Spiritual Differences: Focusing on the truth that unites us

During our trip to Israel in 2008 we walked the Via Dolarosa. At that time I wrote,

I haven't been looking forward to this post but I want to paint a true picture of this land we are visiting. After leaving the Western Wall and the Jewish Quarter, we walked through a tunnel and came out at the Via Dolarosa in the Muslim Quarter. In my head (fortunately for those around me), I was worshipfully singing...

Down the Via Dolarosa called the way of suffering,
Like a Lamb came the Messiah, Christ the King
But He chose to walk that road out of His love for you and me
Down the Via Dolarosa all the way to Calvary.

What a shock to come out of the tunnel, realize where we were, and behold this filthy and crowded row of shops. The situation was worsened by all of the shopkeepers anxious to make a dollar off pilgrims wanting religious icons from the place where Christ had walked.

The Via Dolarosa ends at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. As with all the churches we have visited up until this point, it was absolutely beautiful architecturally. Spiritually, the place was dead. I would like to tell you the six Christian sects who share the church lay theological differences aside and have come together in a spirit of peace and unity. Sadly, that is far from the case. Disagreements and attitudes have led to centuries of violence, hatred, and dishonest practices within the church walls.”

My personal journey along the Via Dolarosa was such a stark contrast to the Garden Tomb, the other believed site of Jesus’ burial. Whereas the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was known for its division and oppression, the garden inspired awe, reverence, peace, and unity.

Disagreements and divisions among Christians have been gnawing away at me lately. Many are stepping away from studying and reading the Bible; they are focusing more on what other people say about the Bible. I keep running into conversations that include things like…

Are you a 3-, 4-, or 5- point Calvinist? A hyper-Calvinist? Arminianist? Dispensationalist? Amillenialist?

Are you Emergent? Reformed? Evangelical? Progressive? Conservative? Mainline? Liberal?

What’s your take on Rob Bell? Rick Warren? John Piper? Marc Driscoll? Greg Laurie?

Uh, I don’t know.

I know Jesus died on a cross and resurrected back to life. I know He did so because the creation He loved had sinned and could no longer have a relationship with Him. I know that my faith in His grace will save me. It has nothing to do with what I used to do or what I’ve done since accepting His gift of salvation or what I will do in the future. I know Jesus doesn’t want us to be divided or live under oppression. I know He desires for us to know awe, reverence, peace, and unity.

Hours before Jesus was crucified He prayed, “My prayer is not for them [the disciples] alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (John 17:20-23 NIV).

To read my first article entitled “Convergence,” please click here.

To read the entire article of my journey along the Via Dolarosa, please click here.

To read the article of my journey to the Garden Tomb, please click here.

Pray a-Cross Missouri (Part Two)

If you haven’t had a chance to read the first part of this article, you may do so by clicking here.

As I write this, the cross is leaving Jefferson City, our state capital. Its journey is about half done.

The journey is to remind Christians to share the message of Christ with their neighbors, with the goal that everyone in Missouri would hear of God’s grace and forgiveness. For more information about the Prayer Walk a-Cross Missouri, I encourage you to visit http://www.crossacrossmo.org/.

Days after carrying the cross, men from our church are still reflecting on their experience. As I mentioned above, the purpose of carrying the cross is to motivate others to share the news of Christ. However, the most profound impact may be on those who actually carry it. Jerry shares that those who carry the cross have a time of “intense focus on Jesus.” It is a meditational – rather than magical – experience. He asks, “Can anyone really ever survey the wondrous cross and come away the same?” When you look inward and realize your own depravity and then look to the true bloody cross on which Jesus’ beaten body hung, you realize that “the extreme ugliness of our sin required a radically ugly, yet still beautiful, response from God.”

Seeing this experience from different points, I have a few thoughts of my own.

Jerry and Jayme’s journey was long but it was nice weather and a comfortable day. Jimmy’s journey was short but full of storms. Our Christian walk is a lot the same way. Some of us carry our spiritual crosses a long time whereas others only have a short time before their earthly journey ends. Some have a comfortable walk whereas constant storms beat down on others. We all carry the cross Christ gives us. It doesn’t matter how long or how severe the journey, what matters is that we travel it with Him.

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me – the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace (Acts 20:24).

My other thought concerned all the traffic passing by. As Jayme mentioned, many honked and waved. Jimmy said one man stopped. He had passed them a few times as he drove back and forth to work each day. He shared that seeing the cross each time made him take a moment to focus on God and the important spot He holds in our lives. Then he gave each of them a hug.

Some people sped by without even noticing the cross.

Other people glanced, wondering, “What’s that all about?”

Cars flung rocks on the walkers while others sprayed puddles as the rain beat down.

For some it made them take a moment and consider Jesus’ death on a cross 2,000 years ago.

This weekend we somberly reflect on Christ’s crucifixion and joyously celebrate His resurrection. As we go through this holy time of the year, I hope each of us reflect on our own need for a Savior, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23 NIV).

Pray a-Cross Missouri (Part One)

Thursday, as I was turning from 291 onto 50 Highway, I saw a van with a door magnet reading, “Carry your Cross.” At first, I thought, “That must be a Christian construction company.” (I have no idea why I decided it must be a construction company.) Then the light dawned and I remembered that Pray a-Cross Missouri had just started; that day men were carrying it 10 miles from Lee’s Summit to Lone Jack. As I passed the van, I saw the 85 pound cross, carried by a small group of men, including my pastor, Jerry, and our friend, Jayme.

I continued home and did some work around the house. A few hours later I took my daughters to piano lessons at church. Within a few minutes of my arrival they carried the cross up the Lone Jack exit. Jerry and Jayme, with the help of some other men along the way, had walked the entire ten mile journey. My husband arose early Friday morning and went to meet up with the cross as it left Lone Jack. He helped carry it the four miles from F Highway to W Highway. I’ve asked each of these men to share their thoughts about the experience:

Jayme said he “felt like God was right there walking with us, challenging us to continue on with that symbol, even though we were dead tired.” He was encouraged as people passed by, honked, and waved. He knew God was flowing through their hearts and their minds, making them feel His love. Despite Jayme’s sore muscles and tired body last night, he says, “I would do it all over again in a heartbeat!” Jayme, a strong young man, also shared that although the cross was heavy, “it was nothing compared to the weight of the sin of the world” that Christ carried upon His shoulders. That thought not only carried him through to the end of the ten miles, but in the days since has made him realize how much he wants to live for Jesus every day.


Jerry shared that while he walked he never wondered, “What are people passing by going to think of me.” His focus during the ten mile journey was all on Jesus as he prayed for his children and grandchildren not only to know Jesus as their Savior but to experience a life-changing radical passion for Jesus. He focused on Jesus as he prayed for the members of our church and our community. He focused on Jesus as he prayed for all the residents of the state of Missouri that they would accept Jesus’ gift of salvation.

Ralph, another member of our church, joined Jayme and Jerry for part of the walk. Being a man who is, um, not quite as young as Jayme, he was concerned that he wouldn’t be able to pull the heavy cross for any distance. He asked himself before starting, “Am I going to have the strength to do this?” As he started he realized God gave him the strength he needed and he was able to go far beyond what he expected. As he has thought about his experience he shares that the cross had a wheel at the bottom to make it easier to pull for hundreds of miles. It also has padding where it rests on the shoulder. The cross of Christ didn’t have those amenities but Jesus didn’t do it for comfort. He did it for us.


Jimmy described the experience as humbling, a privilege, and an honor. Although it was 45℉ and pouring down rain, the discomfort and suffering he felt didn’t compare to the suffering Christ endured when He carried the true cross. As he started walking, the journey was a struggle. His legs burned, the wind and rain whipped his face, and he grew colder as his pants became drenched. After a short time though, as he struggled up hills, he said, “God’s amazing power and strength came upon me.” After that, he never wanted to stop. He felt as if he could keep going for miles, despite the weather conditions. As he approached the end of his part of the journey, our girls and I were there waiting for him. As he came over a hill and saw us waiting, he began to cry as he considered his unconditional love for our daughters and realized it’s nothing compared to the unconditional love that Christ has for us.

We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body (2 Corinthians 4:10).

Click here to read the second part of this article...

Convergence

Somewhere around 312,000 weeks have occurred since God created Adam in the Garden of Eden but only one changed eternity for all mankind.

Three years ago today I was standing in the Garden of Gethsemane. Later that same day I went to the Garden Tomb where Jesus might have been buried. As we approach Resurrection Sunday, the memories of those places have been filling my thoughts.

Added to those memories, my Sunday morning class has been studying the Last Supper and the journey from the Upper Room to the Garden of Gethsemane. 

Plus, I have been helping my daughter do a school unit on the last days of Jesus' life. 

In addition, I have been writing lessons on knowing that Jesus is the Christ and knowing our sins are forgiven for my next Bible study, Everything We Need: God's Path to Know Him Better.

Add to those memories and studies the preparations we are doing for the upcoming holiday. We will celebrate Passover with some good friends. My husband will play John in a Last Supper skit our church will be doing on Resurrection Sunday.

Convergence is the word that keeps going through my mind. 

All of these events converge at one point – the point that split time in half and changed the world – the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus humbled Himself and gave Himself to die on the cross. Because He did, Satan was defeated, mankind was redeemed, and the Father was glorified.

When they came to the place called the Skull,
there they crucified him,…

Jesus said,
“Father, forgive them,
for they do not know what they are doing.”

…There was a written notice above him,
which read;
THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS….

It was now about the sixth hour,
and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour,
for the sun stopped shining.
And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.
Jesus called out with a loud voice,
“Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”
When he had said this,
he breathed his last.
(Luke 23:33-34,38,44-46 NIV)

A Divine Appointment

A few weeks ago I spoke at a conference on “Worshiping in Spirit and in Truth.” The key passage was John 4:23-24. I dedicated the first of three teaching sessions to setting the context for this passage before focusing on worshiping in spirit at the second session and worshiping in truth at the third.

The context for John 4:23-24 begins in John 4:1. As I read through the chapter, John 4:4 caught my attention. It says, “Now he had to go through Samaria.” Jesus was leaving Judea and going back to Galilee but the region of Samaria was between His place of origin and His destination. It might seem logical that He had to go through Samaria. However, I can think of three reasons why it was odd that He had to go through Samaria.

1. Jews and Samaritans had an intense and mutual dislike for each other. They avoided any and all contact.
2. By going around Samaria to the east, Jesus and His disciples could have followed the Jordan River.  The river would have provided a constant water supply as they traveled.
3. Going around Samaria and along the Jordan would have avoided the rough and rocky terrain of Samaria.

Why does the Bible say Jesus had to go through Samaria? In Greek, two words are used for “had.” 

The first word is chre which is a necessity resulting from time and circumstances. For example, I might say, “I had to leave for work at 7:30 or I would have been late.” The time and circumstances necessitate an action on my part. 

The second word is dei which is a necessity resulting from a moral obligation or a divine appointment. An example for this word might be, “I had to go spend some time with my friend because she is going through a hard time.” In this case, the moral obligation of being a kind and supportive friend is necessitating an action on my part. 

The second word is the one used in John 4:4. The circumstances didn’t necessitate that Jesus and the disciples travel through Samaria. Quite the opposite, as I mentioned earlier, this chosen route wasn’t the socially acceptable thing to do, it didn’t guarantee their needs would be met, and it was a difficult journey. 

However, Jesus had a divine appointment with a woman at a well in Sychar.  He would do whatever it took to make sure He kept that divine appointment because His message was too important to not share. That woman at the well would drink of the living water He offered and receive eternal life. In turn, she would share the message of the Messiah with the people of her town and many more would come to know Him. 

I wonder how often we let those three fears keep us from the divine appointments God might have for us. This lesson may have convicted me more than any of the women listening to me teach that day. But it hits on the heart of Grow Barefoot. I want to Live Free...Pursue Holiness...No Excuses.