Category: Part 3

The Discipline of Liturgy

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 15 – Reforming our Souls

Discipline of Liturgy

[Bible references: Exodus 12:1-28; Psalm 39:4-7; 90:9-12; Ecclesiastes 12:1]

I don’t know why so many Christian groups think they need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to “discipleship programs.” This time-tested annual pattern for the life of individual believers and the Church together that is focused on Christ, organized around the Gospel, and grounded in God’s grace, is sheer genius. It is simple enough for a child. It offers enough opportunities for creativity and flexibility that it need never grow old. Each year offers a wonderful template for learning to walk with Christ more deeply in the Gospel which brings us faith, hope, and love.[1]

Teaching and learning that are attuned to the spiritual power of habit recognize the power of little things, the formative power of micro practices. Little things repeated over time in community have a formative effect.[2]

In one sense, a liturgy is a ritual, or a script, used by a congregation to format its worship services. In that regard, all congregations are liturgical no matter how formal or informal. In another sense, a liturgy is a “work of the people” which emphasizes the participation of the congregation during the worship service. The goal of the liturgy is to place the whole of our lives, including our schedules, our possessions, and our efforts, in submission to Christ.

That means that we should consider not just what we do on Sundays in the corporate setting of the church, but as individuals, we have our own individual liturgies through the week as well. We should pay attention to the ‘work’ we do as individuals as we live our lives, the ways we worship as we go about our daily lives, the tasks we do and the habits we practice. How do we, in fact, place the whole of our lives, our schedules, our possessions and our efforts, in submission to Christ? That is the point of our liturgy and all the other disciplines we incorporate into our lives.

The liturgical year

The liturgical year is an ancient, time-tested method of discipleship. In addition to the weekly Lord’s Day reminder/celebration of the resurrection of Christ, the liturgical calendar provides a way of refocusing our attention on the spiritual aspects of life. The focus on the Christian story and celebrations provides an opportunity to be shaped by our counter-cultural message rather than the so-called secular message and celebrations. The liturgy of Word and Sacrament has varied through different times and places, but the ancient liturgical calendar provides one way for us to engage as in a concert in a practice that unites us to the one holy, catholic church, past, present, and future.

Sacred Time

Interestingly, the Jews have a liturgical calendar that is different than their “secular” calendar, in the same way that we keep a liturgical calendar that is different from the secular calendar. The calendar of the Canaanite culture of the Old Testament started at the beginning of the wet season which began in the fall. That was the time when seeds would be planted. The Biblical calendar starts in the spring at the beginning of the harvesting season. While the Canaanite culture begins the year with the work that they do to reap a harvest later, the Israelite culture begins their year harvesting the crops (that God provided) and from which they would have seeds to plant later. The difference highlights whose work has preeminence. The “Gentile” calendars are similar. The secular year begins in January as the date when the Roman consuls would begin their terms of office whereas, the Christian liturgical year builds our focus around the life and ministry of Jesus.

There is an intriguing way in which the Jewish culture uses its calendar compared to how we now use it. Whereas, in our present culture we, with a few exceptions, remember historical events according to the actual historical dates that event occurred set. There are exceptions, like Martin Luther King’s birthday which is set to be always celebrated on a Monday, regardless of his actual birthdate. The long weekend has preeminence over the actual birthdate.

This shift of preeminence helps explain what seems to be certain discrepancies in how things are recorded in the Bible. These apparent discrepancies include: the timing of travel to Sinai from Egypt, the construction of the tabernacle, the timing of events in Deuteronomy, even the timing of events in Holy Week. These apparent discrepancies can be explained when we look at them within the biblical framework.

The Bible’s liturgical calendar always celebrates historic events in the same way we handle our exceptions. In the Biblical framework, it is more important to remember events according to the liturgical calendar rather than the actual historic chronology, to frame events in a spiritual context rather than in an historical context.

This includes the events of creation. The modern debates concerning whether creation happened in six 24-hour earth days or six longer eras – or whatever – can be put aside as only scientific concern but not necessary as biblical concerns. The purpose of the liturgical calendar is to help us place everything, both in time and space, both physical and spiritual, in God’s domain. This includes us and the little piece of time and space that we occupy. Therefore, all things, including all our time, our possessions, and our efforts, are under the domain of God. The discipline of the liturgy then provides the larger context in which we can pursue all our spiritual disciplines

[1] Spencer, “Chaplain” Michael. Internet Monk Archives imonk.blog/2010/11/15/church-year-spirituality

[2] Smith, James K.A. “You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit.” Brazos Press 2016. eBook

Reflect

The sacred calendar reminds us that all time is sacred. In which parts of your day are you most likely to need reminding of that sacredness?

Observe

Read Exodus 12:1-28. Yahweh is establishing a new calendar for the Israelite. What is the purpose of creating a new calendar?

Fruits of the Disciplines

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 15 – Reforming our Souls

Fruits of the disciplines

[Bible references: Ruth 3:11; 1 Samuel 13:14; 2 Samuel 11; 1 Kings 22:35; 1 Kings 16:33; 1 Chronicles 29:17; Job 2:3; Psalm 15:1-2; 78:72; Proverbs 4:23; 10:9; 11:3; 17:3; Nehemiah 7:2; Daniel 1:8-9; Matthew 5-7; 12:33; 15:19-20; 23”27-28; Romans 5:3-4; 1 Corinthians 15:10, 33; Galatians 5:22–23; Colossians 3:12-15 23-24; Philippians 2:12–16; 4:8; 1 Tim 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9;2:7-8; 1 Thessalonians 4:1; 1 Peter 1:6-7;’ 5:1-4; 2 Peter 1:3-8] 

Forming our dependence on the Holy Spirit

Practicing the disciplines opens us up to the work of the Holy Spirit within us, transforming our very inner character (moral qualities, ethical standards, and principles) into the likeness of Christ. Christian character is the product of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that produces the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, long suffering, and self-control. Although it is the Holy Spirit who transforms us, we are still called to work with and not against the Spirit. It is by His grace that we are transformed, and it is also by his grace that we can work with Him as He brings His kingdom into the world. Because the Spirit of God lives in us, He provides the grace and power that make godly living possible. We are encouraged to make use of this great power.

Forming our character/integrity

People of character are noted for their honesty, ethics, and charity. Descriptions such as “man of principle” and “woman of integrity” are assertions of character. A person’s character is the sum of his or her disposition, thoughts, intentions, desires, and actions.

It is good to remember that character is gauged by general tendencies, not on few isolated actions. We must look at our whole life. For example, King David was a man of good character although he sinned on occasion. And although King Ahab may have acted nobly once, he was still a man of overall bad character. Several people in the Bible are described as having noble character: Ruth, Hanani, David, and Job. These individuals’ lives were distinguished by persistent moral virtue.

People of good character are often described with terms like integrity, honesty, strong moral fiber, care and concern for others, and the like. Although their character is demonstrated in actions, true character resides in the heart. True godliness includes both right actions and right motives.

Forming our choices

Character is developed by our choices. Daniel “resolved not to defile himself” in Babylon (Daniel 1:8), and that godly choice was an important step in formulating an unassailable integrity in the young man’s life. Character, in turn, influences our choices.

We can develop character by controlling our thoughts, practicing Christian virtues, guarding our hearts, and keeping good company. Men and women of character will set a good example for others to follow, and their godly reputation will be evident to all.

Observe

Read 1 Peter 1:5-9. Which characteristic gives you the most problems?

Disciplines of our hearts

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 15 – Reforming our Souls

Disciplines of our hearts

[Bible references: Matthew 6:24; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:12-19; 9:25-27; 1 Timothy 4:7-8,12; 2 Timothy 3:16–17; Hebrews 4:1-11; 5:14; 2 Peter 1:3-25]

Anyone who remembers learning … remembers choosing to engage in repeated practice over and over and over precisely so that the rhythms become practices.[1]

Spiritual disciplines are personal and interpersonal practices (habits or activities – not attitudes or character qualities) that are taught or modelled in Scripture which promote spiritual growth among believers in the gospel of Jesus Christ. The spiritual disciplines derive from the gospel and take us deeper into an understanding of the gospel and they are the sufficient means by which we can know and experience God so that we can become more like Him.

“Spiritual discipline, then, is developing soul reflexes so that we know how to live. We discipline ourselves to develop soul memory in normal times so that we’ll be equipped for the times of high demand or deep crisis.”[2]

A few words of caution: Although spiritual disciplines are the means to godliness that does not mean that we are godly just because we practice them. The great error of the Pharisees was that they felt by merely doing these things they were godly. The disciplines are meant to provide opportunities for Christ to transform us – they are not meant to be a burden or an end in themselves. Although we engage in the disciplines to pursue God we should not rely on our effort or our strength, but by resting in power of the Spirit.

Although God will grant Christlikeness to us when Jesus returns, until then He intends for us to grow toward it. We aren’t merely to wait for holiness; we’re to pursue it.”[3]

“The Disciplines allow us to place ourselves before God so that he can transform us . . . The inner righteousness we seek is not something that is poured on our heads. God has ordained the Disciplines of the spiritual life as the means by which we place ourselves where he can bless us. In this regard it would be proper to speak of ‘the path of disciplined grace.’ It is ‘grace’ because it is free; it is ‘disciplined’ because there is something for us to do.” [4]

Maturity requires incremental growth, accumulation of experience

Before we begin to look at the specific disciplines available to us, we should consider their overall purpose. We are beings created in the image Christ, and although we are not Christ, we can become more like Him. Becoming like Christ is a process. We have examples all around us to show us that growth is a process. Plants start from a seed then, in time, grow and develop new parts until the plants become mature and can reproduce. The same with animals. These examples indicate to us that not only is growing a process but that there is an aspect to growth that is built in to automatically happen. Animals and plants, with proper nutrients and environment, will just naturally become mature.

Allowing intentional choices to become habits and the habits to shape our character

But image-bearers of Christ are not merely plants or animals. Our growth is dependent on the development of culture, which are aspects of our way of life that are not automatic but rather are chosen. We can make choices, moral choices, about what we think is important, to set priorities and values. Those choices started in a garden full of abundant food, but we had a choice to not eat the fruit from one particular tree, we had a choice to make based on love and obedience.

Allowing different disciplines to strengthen each other

The spiritual disciplines provide us with choices, to be intentional about how we want to grow. We will see that each discipline is dependent on the others, and each discipline can then weaken or strengthen the others. So, we may enter the disciplines at any point, but we should not neglect the others. We can choose to start from an area of strength or an area of weakness, but we should not neglect the other paths to growth.

The discipline of the soul is not disconnected from the discipline of the body

We are embodied creatures. As we engage in disciplines, we should consider the interplay of soul and body and how they affect each other. We see this effect when, on the one hand it is true that if we are feeling confident then our bodies tend to present a confident posture and on the other hand, it is also true that if we are not initially feeling confident then intentionally assuming a confident posture can produce the feeling of confidence. This leads us to the phrase, “fake it till you make it.” We should keep the interplay of spiritual and material, body, and soul, in mind as we engage in our spiritual disciplines.

Our bodies are the very temple of the Holy Spirit within us, and it is through our bodies that we exercise our faith – and through which we are capable of exercising immorality. To that end, the apostle Paul saw fit to discipline his body as part of his overall ministry.

Forming our virtues

Virtues are the qualities of Christ in our lives that are provided by Him: qualities such as compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness. These qualities help us escape “the corruption that is in the world through lust. (KJV)” But although these qualities are given by Him, we are exhorted to strengthen those virtues with spiritual disciplines. For example, we should add virtue to our faith and virtue to our knowledge for knowledge without virtue only makes someone a walking textbook. Virtue helps add to our faith, to our knowledge, to our self-control, to our perseverance, to our godliness, to our brotherly kindness and to our brotherly love. It all hinges on godly virtues being added to our faith.

As Christians, we all want to grow in spiritual maturity and Christlikeness. Elders should be models of Christian maturity, qualified to the office primarily based on their character. While the Bible provides one quality related to skill (the ability to teach) and one related to the amount of time a man has been a Christian (not a recent convert), all the other qualifications are related to character. Yet while these traits are demanded of elders, they are not unique to elders. Elders are to be exemplars of the Christian graces which all Christians should aspire to. Every congregation is meant to be full of men and women who are above reproach, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, sober, gentle, peacemaking, not lovers of money, mature, humble, and respected by outsiders.

[1] Smith, James K.A. “You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit.” Brazos Press 2016. eBook

[2] Rumford, Douglas. SoulShaping. Tyndale House Publishers 1996

[3] Whitney, Donald S. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life Navpress 2014

[4] Foster, Richard J. Celebration of Discipline Harper & Row Publishers ©1978

Observe

Read Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 9:25-27; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:9-11; 2 Peter 1:3-25. We are paradoxically called to both work and to rest. How do we do both at the same time?

Reforming our loves

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 15 – Reforming our Souls

Reforming our Loves

[Bible references: Psalm 1; 42; 139:13-14; Proverbs 4:23; Matthew 5:3-12; 12:28; 13:1-22; Mark 4:11; 12:29-31; Luke 8:10, 10:8; 13:18-19; Ephesians 6:10-20; Philippians 1:9-11; 1 Peter 5:8-9]

We are shaped every day, whether we know it or not, by practices – rituals and liturgies that make us who we are. We receive these practices – which are often rote – not only from the church or the Scriptures but from our culture, from the “air around us.”[1]

The Hebrew word for “hear,” “shema,” implies not just hearing, but obedience. Hearing with our mind should be connected to obeying with our body. God has made us with heart, soul, mind, and strength. Descartes had said, “I think therefore I am,” but that, in and of itself, leaves out the totality of who we are. We are not just brains on a stick,[2] we are creatures with embodied souls, creatures made in the image of a loving God, whose love is not just expressed in a sentiment, but by everyday choices expressed in what He does and in what we do. 1 Corinthians 13 makes clear that nothing is worthwhile if there is not love expressed through our actions.

Unfortunately, as we have expressed in a previous chapter, our choices seem to always be shrouded in sinful behavior. Time after time, history has shown us that simply filling our mind with the truth of God is a good start but is not sufficient to prevent us doing wrong things. Although our love will not be perfect until we are completely transformed during our resurrection, that does not leave us with no means to order our loves in our current lives. For the time that we are in, God has provided us with various disciplines which can be used to train our habits and therefore train our loves.

Our hope is not just in the future. Jesus proclaimed two thousand years ago that the kingdom of God has come. Jesus’ work of restoration may not be completed but is already underway. We may sometimes fret that the work of restoration, within us and around us, does not happen quickly, but as we observe God’s character as manifested in the natural and spiritual world around us, God seems to relentlessly accomplish his work through processes of growth. God had specified that all birds of the air, fish of the sea, animals and even humans were, through normal processes, to multiply and fill the earth. God’s own plan of redemption worked through generations from Adam, through Noah, Abraham, Moses, and finally to Christ. Jesus even particularly specified that the kingdom of God is like a seed that over time will grow into a plant or tree.

As creatures made in the image of God, we are given the free will to participate in our own growth. But we should keep in mind that if our goal is to become more like Jesus, then we should expect that growing into the likeness of Christ will take time … will take normal processes of growth. But we also need to keep in mind that God’s work of restoration is not unopposed; there are spiritual forces at work against God and against us.

Ultimately, it is Christ who transforms us. But we can humbly submit ourselves to God and prepare the soil of our lives to receive His grace. Our growth will be impacted by our loves and desires, by our yearnings, hungering and thirsting,[3] by where we choose to feed ourselves, by the habits and liturgies we allow to shape our lives,[4] by the disciplines we submit to,[5] by how we center our lives,[6] by how we have integrated the love we have toward ourselves, our families, our communities, and God. In the meanwhile, we will face resistance from within and from outside ourselves. In the normal course of events, it will be a common experience to have times when God seems absent, but we must know how to stay the course.

Holding to our center, keeping our loves ordered, holding on to our identity in the face of the pressures of the world will take conscious effort and discipline. Of course, our discipleship is not just a matter of paying attention to our inner life but also in the expression of our inner life in our walk with others, inside and outside the church. Hopefully, within the church, we can find healthy mutual support as we share our complementary spiritual gifts with one another.

Spiritual Disciplines are those practices which keep us centered on Christ. There are books with various lists of spiritual disciplines available to help guide us and you will find them with slightly different approaches. For instance, in Richard Foster’s book, Celebration of Discipline,[7] the disciplines are divided into three categories: The inward disciplines (meditation, prayer, fasting, study), the outward disciplines (simplicity, solitude, submission, service) and the corporate disciplines (confession, worship, guidance, celebration).

Another approach to spiritual disciplines is to focus on deliberative lifestyles such as were originally developed for use in monasteries but have application in the everyday lifestyle. One such example is the Rule of St. Benedict.[8] The Rule reminds us that we do not need to go about looking for God, for He is everywhere, including right where you are in your time and your place, in the humdrum everyday tasks of life. Freedom in Christ is achieved through the submission to three vows: obedience, stability and conversatio morum (conversion of life). These vows present us with paradoxes: our need to be in the desert so that we can be more fully present in the marketplace, our need to have prayer alone so that we can be more present in common worship, our need to commit ourselves to stability so that we can be more fully open to change, our need to detach ourselves from things so that we can fully enjoy them. The intent of all these practices is to help us more fully center ourselves in Christ so that we can more fully love our community.

Whether we are following an intentional plan or not, our everyday habits and practices do shape our spiritual lives. Even the normal, incidental routines we do, such as brushing our teeth, can shape us in ways we don’t think about. But if we take the time, we have the opportunity of using those same routines to help transform us in the ways we want to. But if we want to give our everyday routines a chance to transform us in the way we want, we will need to practice ways of waiting, hoping, slowing down, and preparing.

“When I brush my teeth I am pushing back, in the smallest of ways, the death and chaos that will inevitably overtake my body. I am dust polishing dust. And yet I am not only dust. When God formed people from the dust, he breathed into us—through our lips and teeth—his very breath. So I will fight against my body’s fallenness. I will care for it as best I can, knowing that my body is sacred and that caring for it (and for the other bodies around me) is a holy act. I’ll hold on to the truth that my body, in all its brokenness, is beloved, and that one day it will be, like the resurrected body of Christ, glorious. Brushing my teeth, therefore, is a nonverbal prayer, an act of worship that claims the hope to come.” [9]

We need to be mindful that changes in our life are never neutral. We need to be intentional about choosing practices and patterns in our life that will transform us to be more in the image of Christ.

“Take heed, consider your temptations, watch diligently; there is a treachery, a deceit in sin that tends to the hardening of your hearts from the fear of God.” [10]

We need to be aware of how much our sin is actively working against us, hardening our hearts, and turning us in ways, even very subtle ways, against Christ. To be diligent in following Christ, we need to be diligent in practicing spiritual disciplines in one form or another.

[1] Warren, Tish Harrison. “Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred practices in everyday life.” InterVarsity Press 2016. eBook

[2] Smith, K.A. James “You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit” Brazos Press 2016. eBook

[3] Smith, K.A. James. “You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit” Brazos Press 2016. eBook

[4] Warren, Tish Harrison. “Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life” InterVarsity Press 2016. eBook

[5] Foster, Richard J. “Celebration of Discipline” Harper & Row Publishers ©1978

[6] De Waal, Esther. Seeking God The Liturgical Press. 2001; Tozer, A.W. “The Pursuit of God” Christian Publications, Inc. 1948

[7] Foster, Richard. Celebration of Discipline. Harper & Row Publishers ©1978

[8] Foster, Richard. Celebration of Discipline. Harper & Row Publishers ©1978

[9] Warren, Tish Harrison. Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life. InterVarsity Press 2016. eBook

[10] Owen, John. Mortification of Sin. In Believers The Necessity, Nature, And Means Of It: With A Resolution Of Sundry Cases Of Conscience Thereunto Belonging.” From The Works of John Owen Johnstone & Hunter Volume 6, 1850-3 www.monergism.com/thethreshold/sdg/owen/Mortification%20of%20Sin%20-%20John%20Owen.pdf

Observe

Read Psalm 1; Matthew 13:1-22. How do you prepare the soil of your heart so that you can spiritually flourish?

Rejoicing in the hope of God

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 14 – Remembering our creation

Rejoicing in the hope of God

[Bible references: Psalm 42; Isaiah 40; Romans 5:1-11; 2 Corinthians 5:11-21]

The relationship between lament and hope is crucial. Reconciliation without lament cheapens hope. To be deeply bothered about the way things are is itself a sign of hope.[1] It is because of our great hope that we can face the brokenness around us and within us, knowing that God still rules over all things and above all things, knowing that He has not and will not cease working to bring his mercy and justice, and knowing that God will eventually restore all of creation to what He has intended from the beginning.

That is the hope we can remember each time we share communion. In the broken bread we remember: Christ broken for us; our sharing in His brokenness; the Body of Christ, that the church now broken will be made whole when our joy will be consummated at the Wedding Feast of the Lamb. In the wine we remember: Christ’s blood shed for us; our sharing in His suffering; the Blood of Christ which cleanses and redeems us so that with pure hearts and with one heart, we may enjoy the glorious presence of our Lord. And so it is, after facing the reality of our brokenness, acknowledging it with our lament, looking forward to the reality of the hope we have in God and seeking His desire to restore all things to Himself, that we can face the reality of what we need to do, so that we can join Christ in his redemptive work. If we have truly faced the reality of our brokenness then we will not be deceived by the illusion of progress in our culture, which ultimately is unable to overcome evil.[2] Our hope is fixed solely in Christ who has defeated evil.

[1] Katongole, Emmanuel. Reconciling All Things: A Christian Vision for Justice, Peace, and Healing  Intervarsity Press, 2009; Wright N.T. “Five Things to know about lament” NT Wright Online www.ntwrightonline.org/five-things-to-know-about-lament

[2] Wright, N.T. Surprised by Hope: Rethinking, Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church  Harper Collins 2008. Kindle Edition (p.84-86)

Reflect

How can communion provide us hope within the brokenness that we live in?

Observe

Read 2 Corinthians 5:11-21. What do we need to experience before we can act a ambassadors of Christ?

Lamenting our brokenness

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 14 – Remembering our creation

Lamenting our Brokenness[1]

[Bible references: Psalm 90; Lamentations 1-2; Matthew 26:36-46; 27:33-53; Luke 22:15; 1 Corinthians 14:12; Hebrews 12:2]

God made a good world, a world full of his glory. Sometimes, we can look at the beauty, the immenseness, the intricacy of what he has made all around us and be filled with awe and wonder. Unfortunately, what is also visible are the many ways in which things are not as they should be. As we consider all that we see and contemplate the kind of end that God intended, we find ourselves looking at a world that seems to be headed in the wrong direction. Instead of increasing shalom, there is violence, hatred, fear, disease, and brokenness. Pain. Shattered dreams. Loss of hope.

There are times when the brokenness around us and within us can overwhelm us. There may be times when God seems absent for long periods of times. This intense absence has brought some people to what they call the Dark Night of the Soul.[2]

The brokenness around us affects everyone, although some experience the brokenness more harshly than others. The Psalms are full of complaining about how the pain of sins’ consequences don’t seem to affect everyone equally. In Lamentations, that pain is captured in personification – the pain of an adulterous woman who is naked, unclean, scorned, and shamed, a victim of rape, a slave, helpless, isolated, unclean. Just as we all bear the guilt of sinful disobedience against God and neighbor. Not only do we bear the guilt of active rebellion against God, but we also bear the shame of being sinned against.

Throughout its history, the church has been concerned with the sin of people but has largely overlooked an important factor in human evil: the pain of the victims of sin. The victims of various types of wrongdoing express the ineffable experience of deep bitterness and helplessness. Such an experience of pain is called han in the Far East. Han can be defined as the critical wound of the heart generated by unjust psychosomatic repression, as well as by social, political, economic, and cultural oppression. It is entrenched in the hearts of the victims of sin and violence, and is expressed through such diverse reactions as sadness, helplessness, hopelessness, resentment, hatred, and the will to revenge.[3]

None of this is comfortable, our tendency is to use whatever devices we can to cover our feelings. We want to run and cling to the hope and joy of Christ, to rush past our uncomfortable guilt and shame. There is a part of us that would be happy to join Christ in His work in the world, as long as we can skip the confession of sin and guilt, but in doing so we would skip the richness of God’s mercy and the gift of shalom.

The depths of joy and hope are not just feelings for us to receive and enjoy. Rather, the depths of joy and hope are only found in acts of the will, in a persistent choosing to abandon our interests and instead to follow God.

Knowing what was before Him, Jesus chose to push His glory to the side and to take on the form of a human with all its physical inconveniences, to endure the ridicule of people who were not fit to tie his sandals, to spend years training 12 disciples all of whom he knew would abandon him in the time of his greatest suffering as he endured the agony of the cross. But in all of this, as he shared the last meal with his disciples before his time of passion, he could say, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before my suffering.” The great joy that awaited Jesus and His disciples would be preceded by deep sorrow and great suffering.

“Throughout 1946 and 1947, Mother Teresa experienced a profound union with Christ. But soon after she left the convent and began her work among the destitute and dying on the street, the visions and locutions ceased, and she experienced a spiritual darkness that would remain with her until her death. It is hard to know what is more to be marveled at: that this twentieth-century commander of a worldwide apostolate and army of charity should have been a visionary contemplative at heart; or that she should have persisted in radiating invincible faith and love while suffering inwardly from the loss of spiritual consolation” [4]

As we consider in which ways we are called to “Dance in the Kingdom” with God, we need to keep the proper perspective. God’s work is to reconcile people and all of Creation to Himself. Whatever task He gives us to engage in, it will only ever be a portion of God’s work. Whatever task He has called us to is sufficient for us and He will supply whatever we need to accomplish the tasks He has provided. While some are called to do “bigger” tasks than others, we need to humbly accept whatever tasks God has called us to do. We also need to humbly submit to our need for one another and our need to combine whatever spiritual gifts God has given to us with the gifts He has given others as we build up one another. In the task of building up one another, we need to address another humility.

Our sin and our woundedness are deeper than we imagine. As we confess and acknowledge the sins we have committed and the shame we experience when others have sinned against us, our proper response is lament. We can neither undo what we have done nor what has been done to us. But we can take the next step. The path to restoration and reconciliation leads through a lament that must confront our brokenness and acknowledge the pain. In our lament we can recognize how we are corrupted by sin and that we are accountable for all the suffering caused by our sin.

For us to experience healing of shalom, we need to acknowledge the suffering we have caused, encounter the truth about our sins, and challenge the privileges we may have had over others. Shalom requires lament, a reminder not likely needed for those whose lives are marked by the injustice thrust upon them but is likely needed for those whose lives are marked by privilege.

“Lament in the Bible is a liturgical response to the reality of suffering and engages God in the context of pain and trouble. The hope of lament is that God would respond to the human suffering that is communicated through lament.”[5]

[1] Plantinga, Cornelius. Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be Eerdmans Publishing Co – A. Kindle Edition; Wolters, Albert M. Creation Regained Biblical Basics for a Reformational Worldview  William B. Eerdmans Publishing 1985, 2005. eBook

[2] Rah, Soong-Chan, “Prophetic Lament: A Call for Justice in Troubled Times” Intervarsity Press, 2015; Zaleski, Carol. “Dark Night of Mother Theresa;” St. John of the Cross, Dark Night of the Soul First Things, www.firstthings.com/article/2003/05/the-dark-night-of-mother-teresa

[3] Park, Andrew S. “The Wounded Heart of God: The Asian Concept of Han and the Christian Doctrine of Sin” Abingdon February 1, 1993

[4] Zaleski, Carol. “The Dark Night of Mother Teresa’s Soul” First Things, www.firstthings.com/article/2003/05/the-dark-night-of-mother-teresa

[5] Rah, Soong Chan. “Prophetic Lament: A Call for Justice in Troubled Times” Intervarsity Press, 2015

Reflect

What kinds of brokenness in the world do you notice the most?  For what do you lament?

Observe

Read Psalm 90. Is there any lament that touches your heart?

Our limits

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 14 – Remembering our creation

Our Limits

[Bible References: Genesis 1-2; Deuteronomy 15:11; Psalm 40:17; 1 Corinthians 12]

As we seek to fulfill our cultural mandate, there are various constraints which control how we exercise our call.[1] First and foremost, as God’s image-bearers, we are to act in accordance with God’s character: holding to the balance and tension of acting with sovereignty and servitude, mercy and justice, playfulness, and orderliness, along with his attributes of overflowing goodness, generosity and peace, trustworthiness, faithfulness, self-sacrifice and forgiveness. Although we are not transcendent in the same way God is, as his image-bearers his character of transcendence can be reflected in the ways we manifest His other qualities: Our ability to creatively imagine the ways in which we establish dominion, live into our relationships, display fruitfulness, and fulfill our responsibilities as God’s image-bearers.

We also need to remember that there are limits with which we should exercise our responsibilities. God has given us finite resources of materials or time to work with along with the reminder of Sabbath to help us refocus, to remember that although we are designed to work that we are not designed solely for work. It is not work that gives us value, rather it is God who gives us value and our work only has value if it gives God the glory.

Part of our limits are tied to our embodiment. Our earthiness is a reminder of our dependance on the earth, each other, and God. Our earthiness should help us lean into the humility worthy of image-bearers of God. Our need to sleep is a constant reminder that we are not God who never sleeps.

The multi-faceted call God has given us, requires us as God’s stewards to weave together the call to glorify God, to bring to maturity God’s rule over the earth, to reflect God’s triunity within the community of his image-bearers. This call is not for us to fulfill individually, but rather together as the Body of Christ with whatever God provides.

[1] Theology of Work Commentary, “Genesis 1-11 and Work” Hendrickson Publishers Marketing 2015, 2016

Reflect

We have built-in limits to what we, in our bodies, can do. How do these limits remind us of our dependency on the earth where we live, on each other, and on God?

Observe

Read Deuteronomy 15:11; Ps 40:17; 1 Corinthians 12. Why do we need each other?

Our provision

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 14 – Remembering our creation

Our Provision

[Bible References: Genesis 1:29; Genesis 2:8-9; Psalm 3:5; 55:4-22; 1 Timothy 6:17-19; Hebrews 1:3; 1 Peter 4:7-11]

In all of this, as his image-bearers we are to remember that we need God’s provision to do our work. He is the creator of life and reproduction; sun, moon, earth, and stars; light and darkness; intelligence and wisdom; love, joy, and peace. He is the one who always goes before us and watches over us as a father watches his children.

Within all of these possibilities, we can work with God to fill the earth with his glory and influence people towards him. Our Cultural Mandate can be linked to the Great Commission and the task of evangelization, where we can use the full range of our abilities to point people to the God who is able to redeem us all.[1]

Unfortunately, just as we can engage in obedient culture making, we can also turn from God and engage in disobedient culture making,[2] turning ourselves and others away from God. Because of our rebellion against God, our cultural tasks can take on a different dimension.

[1] Manahan, Ronald E. “A Re-examination of the Cultural Mandate: An analysis and Evaluation of the Dominion Materials” Docsbay Grace Theological Seminary dissertation May 1982 docsbay.net/A-Re-Examination-Of-The-Cultural-Mandate

[2] Koyzis, David T. “What the Cultural Mandate is Not”  First Things www.firstthings.com/blogs/firstthoughts/2011/11/what-the-cultural-mandate-is-not

Reflect

If we base the possibilities of what we can do only our own strength and abilities, we will be limited. What stewardship project should you be considering based on what you can do with God’s help?

Observe

Read Psalm 3:5; 55:22. If we are confident that God will supply all our needs, how should we handle our possessions?

Our relationships

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 14 – Remembering our creation

Our Relationships

[Bible references: 1 Peter 4:7-11]

All of these activities are done in context of our relation to God, to each other, and to our land. God has created us in His image, in the image of a triune God in which Father, Son and Holy Spirit exist as three persons united into one. Within that framework, God created us as male and female, each created as creatures made in God’s image yet different from and interdependent upon each other. When God made a woman for Adam, He specified that the woman would be an ‘ezer kegnedo,’[1] a strength corresponding to him. God created us from the dust of the earth, so although we are stewards of the earth, we are also dependent on the earth. In the earth, God has provided for us the resources we need to do our tasks. In all these relationships, God has intended that we are to live in unity with Him, with one another and with our environment.

Over time, our unity in all these areas got more complicated as our numbers grew. We needed to create organizations which necessarily became more complex as our societies grew and as our collective impact on the earth became more substantial. We needed extra discipline to maintain our relationship with God. We also needed to develop more skills in diplomacy, administration, and hospitality as we deal with more and different people. We needed to pay closer attention to the effects of our culture on the earth and its creatures to minimize the damage from so many people using our physical resources.

All of our work, our stewardship, is intended to have a direction, to bring maturity, fruitfulness, and growth to God’s work. The work we were charged to begin in the Garden of Eden was designed to end in the filling and subduing of the earth, in the cultivation of the whole earth where heaven and earth overlap so that work and worship are the same thing.[2]

[1] God’s Word to Women. “Ezer Kenegdo” God’s Word to Women godswordtowomen.org/ezerkenegdo.htm; Francois, Mark Steven. “(Ezer Kenegdo) in Genesis 2:18” Between the Perfect and the Doomed markfrancois.wordpress.com/2013/07/22/%D7%A2%D6%B5%D7%96%D6%B6%D7%A8-%D7%9B%D6%B0%D6%BC%D7%A0%D6%B6%D7%92%D6%B0%D7%93%D6%B4%D6%BC%D7%95%D6%B9-ezer-kenegdo-in-genesis-218/

[2] Huber, Dave. “Avodah Word Study” EFCA Today Summer 2012 www.efcatoday.org/story/avodah-word-study

Observe

Read 1 Peter 4:7-11. What are we charged to do?

Our Mandate

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 3 – Dancing in the Kingdom– Chapter 14 – Remembering our creation

Our Mandate

[Bible references: Genesis 1:26-28; 2:18-25; 3:6; 39:22-23; Matthew 17:10-13; Acts 3:19-42; 1 Peter 5:10]

We have seen how our journey, the journey of God’s people, creatures made in God’s own image, began with our ordination in the Garden of Eden and we have seen what God has intended for our future. We have seen how that intention has not changed despite our rebellion which continues to this day, and how God has not ceased to work with us, His people, despite our persistent rebellion. We have seen God’s patience and tenderness in not totally abandoning us despite our rebellion and how He has called us generation after generation – from the patriarchs and prophets to the apostles and all who are called Christian – to join Him in His ongoing restoration of His Kingdom on earth.

As image-bearers, we still are charged with the work of stewarding His creation, However, we must be restored ourselves before we can fully join Him in His work. That work of restoration begins when the Holy Spirit comes within us to unite us to God and His community. That is the work God must do within us.

In the previous chapters, we have followed how God called his image-bearers to join in the work that he began and then how, through the years, his image-bearers have joined that work, sometimes successfully and sometimes not. In this chapter, as we prepare to consider how to move forward, we will revisit that multi-faceted call to rule over the earth, to be fruitful and multiply, to fill the earth and subdue it” and to cultivate[1] and keep it, to create beauty. This call to act as God’s stewards of His creation is a call to use our gifts of intelligence and creativity, to cultivate the resources of the earth to establish a godly culture and civilization. This call is sometimes called the “cultural mandate,” where our culture includes all the things we discover and make and pass on from one generation to the next: our food, language, sports, arts, businesses and their products, civic organizations, and governments, etc.

The charge to “have dominion over” and “subdue” the earth and all its creatures includes physical, cultural, and intellectual activities such as farming, mining, manufacturing, government, arts, civic organizations, education, sciences, technology, and many other activities. But the primary place of God’s kingdom is to restore the souls of men. All would be well if all souls were in right relation to God, everything else would fall into place. Evangelization of the souls of all men is the ultimate goal. But if we think of the ways in which God, out of his overflowing abundance, finally managed to touch our hearts, there were many steps and many different ways in which we were individually touched by the hand of God.

As God’s image-bearers we are uniquely equipped to imagine and discover what kind of possibilities can be made of the overflowing abundance of  God, the physical resources He has provided for us: turning grain to bread, grapes to wine, oil to energy and plastics, iron ore to steel, limestone and shale and clay to cement, and many other things we have made from many types of resources. We are uniquely equipped to imagine and discover out of God’s overflowing abundance what kinds of ways we can organize ourselves to fulfill our responsibility to subdue and cultivate the earth by creating organizations such as businesses, civic and social organizations, political parties and non-profit organizations, governments and educational and religious institutions.[2] In all of these activities we can reflect God’s knowledge and wisdom by engaging in intellectual pursuits such as reading, writing, mathematics, sciences, philosophies, language arts, history, engineering, forensics, medicine, law, etc.  

[1] Huber, Dave. “Avodah Word Study” EFCA Today Summer 2012 www.efcatoday.org/story/avodah-word-study

[2] Manahan, Ronald E. “A Re-Examination of the Cultural Mandate: An Analysis and Evaluation of the Dominion Materials” Docsbay Grace Theological Seminary dissertation May 1982 docsbay.net/A-Re-Examination-Of-The-Cultural-Mandate

Reflect

We were assigned priestly duties in the Garden of Eden. As believers, we are to be kingdom of priests. As God’s care for His Creation continues, so does our mandate. What things can you do (and are equipped to do), with God, to fulfill His mandate?

Observe

Read Genesis 1:26-28; 2:15; 39:22-23. How would the world be different if we fulfilled our duties towards creation in the same way the Joseph fulfilled his duties?