Angry? Who Me?

"Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out all the people buying and selling animals for sacrifice. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves." (Matthew 21:12)

I saw a poster the other day on the internet that really made me chuckle.  It read " Just remember when asking yourself "What Would Jesus Do?" yelling and turning over tables is an option.  It's a reference, of course, to the Scripture you see at the top of the blog.  I laughed because there are days when, quite frankly, that's the option I would like to take.  And I don't think I'm alone on that.  All of us have days when we want to just start flipping over tables. 

And if we are to be disciples of Jesus, we must admit that this indeed is a viable option.  There is such a thing as righteous anger. But in that freedom also comes a great conviction.  We must ask ourselves what makes Jesus angry enough to turn over tables? And do the same things make us angry?

That's the problem. In all honesty, what makes me angry in life probably doesn't bother Jesus a lot.  In fact there are a lot of times when I bring those things that anger me, that make me want to flip over tables, to the throne of God in prayer. I'm looking for validation for my anger. I'm looking for a little celestial retribution. What I receive is God's gentle chastisement asking me "Why are you so bothered by this?" "Wouldn't you be happier to just let this go?"  or even worse "Yes, I remember when you did the same thing and came to me asking to be forgiven."  In the end, it's a Lordship issue. If it doesn't anger God, do I have the right to be angry about it?  If He is willing to forgive, am I placing myself above Him when I refuse?

Isn't it ironic that we get angry about things that God could care less about, but the things that anger God we ignore?  Look again at this Scripture. What makes Jesus so angry? What cause Jesus to "cleanse the temple?"  It's the abuse of the poor. The money changers were gouging the poorest people to buy doves for sacrifices. The lamb was the traditional sacrifice, but God had made provision for those who were so poor they couldn't afford a lamb. They could use a dove. The money changers were keeping people from experiencing the Grace of God.

How angry do we get when we see the poor being barred from the grace of God?  Poverty extends way beyond the pocket book doesn't it?  What about the people who are poor in fellowship? Who are lonely? Do we even make the most simple of gestures to sit with them in church, welcoming the stranger? Do we extend that grace beyond the four walls of the church and the worship hour? Do we recognize that loneliness goes far beyond just "church?"

What about the poor in spirit?  We come across them everywhere. The lost, sin sick souls of the world. You carry within you the Good News of Jesus Christ. When was the last time you went to those with impoverished spirits and told them about Jesus? Prayed with or for them? Offered them a loving witness?

What about that person who simply has a poor attitude and made you miserable today. Were you miserable right back or were you determined to love them and be gracious? What did you do to make their lives better? Where did they see Jesus?

It ought to make us a bit angry when we see within ourselves an attitude that withholds grace from someone.  It ought to make us a bit repentant. It ought to cause us to turn over a few tables. Tables with names like indifference, pettiness, or a self-centered spirit. Let's begin to get angry at what angers Jesus. A little righteous anger is good for the soul.

In Christ,
Rev. Dr. Brian Jones <><
  

No Small Moment

"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not" (1 John 3:3)

As I walked into the cottage at Lakeside last week during Annual Conference I found everyone abuzz with excitement about the latest news. Our grandson Sean had finally gotten his first tooth.  Everyone was trying to take pictures and trying to get a finger in to find his tooth. When we called people that week, especially people in the family,  this is how we began every conversation: "Hello. Did you know Sean has his first tooth?"  And, of course, because we have such nice friends and family, everyone was either excited or feigned excitement for us. To be honest I'm a bit surprised and not a little offended that CNN and Fox didn't make this their lead story "Local, incredibly smart and bright child develops first tooth all on his own."

Once the furor died down, and as we drew close to Father's day, I began to think about how excited we got at such a small thing.  If you think about it, he really didn't accomplish much on his own other than some tireless chewing to get the tooth to finally poke through.  He didn't event a cure for a disease.  It's just a tooth. A small, tiny, seemingly perfect tooth.  If you came to me and told me that your child or grandchild had gotten their first tooth, I would smile and congratulate you I'm sure. And then I'd probably forget all about it.  So why are we so excited? Because this small thing happened to one of ours.

That's what parents (and grandparents) do isn't it? We get excited over what are, in truth, fairly mundane accomplishments. Look! Little Allie tied her shoe! Let's go get ice cream. I've tied my shoes for years now and nobody ever notices. No one gets excited. The best I can hope for is that someone will tell me when they come untied. We rejoice the first time a child rides a bike. Why? Billions of people all over the world are doing the same thing at the exact same moment. So why do we get so excited?

Because this child is ours.  And there are no small accomplishments. Even the failures are celebrated if the child tries. When it's our child, there are no small accomplishments.  Only milestones. With each small step we see them move toward the person they will become. That first tooth will be the smile they flash at graduation. That first step your daughter takes one day becomes the step down the aisle as she gets married. The first bike ride becomes a step toward becoming the person God created them to be as they go out to tackle their own problems.

 As I read the Scripture at the top of page, it occurred to me this is exactly how God loves us. John says, "Behold: look at the manner the Father loves us!"  He loves us as a father loves his children. John is caught up in wonder at the passionate love of God for His children.  Can you imagine? Every time you make even a small step in your Christian faith all of heaven is abuzz. Did you hear? John prayed today for someone other than himself?  Did I tell you? Mary read her Bible today.  Everyone, come get a picture. David is helping with vacation Bible School. Mark and Katie put a tithe in the offering plate!

And, at the center of this mob, is the one who is cheering and bragging the most. It's God our Father. But why? The things we do as we grow in spiritual maturity seem awfully small. They really aren't that big a deal. Lots of people do them.  We don't even do them that well sometimes. So why would God get so excited? Because you are His. Before you were born God knew you and had a plan for your life.  For our heavenly Father, there are no small accomplishments. They are milestones, as we move toward the mature Christ-like beings we were meant to be.  The small step you take will one day be the walk of the church, the bride of Christ as she comes to meet her groom, her beloved Jesus. And God rejoices.

Little wonder God gets so excited. After all you are His.  Today, if you find yourself even taking a small step toward God, rejoice.  He does.  Behold what manner of love the Father has given unto us.  Behold indeed.

In Christ,
Rev. Dr. Brian Jones <><

Hot Pursuit

 "The Lord said to me again, "Go love a woman who is an adulteress, just as the Lord loves the people of Israel, though they turn to other gods...So I bought her" (Hosea 3:1-2a)


I was watching the news last night before going to bed when they ran one of those "have you seen..." segments.  Do you know the ones I am talking about?  They feature the top four or five criminals believed to be in the viewing area and ask if anyone has seen them.  They give you a profile of the person, what they have been accused of and a hotline number.  They ask that you use the number should you have any information or know the whereabouts of the suspects.

This particular segment was done in conjunction with the US Marshall service.  I was impressed by the demeanor of the Deputy Marshall.  He spoke with great confidence that the suspects would be caught.  At no time did he give the impression they would stop looking for the suspects.  They would be pursued no matter where they went.

I think Hosea would have made a great Marshall.  At the very least he displays the same dogged determination to pursue someone until they had been caught.  No matter how many times they ran, Hosea went after them.

Are you familiar with the story of Hosea? He's one of the minor prophets in the Bible. When we say minor prophets we don't mean minor in importance, but simply in length of their writing. What Hosea writes is just as :major" as the bigger books written by the prophets. Although it might be better to say what Hosea lived was just as important.

Funny thing about being a prophet in Israel and Judah. Very often God didn't just give you a message to share with people. He asked you to live it out.  A prophet's life became a living visual aid to the message God had for His people.

And so it is with Hosea. God asks him to love and marry a woman who will be unfaithful to him.  I want you to catch the three parts of that statement.  She will be unfaithful.  You are to marry her. In other words while she will not be faithful to you, you are to be faithful and make a covenant with her. And Hosea was to love her.  Can you imagine? God doesn't ask Hosea to go through the motions but actually love this woman, who has the unfortunate name of Gomer.

And Hosea does. And Gomer is unfaithful time and time again and Hosea has to go looking for her. She leaves him with the children. Finally Gomer becomes so destitute and caught up in the wrong crowd, used and abused, she is sold into slavery.

And it is then something mind boggling happens. God tells Hosea to go get her. And he does. Hosea finds his wife. He pays for her, pays for the one to whom he had given his love, buys her back, and restores her not as a slave, which would have been his right, but as his wife. Let's see Nicholas Sparks write a sorry that beats that.

Hosea's story isn't just about his relationship with Gomer. It was to illustrate God's relationship with Israel. But it also illustrates our relationship with God, doesn't it? This is our story. We are all Gomer's when you get down to it.  God has made a covenant with us, loved us more than we can fathom. But time and time again we are unfaithful. We look to other gods to make sense of our world and make us happy. Oh, we apologize and say it will never happen again, all the time making our plans for the next thing coming down the road.

But when we are sold into slavery to sin, Jesus buys us back. He paid the price for us on the cross and set us free. Not to make us slaves but to reestablish us as His beloved.  How passionately God loves us. How relentless He is in His pursuit of us.

Have you been running from God? Do you feel as if you've used up your chances and God has turned His back on you?  He hasn't.  He also hasn't stopped pursuing those you love who don't know Jesus. So keep praying for them. The story of Hosea, the cross, and the empty grave tell us that God will never stop pursuing you. He loves you and wants to restore you. So let Him. Allow yourself to be caught again by His love. Allow Jesus to set you free.

In Christ,
Dr. Brian Jones <><