light

Aug

2025

Summer evangelism series (continued)

Earlier this summer, I shared some thoughts on “Sharing our Light with the World.” I’ll offer some additional thoughts here on the topic of evangelism.

What does it mean to be a witness for faith?

On Palm Sunday afternoon, I almost ran over a church lady (a kingdom hall lady, from the Jehovah’s Witnesses). My wife and I got in our car, opened the garage door with the remote, were about to back out of the garage, and suddenly there she was, standing immediately behind us in the driveway. I stopped, got out, and talked to her. She was ever so urgent about inviting us to the Memorial of Jesus’ Death that they were observing that week. I was rather impatient with her, I’ll admit. I advised her that what she had done was not safe. She went on her way to the next house. She was well-meaning in her efforts, but probably not particularly successful.

On Memorial Day weekend, I traveled to Oregon. As our daughter got us from the airport and drove us into Portland, I was struck by some confrontational billboards along the roadways. In big, bold letters, one said, “Real Christians OBEY Jesus’ teachings.” Another, in stark white lettering on a black background, said, “Are you preparing to meet Jesus?” I did not call the number on the billboards for more information. It seemed the main thing they wanted you to know about Jesus is that he’s going to judge you (which is not, in fact, the main thing to know about Jesus). Portland is the least religiously-affiliated city in the United States.* The traditionalist religious organization putting up those billboards** was not likely to win anyone over that way.

When I was a young man studying for ministry, I was trained by a traditionalist religious organization. We were taught not to spend much time on small talk when doing outreach. We were to get to the big question to ask: “If you were to die tonight, where would you be?” There was a planned outline for talking about where people thought they’d be spending eternity and why. I will say, the template they gave us for such conversations did emphasize Jesus as our Savior (not as someone eager to judge you for your failures). Still, though, it was a formula, a contrived conversation. They wanted us to stick close to the script to gain converts and bring them into the church.

In my early years working in ministry, I soon abandoned that formula and the idea that the goal was to gain converts for our church. More and more, ministry seemed to be about listening to people, understanding their hopes, their hurts, their needs, their questions, and responding with grace and concern in Christ. The Lord does not send us out into the world to build our own fiefdoms; he sends us as ambassadors of his kingdom. I started talking with people in more open-ended ways, not trying to force an outcome. The goal wasn’t about me succeeding in outreach, or about our local congregation gaining more members, or about hurrying people to some moment of conversion.

When Jesus tells us, “You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14) and “let your light shine before others” (Matthew 5:16), that does not mean we are to blind others by confronting them as if we’re shining a high-beam flashlight in their face. Yes, I know Paul was blinded along the Damascus Road by Jesus himself, and Elijah called down fire from heaven over against the prophets of Baal. But in those instances, someone was so vehemently going against the will of God that something drastic had to be done. More generally, in our day-to-day lives with neighbors in our communities, we are not called to be confrontational—to put up billboards or ask someone sitting next to you on an airplane, “If you were to die today, where would you be?” (In my schooldays, that was the scenario used in the evangelism training video: a conversation with a stranger on an airplane. That’s perhaps the worst place and time to ask someone such a question!)

What we are called to do as gospel witnesses is to glow warmly with the love of Christ, to be a beacon of hope—showing others the way to the safety and confidence that we’ve found in Jesus.

Our lives as witnesses are like what Jesus told a man he had just healed, who had been possessed by many demons. Ever so grateful for the miracle Jesus had performed in his life, the man wanted nothing more than to follow Jesus and be with Jesus 24/7. But Jesus said to him: “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you” (Luke 8:39). His mission in life was to share with those around him his joy in Jesus, what God has done and can do. This is our mission in life, too.

We may yearn just to sit in Jesus’ presence and bask in his teaching, whereas talking with others about Jesus seems too much of a challenge for us. We’re content sitting in our church pews, listening. We may be uncomfortable sitting across a kitchen table or coffee shop table, talking spiritual realities with others. When I came to a congregation I once served, I learned that the evangelism committee had been meeting regularly, but had not ventured out beyond their meetings. They kept training and training on how to do evangelism, but hesitated to go out and have spiritual conversations. They never felt ready, never felt like they knew enough. I think they were too stuck on that formula or template approach that I had been taught (and they were being taught). The formula seemed simple, but also made them feel they needed a pre-scripted answer for every question or objection that might come up in a conversation.

Jesus obviously doesn’t think we need to be experts before we speak in his name to others. The man Jesus had cleansed of demons had, up until then, been deeply distressed. “For a long time he had not worn any clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs” (Luke 8:27). Yet immediately after restoring that man to health and wholeness, Jesus told him to talk in his hometown about how much God had done for him. That’s a good model for each of us. Being a witness for the faith is personal and relational. It’s us talking with others about our hurts, our needs, and the help we have in Jesus—and their hurts, their needs, and the help they may find in Jesus. As we approach conversations with others, we can admit that we are broken people, that we’ve had our own demons and problems. We’re not going to be perfect. We’re not going to have some foolproof strategy or guaranteed results. We’re not marketers trying to sell Jesus or the church. We’re just people; we just need to be real and genuine and human and hurting and be WITH one another as we share the love we have found in Jesus. The apostle Paul said, “If those who are nothing think they are something, they deceive themselves” (Galatians 6:2), urging us, in our frailty, in our shared humanity, to “bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:1).

In the midst of his ministry, when Jesus sent 72 of his disciples in pairs to go ahead of him to towns where he was planning to go (Luke 10:1), the instructions he gave them were not complicated. The mission focused on creating relationships. He told his teams, “Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house!’ And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person …. Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; …cure the sick who are there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you’” (Luke 10:1-9). I suppose when we read something like that, we get hung up on the idea of “curing the sick.” We think, “Doing outreach must have been easy if Jesus gave them the ability to do miracles to cure the sick!” But did that actually make things easier? Was Jesus’ own ministry easier because he could exorcise demons and heal diseases? In the region of the Gerasenes, where Jesus had cast a legion of demons out of that one man, the people of the region asked Jesus to leave because they were afraid of him (Luke 8:37). In other places, Jesus was met with suspicion and hostility by religious authorities on account of his teaching and the miracles he did. Ultimately, they crucified him.

We may not have powers to provide miracle cures for people’s illnesses, but we do always have something powerful in Jesus. We have comfort in Jesus’ cross, knowing what he suffered for us, and in his resurrection, securing our hope. We cling to one another and to Christ when we face sicknesses and death and all sorts of troubles. As Dr. Andrew Root of Luther Seminary has said, evangelism is not about some sort of strategy, it is an “embodied way of participating with people where Jesus Christ is present. It is a way God moves concretely in our lives and is a companion during the joys and sorrows in human life”—particularly in times of sorrow.*** Being an evangelist is simply being a person believing in Jesus, anchored in faith, who is willing to be with others in their struggles and search with others in their questions, and call on the Lord together in prayer with others when they desire hope and healing.

* See The Oregonian, March 12, 2025.
** See Forward, May 15, 2023.
*** “Reframing Evangelism: Following Jesus into Sorrow,” Pivot Podcast, 2025.

Scripture quotations, except where otherwise indicated, are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Jun

2025

Sharing our light with the world

“Do the work of an evangelist” (2 Timothy 4:5).

The topic of evangelism is on my mind this summer. (I’m involved with the outreach committee at church.) I rediscovered an article I wrote for publication a number of years ago. I’ll share a version of it here as June’s blog post.

Sharing our light with the world

I sat among the spectators at a high school track and field invitational. Behind me sat students from a Christian high school, intermingled and interacting with peers from public schools. These teens were abuzz with conversation—but not about the jumps or hurdles or races taking place. They talked about body parts and bodily functions. They made coarse jokes. They engaged in crude flirtation.It seemed the church kids were doing their best to show they weren’t too religious. They were fitting in.

I’m sure those young Christians have had better days as witnesses of their faith. I know I’ve had days when I’ve done much worse. As salt of the earth and light to the world, all of us could be much more flavorful and lots brighter. We don’t need to be oddballs or prudes in relating to those around us. We do want to leave a positive impression.

Jesus commissioned us: “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15). Did he mean that to apply in the bleachers at hometown sports events, in the aisles at the grocery store, on the assembly line in the factory? Respectfully, we don’t force faith conversations in public places. At the same time, we don’t want our faith to be hidden from view in our day-to-day lives. People don’t “light a lamp and put it under a basket.” Jesus said, “Let your light shine” (Matthew 5:15,16). Often we think of evangelism and outreach as activities of the church, done with planned and programmed methods. But God urges us to see gospel-proclaiming as an everyday believer’s way of life.

Peter counseled people of faith: “Always be ready to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason concerning the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15). Our witnessing is not limited to special, occasional, institutional efforts. Each of us has opportunities to “proclaim the LORD’s salvation from day to day” (Psalm 96:2).

I once was secretary for a floor committee of a national church convention. Our committee recommended a resolution encouraging faith sharing by members of local congregations. We proposed it as a simple idea: If we are not mission-minded in our own neighborhoods and towns, we are not likely to be zealous about missions on the other side of the world either.

The resolution was passed. Coming out of the convention, the national church organization then began promoting a “North American Outreach” publicity campaign. (Not exactly what the original committee had in mind.) There were press releases and video vignettes and magazine articles.There were district conventions that followed up on the theme. At the district convention I attended, 449 pages of print were put into our hands. There was a book of reports, and there were reports on the reports..

As churches and church organizations, we have convocations and publications and programs to emphasize outreach, but how much do we genuinely engage in outreach? Personally, individually, are we having spiritual conversations, talking about matters of faith? We don’t want merely to be “playing church,” discussing amongst ourselves the importance of preaching the gospel. We want to be speaking good news in Christ to one another and to the persons around us.

In The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis imagined a demon’s glee at getting a Christian focused on church fervor rather than spiritual substance: “Provided that meetings, pamphlets, policies, movements, causes, and crusades matter more to him than prayers and sacraments and charity, he is ours—and the more ‘religious’ (on those terms), the more securely ours.”

It is a far-reaching undertaking that Jesus has assigned to us, to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). It cannot happen if we are selfish. Are we sometimes selfish with the gospel? Do we seek to insulate ourselves from the world more than prepare to bring testimony to the world? If you counted up all the dollars and hours we expend as congregations and area associations and as a church bodies, it would be interesting to see how much of our attention is given to edifying ourselves and how much is truly devoted to reaching and serving our neighbors and our communities.

Please don’t misunderstand—we are to be faithful in proclaiming God’s name in the assembly of believers and to teach our children the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord. I am not suggesting that we do less inreach to our own members. But if we spend 90 percent or more of our time and efforts on those who are in the church, are we giving a proper balance of our attention to the many others who have “no hope and are without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12)?

Sometimes the lost come looking. Some persons wander into your sanctuary on Sunday morning seeking… something… exactly what they have no way of knowing. How do we react when there are guests in our midst? Is the world welcome within our walls? If we are ready to go with good news to all, we will be ready also to receive all who arrive on our doorstep. We will realize that we are united by Christ, not by common ethnicity or customs. We will be willing to incorporate and accept all creation into our congregations. We won’t cluster in a corner exchanging German potato salad recipes when newcomers might have entirely different interests and tastes.

In our lives as Christ’s witnesses, everything we say and do sends a message to those around us about what Christ means in our lives. That is true on the sidelines at a track meet, in the gathering spaces within church buildings, and anywhere that we interact with others in our daily lives.

Scripture references are from the World English Bible Update (WEBU)

Jan

2024

Epiphany message: A starry beacon up there for the rocky road down here

As with gladness men of old
did the guiding star behold;
as with joy they hailed its light,
leading onward, beaming bright;
so, most gracious God, may we
evermore be led to Thee.

Hymn lyric by William Chatterton Dix,
written January 6, 1859

The festival of Epiphany (January 6th) “recalls the visit of three Magi, or wise men, to the infant Jesus, and their sense of wonder at the encounter. It is the 12th day after Christmas and closes the Christmas season” (PBS.org).

As this day of Epiphany was approaching, my mind went back to the thoughts and cadences of an Epiphany sermon preached last year by Pastor Gerhardt Miller. I prepared the following abridged version of that message, which Gerhardt graciously has approved for sharing with you here on The Electric Gospel.

A starry beacon up there for the rocky road down here

by Gerhardt Miller

At Epiphany, we remember and ponder the journey of the Magi, “wise men from the East” who “came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage’” (Matthew 2:1-2).

The wise men—whatever their number, two or three or twenty or thirty—did not find their way to the baby Jesus by accident. The wise men, wherever their hometown, were on a mission, and they completed that mission with diligence and faith. They depended on God’s grace. We too realize that anything we accomplish is accomplished with God’s grace. Make no mistake, these Magi did not stumble by accident through the front door of the private home of the Infant Jesus. That the wise men were brought to the humble threshold of Mary and Joseph and the child Jesus was because God had blessed them with more than education and insight and privilege. God also blessed them with faithful perseverance, matching the challenge of finding this precious child called Jesus. These figures we call the wise men, I suppose they were privileged. These wise men were blessed with an education. They were scholars. They studied astronomy and astrology. They knew the heavens and the stars and the planets. Their learning included more than what was above their heads. It also included what was written and reported at their fingertips. These learned souls were students of ancient literature as well. Their education would have included discourses on the forces of good and the forces of evil.

These wise men had learned Scripture and were committed to finding the Christchild. Wherever they had learned Scripture and astronomy and theology, they had to reapply that learning to a journey over real roads with real hardships and hazards. Think of it, these Magi left what was familiar and safe. They ventured into the unfamiliar and the strange—willingly, even eagerly. They left the comforts of home, endeavoring into the discomforts of the rocky road at best and the unmarked, roadless wilderness at worst. They threw themselves into the perils of becoming foreigners, when they could have just stayed put in the comforts of their own ivory towers.They left all of that behind to seek Jesus.

Let us praise the wise men for their persistence. Persistence requires faith. We do not persist if our doubts are greater than our faith. The wise men had faith in the promise they had heard. The most glorious evidence that God is love is found in the flesh and blood of a small child. The wise men wanted to see, and to bow in worship. When they left home, the wise men did not know the address or longitude or latitude of their destination. When they set out, they did not know how many miles they would travel. When they packed their bags they did not know who or what they would encounter in their quest to find this new king. When they left home, all they knew was that they were following a sign to wherever and whomever it would lead them. Let us praise these wise men for their willingness to go the distance. They went the distance in all of its mess and muck to discover God. They went the distance with all of its heat and cold and wetness and dryness. They went the distance with all of its uncertainty and pitfalls and sorrow. But in taking that journey, these wise men had a starry beacon to lead them, to show them the way.

Sometimes we need a beacon to shine—to know which way to go and have a safe road. We think of these figures having a starry beacon to show them the way when the way was clear. But the leading star above them did not remove them from the dirt and sand and danger around them. The star up there guided them, but they still had to go through the difficult road below. The starry beacon up there fortified them for the challenges ahead of them. When we are inspired, we are fortified. And the wise men were inspired.

How has inspiration given you strength in your journey? The Lord gives us strength and inspiration through Scripture and also through the people and happenings around us. God gives us strength to do the things that are difficult for us to do. When we are inspired, we are fortified. Sometimes our roads are rocky, and we need a star. Sometimes our days are dark and we cannot see a star. But we remember learning about a light and even seeing the light … and the sheer memory of God’s light gets us to put one fearful foot in front of the other fearful foot, to get us through the scary dark into the loving light.

For those wise men, when the road was rocky, they could see the star. When there was no road to follow, they could see the star. When the way was rough and steep and strange and frightening, they could see the star. When they encountered fearful circumstances around them and experienced doubt within themselves, they could see the star. When they were tired and cold and hungry and thirsty, they could see the star. As long as they could see the star, they could keep on going.

Have you ever wanted to just give up? We want to match the determination of these wise men, these learned souls. When the star was not seen by them, it was remembered by them—and in its being remembered, it shone on. The light in their memory could keep them going. Whatever the mess around these wise men, whatever the difficulty challenging them, they could see the star or look for the star or just remember the star. So, they could keep on going.

When we are inspired we are fortified: the starry beacon up there for the rocky road down here.

May our inspiration in our quest to discover truth and beauty—to discover God in God’s countless forms—be the Christchild, Jesus. May our beacon be Jesus’ love, for Jesus’ love and grace and understanding give us strength to carry on. Not only that, but Christ gives us the guidance to know where to go. May the name of Jesus be our beacon in our quest to discover God in our commonplace lives (that are not so commonplace in the end). Despite their high position and all their finery, the Magi had to work to find Jesus. Like the wise men, sometimes we have to work to find Jesus. Like the wise men, we have to work to see a small sliver of light to carry us over rocky roads and through the wilderness. Like the wise men, may we find strength in our purpose, so we can navigate life’s difficult roads. May our eyes be opened to see heavenly beauty when we feel bogged down on the rocky roads here below.

Prayer: Lord, have mercy for each and every one of us, especially for the times we have failed to see how you are with us in our lives. Teach us, so that we may understand and know that you are living and loving and with us, almighty God. Shine your beacon of light on us, to strengthen us for the roads we walk, trusting in Jesus. Amen.

Feb

2023

Not hiding from our own flesh and blood

We share love in a lonely, hurting world

February 5th / Epiphany 5

Readings: Isaiah 58:1-12, 1 Corinthians 2:1-16, Matthew 5:13-20

More than fifteen years ago, The Barna Group conducted a survey of non-Christians aged 16 to 29. The predominant perception about church people was quite negative. 85 percent of church outsiders said they perceived present-day Christianity as hypocritical and judgmental. I remember when the book from that study came out, called unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity…and Why It Matters. I attended a study group that discussed the book and its implications. The group spent much of its time protesting conclusions the book presented. One participant kept objecting that survey respondents were using an incorrect definition of what “hypocritical” means. I found myself getting frustrated with the discussion. If we sat and debated whether outsiders’ perceptions of the church were unfair, we were failing to acknowledge what we needed to acknowledge. If churches and their members lived up to the calling we have in Christ, would public perception of the church be so low? Jesus said, “Everyone will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). The corollary is also true: If we are not known for the love we have for others, if we are not seen putting love into action, people will question whether we are indeed Jesus’ disciples.

Barna Group graphic from https://www.barna.com/research/christians-more-like-jesus-or-pharisees/

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic (in April of 2020), religion writer Jonathan Merritt argued that some of the most visible Christians in America were failing the coronavirus test. “In place of love, they’re offering stark self-righteous judgment,” Merritt observed. He followed up with David Kinnamon, coauthor of that 2007 book, unChristian. Kinnaman told him the Barna Group continued to monitor attitudes toward Christianity and perceptions hadn’t improved. There has been a further erosion of connection by young people to churches. Kinnaman reported that “those who walk away from the church are most often struggling with the hypocrisy of other churchgoers” (The Atlantic, April 4, 2020). Many are viewing the church today the way the Pharisees were seen in Jesus’ day—as people who talk amongst themselves about being righteous, but do nothing for people in their communities. We need to exceed the righteousness of the Pharisees (Matthew 5:20). We need a better sort of righteousness, keeping the highest command, to love our neighbors as ourselves (cf. Matthew 22:39, Romans 13:8-10).

The first generations of Christians put love into practice toward their neighbors—and it led people to think differently of Christians. As Christ’s followers let their light shine before others, others saw their good works and gave glory to God (cf. Matthew 5:16). A writer about the church’s early history has said: “At no other time in the history of Christianity did love so characterize the entire church as it did in the first three centuries.” As a result, “Christianity spread rapidly throughout the ancient world, even though there were few organized missionary or evangelism programs. The love they practiced drew the attention of the world” (EarlyChurch.com).

The early Christians had a dramatic impact on their world by serving, in quiet, unassuming ways. They busied themselves with everyday actions of kindness and compassion. Some of the most prominent times when their faith-filled behavior was a blessing to others was when Christians served the sick and the dying during epidemics and pandemics (Barnabas Today, 4/19/2021). COVID-19 is by no means the first pandemic the world has seen, but now in our own lifetimes we have seen what a pandemic can do to society. Imagine the devastation in the ancient world, when there were no vaccines or antiviral drug treatments. For fifteen years, from 165 to 180 AD, the Roman Empire experienced its first pandemic. It was known as the Antonine Plague (named after the imperial dynasty in power during that time). Roman legion troops brought the disease back with them from the eastern frontiers of the empire. People died by the millions. The mortality rate is estimated by scholars to have been 7 to 10 percent of the population of the empire, in some places as high as 15 percent. One chronicler documented a year during the plague when 2000 people a day were dying in the city of Rome. What were Christians doing during those days? Early sources document that Christians did not abandon their neighbors or their communities. Rather, to quote Dionysius of Athens, they were “unsparing in their exceeding love and brotherly kindness. They held fast to each other and visited the sick fearlessly and ministered to them continually, serving them in Christ” (quoted in Barnabas Today). In the process, of course, many Christians lost their own lives to the pandemic. But their actions had impressed the world around them, and interest in their faith grew.

Epidemics and pandemics continued to occur in the decades that followed that first plague. The conduct of Christians remained resolute in those difficult times, loving their neighbors even to the point of death. Within a couple centuries, even the most powerful opponents of the church had to acknowledge the love Christ’s people showed. The emperor Julian, an enemy and persecutor of Christianity, wrote a letter in 362 AD to a high priest of the Roman religion. Referring to Christians as “Galileans” (because Jesus was from Galilee), he wrote that Christians were making his priests look bad. He said that while “the poor were neglected and overlooked by the [pagan] priests … the impious Galileans … devoted themselves to philanthropy. … [They] support not only their poor but ours as well, [while] all can see that our people lack aid from us” (Letter to Arsacius, quoted in BibleMesh, 3/20/20). Julian, by the way, is known as “the last pagan emperor” in the Roman era. He had tried to restore the old Roman religion to dominance, but by his time, Christianity had taken too deep a hold in too many people’s hearts.

Photo by Chalmers Butterfield, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5>, via Wikimedia Commons

In today’s world (and rightfully so), we look to public health departments and medical facilities to carry the largest share of helping our communities through public health emergencies. That doesn’t mean opportunities are lacking for Christians to help and comfort people in need. There are so many needs of so many kinds across all our communities. There is, in fact, another sort of public health crisis calling out to us now, calling us to reach out to others with compassion and kindness. This health crisis afflicts millions of people. Research has shown it to be as bad for you as smoking 15 cigarettes per day. It’s a condition that creates a 20% overall increase in the chance of experiencing an early death (Michigan State University Extension). What public health crisis is this? Research by Cigna has shown that more than half of U.S. adults (58%) are experiencing loneliness. Researchers at Harvard, Columbia University, and elsewhere are calling it the loneliness epidemic. We are surrounded in our communities by people who are deeply lonely. Maybe we ourselves are affected by the same loneliness and isolation. Can we, as Christians in our communities and as church groups, become Christ to our neighbors who are lonely? The loneliness epidemic is not like smallpox (such as Antonine Plague) or a dangerous coronavirus (such as COVID-19). We won’t be risking our lives by making efforts to engage with persons who need befriending. If anything, our own spirits may also be lifted and encouraged by sharing life and love with others.

Many years ago, I did a year of internship in Houston, training for ministry. I was a northern boy in a big Texas city. The congregation where I served was wonderfully friendly, but I was many miles from home and away from familiar surroundings and classmates I had known. The congregation had set me up in an apartment of my own, and there were nights I would get lonely. First I felt sorry for myself, feeling like I was stranded by myself. Then I decided to make the most of opportunities that were, quite honestly, right in front of me. The church in suburban Houston had a long list of outreach contacts. My internship duties didn’t require me to go out visiting those persons as much as I did. But I learned that the best cure for my own loneliness was to take time to go out and visit with people who’d had some contact with our church. Making efforts to show friendship to other persons in the church’s neighborhoods brought benefits to me as much as to those I visited. We gave encouragement to each other.

My friends, you and I are “the salt of the earth,” as Jesus has told us (Matthew 5:13). We are here to preserve and extend the lives of others, the way that salt was used as a food preservative in Bible times. We are also here to enhance others’ lives with flavor, making life less bland. As the apostle Paul said, “Conduct yourself with wisdom in your interactions with outsiders; make the most of each opportunity [treating it as something precious]. Let your speech at all times be gracious and pleasant, seasoned with salt” in the way that you relate to others in the community (Colossians 4:5-6, The Amplified Bible).

The prophet Isaiah described the sort of actions we will undertake as God’s people, striving to bring goodness to others in our world. We will seek to “loose the bonds of injustice … to break every yoke” (Isaiah 58:6) that weighs on the bodies and souls of others. As Scripture says elsewhere, “ Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2). Isaiah urged us to share our bread with the hungry, bring the homeless poor into our homes, clothe those who are lacking clothing, satisfy the needs of the afflicted (Isaiah 58:7,10).

Isaiah told us also: “Do not “hide yourself from your own kin” (Isaiah 58:7). “Our own kin” is more than our own immediate family or the relatives at our family reunion. God’s prophet was calling us to think of all our fellow human beings as our own flesh and blood, because, ultimately, “from one blood [God] made the whole world of humanity” (Acts 17:26, The Aramaic Bible in Plain English). So, we can’t hide ourselves away and ignore others’ needs, pretending we can’t see them or what they are suffering. All the people in our neighborhoods and communities are our brothers and sisters, our neighbors and countrymen. We want to see them, pay attention to them, be there for them.

I’m not saying you individually are going to take away the loneliness and needs of everyone around you in your communities. But each of us can do what we can do. We can start small. We can do the little things. Let me make a proposal to you. In a short time, we’re coming up on Valentine’s Day. Valentine’s Day can be a difficult day for persons who don’t have the companionship in their lives that they wish they had, or who are missing family members far away or out of touch. A couple weeks ago, I got an email from Etsy (an online company) acknowledging the difficulty of such holidays for lonely people. The email said, “We understand this time can be tough. If you would prefer not to receive Valentine’s Day emails from us, you can opt out by clicking below.” I was reminded of an old Peanuts TV special from years ago, when Charlie Brown went to school hoping to get many Valentine’s cards from his classmates, and got none (Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, 1975).

So, maybe if you want to reach out to someone this month, someone who may be lonely, someone who may be hurting, or maybe someone you just haven’t connected with for a while, you don’t need to make it about Valentine’s Day. You can reach out just because. You can take time to connect with others in a variety of ways. You can send a card—a general friendship or encouragement card. You can write a letter, sharing with someone what you have appreciated about them. You can go knock on someone’s door, say hello. As one Christian writer has said, “Showing love needn’t be that involved: a compassionate phone call made, a greeting card sent, a door held. If you bake, make a batch of cookies or brownies for a friend. Provide an ear and heart to listen. All these gestures communicate love” (Warner Press blog). We can apply to our own witness what the apostle Paul said of his: Our speech need not be with “persuasive words of human wisdom” (1 Corinthians 2:4, Young’s LIteral Translation). We need no fancy language or elaborate efforts. Our simple words and acts of kindness will be “a demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (1 Corinthians 2:4).

If you’d like some resources for ideas about showing kindness or helping the lonely, here are some worthwhile ones:

Very early in the Bible, we are told, when God created human beings, that it is not good for a person to be alone (Genesis 2:18). “That statement of need actually predates the first sin” (Christians for Social Action). Think about that. Even when the world was perfect, loneliness would have ruined the joy and beauty of the Garden of Eden. How much more difficult loneliness can be in our fallen, fragile, imperfect world! We need each other. The people around us need us.

As Christ’s people, filled with the Spirit of fellowship in our hearts, let’s reach out in fellowship to others. “Whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all” (Galatians 6:10). “Let mutual love continue” (Hebrews 13:1)—not only within our own family of faith, but also showing hospitality to strangers (Hebrews 13:2). And perhaps let’s focus our efforts by thinking about those who may be lonely, those who may be isolated, those who might be the Charlie Browns of our neighborhoods, not receiving many encouragements or greetings. Let’s pick up a pen and write, pick up the phone and call, step outside of our comfort zone and visit people we may not know very well. May the light that has brightened our lives in Jesus be like a lamp on a lampstand, (Matthew 5:15), bringing light to our neighbors in our communities by each small act of kindness that we can do.

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Jun

2022

Teaching a Love for Souls

Pentecost Sunday, 2022

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Luke’s Pentecost narrative [Acts chapter 2] challenges the church today to find even more effective ways of communicating the gospel to peoples in every land on earth. … Just as the early Christians moved beyond the land of Israel and the Jewish people, so we must help all the peoples in our world hear and express the gospel in their own languages and according to their own cultural patterns. – Daniel J. Harrington, “The Challenge of Pentecost,” America (May 5, 2008)

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Many peoples, one God

The sign over the classroom door encouraged students’ eagerness: “Enter with an open mind.” Inside, though, an open-minded approach was not consistently encouraged. In this elementary classroom at a Christian school, religious lessons for the month were focused on the practices of other groups, organizations, and faiths (different from the affiliation of the parochial school). The children would come home and tell their parents, “Do you know what this (or that) group believes? They’re so weird!” The lessons were teaching young denomination members to judge others. One of the assignments, mislabeled as an “evangelism exercise,” asked the children to compose a letter that they would send to Tom Cruise, trying to convince him of the dangers and evils of Scientology.

Certainly, God tells us to be wary of temptations and to steer clear of false teachings. Yet our call as evangelists (proclaimers of good news) is to be warm and winsome in our witness to others, to be models and messengers of the character of Christ. It is an unhappy consequence if education efforts lead us to become insular and narrow and focused on our own ways and practices. Our discipleship goal in the body of Christ is not to close minds and hearts or isolate ourselves from others in our communities. Rather, we seek to expand and enrich our own understanding and reach out to others with the truths we have come to know in Christ.

The apostle Paul advised us, “From now on … regard no one from a human point of view” (2 Corinthians 5:16). We don’t calculate who might be more inclined to agree with us or who seems too different from us. We take a view that is open to the wide variety of persons in our world–all of whom are people for whom Jesus died and rose again. We don’t close ourselves off from the world around us or avoid those who seem “weird” to us. [Truthfully, we likely seem “weird” to them too.] Our aim is to live in the world and impact the world by the testimony of lives in Jesus. We want to be seasoned by the Spirit to serve as the salt of the earth, to walk as children of the light to give off light to the world (cf. John 13:35-36). May we see ourselves (and teach our children to see themselves) as ambassadors for Christ, imploring other’s on Christ’s behalf to be reconciled to God (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:20). That will be our way of “praising God and having the goodwill of all the people” (Acts 2:47).

A Pentecost prayer:

God of all the nations, we pray for your one, holy, catholic and apostolic church. Praise to you for the great diversity present in the peoples, languages, rituals and practices of all people who follow you in the name of Jesus Christ. Turn us from fear of difference toward celebration. We pray for all people globally. Through the Spirit, grant us the power to be your disciples in the world. In our worship and in our work in the world, guide us to be good neighbors to our neighbors near and far. Free us from prejudice, that we may see your face in people around the world, through Jesus Christ, our Savior, and share his peace with all. (Adapted from Celebrate Global Ministries, Pentecost Sunday, 2017)

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Dec

2021

Christmas reveals God’s glory to us

Blessings to you at Christmastime, as we ponder the implications of the birth of Christ. In Christ, God’s glory and grace are revealed to us.

The following message was delivered as a radio sermon on Lutheran Chapel Service, KNUJ radio, December 25, 2012, reprinted here for your Christmas week this year.

“The Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

God’s Glory Shines with Grace

by David Sellnow

In the film Raiders of the Lost Ark, men of evil intent seek Israel’s ancient ark of the covenant, in order to harness its supernatural power as a weapon. Archaeologist/adventurer Indiana Jones strives to stop them. The climax of the movie has the bad guys overseeing a ritual to open the ark. When they do, it unleashes a glowing fireball that burns holes through people, causing faces to melt and heads to explode. Indiana Jones, there as a captive, tells his companion damsel in distress not to look at it, no matter what–it will kill you. And sure enough, everyone who looked at the insides of the ark was killed. Only Indiana and his lady friend survived.

Now, of course, that movie was a fabrication of fiction. Yet some small grains of truth underlie what Steven Spielberg brought to the screen in that make-believe story. God did strike dead some people who presumptuously looked into the ark of the covenant. It happened long ago at a place called Beth Shemesh, and prompted others to say, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God?” (1 Samuel 6:20) God has shown himself by revealing his glory in fiery forms. He did, in fact, show his blazing glory from the ark of the covenant, when Solomon built his temple for the LORD in Israel. Once the ark was placed inside, “the house of the Lord was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God” (2 Chronicles 5:13-14).

But here is where there is a difference that Steven Spielberg (or any human being) in his wildest dreams would not have imagined. In that cloud and fire of his glory, God showed his love to people, not anger. The central feature of the ark of the covenant was not wrath; it was called “the mercy seat.” God caused no one’s face to melt or head to explode. Instead, at the dedication of the temple, God sent fire down from heaven to consume the burnt offering and the sacrifices, to show the people that their sins were forgiven and they were welcome in God’s presence, as their gifts were welcomed by him. “When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed down on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, ‘For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever’” (2 Chronicles 7:3).

Unlike Raiders of the Lost Ark fiction, what you see in the Bible is true. When God lets his glory shine, it is primarily for the purpose of showing his saving love. God’s glory shines with his grace!

That is what we see at God’s coming at Christmas. The glory of God came to us, but came in the humble form of Jesus in the manger. As John the apostle said, the Son of God came to us from the Father “full of grace and truth.” As the writer to the Hebrews said, “The Son (Jesus) is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being” (Hebrews 1:3). Jesus is “God with us,” namely “Immanuel” in Hebrew (Isaiah 7:14, cf. also Matthew 1:23). God became incarnate in Jesus to be our Savior in grace.

Let’s do a survey of Scripture, seeing how in all the time preparing for Jesus’ coming, God manifested his glory to people invariably as a shining of his grace.

God promised Abraham: “Do not be afraid … I am your shield; your reward shall be very great” (Genesis 15:1). As a way of evidencing his commitment to these promises, God involved himself in a covenant ceremony, at the center of which God’ own glory was seen as “a smoking fire pot and a blazing torch” (Genesis 15:17). God guaranteed to Abraham that his promises of blessing were all true.

God’s next manifestation of his glory appeared when the security and future of Abraham’s descendants were in jeopardy. They were facing enslavement and infanticide in Egypt. God came to Moses, appearing to him “in a flame of fire out of a bush” (Exodus 3:2), and said, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt. … I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them … to a land flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:7,8).

In setting his people free from Egypt, God showed this same glory to all the Israelites. “The Lord went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light” (Exodus 13:21). When Egypt’s armies pursued them, the angel of God and the pillar of cloud “moved from in front and stood behind them,” separating and protecting them from the enemy (Exodus 14:19,20).

As Israel went further on their way, in the desert and wondering how they’d eat to survive, “they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud (Exodus 16:10). That evening “quail came up and covered the camp,” and in the morning manna was given for bread (Exodus 16:13-15).

The “glory of the LORD” next appeared at Mount Sinai, where the Law was given. But there wasn’t just law. Even when the law was given, God’s glory was evidence of his grace. God made clear he was choosing and consecrating Israel as his own people, his “treasured possession” (Exodus 19:5) among all the earth. He reminded them how he had carried them on eagles’ wings and brought them to himself (Exodus 19:4). He showed them grace and glory before and after they sinned against him with the golden calf (cf. Exodus 24 and 32-34). Finally, when they set up their tabernacle tent to worship him, God filled the tabernacle with his glory as a sign of his grace (Exodus 40:34).

In every instance, God shined his glory to point the people to his wonderful love, to how he was working out his salvation for them. The same is true of other appearances of the glory of the LORD. With “a chariot of fire and horses of fire” God took Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind–graciously giving him eternal life without first tasting death (2 Kings 2:11). Isaiah and Ezekiel saw the glory of the LORD when God called them by grace to serve as his prophets (Isaiah 6, Ezekiel 1). God even gave visual evidence of this grace to Isaiah by taking a token of divine glory, a live coal from the altar of heaven, touched to Isaiah’s lips by an angel with the message: “Now that this has touched your lips; your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out” (Isaiah 6:7). That is glory, and that is grace. Forgiveness is the gift of our glorious Savior.

Above and beyond all the dazzling appearances of God’s presence throughout the Old Testament, the greatest shining of divine glory is in the coming of Jesus. John says, “We beheld his glory, the glory as of the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14 KJV). That Jesus is the brightest shining of all God’s glory was made clear on the night he was born into our world. The glory of God lit up the skies. “In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them” (Luke 2:8,9). They were terrified, but the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people” (Luke 2:10). Good news–of God’s grace!

Wise men in the east saw that glory of God shining too. “We observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage,” they said (Matthew 2:2). They saw the one whom Scripture calls “beautiful and glorious” (Isaiah 4:2), having been led to him by a glowing of his glory in the heavens.

Later on, Peter, James, and John would see the glory of God in Jesus when “he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white” (Mark 9:2,3). “His face shone like the sun” (Matthew 17:2). Jesus let them see his glory to bolster their faith before they witnessed his humiliation and death.

God showed his glory also to a man named Stephen, a martyr about to be viciously killed for his faith. Stephen “gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:55). Men might kill him, but God wanted Stephen in his dying hour to know that he could not be robbed of God’s glory, for God’s grace had shown it to him.

So also at the end of the Bible, to the last apostle, God showed his glory yet again. Christ revealed himself to John, and John wrote, “His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace … and his face was like the sun shining with full force. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he placed His right hand on me, saying, ‘Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last and the living one” (Revelation 1:14-18). At a troubled time at the end of the apostolic age, when Christians were being persecuted and isolated, God gave this revelation of glory as a sign of his grace. The vision revealed that the Lord was still with his church, Christ is still ruling all things, and God’s grace is still as amazing as ever.

God’s grace. God’s glory. It’s not like the face-melting, body-burning laser light show of a Hollywood movie. Instead, it is like the warm glow of heaven for us, like a candle left burning in the window of our eternal home until we can come to be there. The glory of God burns brightly in our daily lives, for God, “who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ … shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6). That is God’s glory shown to us, to each of our hearts. That is how he shows himself, through the glory of the One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. God’s glory shines with grace–grace that saves us, in Christ. Amen.

PRAYER: God our Lord, Jesus Christ, when you came in the flesh to live among us, the glory of the Lord shone in the skies and angels heralded your birth. But we know you came not to terrify us with blazing glory, but to redeem us with your glorious grace. Keep our hearts close to you in faith always, shining your light in our lives. Amen.

Dec

2019

God’s glory shines with grace

Originally published on the Electric Gospel on December 7, 2019.

God’s glory shines with grace

by David Sellnow

We know that “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). The thought of seeing the light of God can frighten us. Maybe you remember the fictionalized depiction of God’s glory melting the faces of those who opened up the Ark of the Covenant in the film, Raiders of the Lost Ark. Certainly, those who stand opposed to God have reason to fear his dazzling power. But the recurring theme throughout the Bible shows that when God lets his glory shine for people to see, it is most often for the purpose of showing his saving love. God’s glory shines with grace.Holiday lights have begun to shine in neighborhoods and towns. Christmas lights are meant to remind us that Christ is the light of the world, reminiscent also of the star that shined to welcome the birth of Christ into the world. 16^th century church leader, Martin Luther, is often credited with beginning the Christian tradition of a lighted Christmas tree. As reported by History.com, “Walking toward his home one winter evening, composing a sermon, he was awed by the brilliance of stars twinkling amidst evergreens. To recapture the scene for his family, he erected a tree in the main room and wired its branches with lighted candles.”

That is what we see at God’s coming at Christmas. The glory of God came to us, but came in the humble form of Jesus in the manger. The Son of God came to us from the Father “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Jesus “is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being” (Hebrews 1:3). And that glory and being of God was coming to earth to be God with us as our Savior, to take away our fears.

To emphasize this truth—that God’s glory shines for us with grace—I’d like to lead you through a survey of different times when God manifested his glory to people, and how that glory was invariably a display of love and hope.

The first reading in which we find God revealing his glory and grace in such a way is Genesis 15. The LORD met with Abram and promised him, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am you shield, your very great reward” (Genesis 15:1). As a way of evidencing his commitment to the promises he’d made to Abram, God then involved himself in a covenant ceremony, at the center of which was God’s own glory, seen as “a smoking fire pot with a blazing torch” (Genesis 15:17). God shined with glory to show Abraham that his promises of blessing were all true.

God’s next manifestation of his shining glory came when the security and future of Abraham’s descendants were in jeopardy. They were facing enslavement and infanticide in Egypt. And then God came to Moses, appearing to him “in flames of fire from within a bush” (Exodus 3:2), and said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt …. So I have come down to rescue them” (Exodus 3:7,8). In setting them free from Egypt, God showed this same glory to all the people of Israel. “By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light” (Exodus 13:21). When Egypt’s armies carne after them in pursuit, “the angel of God” and “the pillar of cloud … moved from in front and stood behind them,” separating and protecting them from the enemy (Exodus 14:19,20). As Israel got further out on its way, in the desert and wondering how they’d eat to survive, “there was the glory of the LORD” again, “appearing in the cloud” (Exodus 16:10). “That evening quail covered the camp, and in the morning” manna was given for bread (Exodus 16:13-15).

The “glory of the LORD” next appeared a number of different times at Mount Sinai, where the law was given. But there wasn’t just law–even here, God’s glory was evidence of his grace. For what God was doing there at Sinai was choosing and consecrating them as his own people, his “treasured possession” (Exodus 19:5) among all the earth. He reminded them of how he had carried them on eagles’ wings and brought them to himself (Exodus 19:4). He showed them grace and glory before and after they sinned against him with the golden calf (cf. Exodus 24 and 32-34). Finally, when they set up their tabernacle tent to worship him, God “filled the tabernacle” with his glory as a sign of gracious presence with them (Exodus 40:34).

In every instance, God shined his glory to point the people of Israel to his wonderful love, to show them how he was working out his plan of salvation for them.

The same is true of other appearances of the glory of the LORD. With “a chariot of fire and horses of fire” God took Elijah “up to heaven in a whirlwind” –graciously giving him eternal life without even tasting death (2 Kings 2:11). Isaiah and Ezekiel saw the glory of the LORD when God called them by grace to serve as prophets (Isaiah 6, Ezekiel 1). God even gave visual evidence of this grace to Isaiah by taking a token of the glory of God, a “live coal” from the altar of heaven, touched to Isaiah’s lips by an angel with the message: “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for” (Isaiah 6:7). That is glory … and that is grace—forgiveness

Above and beyond all the dazzling appearances of God in glory throughout the Old Testament, the greatest shining of his glory is in the coming of Jesus. That Jesus is the brightest shining of all God’s glory was made clear on the night he was born into our world. The glory of God lit up the skies. “There were shepherds living out in the fields nearby …. An angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them” (Luke 2:8,9). They were terrified, but the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy” (Luke 2:10). Good news–of God’s grace!

Later on, Peter, James and John would see “the glory of God in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6), when “he was transfigured before them. His clothes became dazzling white” (Mark 9:2,3), “as bright as a flash of lightning” (Luke 9:29). “His face shone like the sun” (Matthew 17:2). Jesus wanted them to see his glory, to bolster their faith before they saw his suffering and death.Wise Men in the east saw that glory of God shining too. “We saw his star and have come to worship him,” they said (Matthew 2:2). They saw the One whom Scripture calls “beautiful and glorious” (Isaiah 4:2), having been led to him by a glowing of his glory in the heavens.

God showed his glory also to a man named Stephen, a martyr about to be viciously killed for his faith. Stephen “looked up into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:55). Men might kill him, but God wanted Stephen in his dying hour to know that he could not be robbed of God’s glory, for God’s grace had shown it to him.

So also at the end of the Bible, to the last apostle, God showed his glory again. Christ revealed himself, and John wrote, “His eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said, ‘Do not be afraid …. I am the Living One” (Revelations 1:14-18). At a troubled time at the end of the apostolic age, when Christians were persecuted for their faith, God gave this revelation of glory to show he was still with his church, Christ is still ruling all things, and God’s grace is still as amazing as ever.

God’s grace. God’s glory. It’s not like the face-melting, body-burning laser lightshow of a Hollywood movie. Instead, it is like the warm glow of heaven for us, like a candle left burning in the window of our eternal home, until we can come home to be there. The glory of God, as Scripture says, is when “God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6). That is God’s glory shown to us, to each of our hearts. That is how he shows himself–through “the glory of the One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). God’s glory shines with grace—grace that saves us, in Christ.

What does it mean to be a witness for faith?

Sharing our light with the world

We share love in a lonely, hurting world

Pentecost Sunday, 2022

Many peoples, one God

A Pentecost prayer:

God’s Glory Shines with Grace

God’s glory shines with grace

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