Standards

     I just read an article in which the author suggested that it is right and proper to be worried sometimes.  Even though he began by quoting Philippians 4:7, “Be anxious for nothing…” he still concluded that worry is a good thing because when we worry we look to God.  This willingness to set aside the scripture is disturbing.  I was even more concerned with the response left by one reader.  “I am grateful to finally be at a place of freedom as it pertains to many things. Worry being one of the primary areas that I always had felt was sinful.”  What concerns me is that the freedom mentioned is not found in the power of the Holy Spirit but in changing the teaching of Scripture.  By changing the standard, the individual feels less sinful.  Bonhoeffer wrote about this.  “Cheap grace means the justification of sin without the justification of the sinner.” 

     Recently a young man in a Bible study asked, “Whose interpretation of Scripture should I believe?”  He has heard so many people saying such divergent things and all claiming to speak the word of God that he is genuinely confused.  I watched a video series in which the speaker used many different translations and paraphrases of Scripture to support his points.  The end result for the listeners was that they felt they could pick whatever version supported their position.  Rather than a disciplined approach to understand what the Bible says, and then a sincere effort to believe it “no matter what”, we can easily just find a “Bible teacher” who says what we want to hear.

     How irresponsible is it for a teacher to proclaim, “I know the Bible says, ‘do not be anxious’ but it really means ‘it is okay to be anxious if you believe in Jesus?’”  This promotes the teacher’s ideas as usurpers of the Word of God.  Oh, that the teachers of the Word would return to 2 Timothy 2:15, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”  May we again pray the famous prayer of Billy Graham, “Lord, help me to believe Your Word, even if I don’t understand it.”

Anger

Do not be eager in your heart to be angry,

for anger resides in the bosom of fools.

Ecclesiastes 7:9

“Honey,  I’m home.”  Alan said with a quiet chuckle. 

“Did you bring the milk?”  Sally did not see the humor.  She expected him to forget the milk and her words conveyed her disgust.  She was sure that he wasn’t really listening to her when she called and asked him to stop by the store on the way home.

“No, I’m sorry.  I forgot.”

“How am I supposed to finish dinner without the milk?  We are out of paper towels too.”

Alan sighed.  “I’ll be right back.”  He slammed the door and started the engine.  He was pleased that the tires squealed as he pulled out of the driveway.  “I hope she heard that.” 

When he came in the second time, Alan was not as jovial.  He was mad.  Sally had been demanding and rude.  She should have at least greeted him before telling him to go to the store?  Other men were greeted with a kiss when they came home.  After all, He was working to provide for her so she could stay at home with the kids.  During his twenty minute shopping trip, Alan kept replaying how Sally continually treated him like this.  His anger was just growing.  It was not a pleasant dinner.  Alan was short with Sally and the kids.  He just wanted to get away before he blew up.

Years ago, I asked my two sons, “Why do you get mad?”  Without hesitation, they replied, “Because I don’t get what I want.”  Theirs was a simple, honest, and deeply profound assessment of their hearts.  Doesn’t it sound just awful?  I want, with all of my heart, to be able to say that I get angry with sin and my anger is righteous.  Surely, with all of the years of disciplining myself to godliness, my anger stems from something more substantial than not getting what I want.  Or does it?

Is my anger wrong?

I want to lead us through a careful examination of the Bible on the topic of anger.  We frequently assume that our understanding on a topic is consistent with God’s until we look more closely at Scripture.  Let’s begin with a short statement from Jesus’ brother, James.  In James 1:20, we read, “for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”  James indicates, in no uncertain terms, that man’s anger does not advance God’s desire.  If it does not accomplish God’s righteousness, how can it ever be justified?  Matthew Henry says, about this verse, “Wrath is a human thing, and the wrath of man stands opposed to the righteousness of God.”

James refers to the anger of man.  Is it possible that my anger rises from the work of God in my heart and is therefore justified?  It usually feels like it is righteous.  Consider Galatians 5:16-23:

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you just as I have forewarned you that those who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

In this passage, Paul lists the fruit of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit.  He points out the mutually exclusive character of each force in our lives by saying that “the flesh sets its desires against the Spirit.”  In the deeds of the flesh Paul lists outbursts of anger.  Anger is not a work of God’s Spirit in our lives.  Instead, anger sets its desire against that of God’s Spirit.

Consider these two parallel passages.

Ephesians 4:31, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.”

Colossians 3:8, “But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth.”

In these two passages, we are instructed to put aside all anger and wrath.  It is of great importance to note that Paul, under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, tells us to set aside all wrath and anger.  He could have left out the word “all” and simply said “put aside anger and wrath.”  Had he chosen to do so, we might properly conclude that anger in general is bad but on occasion it is acceptable.  When the Spirit led Paul to write “all” anger and wrath, He removed that option.  God has told us to remove all anger and wrath from our lives. 

Ephesians 4:26 says, “Be angry and yet do not sin…”  It seems, at first glance, that Paul is commanding us to be angry at times.  A.T. Robertson rightly notes that this is a “permissive imperative, not a command to be angry.”  This is why the translators of the NIV chose to word this verse, “In your anger do not sin.” 

This interpretation makes the most sense when we consider the context.  If the verse is indeed commanding us to be angry, it seems to violate Paul’s words five verses later, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.”  Why would Paul command anger, only to tell us to remove it?  That does not seem consistent with the flow of the passage.

So what does Paul mean?  Look at the context again.  Paul says “Be angry and yet do not sin.  Do not let the sun go down on your anger.”  Regardless of our interpretation about the rightness of anger, we must concede that the end of verse 26 commands us to remove the anger in our lives before the end of the day.  In the very verse that we find a possible command to anger, we find God telling us to set it aside quickly.  Verse 27 tells us why we need to get rid of anger quickly, “and do not give the devil an opportunity.”  Holding on to the anger allows the devil to move in our hearts and reap destruction.  Why would God command us to be angry, when anger provides the devil an opportunity in our lives?  It is as if God commanded Adam and Eve to spend the day meditating on the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.  They should smell it, touch its fruit, but they should not actually eat it.  Would the God we ask to “lead us not into temptation” actually command us to flirt with sin?  I do not think so.  James 1:13 tells us, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.”

As Paul continues his thoughts in Ephesians 4, I think we find the solution to the dilemma.  In verse 28 Paul addresses “him who steals,” and tells him to stop and find something useful to do.  In verse 29 He tells us to not speak unwholesomely, but with grace.  In the two verses that follow our text, Paul gives a pattern.  He tells us to set aside a particular sin by choosing a good deed instead.  I am convinced that Paul started that pattern in verse 26.  He addresses three sins: anger, stealing and harmful words.  In each, he mentions its presence in our lives and gives us clear instruction to remove it.  To strengthen this instruction, he continues in verse 30 to exhort us to not grieve the Spirit of God.  In verses 31-32, Paul expands the idea by telling us to put aside a whole list of objectionable actions and replace them with the good of kindness, tenderheartedness and forgiveness.  By looking at the whole section, I think we can understand that Paul does not encourage anger.  On the contrary, he gives us a strategy to remove its destructive power from our lives.

One more New Testament passage deserves our attention, Matthew 5:21-22:

You have heard that the ancients were told, 'You shall not commit murder' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.'  "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever shall say to his brother, 'Raca,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever shall say, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.

In this passage, Jesus points out that according to the accepted law of the day, murder leaves a person “liable to the court.”  He reminds His hearers of the culpability of one who murders another.  That culpability is presented as being “liable to the court.” Jesus then states that one who is angry is guilty before the court. In the Greek text, the wording is identical as Jesus describes the culpability.  Both the murderer and the one who is angry is liable to the court.  His point is that anger is a form of murder.  He offers no qualifying circumstances which could make some murder justifiable.  Instead, Jesus gives the pattern followed throughout the New Testament, that our anger is not a godly trait but is instead an expression of the flesh and therefore sinful.

What about the Old Testament?  Let’s look at the books of Psalms and Proverbs to see what the wisdom literature tells us about anger.

The New American Standard Bible uses the words anger and angry fifty-four times in these two books.  “Anger” is used forty-five times while “angry” is used nine times.  In the book of Psalms, which uses the words the most, we find only three times that the words refer to the anger of man.  The rest of the time, anger is an emotion attached to God.  Twice, anger refers to the anger of our enemies, who are assumed to be wicked.  The third usage is found in Psalm 37:8, where David declares that we ought to “cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret, it leads only to evildoing.” 

The book of Proverbs uses these words fifteen times.  Four times it refers to the anger of authorities.  Twice it speaks of avoiding another person’s anger.  The remaining nine uses speak of the anger of man.  In every occasion, anger is viewed as negative, and being slow to anger as a good thing.  Anger is connected to folly, strife, and punishment.  Controlling our anger requires great understanding.  It pacifies contention and is an expression of strength.  Wise men leave anger behind and do not associate with those given to anger.  The virtue of being slow to anger is extolled throughout the book.  This makes sense because God calls Himself “slow to anger” at least nine different times in the Old Testament.

                A brief study of anger in the Old Testament reveals the same conclusion that we draw from the New Testament.  The anger of man does not accomplish God’s purposes but rather is an expression of folly.  Of course, there are instances in the Bible in which God says that He is angry.  In one instance, Mark 3:5, Jesus is said to be angry.  From this we conclude that there is a possibility of righteous anger.  It is important to note that God is perfect and incapable of sin.  We are not.  What is possible for God may in fact be beyond our ability in our current sinful state.  The profusion of warnings about anger and commands to remove all anger from our lives should cause us to be suspicious of our anger when it rises in our hearts.  In fact, as we will see later, the presence of anger can be a clear indicator of faulty thinking and misplaced faith.  If our first expectation about our anger is that it is wrong, we are more likely to recognize and alter our wrong thinking.

If we are to learn to control our anger, we must begin by accepting God’s perspective that anger is ordinarily inappropriate for the Christian.  Instead we need to understand what role anger plays in our lives.  Anger, like the other negative emotions, is a warning light.  It tells us that we are not thinking and believing truth.  If I accept that anger is wrong, I will more readily stop myself when I feel anger and take the steps to change.

Why do I get angry?

I get angry because I do not get what I want.  Is it as simple as that?  Not completely but it provides a great starting point.  An important insight that my sons provided is that I am responsible for my own anger.  We like to say, “You make me so mad!” or “That is annoying.”  These statements betray our flawed thinking.  We are convinced that certain situations or people are able to evoke anger from us.  We think that some things are inherently angering, that no other response is possible. 

Compare this perspective with 1 Corinthians 10:13:

No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it.

We have already established the Scriptural teaching that anger is sinful.  1 Corinthians 10:13 shows us that there is never a situation in which we must sin.  Therefore, the idea that some things are inherently angering cannot be true.  There must be another choice in the midst of frustrating moments.

Let’s think about a common situation.  Disrespect is a battle cry today.  We hear star athletes screaming for respect.  Everyday, fights and even murders occur because someone was disrespected.  I remember an incident in an NFL game in which a player spat in another player’s face.  The talk on radio the next day was all about how that is the ultimate sign of disrespect.  One athlete explained that if someone spit in his face he would immediately retaliate because of the disrespect.  It was universally agreed that spitting in someone’s face will always elicit an angry response.

I compare this common perspective about anger with Jesus.  If there was ever a time in which an individual was disrespected it was when the Roman guard abused Jesus before the crucifixion.  Jesus, who deserved ultimate respect, was beaten, mocked and spat upon.  And all of this just hours after He was betrayed with a kiss and abandoned by men in whom He had invested three years of His life.  If ever a situation demanded an angry response it was this one.  And yet we see no hint of anger in any of the records of the event.  Instead, we hear Jesus pray for those who abused Him.  “Father, forgive them.  They do not know what they are doing.”

                When I see Jesus absorb such disrespect and respond to it with total forgiveness, I am in awe of true power.  I want to taste that power in my life.  Ephesians 3:20 tells me I can.  “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works within us.”  I have that power.  I want to access it to overcome my anger.

I get angry first because I forget that I do not have to get angry.  I willingly relinquish control of my life to those who oppose me or to the situations that I face.  The second factor in my anger is a failure to get what I want.  To say it a little more precisely, my anger stems from the belief that someone or something prevents me from getting what I believe I need. 

We each have an uncanny ability to elevate our wants to the level of needs.  We say things like, “I need my coffee in the morning,” or, “I need at least eight hours of sleep each night.”  We easily discount these statements as harmless exaggerations and yet I am becoming more convinced that they are actually accurate expressions of our heart.  The move from “I need coffee” to “I need my wife to respect me” is far too easy to make.   The problem is that both statements are false.

What do I need?

“But God” may be the most important phrase in the world.  These two words remind us that God is all that we need.  This phrase is used forty-one times in the NASB.  Consider a few of the uses.

Noah is on a boat with his family and a bunch of animals.  God has just blotted out all life from face of the earth with a flood and it has been raining for 150 days.  Genesis 8:1 then says, “But God remembered Noah…”  But God changed everything.

Joseph is reunited with his brothers, who threw him into a pit and sold him into slavery.  The brothers are terrified of Joseph because their father has just died.  They stand before Joseph, afraid that he will now bring retribution to them, and we read Joseph’s words from Genesis 50:20, “you meant it for evil but God meant it for good.”

In 1 Samuel 23:14, we read that Saul is hunting for David every day, “but God did not deliver him into his hand.”

                In Mark 2:7, the Pharisees seek to condemn Jesus for forgiving a lame man.  They say, “Who can forgive sins but God alone.” 

Paul tells us that we were all dead in our sins, without hope, and then in Ephesians 2:4 he says, “But God being rich in mercy…”

The words “but God” indicate that all I need is God.  We frequently talk about needing air and food and water.  What happens if we lack these?  We will die.  Is that the end?  No!  We know that if we die, and have a right relationship with God, we enter into bliss.  In addition to this we must remember that God is capable of sustaining your life even without air, food or water.  This is what Paul meant when He said in Romans 8:31, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” All you need is God.  And He has given you all that you need.  If we are to ever remove anger from our lives, we must fill our minds with this truth and order our lives consistent with it.  I do not need coffee, respect from my wife or financial security.

                Try this exercise to begin to discipline your mind with this truth.  Each day for the next week, keep a journal of each time that you get angry.  Take time to meditate on this anger and write down the events that led to your anger.  Ask yourself what you really wanted in this situation.  Now write a sentence that explains your frustration and then insert the words, “but God…”  For instance, “Yesterday we got a notice of a bounced check.  My wife accused me of mismanaging our finances.  I really want her to respect me, but God knows I made a mistake and he forgives me.  He also gives me the ability to do a better job.”  This exercise can help you put this truth into practice.

                This brief study of the topic of anger from the Bible has given us a useful tool to battle our anger.  First, it is apparent that anger is not the innocuous emotion we thought it was.  Instead, it is a tool for Satan to bring harm into our lives.  Second, we see that we control our emotions.  We do not have to get angry.  We can choose, like Jesus, to respond in love instead.  This response is only possible if we remember that God is all that we need.  Therefore, I can and must place my faith in His love for me. 

 After Alan put the milk into the fridge, he slammed the door.  As he did, a drawing that Debbie had made in Sunday school fell to the floor.  Alan looked at it before he replaced it on the refrigerator door.  It had a rainbow, a cross and the words, “God loves me” written on it.  The simple message touched Alan’s angry heart.  He had snapped at Debbie during dinner.  He had not shown her God’s love tonight.  Then he thought about why he was so mad.  “Out of the mouths of babes…” he thought.  Alan stopped and prayed quietly, “Father, thanks for all of the ways you show me your love.  Thanks for my beautiful daughter.  Thanks for Sally.  She really is great.  Will you help me to love her for You.  Amen!”  With those words, Alan felt a new resolve to reach out to his wife and show her how much Jesus cares about her.

Shields

After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying,

"Do not fear, Abram,

I am a shield to you;

Your reward shall be very great."

Genesis 15:1

In 1990, during the early morning hours, a man broke into my mother`s apartment, held a knife to her throat, mocked her, threatened her, and raped her.  Although he left her alive, something in my mother died that day.

Throughout her life, Mom has been a victim of abuse.  Her father abused her verbally and physically.  When she met my father she saw her chance to escape.  On her eighteenth birthday they were married.  She soon discovered that he was even worse.  She would try to anticipate his wishes to avoid his rage, but who can know the whims of a drunken man.  After an exceptionally brutal beating, Mom expressed her truest self when she courageously gathered her three sons and left my dad.  I thank God for her courage.  That choice has always been an example to me that I do not need to live under oppression and it set me free from living any longer under my father’s wrath.  She left with another man and soon married him.  Although not as violent as my father, he too drank too much and would often act in oppressive ways.  The relief was so great that we overlooked his controlling ways and periodic fits of rage.

When I was ten, my step-father took his own life. He got mad about something we boys had done.  He fought with mom and she took us to her mother's for our safety.  The next morning, she called Grandma and told her that he had killed himself.  We were stunned.  I remember vividly the numbness that fell over our whole family.  Even in this state, Mom brought us all together.  She was a rock.  She was brave and strong.  I admire my mom for the amazing power she showed to raise three teenage boys all alone.  But in one night in January 1990, Mom became frightened.  Maybe it was the straw the broke the camel`s back.  I do not know for sure.  But Mom has been different ever since.

Because of the rape, Mom married a man who would be the worst of her abusers.  He offered her safety from the intruder.  In exchange, he demanded total obedience. One day when he felt she was slipping away, he pressed a pistol to her chest and squeezed the trigger.  In God’s grace, the weapon misfired and Mom was able to escape.  Two months later, Mom met Jesus.  Her faith has set her free from so much destruction.  Although she has regained some of her fearless confidence, she still longs to be safe.  She is afraid of unlocked doors.  She winces when she sees someone who is similar to her attacker.  I admire my Mom and I weep for the burden she must carry.  I do not blame my mom for being afraid.  I would love for her to be fully free, but I understand that her wounds are greater than anything I can even imagine.  She is fighting just to survive.  How can a man sunbathing on the beach criticize the swimming technique of the survivor of a shipwreck who is struggling against the tide to reach the shore?  Mom is worthy of my admiration.

            A member of my church once confided in me, "Vince, you know how deeply the rape affected your mom.  You know that that single violent act scarred her for life."  I nodded.  "I was raped every day for years by my step-father."  What do you say to such a revelation? How do you even understand the wounds this woman bore?  To this day, I am deeply grateful that my friend is still alive.  She is struggling to be a better mother and wife.  She has not given up the fight but as she walks through this life, she has a noticeable limp.  The wounds inflicted by her step-father will be with her throughout this life.

BRUISES

            Each of us is wounded in life.  Our wounds may not reach the severity of Mom`s or my friend's, but we have been hurt.  Mom and my friend live, trying to find some way to be safe from the wounds they experienced.  Their methods are different.  Their fears are slightly different, but their primary objective is the same.  They cannot bear the possibility that someone might hurt them again.

            Lee Cox, in his book Raised on Fear, tells of his own struggles to overcome the fear that defined him.  During an argument with his girlfriend, she pointed out something that he had done which was wrong.  Lee turned over the table and cussed at her in his rage.  He recognized that when she pointed out that he was wrong; he assumed he would be punished.  His father would punish him with severe beatings and demeaning insults.  Lee could not bear such punishment, so he lashed out to protect himself from what he anticipated but could not bear.           

           At times like these, when I was feeling really good about what a great guy I was, I was most vulnerable to criticism.  At the instant I heard I was “wrong” or “bad” I went from feeling great to feeling like the worst person on the planet.  Being wrong meant I needed to be punished, and I was not aware of anything except that I had to stop her from hurting me.  I saw myself as justified in whatever it took to stop her.  I did feel bad afterwards, but not like I had done something wrong, just that she had forced me into protecting myself that much.  I actually hatred Marian for hurting me.[1]

            How do we face life after such pain?  We must find something to shield us from the pain.  Most of the time, we learn to build and trust self-protective strategies.  Lee Cox used his anger to protect himself.  Many victims of abuse use the same abusive tactics with which they had been oppressed to protect them from the oppression they fear.  There are many different strategies we adopt and use based on our experience and the severity of the perceived threat. It seems heartless to encourage a wounded person to drop their guard, but although these strategies are understandable, each one is actually self-destructive.  Each self-protective strategy replaces Jesus as our shield, our protector, our mediator. 

            In 2006, I was playing a pickup game of basketball.  I came down with a rebound surrounded by two other players.  My foot landed partially on one another players foot and rolled.  Because I was pinned between two players, I could not fall to the side.  The result was a severely damaged ankle.  The recovery would take around a year.  Even after the ankle was healed, I remember being nervous when anything got too close to my ankle, especially when it was a sudden movement.  It was over a year before I would wear sandals again.  Even today, eight years later, I am a little hesitant walking down steep hills.  My injury affected the way I live.  I am much more cautious and overly protective of my ankle.  Sometimes, my caution is unnecessary, maybe even irrational.

            As we experience emotional pain in life we become protective as well.  I call these emotional wounds in our life, “bruises.”  When we have a bruise, we wince whenever anything approaches the bruise.  Although we do not consciously think about the bruise, we are continually aware of it and act to keep it safe. In our effort to protect our emotional bruises we can build lifelong self-protective patterns that are unhealthy, preventing our own growth and our effectiveness in reaching others.

SHIELDS

Think about self-protective strategies as shields.  The purpose of a shield is to come between you and a dangerous weapon.  As I write this chapter, Hamas is being accused of using human shields in Gaza.  They fire their missiles into Israel from schools and hospitals, trusting that Israel will not return fire on a school.  Hamas trusts children, injured, sick and care givers to stand between them and the Israeli bombs.  In ages past, war was predominantly fought hand to hand.  In such a battle, it was important to carry an offensive weapon such as a sword and a shield to block the enemy's blows.  The warrior hides behind his shield awaiting a moment of safety so that he can strike against the enemy.

We use our strategies in exactly this way.  First, we believe that we are at war.  We see the world around us as dangerous and the people around us as threats.  Instead of seeing the needs around us and responding to God’s call to care for others, we lift our guard.  We see the world in this way because we have been attacked.  People express displeasure at us when we do not follow the crowd.  Maybe they laugh at us--thereby communicating that we do not measure up--or they may mock us, get angry at us, or physically harm us.  In each of these situations our value is challenged and our safety removed.  We believe it is safer to assume people are dangerous, than to risk such harm. (Isn't that the point of "stranger danger?"  Because some children have been harmed by strangers, we teach our children to be afraid of every stranger.  While providing safety to children, it also prevents truly loving people to express that love to the children.)

            Not only do we live as if we are at war but we hide behind our shields.  We may use conformity as a shield.  As long as we fit in, we will not be attacked.  We use charm or anger, buying gifts or being needy, cynicism or Pollyanna style optimism.  Many people resort to books like How to Win Friends and Influence People as a shield to help them win in the warfare of this life.  Others seek to control everything around them.  These become the abusers, whose shield is an effort to control life so that it will not hurt them again.  They justify their actions, often blinded to their abuse, but in the end they are hiding behind a shield.

            The Apostle Paul talks about shields in Ephesians 6:11-17.

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.   Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.  Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,  and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

He begins by reminding us that our battle is not against people but the evil one.  So as we spend so much time strategizing about the people around us, we miss the real issue.  While we are supposed to be reaching out to others with love, we are busy hiding behind our shields ready for the next attack.  And the world is perishing around us. 

When Paul speaks of the Christian's shield, he calls it the "shield of faith."  How is faith a shield?  Peter may enlighten us as to that question.  He says that Jesus endured the hostility of crucifixion by "entrusting Himself to the one who judges righteously.[2]"  Jesus believed that His Father would care for Him.  He knew that even if He died, He would live because his Father had promised.  His faith "extinguished all the flaming arrows of the evil one."  Peter tells us to follow Jesus in this.  It is better to be comforted by Jesus than to avoid pain (Matthew 5:4[3], 11:28-30[4]).  We may acknowledge this in our mind but believing it provides a shield.  Believing in the nearness of God and His sole ability to meet our needs extinguishes the flaming arrows.  They lose their power in our life.

IDENTIFY STRATEGIES

            You have likely heard of Napoleon complex, or short man syndrome.  It is the idea that a man under 5' 9" will try harder than taller men in order to compensate for their sense of inferiority due to height.  While this can be a generalization, the reality is that some short men do try harder.  This is a self-protective strategy that brings some good into their lives.  While this strategy may provide the drive to accomplish important tasks, it also drives people away.  It hides a deep insecurity and leads the individual to pretend to be more.  This person is afraid that shortness may define them.  Therefore they create an elaborate facade to hide their perceived weakness.

            Often, our shields are not as helpful.  They provide some semblance of control over life, but they also build barriers between us and others that prevent us from receiving the intense love of God and from impacting the lives around us.  These shields which we hope will protect us become the instruments that disrupt our relationships and prevent us from accomplishing God will in our life.

            Therefore, we need to learn what shields we have built and what bruises they protect.  By identifying these shields we can take our wounds directly to Jesus for healing.  We know that we may have to walk around with scars from the previous wounds; we may be wounded again; but we are committed to go to Jesus with our pains.

            Ellen is a warm and friendly woman.  If you were to visit her church, she would likely be one of the first to greet you.  She genuinely loves people and she shows it.  She often reaches out to new people and begins to build a quick bond.  She will cal a couple of times each week, initiate meetings and pray for the new friend.  This lasts for a few months and then Ellen meets a new friend.  Just as quickly as it started the relationship seems to end.  She is investing in someone new.  Ellen does not even see this pattern.

            Why does she do this?  Ellen, like many others, enjoys newness but there is more.  When Ellen was eight, her best friend was Susie.  They spent all of their time together and shared their secrets.  One day Susie broke their confidence and told another girl one of Ellen’s most treasured secrets.  Ellen was embarrassed and betrayed.  As adults we could deal with this quite easily but for an eight year old it was devastating.  Ellen knew that she should not have trusted Susie.  She would not let anyone get that close again.  Thus began her life of many relationships.

            We all have shields.  What are yours?

            When Maya Angelou was young, she was raped by her mother’s boyfriend.  She told her brother who told the rest of the family.  The man was arrested, convicted and then incarcerated for one day.  Four days after his release, he was murdered—it is believed by Maya’s uncles.  Maya felt responsible.  She felt that by telling her brother, the man had lost his life.  She did not speak again for four years.  Her wound led to the errant idea that she cost the man his life.  She was not rational—due in part to the trauma—failing to see that his crime against her cost him his life.  As a small child, she had to process all of this emotion.  She jumped to the conclusion that she caused his death with her words, so she quit speaking.  Imagine how impoverished this world would be, if Maya Angelou had never spoken.  That is what her shield would have produced, but God…

Caged Bird

BY MAYA ANGELOU

A free bird leaps

on the back of the wind

and floats downstream

till the current ends

and dips his wing

in the orange sun rays

and dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalks

down his narrow cage

can seldom see through

his bars of rage

his wings are clipped and

his feet are tied

so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings

with a fearful trill

of things unknown

but longed for still

and his tune is heard

on the distant hill

for the caged bird

sings of freedom.

The free bird thinks of another breeze

and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees

and the fat worms waiting on a dawn bright lawn

and he names the sky his own

But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams

his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream

his wings are clipped and his feet are tied

so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings

with a fearful trill

of things unknown

but longed for still

and his tune is heard

on the distant hill

for the caged bird

sings of freedom.[5]

---

[1] Cox, Lee, Raised on Fear (Milltown, MT, EVE Foundation, 2004), 68.

[2] 1 Peter 2:23-24 “and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; “

[3] Matthew 5:4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

[4] Matthew 11:28-30 "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.  29 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.  30 "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

[5] Maya Angelou, “Caged Bird” from Shaker, Why Don't You Sing? Copyright © 1983 by Maya Angelou. 

Glitter Glisten Glimmer

In January 2013, my friend Cindie Pike saw her Savior's smiling face. See my post here  The following is her husband, Mel's, reflections on his journey since Cindie died.

Glisten, Glitter, Glimmer     

We awoke today and winter was gone!

Ice exiled to Boreas’ house by a solstice Sun.

Once gray cityscapes glistened in the low beamed light.

And under cerulean expanse we walked.

Comfortable closeness,

Familiar friendship,

Optimistic gaze into a shrinking future but with joy in togetherness.

Comfortable

I awoke in the night and sought the sun.

Darkness enclosed me in suffocating grip.

I cried for light – my voice inaudible – swallowed by the black hole that was my new world.

I walked alone but was not alone. 

All faces near me reflecting – what? Shock, grief, sympathy? 

I couldn’t see; couldn’t speak,

I was able only to do as I was advised.

Compliant.

I awoke in light glaring and hot.

An insistent sterile sun demanded I sample his products.

Brilliant unabated light pounded my retinas; searing heat my head.

I walked on feldspar sand returning illumination to the source.

Not depleting but enhancing.

I walked without shadows.

On my knees the generous heat gave me a stick in swap for my tongue.

I worshiped with unutterable groans and then I listened.

“You should have…”

“I wish I could have…”

“If only you had done…”

“I am sorry.”

An angry interrogator the light delivered body blows unending;

Naked, exposed.

Accused.

I awoke in a darkened forest.

Overhead a shiny silver dollar and some scattered change illuminated giant trees.

I hummed a long dormant tune from my comfortable times.

My gaze pursued the contours of an old monarch and discerned a faint eastern glimmer.

Dawn.

Strange this mixture of thoughts –

Unanswered “why” and settled promise

Lonely but loved.

Pain and purpose.

I moved toward the Dawn.

Quietly;

Hopeful.

Small Group

Can you imagine a small group of young families who meet a couple of times a month?  Often such groups meet to encourage the parents on practical topics like parenting, marriage or finances.  This is all good, and it is mostly directed at the adults.  The adults need to find some way to keep the kids busy so the parents can learn.

What if the children were the goal?  Imagine an informal gathering with fun and food lasting for ninety minutes or so.  Then the families gather together to sing some fun children’s songs for five minutes.  This could be followed by reciting the children’s catechism, reading a short section of a children’s Bible, or a children’s biography of a person of faith.  After a short time of prayer, in which the kids are encouraged to pray, the group can gather up their stuff and head home.

Would this teach parents how to have family worship?  Would this help young parents better understand their own faith?  Would this help dads more closely engage in their children’s lives?  Would this show kids that they are important?  Would it helps everyone know that worship is very pleasant?

What if...

Love is Kind

Last week my son Michael had surgery on his jaws.  In watching his recovery, I learned something about kindness.  When he was asked to rate his pain on a scale of one to ten, the lowest number he gave it was an eight--and that was while he was taking morphine.  If ever there is a time when we feel we have a right to be a little short with people, it is when we face adversity and pain.  Even so, I witnessed the strength of a man who spoke gently to everyone—no I really mean everyone—who came into his room.  He went out of his way to thank those who brought him medicine or food, those who cleaned the room, and his family and friends who visited him.  I thought to myself, “That is what kindness looks like.”  Several months ago, I wrote a blog about love, which is patient.  I started a second blog looking at love as kind, but I could not get very far with it until I saw Michael in the hospital.

                1 Corinthians 13:4 says that “…love is kind.”  Most Christians know this and, of course, affirm it’s truth.  What is kindness?  The Greek word that is translated kindness is “Chrestos.”  “Chrestos” is rooted in the idea of usefulness.  “Chrestos” seeks to be beneficial to it’s recipient.  Jesus uses this word in Matthew 11:30 as he describes His yoke as “easy.”  That is to say, it is kind, or beneficial.  It is also used of God’s dealings with all mankind in Luke 6:35.  Maybe the clearest use is in Romans 2:4 where it is used multiple times reminding us that it is the very kindness of God, not his wrath but his beneficence, that brings repentance to our lives.

                The supreme example of the kindness of love, is Jesus.  I think of Jesus on the cross.  Again, we could easily excuse Him for being focused on what He was dealing with at that time.  And yet, we read an enigmatic exchange between Jesus, His mother, and the only apostle who remained with Him at the cross, John.  In John 19:26-27 we read, “When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, ‘Woman, behold, your son!’  Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother!’ From that hour the disciple took her into his own household.”

                I see two elements of Jesus’ kindness that can also define our love.  First, I see a deep gratitude in Jesus.  He was aware that neither Mary, nor John had to be there with Him.  Both were present and could face scorn for their support of Jesus.  Peter, out of fear of being connected with Jesus, denied he even knew him.  The mother of the blind man whom Jesus healed was unwilling to stand up for her son, see John 9:20-23.  But John and Mary honored Jesus by facing potential personal loss by being with Him at this crucial moment.  Jesus thanked them by speaking directly to them.

                We develop gratitude--from which we can be kind--when we recognize the real beneficence of people around us.  In our cynical age, we are tempted to doubt the intentions of other people.  We may want to ask, “What’s in it for them?”  Sometimes the only thing they receive is the pleasure of loving us.  It is possible that many of our actions are tainted by self-centeredness and other sins.  And yet, God seems to indicate that some of our works are actually good, Ephesians 2:10.  Rich Mullins puts it this way, “We have a love that’s not as patient as your was…but we do love now and then.”  Sometimes, the Christian is filled with the Spirit of God and is enable to actually, genuinely care for someone else.  The ability to see this genuine care produces deep gratitude in our hearts.

                The second element of kindness is respect.  Look at the respect Jesus showed to John, "the disciple whom Jesus loved.”  In saying “Behold your mother…” Jesus tells John, “I know that you can take care of her.  She is precious to me, and I have faith that you can and will love her.  I trust you John.”  Jesus knows John, whose name used to be ‘son of thunder’ but who would henceforth be called, ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved.’  Jesus ignores John’s flaws and honors him by asking him to accomplish a significant task.  Respect is a beautiful element of kindness.

                What if we could see the purity of the people of God?  What if we could ignore their failures and see the goodness that God has produced in their lives?  What if we treated each other with the respect commensurate with the saints of God?  Our world and our churches would  be much kinder.

                I pray that God will grant me a deeper, purer kindness.  I want to develop the gratitude and respect for others which will invariably produce love, which is kind.

Belize

“Go, therefore and make disciples of all the nations…”

Dear friends,

     From 2003-2007, God provided nine opportunities for me to visit Belize, leading short term teams and training leaders of such teams.  These trips brought rich fruit to the participants as well as the friends we found in Belize.  This summer I will again lead a team to Belize.

     The youth group of Providence Presbyterian Church is called the CREW (Caring, Relationships, Evangelism, Worship).  The CREW’s mission strategy involves a three year cycle.  The first year, they minister in York.  The following year, they serve somewhere in the US—last year they did relief work following super storm Sandy.  On the third year, the CREW serves internationally.  As they were choosing a site, I suggested Belize because the youth are interested in a Spanish speaking culture.  Darryl, our youth leader, asked if would help lead the team…so I get to go back to Belize.

     Darryl and I will go to Belize in mid-February so I can introduce him to the area, the missionaries, and the local Presbyterian Church.  Then, on June 28 we will leave with a team of twenty or so people to serve for a week.  My son, Patrick, and his wife Britney are helping with the CREW, so they are coming too. 

     The Presbyterian Church in Patchican has been unable to call a pastor because they cannot provide a house for him.  Our team will help with building a manse.  Once it is completed, this congregation may be able to call a man to labor full time.  A recent evangelism team made 70 contacts in Patchican and a neighbor village.  Having a pastor would enable these believers to reach their community.

     You have prayed for me and my family for years.  Will you please pray for this trip? I will keep you updated.  If you would like to donate for Patrick or Britney, you can send checks to me, made out to Providence Presbyterian.

Thanks again…

Vince 

I am not a victim of the past

Recently I read a book Raised in Fear by Lee Cox.  It is a story of a man facing the impact of his abusive childhood.  As an adult he finds himself repeating the abuse he had received.  It was a personally moving story.  As I finished the book, I was compelled to write these few lines.  These thoughts reflect my very real hope.

I am not a victim of the past

I am not enslaved to the failures of others

Since the Lord God almighty is now my Father

I am free by the blood of Christ

Empowered by the Spirit of Christ

Guided by the Word of Christ

That I might honor the God and Father of Jesus the Christ

I am not a victim of the past

Obey...then know

John 7:17

"If any man is willing to do His will, he shall know of the teaching,

whether it is of God, or whether I speak from Myself.”

                Jesus indicates that obedience precedes knowing the veracity of His teaching.  The first step to true understanding is obedience to God.  If we will not first bow the knee before the King, we cannot really know the truth.  This obedience rests upon the faith that He is, in fact, the King.  Our sinful inclination is to know before we obey.  The simple obedience from faith exhibited by a child is lost in our sophistication of arguments, and so is our knowledge of truth.

                Frederick Robertson put it this way in his sermon on this passage, “”Surely then, by removing self-will, and so only, can the hindrance to right opinions be removed.”  “It is more true to say that our opinions depend upon our lives and habits, than to say that our lives depend upon our opinions, which is only now and then true.  The fact is, men think in a certain mode on these matters because their life is a certain character, and their opinions are only invented afterward as a defense for their life.”

                How true it is.  I am convinced that we consider an interpretation of Genesis 1 and 2 that allows for an old earth not because the passage allows such an interpretation, surely it doesn’t, but because we suspect scientific assertion may be true.  Some have adopted a perspective on women as elders or deacons which leads them to place an unnatural interpretation on the clear scriptural teaching.  Others want warrant for their various vices, so they fabricate an argument to show biblical allowance of their sin.  Each of these errors is removed by following Jesus words, "If any man is willing to do His will, he shall know…”  Obedience must come first.  May God give us the grace to obey and believe what the Bible teaches instead of trying to use it to justify the lifestyle we have chosen.