Word #6 from the Cross

It is finished.
(John 19:30)

Another trial that presents itself to the dying is a sense that their life has been incomplete, meaningless, or that they have failed to accomplish God's purpose for them.

Christ's declaration of completion certainly pertains to the atonement. Could there also be a sense in which he shares his success with us?

We only have the time that we have. We are finite and dependent upon the Lord. Our life is a mixture of trial and error, success and failure, sin and repentance. Nevertheless, there is refuge for us in Christ.

He perfectly performed his Father's will. He accomplished what we could not. He is willing for us to share in his victory.

Our lives have ultimate meaning as they are lived in reference to the atonement of Christ. While we are certainly accountable to God for the things done in our body, we may also participate in the faithfulness of what Christ did in his body.

Used by God?

"Channels only, blessed Master,
But with all Thy wondrous pow'r
Flowing through us, Thou canst use us
Ev'ry day and ev'ry hour."

I am aware of the analogies that are present in the Scriptures that teach us that God employs man to accomplish His will in creation. How prevalent is the notion of God "using" man in the Bible?

2 Timothy 2:21 is the only verse in the entire Scriptures that I could find that uses the language of God "using" man. "If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work." Notice that the language is that of analogy. We are compared to vessels. God's action is compared to usage of a vessel. Is the lesson Paul is trying to convey that God does whatever he wants with us? Are we simply tools in God's hand?

I don't believe so. I mentioned that the verse in 2 Timothy is the only one I could find that has employs the word "use" in the way that I am examining. To be fair, just because the exact language is scarcely present does not mean that the idea is not pervasive. That is my question. What is God's relation to us when it comes to our role as agents in fulfilling his purposes in creation?

I fear that the "usage" language can tend to be very impersonal and even offensive. One of the most positive developments in the history of thought was initiated and carried forward by the Church. The concept is that of personhood. This concept is rooted in the doctrine of the Trinity and determines what we mean when we unpack the Biblical concept of our being created in the image of God.

We know it is wrong to treat people like property. We know it is wrong to demoralize another person, whether on the job, in the home or in the church. Our consciences have been rightly educated to revolt against this kind of treatment and to fight it, whether on our own behalf or on the behalf of others. "Turn the other cheek" is not synonymous with "be everyone's doormat." We do not return cursing, insults or railing. Part of blessing those who curse us and praying for them is to work for their benefit. Allowing their evil to remain unchecked is not blessing them at all.

Back to the point. God always treats us as persons. He is not into humiliating, demoralizing, coercing behavior. He's God. Such conduct is beneath him.

Furthermore, He's God and does not NEED us for anything. Our creation is an expression of the Trinity's desire to share life and be for another. The Lord wants to include us in his good works in the earth. Please do not see him as a despot. He is your Father. He is your Brother. He is the Holy Spirit, the Comforter and Advocate.

I have also spoken by the prophets, and I have multiplied visions, and used similitudes, by the ministry of the prophets(Hosea 12:10).

Word #5 from the Cross

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My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?

(Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34)

There is great mystery surrounding the cry of dereliction. It is impossible for us to know exactly what Christ was expressing to his Father at that moment.

Maybe he was expressing his identification with sinners in their final alienation from God at death. Whatever was happening, we know it is impossible for the Father and the Son to be separated from one another in their being.

At the very least we may take heart that Christ can minister comfort to those who are tempted to despair at their death. He took into himself that sense of abandonment. "Death is abandonment in the company of the one who on the cross was abandoned" (Neuhaus As I Lay Dying 54-5). He tasted that feeling of alienation.

He is able to draw nigh to those who are in the throes of temptation. He is able to deliver them from the sense of forsakenness. He has promised to be present with those who love him. "I will never leave you nor forsake you." "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

What Is "axegrinder?"

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It's a nightmare if you're wrong.

It's a cool breeze if you're weary.

It's initials carved in a tree if you're curious.

*

It's a bedtime story if you're frightened.

It's a 12 gauge shotgun if you hear a burglar.

It's a glass of ice tea (unsweetened) if you've been in the sun too long.

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It's weird if you're status quo.

It's groovy if you're hip.

It's common if you're pretentious.
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It's a disco ball in a mortuary.

It's tabasco in black coffee.

It's a weedeater in a wedding procession.

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It's a spoiler to a bad plot.

It's a sarcastic remark responding to tyranny.

It's the unexpected answer to the right question.

*

What more are you looking for, people?

It's your friend.

Hack away.

Word #4 from the Cross

*****

I thirst (John 19:28).

The lesson here may be as simple as Jesus' participation in the physical traumas of dying. There are varying levels of physical suffering experienced by the dying. The passion of Christ was witheringly awful in both physical and spiritual senses.

Docetism was an early Christian heresy that denied that Christ suffered on the cross. This heresy was refuted and condemned by the church. Indeed, Christ suffered.

It is difficult to compare his physical sufferings with anyone else's. We know the duration of his passion. Some people suffer for longer periods. One may battle with cancer for years before finally giving way to death. Another may languish in a prison for decades, starving, tortured, and filthy. We cannot quantify Christ's physical suffering in a comparative sense.

What we can say is that he died a very, physically painful death. He did this for us. He did this as us. He did this with us. We may go to him in our dying process as the one who bears our infirmities, suffers our pain, and reaches out his scarred hands to comfort us.

The Virtue of Faithful Questioning

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There are two kinds of questions: those of faith and those of doubt/skepticism.

There are three important examinations for us to perform. We should examine ourselves (2 Corinthians 13). We should examine the Scriptures (Acts 17). We should examine God. He calls us to "prove" him through one of the prophets.

Asking questions promotes the learning process. Sometimes we ask the wrong questions. Nevertheless, these questions start the learning process in the right direction, especially if we are under the direction of faithful instruction. Contrast the questions of the pharisees with those of the disciples posed to the Christ.

The Lord does not fear our questions. Sometimes He will ask a question in return. That is not evasion. Socrates did not invent that method of instruction.

Sometimes the most important questions we ask are directed at ourselves and our own assumptions. Fear of being brought up short is not a virtue. Neither is ignoring that nagging sensation that something is amiss with our thinking. Only a religion with a weak foundation cannot stand up to the right questions.

"What are the right questions?" you ask.

What do you think they are?

Word #3 from the Cross

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Woman, behold your son! … Behold your mother! (John 19:26-7).

Death involves an unavoidable, grievous separation from our friends and family. Jesus experienced this pain along with us.

His angst over this separation does not take away our pain over being parted from our loved ones. His participation in our pain does show us that he cares and is willing to help us bear our griefs.

While the presence of the dying person will not be replaced, the Lord does want to provide mutual comfort for the grieving in their remaining relationships. Those who are left behind by the dying should not allow themselves to be isolated by their grief, but should draw near to those around them.

Indeed, we should behold our mothers, sons, fathers, brothers, sisters, daughters and friends when faced with the death of a loved one. They may be ministers of God's grace and comfort to us in our bereavement. We may be such ministers for another.

My Graduation from WBS

These pictures from the Wesley Biblical Seminary graduation are a bit overdue (in at least two senses). Here they are ...


Mom congratulates me (or catches me after I trip on my gown while negotiating the stairs, I can't remember).


I'm pretty happy (no, the gangsta lean effect on the cap was not intentional).


Dad and I mug.


Roommate/Student-of-the-year and I chill before the ceremony (nice lighting/composition!)

Word #2 from the Cross

Truly I say unto you, today you will be with me in Paradise (Luke 23:43).

Some people experience great doubt regarding where they will go after death. Jesus speaks comforting words to those whose minds are oppressed, but who cling to him by faith.

Whatever mystery remains in reference to our post mortem locale, we are assured that it is good and desirable. Wherever it is, Jesus will be there with us, and we with him. His promised presence is assurance that indeed the place of the faithful dead will be paradise.

There is also the expectation of reunion. If the Lord will take us there and be present himself, then paradise will be a gathering place for all the faithful. Since "the basis of our solidarity [is] mutual love" (Ware 35), then we have a strong confidence that we will meet again. Separation, while real and painful, is not permanent.