Job: God's All-sufficient Grace

Sometimes the muse is silent, and other times inspiration comes in great rushes! Today our Covenant Bible Study tackled Job, probably one of the most depressing books in the Bible!  How could we receive a word from God in the midst of such suffering?

Job was probably written very long ago by a group of wise men.  They studied to try to find the meaning of life and apply God's revelations to everyday life.  They wrote of Job, not a Jew, but possibly an Edomite.  Job actually is "everyman"  - a character stripped of national or racial distinctions, without political or religious distinction to distract us. Job stands entirely alone.

Why did God have a conversation with Satan in the first place? Why did God allow horrible things to happen to Job? Why are bad things allowed to happen to good people? Does God have a role in our suffering?

Job has a classic "dark night of the soul" but God doesn't give up on him.  In spite of Job's friends' bad advice, God remains close at hand.  Despite Job's insistence in his own righteousness, God still shows up and doesn't give up on Job.

In the midst of his anger and despair, Job dares question the infinite, eternal, and all-powerful God. In a shocking turn of events, God does not smite Job dead, but remains intimately interested in Job. After Job's anger runs its course, Job allows himself to acknowledge that he is face-to-face with God, and he his anger gives way to awe. This is the point where Job can truly begin to know God.

It was interesting to contemplate the role of chaos in human life. I usually try to avoid chaos - it sucks so much energy from the situation. In this study we learned that without chaos there can be no life. Job certainly experienced his share of chaos. Am I prepared to embrace chaos as an agent of change that I may need in my life?

Though Job was supposedly perfect, it may have been this perfection that created a barrier between Job and God. We often think that traveling through adversity will bring us out the other side stronger. Have we ever considered that we might emerge softer, gentler, and in closer communion with God?  What doesn't kill us will only make us stronger? Maybe God has something else in mind.

The resolution of Job is not about resolution but about relationship. The relationship between God and Job continues. Grace is revealed as all-sufficient. As Job comes to realize that he is nothing without God, his reconciliation is complete. What was once viewed as a tragedy emerges as inspiration. God can find value in any situation. Don't remember the desolation of Job, but remember his redemption.  Our God is always enough!

We are the Church!

Some people say  the only difference between Christians and non-Christians is the hour or two Christians spend in church each week. What do you think? Are we Christians actually identifiable by what we say, how we live, how we spend our resources, and our ability to love and forgive unconditionally?

Yesterday's sermon by Todd Watson at Main Street United Methodist Church focused on Priscilla and Aquila, friends and disciples of Paul They came to Athens after Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome. They were tent-makers or leather-workers. Paul lived with them for the longest stretch of his freedom. The only longer periods in one place were during his incarcerations.

Priscilla, though a skilled tradeswoman, did not enjoy true freedom. As a woman, she was considered chattel property of her father and then her husband. Despite being disenfranchised, Priscilla became a leader in the church. Through her Apollos, a former disciple of John the Baptist, came to know the living Christ, moving from good to great in his witness to the world.

God's use of Priscilla, showed that reform in the church might be the way to ultimately bring societal reform. Since Christ is not returning to the world as quickly as Paul thought, we need to work to bring the Kingdom of God to the world. The Corinthians faced problems in their church. Similar problems continue to this day.

1. Do we feel that we have done the unforgiveable or do we fail to forgive someone else? This is the poison that can contaminate a body of believers. We are called to forgive and be forgiven. We need to suspend some of our judgmental ideas. As Todd said, "Have I just become what I said they were?" That is definitely food for thought!

2. Do we believe that some folks don't belong in the church and it is our duty to help them find their way out? Wouldn't life be simpler if certain people would just disappear? I certainly needed to be reminded that it is for each individual to discern whether they belong. The church is not like a civic or social club. We don't get to choose who we love as brothers and sisters in Christ. The church cannot operate by corporate principles.

This idea fell right into line with this excellent book I just finished. The premise of this book is that we can learn a lot from the early Christian Church. We think the internet has changed our world with the seemingly endless information available at the click of the button. Has this rendered Christianity passe? Chakoian contrasts this to the building of Roman roads in the early days of Christianity, linking all parts of the known world. Christianity survived that, and modern religion will as well.

The author squarely addresses the fiction that the church can operate effectively using the corporate business model.  "The work that church leaders spend so much time on - preserving church buildings and pipe organs, meeting about curriculum and what to serve at fellowship, arguing about staff vacation policies or the color of the carpet in the sanctuary - will not prove to be important in the long run...churches can no longer rely on endless commitee meetings, votes, and papers."  Priscilla didn't need a committee to help her talk to Apollos about Jesus - and neither do we!

If we don't need to be acting corporately, what should the church be doing? We are called to be "ekklesia" the household of God. Rather than functioning like CEO's maybe we should try to truly be a family. We need to create a place where individual gifts are prized and shared, attendance statistics can be thrown out the window, and we can focus on each member as an individual.

Like a family, there will be problems. Rather than creating written mission statements and policy manuals, maybe we should focus on personal relationships. Chakoain tells us that "Churches become toxic when 'ungrateful, unholy, unloving, contrary, and critical' comments are allowed to circulate unchecked...When people are behaving badly, the church needs to intervene." The church must to police itself. Our shortcomings need to be addressed and resolved with love, rather than swept under the rug. As Todd reminded us yesterday, "Be gentle with the faults and messiness of others, heaven knows they are being gentle with yours!"

At a recent Wednesday night Bible Study on the book of Acts, Todd described our life as existing in the tension between grace and holiness. Living in this tension is not easy. Like Priscilla and the early Christians, our call is still to bring the message of Christ to the world. Chakoian says "Now, it may mean making points on Facebook posts, and Pinterest and holding discussions in town halls, at tailgates, or even in taverns." We can only do this if we have a loving foundation in our own church.

So, do we have anything in common with Priscilla the tent-maker? We continue to worship the Almighty God as she did, and continue to trust in His word. We must remain open to the moving of the Holy Spirit, and carefully discern our proper path. Like Priscilla, we need to be prepared to let God use us. WE ARE THE CHURCH!

Evidence??

I saw a sign like this many years ago. I didn't have my camera, and it was years before camera phones. It really made an impression on me. I've recreated it here through the use of a "church sign generator." Did you know such a thing existed? It fit so well with a wonderful sermon I heard this morning, that I had to dig it back out.

Rev. Todd Watson, at Main Street United Methodist Church, preached on Acts 17:1-15. It really made me think! He focused on Acts 17:6 - "These people who have been disturbing the peace throughout the empire have also come here." Common English Bible. Todd challenged us with these questions: Does knowing God (through Jesus) make a difference in our lives, in the world? Do we live any differently because we know Jesus? Lots of room for introspection here!

Todd compared our religious status quo with camping in an RV. We never really leave home, because we take home with us. In my Christian life, do I ever step out of my comfort zone in a way that will leave me open to God's transformational power? What am I missing?

Dietrich Bonhoeffer tells us that God calls us to come and die. It is only through dying to self, ego, and control, that we can begin to live into God's call for our life. We need to get out of our climate-controlled RV and breathe in that fresh spiritual air.

God wants all of us. He wants us to have enough faith to be those noisy, messy people who disturb the peace. We are called to surrender daily to God's will and move into a new life. Christianity in action always results in a revolution in the life of the individual that will ripple out into society.

Thanks, Todd, for pointing us to the joy in the journey of faith. I strongly believe that God won't do what we can do for ourselves. We've got to take action. WE are the church! Amen.