How odd, that those who most clearly hear God
Hear Him for you
And for others
And for church
(But never for themselves)
They can tell you where you're wrong
And when
And how
And why
They know what you have to do to be 'right'
Because they know what right is
Always
Every time
All the time
The know all the put downs
The sneering comments
The dismissive assessments
The negative words
The words that wound
That stop you from volunteering
Or trying
Or being
But when you tell them that they're doing this
Or that
Or something else . . .
It plain to see that
You don't understand them
And you don't care at all
As you revel in your unChristlikeness
When you ask them to do what they've scared the others away from doing
You're pressurising them
When you point out their failings
You're being critical
When you give them an opportunity
You're the bad guy
When you treat them as they treat others
Then you
God
the 'Church'
(whoever or whatever that might be)
Is cruel
Harsh
Demanding
Not understanding
Intolerant
But when you
or others
bleed
They smile
and say
'Told you you were wrong!'
And that's why people don't come to church - they know we're like that!
And that's why people don't volunteer - they know they'll fail!
And that's why Jesus hangs
Still hangs
From a Cross
He just isn't good enough to do the job
Perhaps that what you came into the world to do - save Him!
Showing posts with label shooting the wounded. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shooting the wounded. Show all posts
Saturday, 13 April 2013
Monday, 18 February 2013
What colour are you? (When Christians collide)
One of the most unsettling and destabilising elements that one can encounter is that of being 'taken out' by those who were previously thought of as being on the same side as you. This act of fratricide, also known as 'blue on blue' (blue being the colour designation for 'friendly forces'), is more likely to be the result of incompetence or error rather than an act of betrayal.
There is also the act of being taken out by those whom one assumed to be neutral (the colour designation for this being green) which gives rise to the 'green on blue' definition we hear from time to time when we find members of our forces being killed by those who we perceived not to be our enemies..
In conflict situations the colours are simple to understand:
Red = Enemy forces,
Blue = Friendly forces,
Green = Neutral forces,
Yellow = unknown forces
One of the saddest elements I encounter in the area of 'church' is the 'blue on blue' situation where those who are (supposedly) on the same side actively engage in damaging another of their number.
This might manifest in a bit of internecine back-biting (sometimes theological or perhaps more commonly because of perceived threats) and sometimes in a bit of sneering (the 'looking down the nose that the OT speaks so poorly of) and spin. One of the most common instances I encounter is that where an issue crops up and a position is stated with the suffice, 'Not like them . . .'!
We all know that 'a house divided against itself cannot stand (Matt 12) and yet I'm ashamed to sat that I find many of us failing to engage in promoting unity; for we'd rather look to our own little kingdom than live for the Kingdom of God. Perhaps we need to remember that the zealot (who lives for his own cause and kingdom) cries out that, 'Those who aren't for us are against us,' whilst those who seek to build the Kingdom of God acknowledge that, 'Those who aren't against us are for us!'
The only line that needs to exist is that which separates sinful from righteous and when we find sin we act to help those caught up in it to cross that line and act rightly. We might not always agree on matters of choice or theology, liturgy or musicianship but these should never be show-stoppers and should never result in us damaging, or being damaged by, other believers.
And even when we've got that sorted, there will still be the odd 'Negligent discharge' (what we call it when someone fires off a round accidentally) that takes someone out - we have all fired those verbal bullets that result in others on the same side of us being wounded I'm sure.
But perhaps before we plan, plot or speak out we should consider the issue and let our response be guided by that wonderfully effective (and yet often also trite) question:
What Would Jesus Do?
I expect flak from those people who are coloured red and understand the fact that those in green, neutrals, are sometimes merely people who haven't made up their mind that they oppose me - But when when I see someone who is blue I don't expect to have to defend myself against them and neither should they. When I, or they, are in the wrong I would hope that what we find is 'gentle' correction and support - for we all fall, fail and stumble.
My prayer is that when we do it doesn't become a 'blue on blue' or turn those who are green into a nice red colour!
Pax
There is also the act of being taken out by those whom one assumed to be neutral (the colour designation for this being green) which gives rise to the 'green on blue' definition we hear from time to time when we find members of our forces being killed by those who we perceived not to be our enemies..
In conflict situations the colours are simple to understand:
Red = Enemy forces,
Blue = Friendly forces,
Green = Neutral forces,
Yellow = unknown forces
One of the saddest elements I encounter in the area of 'church' is the 'blue on blue' situation where those who are (supposedly) on the same side actively engage in damaging another of their number.
This might manifest in a bit of internecine back-biting (sometimes theological or perhaps more commonly because of perceived threats) and sometimes in a bit of sneering (the 'looking down the nose that the OT speaks so poorly of) and spin. One of the most common instances I encounter is that where an issue crops up and a position is stated with the suffice, 'Not like them . . .'!
We all know that 'a house divided against itself cannot stand (Matt 12) and yet I'm ashamed to sat that I find many of us failing to engage in promoting unity; for we'd rather look to our own little kingdom than live for the Kingdom of God. Perhaps we need to remember that the zealot (who lives for his own cause and kingdom) cries out that, 'Those who aren't for us are against us,' whilst those who seek to build the Kingdom of God acknowledge that, 'Those who aren't against us are for us!'
The only line that needs to exist is that which separates sinful from righteous and when we find sin we act to help those caught up in it to cross that line and act rightly. We might not always agree on matters of choice or theology, liturgy or musicianship but these should never be show-stoppers and should never result in us damaging, or being damaged by, other believers.
And even when we've got that sorted, there will still be the odd 'Negligent discharge' (what we call it when someone fires off a round accidentally) that takes someone out - we have all fired those verbal bullets that result in others on the same side of us being wounded I'm sure.
But perhaps before we plan, plot or speak out we should consider the issue and let our response be guided by that wonderfully effective (and yet often also trite) question:
What Would Jesus Do?
I expect flak from those people who are coloured red and understand the fact that those in green, neutrals, are sometimes merely people who haven't made up their mind that they oppose me - But when when I see someone who is blue I don't expect to have to defend myself against them and neither should they. When I, or they, are in the wrong I would hope that what we find is 'gentle' correction and support - for we all fall, fail and stumble.
My prayer is that when we do it doesn't become a 'blue on blue' or turn those who are green into a nice red colour!
Pax
Friday, 11 January 2013
Shoot the Wounded - excuse the wrong?
Recently I posted something about Mark Stibbe and his fall from grace and was amazed at the polarised positions taken (not all of them posted to protect the writers) for whilst many would seek restoration for the fallen person another (perhaps larger) would seek to exact revenge (whilst portraying it as justice).
The problem is that invariably everyone I encounter tells me why what they have done and where they and been is covered by God's Grace and how this means that they are forgiven. Sadly though, not many live in that reality but look towards dollop after dollop of forgiveness to cover their repeated failures - but that's fine because as they also often tell me, 'God is in the business of forgiveness'. Sadly what more often than not follows the first statement is the highlighting of someone else's failures and follies which are then suffixed with all the reasons that God cannot forgive them.
Now in Stibbe's recent happenings there are a number of people who feel betrayed and rather let down. Some talk of the bloke as having lied to them, conned them and worse. But that is rather subjective for no one forced them to go and listen to him, buy his books, CD and mugs (well OK - books and CDs) or decide to follow him - after all he is supposed to merely be a signpost not Jesus Himself - and signpost can sometimes be wrong (I know because our bishop followed the one to our church and since it's been turned the other way, he got well lost!).
What is sad is that we are all too ready to impose our morality and judgements on people without understand the full details. So often I find people vilified on the account of some incident from just one person (usually the 'wounded' party or a friend thereof) and I take great pains to tell them that whilst things sound bad this (as the Bible tells us in Proverbs 18) might sound very different when they hear the other side. Not only that but I have encountered so many 'offended against' people who, when one scratches the surface, are merely trying to support a friend, position or misconception by portraying things as they aren't (and this isn't consciously telling lies - it's misrepresentation by misunderstanding or misplaced loyalty).
We are told that when there is a problem:
i. We try to discuss it with the person/s involved and try to resolve it face to face. If this isnot possible then voice to voice and if this is not open to us we do it with written words (which is dangerous because words don't always say what they are supposed to).
ii. If we cant resolve the issue then we are called upon to take 'two or three' with us - not to beat them up (and the danger of 'ganging up' must be avoided at all costs - 'witnesses' not heavies [Deu 19:15]) but to be be 'honest witnesses (for the law at the time considered anything less to be of no witness); these listen and act as witnesses should wrong behaviour continue (or an impasse be found).
iii. If the situation continues then it needs to be taken to the congregation (I prefer the witnesses to be the Wardens and the next stop after this to be the church council - then the church itself) and the decision of the church canvassed.
iv. Only then can the 'immoral' person be excluded (and this has to be the very last and most drastic stage to have reached - something I'd regard as a failure on my part as much as theirs).
v. Having reached this place, all we can do is pray for them to be be 'restored' and to turn from their behaviour or attitudes.
Matthew chapter eighteen tells us:
“If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’
If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector."
1 Corinthians chapter five also has something to say on the matter:
"But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler.
Do not even eat with such people.
What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church?
Are you not to judge those inside?
God will judge those outside.
“Expel the wicked person from among you.”
So a plea (from Galatians chapter six):
"Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions."
First, when we come across wrong behaviour, we must seek to restore that person (and stop the behaviour) gently. Too often I find heavy-handed, hard-hearted responses to situations where listening to both sides and a bit of love and intelligence would have mended what subsequently becomes broken.
Next, it is too easy for our response to be disproportionate or to deny the very beliefs and attitudes that we claim to live by. Righteous anger is never righteous and those who seek to stand up for God often find themselves trampling Him underfoot!
Finally, test what we do by the Bible and the example of Christ. Those who seek to put the world to rights often have lives full of wrongs and judge in ways that they wouldn't like to be judged.
So before you point the finger or pull down someone else - be sure of the facts and make sure your feet are firmly placed on the rock so that reason, gentleness, justice, humility and mercy are present at all times.
And remember, as in the Mark Stibbe situation, that behind it are hurting family members, colleagues, former parishioners, followers and the man himself - pray for restoration and healing. It's all we have the right to do!
Let's stop shooting the wounded and let us never excuse the wrong.
(sorry for length - tea drunk and waited for telephone call so you got a full ten minutes of splurge!)
The problem is that invariably everyone I encounter tells me why what they have done and where they and been is covered by God's Grace and how this means that they are forgiven. Sadly though, not many live in that reality but look towards dollop after dollop of forgiveness to cover their repeated failures - but that's fine because as they also often tell me, 'God is in the business of forgiveness'. Sadly what more often than not follows the first statement is the highlighting of someone else's failures and follies which are then suffixed with all the reasons that God cannot forgive them.
Now in Stibbe's recent happenings there are a number of people who feel betrayed and rather let down. Some talk of the bloke as having lied to them, conned them and worse. But that is rather subjective for no one forced them to go and listen to him, buy his books, CD and mugs (well OK - books and CDs) or decide to follow him - after all he is supposed to merely be a signpost not Jesus Himself - and signpost can sometimes be wrong (I know because our bishop followed the one to our church and since it's been turned the other way, he got well lost!).
What is sad is that we are all too ready to impose our morality and judgements on people without understand the full details. So often I find people vilified on the account of some incident from just one person (usually the 'wounded' party or a friend thereof) and I take great pains to tell them that whilst things sound bad this (as the Bible tells us in Proverbs 18) might sound very different when they hear the other side. Not only that but I have encountered so many 'offended against' people who, when one scratches the surface, are merely trying to support a friend, position or misconception by portraying things as they aren't (and this isn't consciously telling lies - it's misrepresentation by misunderstanding or misplaced loyalty).
We are told that when there is a problem:
i. We try to discuss it with the person/s involved and try to resolve it face to face. If this isnot possible then voice to voice and if this is not open to us we do it with written words (which is dangerous because words don't always say what they are supposed to).
ii. If we cant resolve the issue then we are called upon to take 'two or three' with us - not to beat them up (and the danger of 'ganging up' must be avoided at all costs - 'witnesses' not heavies [Deu 19:15]) but to be be 'honest witnesses (for the law at the time considered anything less to be of no witness); these listen and act as witnesses should wrong behaviour continue (or an impasse be found).
iii. If the situation continues then it needs to be taken to the congregation (I prefer the witnesses to be the Wardens and the next stop after this to be the church council - then the church itself) and the decision of the church canvassed.
iv. Only then can the 'immoral' person be excluded (and this has to be the very last and most drastic stage to have reached - something I'd regard as a failure on my part as much as theirs).
v. Having reached this place, all we can do is pray for them to be be 'restored' and to turn from their behaviour or attitudes.
Matthew chapter eighteen tells us:
“If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’
If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector."
1 Corinthians chapter five also has something to say on the matter:
"But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler.
Do not even eat with such people.
What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church?
Are you not to judge those inside?
God will judge those outside.
“Expel the wicked person from among you.”
So a plea (from Galatians chapter six):
"Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions."
First, when we come across wrong behaviour, we must seek to restore that person (and stop the behaviour) gently. Too often I find heavy-handed, hard-hearted responses to situations where listening to both sides and a bit of love and intelligence would have mended what subsequently becomes broken.
Next, it is too easy for our response to be disproportionate or to deny the very beliefs and attitudes that we claim to live by. Righteous anger is never righteous and those who seek to stand up for God often find themselves trampling Him underfoot!
Finally, test what we do by the Bible and the example of Christ. Those who seek to put the world to rights often have lives full of wrongs and judge in ways that they wouldn't like to be judged.
So before you point the finger or pull down someone else - be sure of the facts and make sure your feet are firmly placed on the rock so that reason, gentleness, justice, humility and mercy are present at all times.
And remember, as in the Mark Stibbe situation, that behind it are hurting family members, colleagues, former parishioners, followers and the man himself - pray for restoration and healing. It's all we have the right to do!
Let's stop shooting the wounded and let us never excuse the wrong.
(sorry for length - tea drunk and waited for telephone call so you got a full ten minutes of splurge!)
Thursday, 14 July 2011
See how these Christians loathe one another
Talking about church and the business of factions, politics and division a while back with other church people recently, one of them came up with an interesting, yet earthy, summation of the business of church business meetings:
I don't often include such terminology because I don't want to offend, but having heard of some meetings, the collateral damage, the wounding of non-combatants and innocents this does appear to be an accurate and perhaps kind summation of some of the goings!
Too often we find people who engage in stuff that just isn't Church! Put any bunch of people together and we will find control freaks, tradtionalists, movers and shakers (they shake people up and they move away!) and more besides. Ordinary humans who need to be dealt with with grace and humility and need to be taught to do the same to others (by example, not just words).
Church needs to live within the Law of active Churchmanship (whoo hoo, kept the acronym LOAC) in that we remember in all our dealings with each other, these few simple rules:
Proportionality: We make the point but we don't kill the innocent, or the guilty, when we encounter a problem within our church setting. It appears that all too often the response of some in church is to make the punishment exceed the crime rather than fit it. Then again, having discovered what e consider error we are called to forgive (70*7?) not to crucify - only needs one act of crucifixion to redeem the whole world!
Collateral damage: If one innocent is taken out, the whole world dies. Now if Islam can get this right (although don't see it preached that often) how much more should those who claim to be Christians take note of, and live within, this? If by our actions, attitudes or responses we cause others to stumble then their blood (or lack of salvation in this case perhaps) is on our hands. We don't shoot their wounded and we most certainly don't shoot our own (despite the church's billing.
Restoration: Brothers, if you find someone doing it wrong, those of you who are spiritual should restore them 'gently' because if you don't then you have caused yourself to sin as well. What's the point of being right and making yourself wrong so that neither of you learn and the relationship is broken?
God calls us to live in relationship with each other, taking joy in the image of the unseen God made visible in the brother (or sister) who stands before you as a reflection of Christ, God incarnate. Words of peace and correction for errors made show us to be in possession of Christlike characteristics, for who is there to condemn others when we are told to go and sin no more?
Humility, justice and mercy are the hallmarks of a person who knows, loves and serves God and these, tinged with thanks that God doesn't treat us as we treat others, make for a body that accepts the weaknesses and errors in others, leads them from them into something better and builds a Church of living stones brought together by Grace and held together by Love.
I'll be extra careful next week when we have our Church Council meeting - can't preach it without practising it, can i?
Pax
Open in prayer - Close in prayer - Shit in between!
Too often we find people who engage in stuff that just isn't Church! Put any bunch of people together and we will find control freaks, tradtionalists, movers and shakers (they shake people up and they move away!) and more besides. Ordinary humans who need to be dealt with with grace and humility and need to be taught to do the same to others (by example, not just words).
Church needs to live within the Law of active Churchmanship (whoo hoo, kept the acronym LOAC) in that we remember in all our dealings with each other, these few simple rules:
Proportionality: We make the point but we don't kill the innocent, or the guilty, when we encounter a problem within our church setting. It appears that all too often the response of some in church is to make the punishment exceed the crime rather than fit it. Then again, having discovered what e consider error we are called to forgive (70*7?) not to crucify - only needs one act of crucifixion to redeem the whole world!
Collateral damage: If one innocent is taken out, the whole world dies. Now if Islam can get this right (although don't see it preached that often) how much more should those who claim to be Christians take note of, and live within, this? If by our actions, attitudes or responses we cause others to stumble then their blood (or lack of salvation in this case perhaps) is on our hands. We don't shoot their wounded and we most certainly don't shoot our own (despite the church's billing.
Restoration: Brothers, if you find someone doing it wrong, those of you who are spiritual should restore them 'gently' because if you don't then you have caused yourself to sin as well. What's the point of being right and making yourself wrong so that neither of you learn and the relationship is broken?
God calls us to live in relationship with each other, taking joy in the image of the unseen God made visible in the brother (or sister) who stands before you as a reflection of Christ, God incarnate. Words of peace and correction for errors made show us to be in possession of Christlike characteristics, for who is there to condemn others when we are told to go and sin no more?
Humility, justice and mercy are the hallmarks of a person who knows, loves and serves God and these, tinged with thanks that God doesn't treat us as we treat others, make for a body that accepts the weaknesses and errors in others, leads them from them into something better and builds a Church of living stones brought together by Grace and held together by Love.
I'll be extra careful next week when we have our Church Council meeting - can't preach it without practising it, can i?
Pax
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