The Jesus Sessions: The Haves and The Have Nots

Is poverty spiritual?

I believe that there is a correlation between money and spirituality. The correlation exists in that our view of money is fundamentally shaped by our relationship with God. How we use our money can be an indication of where our allegiances lie, what we believe is important, and where our sense of security and well being lies.

In his book The Spirit of the Disciplines, Dallas Willard writes, "...being poor is one of the poorest ways to help the poor." Yet Jesus speaks so much about money. He told the rich young ruler to sell all he has and give it to the poor, he praised the poor widow, he said that the Kingdom of God belongs to the poor, etc. etc.

So back to my original question. Is poverty spiritual? Is Jesus right, and we should give all we have to the poor and become poor, or is Dallas Willard right and being poor is a poor way to help the poor?

Yes.

I do not think that Willard and Jesus conflict each other. Being poor, in and of itself, does not make you more spiritual than being rich. I believe that the poor and the rich can be equally consumed by money, either by the desire to get it, or the desire to keep it.

I think the real issue (and this is why I say that there is a correlation between money and spirituality) has to do with this question: Who/what is your god? For many, money is a god, and life and spending reflects that. For many, God is God, and life and spending reflects that.

That is why I believe that tithing is not about money. It is spiritual warfare. It is a statement about who our God is, where our security lies, and what the shape of our worldview is.

I pray that you would join me on the journey to developing a biblical worldview that impacts the way we use the resources God has given us.

Much grace and peace,

-Tim

Marriage and Divorce

In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis says this, "[Churches] all regard divorce as
something like cutting up a living body, as a kind of surgical operation. Some
of them think the operation so violent that it cannot be done at all; others
admit it as a desperate remedy in extreme cases. They are all agreed that it is
more like having both your legs cut off than it is like dissolving a business
partnership or even deserting a regiment."

With the financial, emotional, spiritual and psychological impact that flippant divorce in our culture is leaving, I believe it is time for some practical advice from someone who has our best interest in mind, namely, Jesus.

When we look at what Jesus has to say about marriage and divorce, we notice that Jesus didn't use laws to defend his position, he went all the way back to God's purpose for marriage. He quoted from Genesis. When God created the man and the woman, the two were to become one flesh. Jesus then added his statement, "What God has joined together, let man not separate."

In Jesus' teaching in Matthew 5, divorce leads to adultery. Why? Most likely because those who are divorced are likely to be remarried, but God joined to two together as one, and "What God has joined together, let man not separate." So logically speaking, another relationship would be adultery.

I believe this is what is behind Paul's account of the Lord's teaching in 1 Corinthians 7:10-11 where he says, "A wife must not separate from her husband. But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife." This is where we see Jesus' transforming initiative to free people from the vicious cycle of adultery through divorce. That transforming initiative is, "be reconciled." However, I believe that in cases of violence and abuse, the victim(s) need to flee the relationship and seek safety and council immediately.

Where reconciliation is not possible, the question then becomes, what about those who divorce? Can they get remarried or must they remain unmarried?

My personal belief is that remarriage is possible. Divorce is not unforgivable. Jesus does say that where there has been marital unfaithfulness, the person is free to re-marry, and Paul says that if a believer is left by an unbeliever, then the believer is not bound (Romans 7:15). Because of this, it seems like there are times when God will break that union. Therefore, I do believe that where there has been repentance, forgiveness, and a right relationship with God, re-marriage is possible, and there is hope for those who have been divorced to enter into a healthy marriage relationship.

I enjoyed worshipping with you on Sunday! I hope you had an encounter with Jesus.

See you next week at the Gathering!
-Tim

The Jesus Sessions: Physical Intimacy

In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis says;

"The monstrosity of [physical intimacy] outside marriage is that those who indulge in it are trying to isolate one kind of union (the sexual) from all the other kinds of union which were intended to go along with it and make up the total union. The Christian attitude does not mean that there is anything wrong about sexual pleasure, any more than about the pleasure of eating. It means that you must not isolate that pleasure and try to get it by itself, any more than you ought to try to get the pleasures of taste without swallowing and digesting, by chewing things and spitting them out again." (pg. 96)

When Jesus speaks of lust in Matthew 5:27-30, we see that Jesus gives practical advice on how to get out of the vicious cycles of adultery through lust, namely by removing the thing that is causing the problem (Jesus spoke figuratively and extremely about gouging out your eye in order to get his point across). I believe there are three major sources of dysfunction in our lives and in our culture regarding physical intimacy, namely, a distorted view of self, a distorted view of others, and a distorted view of God.

If we go all the way back to Genesis, we see that God created man and woman (Ish and Ishah), and they had an appropriate view of themselves (they were naked and felt no shame), an appropriate view of each other (the man said of the woman, "this is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh" and the two were to be united in one flesh), and an appropriate view of God (they took their instruction from him and had fellowship with him). However, those views quickly became distorted through sin, and they no longer had an appropriate view of themselves (they were naked and felt shame), each other (they passed blame for sin) and God (they hid from him).

I believe that a major pathway to appropriate physical intimacy is to understand it within the context of the holistic union of a man and a woman, where there is an appropriate view of self, each other, and God. God is to be the center, where we behave towards each other and respond to each other as Christ does to us. God desires for us to live our best life, and experience the best relationships.

There is always forgiveness and healing for those who want it, and we can begin to move in a direction where we view ourselves, each other, and God appropriately, and let that guide our relationships in every area. God bless you all.

It was great to worship with you on Sunday. And...I will see you next week at the Gathering!
-Tim

Don't Kill People

Practical does not always mean quick and easy, but that is often what we mean or expect. Jesus is practical. That doesn't mean that his way is always quick or easy, but it is always very practical.

When Jesus teaches on murder in Matthew 5, he tells people that those who murder are subject to judgment. The interesting thing is that Jesus takes that even further and says that anyone who is angry is subject to judgment. Many people, then, think that Jesus is being impossible here, telling people to not even get angry. But if we look closely, we see that Jesus isn't telling people to not be angry. He's just saying that those who are angry are subject to judgement just as those who murder.

I believe Jesus is describing a cycle that we can get into where anger builds up and ferments in our hearts. That anger will reap undesired consequences in our lives. Maybe you have experienced those consequences yourself.

However, like I said, Jesus is always practical. In this passage Jesus gives practical steps we can take to free us from the cycle of anger. Jesus says that if you are offering your gift to God and you remember that someone has something against you, leave your gift, go, and be reconciled to that person.

It's not necessarily easy advice. It's not necessarily quick. But it is practical, and it can be transformational.

It was great to worship with you all this week! God bless you and I will see you next week at the Gathering.

-Tim