of foster care. They grew up separately, in different places, not knowing one another or sharing life as had once been planned. There was still much unspoken about those years, but I could sense that it had not been an easy journey.And yet, here they were. Somehow, over the years they had renewed acquaintances with each other and their parents, and had now come together to be with their mom at the end of her life. If they hadn t opened up to me, I would never have imagined their life had been so painful and malfunctional. They seemed to handle caring for their dying loved one with all the usual ups and downs. We gradually lost touch but I knew they kept tabs on their stepfather and were supportive of him.About five years later, one of the daughters contacted me. Her husband had died. Could I help them with his funeral? I did. And then, after a couple more years, their stepdad came on to our hospice service and I walked with them through his death and memorial.Out of the blue last week I received a phone message from one of the girls again. I hadn t thought of them for a long time, but as soon as I heard her voice, images of our past experiences together came rushing back in. Now, she was saying on the voicemail that their biological father had died.I called her right back and said of course I d be happy to help them again.Only the two local daughters were able to participate. The others, because of extenuating circumstances, had to settle for sending flowers from afar. Oh yes, they told me they had found out that they had a step-brother too. Over the past I m not sure how long, they had been reunited with their father and and helped care for him at the end of his life. They talked about sitting with him, caring for him, and partnering with his VA and Legion buddies to get him to his doctor appointments and out and about. They were with him when he died.The daughter who had called me had put an extraordinary amount of effort into organizing the events this weekend. When she read her eulogy for her father at the service, she focused on his life, some of his remarkable gifts, his heroic military service, his interests and loves.The other spoke too, and she said that her feelings were more mixed. Her dad had not been there for his daughters. She saw pictures of them together when she was a little girl, and was grateful for those pictures, but when she looked at them closely, she realized she didn t really know who that man was. They really didn t have a relationship. He hadn t ever been tender or affectionate. They grew up without him. He had left them. He was absent.Then she told of an experience she had while caring for him. He asked her to help him sit up on the side of the bed. In his weakness, as she raised him up, he fell forward and reached out his arms. She caught him and found herself in his embrace. He wouldn t let go. She laid her head on his back and stayed in his arms for several minutes.She didn t know what it meant. She didn t know if it meant anything. Was he saying, I need you ? Was he saying, I love you ? Was he saying, I m sorry ? Was he saying, Forgive me ? Whatever it meant, if anything at all, she was there and they had touched.And now here she was, speaking of her dad and honoring him with the rest of the family.I pulled both daughters aside and said how proud I was of them. Even with all they had been through, even with the complicated relationship they had with their father, here they were, honoring him like the commandment says. He may not have always been honorable, but they still chose to give him honor as their father.One of them looked at me and said, Well, he s a human being and no one deserves to die alone or not have a service. And he gave us life, didn t he? Filed Under: Comforting the Brokenhearted, Genuine Love, Glimpses of Grace 10 Comments The IM Saturday Monks Brunch: September 19, 202019 Sep by Chaplain Mike•Some of us can relate...RIP RBG...From NPR:Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the demure firebrand who in her 80s became a legal, cultural and feminist icon, died Friday. The Supreme Court announced her death, saying [Continue reading...]Filed Under: Saturday Brunch 98 Comments Reconsider Jesus The Message of the Kingdom (Mark 1:14-15)18 Sep by Mike BellReconsider Jesus - A fresh look at Jesus from the Gospel of MarkA devotional commentary by Michael SpencerCompiled and Edited by: Michael BellTable of ContentsThe Message of the Kingdom14 After John was put in prison, [Continue reading...]Filed Under: Bible Study, Jesus Shaped, Michael Bell, Michael Spencer, Reconsider Jesus, The Gospel, The New Testament 25 Comments Never Underestimate the Intelligence of Trees17 Sep by Mike the GeologistNever Underestimate the Intelligence of TreesHere is an article from Nautilus reprinted in Getpocket by Brandon Keim.  Brandon Keim is a freelance nature and science journalist. He is the author of "The Eye of the Sandpiper: [Continue reading...]Filed Under: Uncategorized 60 Comments Creation Care: A Crossroads for Humanity 16 Sep by Chaplain MikeAnd God said, "Let us make a human being in our image, by our likeness, to hold sway over the fish of the sea and the fowl of the heavens and the cattle and the wild beasts and all the crawling things that crawl upon the [Continue reading...]Filed Under: Creation Care, God's Good Creation, Vocation 70 Comments T.S. Eliot: the dead tree gives no shelter15 Sep by Chaplain Mike2020 has pretty much been a wasteland -- uncharted territory marked everywhere with signs of death and the potential for despair. When T.S. Eliot wrote "The Wasteland" (edited by his friend Ezra Pound) 100 years ago in the early [Continue reading...]Filed Under: Poetry or Lyrics Sometimes I bite off a bit more than I can chew!14 Sep by Mike BellHave you had a Covid-19 project? Like many others, my project has been my back yard.Last year I had a unused corner of my yard that was in some significant shadow, so I planted some Hostas. Just two little beds, tucked away [Continue reading...]Filed Under: Michael Bell, Pic Gallery Justice without Jesus?13 Sep by Chaplain MikeJustice without Jesus?We have people who have made justice their God, yet another instance of the litany of humanity’s idol worship. We have people defining justice as they see fit rather than wrestling with what Biblical [Continue reading...]Filed Under: Jesus Shaped, Justice Shalom 123676Next Page Write to UsWrite toChaplain Mike A NOTE FOR COMMENTERSIf you don’t see your comment appear for awhile, please drop me an email. I will try to check the filter as often as possible throughout the day and free comments that get held.RESOURCES FOR YEAR A (RCL)Daily LectionaryReadings for the Season after Pentecost• • •RECOMMENDED READINGTea Time: The Christian Mission to Preserve CultureLyman Stone, Plough•Fleeing Paris with Vladimir LosskyFr. Stephen Freeman, Glory to God for All Things•Southern Guilt, Southern GospelJ. Brandon Meeks, Mere Orthodoxy•Racism Is a Sin, and We Are All SinnersTheo Hobson, The Spectator•Has Lockdown Left You with Existential Angst?Giles Fraser, UnHerd•Review: John Lennox, Where Is God in a Coronavirus World? Andrew Perriman, P.OST •List of Fact-Checking OrganizationsFr. Ernesto Obregon, OrthoCuban• • •FOR YOUR DAILY PRAYERSUpdates on J. Michael JonesJ. Michael Jones• • •RECOMMENDED PODCASTSThe Bible for Normal PeoplePete Enns Jared Byas•IM PODCASTS/ARTICLES/REVIEWSReview of Walking Home Together Chris Smith, Englewood Review•Season of Decision: Chaplain helps hospice clients plan for end of life•Steve Brown Etc. Interview with Chaplain Mike•Faith in Action Interview with Damaris Zehner•A Post-Doom Conversation with Damaris ZehneriMonk Facebook Community IM now has a group on Facebook, which is designed to help readers of the Internet Monk blog connect and communicate in other ways and places.To make this as safe and user-friendly as possible, we have made the iMonk Community an invitation only group. If you would like to join, email Chaplain Mike, and you'll receive an invitation.

TAGS:conversations com internetmonk 

<<< Thank you for your visit >>>

Dispatches from the post-evangelical wilderness.

Hot Websites