Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Afghan Christians live in fear of jail, exile, or worse
Guinea’s president says former coup leader may return from exile
Exiled Islamist party leader set to return to Tunisia after 20 years

Exile has been a common punishment over the years. Consider these two famous exiles…

Victor Hugo (1802 – 1885)
French novelist (Les Miserables, Hunchback of Notre-Dame), playwright, poet, human rights campaigner. In exile from 1851 – 1870 after declaring Napoleon III a traitor to France; returned to France in 1870 and was celebrated as a national treasure until his death in 1885. He was away from France for 20 years, but he still remained very much French during that time.

The Dalai Lama (1935 – )
Head of the now-defunct theocracy that ruled a formerly independent Tibet. He’s been in exile since 1959 after the failure of a Tibetan uprising against Chinese occupation. He now lives in India, but he has established a Tibetan government-in-exile in India. He’s been away from Tibet for more than 50 years, but he’s still very much Tibetan.

As long as there have been people on earth, individuals, people groups, and entire nations have suffered the banishment of exile. And though we may not understand it fully, the Bible says that God’s people have been and even are today living in exile. We are not at home. We are living in exile as aliens and strangers, but many of us don’t realize it. And many of us are living as if this land, this kingdom, this culture we are living in is our own…but it’s not.

The book of 1 Peter was originally a letter designed to instruct believers on how to endure persecution without wavering in their faith. It also speaks to the believer’s position in Christ and their future hope as citizens of God’s kingdom – a kingdom that will never end. Peter wrote the letter to remind Christ-followers that we are merely sojourners here on earth. This is not our home; we’re just here on a layover, so we mustn’t get comfortable.

Peter addresses this letter with these words: Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the dispersion…(1 Peter 1:1). He calls the recipients “exiles” even though none of them were literal exiles. He was writing to a mostly Gentile church who were scattered all over northern Asia. He calls them exiles right from the start to make a point that God’s people will always live in exile as long as they live on this earth.

Are we living as exiles here or not? Are we living as citizens of God’s kingdom while here on earth, or are we imbibing the culture, customs, beliefs, and practices of the kingdom in which we are living? Victor Hugo and the Dahlia Lama both set for us good examples of what it should look like to live in exile while at the same time maintaining loyalty and allegiance to their country (culture, customs, beliefs, and practices) from which they were in exile. Hugo never lost sight of being a Frenchman, and after 20 years in exile, he returned as a national hero. And after more than 50 years in exile, the Dahlia Lama is still very much Tibetan as he has established and leads the government of Tibet while being exiled from his homeland. Are we doing the same? Are we living like citizens of another kingdom and followers of another King or not?

1 Peter 1:17 says, And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile… In other words: “If you call Jesus your King, then subject yourself to Him while you are living in exile on this earth.”

We see examples of those who did this and those who didn’t when we look at the nation of Israel in exile in the Old Testament. Daniel 1 records the first wave of exile into Babylon, and Jeremiah 52 and 2 Kings 24-25 record other waves. Thousands of Israelites taken into exile in Babylon under King Nebuchadnezzar. Ultimately, the exile was God’s discipline on His people for their unfaithfulness to Him, and when they arrived in Babylon, God instructed them to prepare for the long-haul there:

Jeremiah 29:5-7
Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

The exiled Israelites were going to be in exile for a long time, and so God instructed them to live life, marry and have more God-following children, and even pray for the Babylonian Empire knowing that their welfare would be connected to its welfare. However, God did make it clear that while there, they were not to forget their true King and His kingdom.

So, how’d they do? Well, Ezekiel 14 and 20 reports that many people forgot their King and His kingdom while in exile. And the root cause of this was materialism. Many became successful and wealthy while in Babylon, and their devotion to materialism led to conformity to Babylonian customs. Many adopted the Babylonian language, and many began worshipping their gods and idols. The historian Josephus records that when King Cyrus released Israel from exile years later that many did not want to leave because they didn’t want to leave their possessions behind. They had become assimilated into the Babylonian culture.

Daniel 1 and 3 reports a different story, but unfortunately, it seems that this was not the norm for the exiles in Babylon. In Daniel 1:8, it says that Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food, or with the wine that he drank… Daniel – along with men like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego – resolved not to become assimilated into the Babylonian culture. They came to a definite or earnest decision not to conform. They determined that they would stay strong no matter what, and here’s how that resolve played out over the years:

Daniel 1:12-16 – They respectfully refused to eat the king’s unclean food.

Daniel 2:36-45 – Daniel boldly and bravely spoke of the coming judgment of God to the king.  In essence, Daniel told the king that another kingdom is coming that will trump his.

Daniel 3:12 – Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to worship the king, thus risking their lives.

Daniel 6:10 – Daniel refused to pray to the king, thus risking his life. Instead, he continued to pray to God.

These men – along with others, I’m sure – stood strong while they were in exile. They fought off the temptation to be assimilated into the Babylonian culture and continued to worship, serve, and remain loyal to God their King the entire time. This did not mean that they did not exercise some allegiance to the Babylonian king as I’m sure Daniel did during his 66 years of service to him, but Daniel never lost sight of who his true King was. He continued to worship Him and remained true to Him the entire time he was in exile.

So, what will it be for us? Will we be like the majority of the Babylonian exiles of Israel? Will we allow the materialism of our time to lead to assimilation and compromise. Will we allow our ultimate allegiance to be shifted from God the King and His kingdom to the kings and kingdoms of our time? Or will we be like the minority of Babylonian exiles of Israel – like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego – and resolve not to cave into the pull of materialism that will lead to assimilation?

As Christians, this is not our home. We’re just here on a layover, and we must hold onto everything here loosely. Our allegiances, our loyalties, and our hearts must remain with our King and His kingdom while we are in exile here. May God strengthen us to live lives loyal to Him while we live in exile here.

While he doesn’t think a few weeks on the streets will actually help him fully empathize with the hundreds of thousands of homeless people in the U.S., he does hope to get a better understanding of how people get to be homeless and what they do to survive.

During the month in his van, he’s using his smartphone to shoot video and photos that he regularly uploads to his blog site.  Check it out if you have a few minutes.

http://30dayshomeless.wordpress.com/

Sure hope the screen covering this sign is secure.  Wouldn’t want the “n” to be replaced with a “v”.  That may cause the Christian community here in town to raise a collective eyebrow.

However, if those letters were exchanged, I bet this church would be full to overflowing on Wednesday nights with people who would otherwise never grace the doors of a church.

God has called our church (and your church too) to be missional – to join Him in His redemptive work in our neighborhood, our city, our country, and around the world.  And what better passage to study than Jesus’ instructions to His first followers recorded in Matthew 5-7 on what it means to join Him in His mission of redemption?

Andrew, being the missional director that he is for our church, sent me a link to a video where Mark Scandrette, an author, teacher, and missional activist shares his insights into missional community formation from  his 10+ years of radically living it with his family in a San Francisco neighborhood.  Mark’s words encouraged me that we’re doing the right thing in exploring Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount with our church family as a way to lay some missional foundations with them.  He says:

Jesus said “Love your enemies.”  He said, “Don’t worry about your money and possessions anymore.”  Seek first the kingdom of God.  There are between 36 and 40 explicit things that Jesus said about how to live in the kingdom of God (in the Sermon on the Mount), and what a missional community does is they get it down to: How are we going to help each other actually live those things out?  What is our next step to living in the Jesus way?

The easiest thing to do is to talk about our dissatisfaction with the way our church is or the way our lives are.  But somehow we need to get to the point where we turn the corner and decide how we’re going to live into the reality of God’s kingdom, which is the revolution of love in the gritty details of our lives.  And THAT’S how you are missional.  It’s an inside revolution of saying: “What new choices am I going to make in my heart and in my relationships to transition from a self-focus to a focus that’s on being renewed in the way of love.

I am encouraged by his words, and think it’s cool that he kinda looks like Bono.  Anyway, I’m glad that – even though our exploration of the Sermon on the Mount has exposed some tough things in our lives and our church – we chose to dive in and are continuing to wade through the deep and choppy waters anyway.

Click here for the full video. It’s 17 minutes long, and Mark’s vibe is kinda funky, but his words are profound!  It’s well worth your time.

As Christians, we often fall into the trap of thinking that God’s redemptive plan is just about getting as many people to heaven as possible with little regard to the concept of redeeming (or rescuing, or making things right) here on earth.  But when Jesus sent out the disciples, He gave them the authority to not just proclaim the Kingdom of God, but to actually bring some of the redemption of that Kingdom to earth through healing people (making things right for them, redeeming them).

Luke 9:1-2 says that “he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.”  Jesus gave them the power to not only proclaim the good news: that the Kingdom of God was at hand with the arrival of Jesus but also to heal and cast out demons. To redeem (make right) things right here and right now.

In Luke 10:8-9, Jesus said, “Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”  Jesus told them to heal the sick and as they do, to say, “The Kingdom of God has come.”

The mission of God through Jesus is to make all things new, to set all things right, to bring His kingdom of redemption to earth as it is in heaven.  So, missional living then is living in such a way that we join Him in that mission – the mission of redemption.

1. Mutuality—The future of missions will be shaped by mutuality between East and West, North and South, sending and receiving nations. Churches worldwide are learning to come together.

2. Partnering—Different than mutuality, partnering pertains to projects that require the assistance of skilled co-laborers driven by what indigenous leaders in the country are trying to accomplish.

3. Investing in leaders—Leadership is everything. Wherever good things are happening, a capable and passionate man or woman will be leading the way.

4. Combining good deeds and good news—The level of problem-solving in which externally focused, missional churches are engaged is significantly higher.

5. Greater financial accountability—With all the needs and opportunities in the world, global missions leaders of the future are working to maximize every dollar expended on global outreach.

6. Business as mission—An emerging funding model ties business and mission together. Missional entrepreneurs who are starting businesses and creating jobs in the countries in which they serve.

7. Focus—Churches today are learning to do better by focusing on fewer places of engagement.

8. Technology—With every breakthrough in communication technology, there have been innovators who have exploited that technology to advance the gospel.

(Leadership Network Advance 2/23/10)

At last count there were 9,943 faith-based organizations with ministries in Haiti. For years, with good intentions and with great dedication, they have tried to give economic assistance and spiritual help to the Haitian people. This does not take into account the thousands of church groups that have taken “mission teams” to Haiti to build schools and churches in Haitian villages across that little country. Yet Haiti has continued in a downward spiral into greater and greater poverty and social disorganization, not in spite of all these “good works,” but in great part because of them. So much of what has been done in Haiti has disempowered Haitians and diminished their dignity by doing for them what they could have done for themselves.

Does it ever occur to those leaders who take bright, enthusiastic American young people to Haiti to build hundreds and hundreds of church buildings and schools that Haitians are capable of building them? Do they even consider how many jobs they take away from Haitians because of their well-intentioned construction enterprises? Does it occur to them that when Haitians see an American youth group put up a cinder block school building in just ten days that this could contribute to a sense of inferiority as these Americans do in ten days what seems to Haitians like a miracle?

Altruistic Americans have done to the Haitians what an out-of-control welfare system has done to so many poor people here in the United States. It has made them into people who are socially and psychologically dependent on others to solve their problems and who have lost confidence in their own capabilities.

Out of the necessities created by the recent earthquake, we Americans have no choice but to respond with a gigantic handout. Children are starving. Medical care is desperately needed and new housing must be constructed. In the short run, we Americans must respond to meet these needs. We have to fear, however, that when the dust from the earthquake clears the Haitians will have fallen into a deeper condition of dependency and will be even less inclined to see themselves as the best hope for their future.

I am not suggesting that all those missionary organizations working in Haiti should pack up and go home, but I am urging them to understand that Haiti does not need clever Americans with newly contrived schemes for saving their country. Haitians do not need development programs imposed on them by expatriates. Instead, they need help in developing as self-assured persons.

May we heed these words, and may we equip and empower the Haitian people to rebuild their country, giving them the confidence that they can do it.  May we assist them and help them in Jesus’ name, but may we allow them to do it.

God has called me to pastor the church I love.  One of our precious members suffered a stroke a couple days ago, and Michelle and I were called to the hospital.  We arrived at the busiest ER in the city around 8PM only to be overwhelmed by the mass of people waiting to be seen.  Sick and injured people were sprawled out from one end of the large waiting room to the other.  The medical staff seemed to be overwhelmed with the amount of people who needed their attention.  Getting someone’s attention so that Michelle and I could go into the ER was not an easy task.  We waited quite a while.

While we were waiting, we saw someone we knew – someone we hadn’t seen in years.  He and his brother were escorted quickly back into the ER, and we heard him mention that his father, Ted, was back there.  Ted used to be our neighbor, and we had interacted with him a lot over the five years we lived across the street from him.  He is an older, single man who has struggled with his health for some time.  We used to take him meals, help him with his yard work, and help tutor his son in math – all in the attempt to be good neighbors and to share the love of Christ with him.  After moving away and then returning nearly three years later to another neighborhood, we lost contact with Ted.  But as the Lord would have it, the night we were at the overcrowded ER to visit one person, it just so happens that Ted was there too.  Coincidence or sovereignty?

I ended up spending some precious time with the woman I had come to see that night, but Michelle and I were also able to reconnect with an old neighbor and his sons – all of whom are in need of the saving grace of Jesus.

I think I’ll keep my day job!