I can't write about Acts without highlighting one of the most intriguing parts, which is found early on--in Acts 2.   The day of Pentecost has come, Peter has preached his first sermon, and throngs of people come repenting and being baptized.  And then those famous words about how they devoted themselves to four things:  the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  It seemed like a wonderful time for the church.  "Awe came upon everyone."  They sold their possessions and property and shared with one another so no one was in need.  This was the beginning of the "common purse" idea among the church. 

So I'm going to push us a little (and maybe get someone to respond!).  Was this just a phenomena for this group of believers at this time or is this a model of what the church should or could be?  Why don't we sell our property and possessions (read here our homes, IRAs, other middle-class trappings) so that it's all equally distributed to those in need in our community?  Of course there are some churches today who do share a common purse and try to uphold the ideals of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount and this description in Acts.  What do you think?  I'm not going to share my opinion....yet.   

I leave you with the entire passage from the end of chapter 2.   For more on sharing common property, refresh your memory with the end of Acts 4, verses 32-37 and the fate of Ananias and Sapphira.

"Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles.  All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need.  Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people.  And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved."

  

So...we're in the Gospel of John.  What do you think?  What do you notice that is different?  I have noticed at least three prominent things:

1.  Many "I am" statements. ("I am the Gate.  I am the Good Shepherd.  I am the Bread of Life.  I am the Resurrection and the Life...")
2.  Lots of glorifyin' going on (i.e. "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you..." (John 17:1))
3.  Jesus calls his miracles signs.

But what has stood out to you so far?

These particular verses ~ John 10:37-38 ~ stood out to me. It is winter in Jerusalem.  Jesus is in the temple and the Jews want to stone him for blasphemy--making himself equal to God.  And Jesus says to them all, "If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me.  But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works..."

Jesus says, "Fine.  You don't believe me?  Okay.  But look at what I'm doing.  Is in not the works, the signs, of the kingdom coming on earth?"

Jesus makes a good argument, one hard to dismiss (though obviously some did).    If the blind are receiving sight and the dead rising, those are pretty good signs that there's something to this Jesus guy.   Look at the fruit, he's saying.  Is it not what the prophets foretold? 

Jesus puts it out there-- Look at what I'm doing.  If it doesn't match the Law and the Prophets, then ignore me.

Wow, what if I'm to stand under the same testimony:  "Fine. Don't believe me (what I say).  Believe what I do!"  (GULP!)    That's a pretty tall order.  But notice that's where the Pharisees and others went wrong.  They were fixated on Jesus' words (and the threat to their own power), missing all of the signs, the works that fulfilled everything they knew to be true when the Messiah came to reign in the kingdom of God.   They were missing the big picture.

What are we missing?

  

I've always been deeply saddened and strangely mesmerized by the story of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.  The scene evokes such pathos seeing Jesus offering agonizing prayers, sweating drops of blood, while his disciples lie sleepily by.     All of this happens before the horrific climax of the story.  But this time, while listening to the Scripture (and following along with a Bible, which seems to help), something new jumped out.  Luke 22:45 says that "When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow."  The NIV says "exhausted from sorrow." 

Usually when we think of these disciples, we just think they were lazy or disconnected from what was really going on, but this verse seems to indicate that not only did they understand, they were so steeped in their sorrow that it had exhausted them to the point of sleep. 

Sorrow has a way of making us slow and tired.  It is exhausting.  While you've been down in the desert this Lent, have you noticed yourself feeling more tired? 

Jesus' antidote for exhaustion is prayer.  Prayer is another very important Lenten discipline (and as I mentioned, one that Luke is fond of mentioning).  For Jesus tells them, "Pray that you may not enter temptation."  Truly, Jesus came to this very garden, as what his custom, no doubt to pray.  He was heeding his own advice, listening to the interior of his soul that was also exhausted with sorrow. 

I know many people say that praying makes them fall asleep (not that I think this is always a bad thing).  Perhaps try some new forms of prayer:  a mantra (a short, repetitive prayer such as "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me"), written prayer, body prayer (use your hands, arms, and face to express the meaning of the words), or breath prayer (as you inhale, say one word that you want to focus on such as "peace" or "Jesus" and as you exhale say something that you want to get rid).  This Sunday during our Lenten study, we will look at a couple other prayers.

What have you noticed this week in your listening?  Please share with us. 

Julie

  

How is your Lenten journey going so far?  The desert listening?

One writer, Wendy Wright, described a Catholic parish that she visited during the Lenten season.  She said visually the church was as she expected it to be, complete with purple banners.  But the one thing that stood out to her was that they had filled the holy water fonts that are at the front of the church with desert sand instead of water.  Typically, one comes in and dips one's fingers into the holy water and makes the sign of the cross.  But this year at Lent, people were arrested by the fact that as their fingers went in and out of that font, they encountered the dryness of sand. 

Just as Jesus went  "down" into the desert/wilderness, we too go down.  Like the desert ascetics of the fourth century, we go to the desert to be transformed and to listen. 

This is what Wright says about these desert fathers, "In silence and solitude they cultivated a hearing attuned to catch the voice of God.  They learned that going apart from the noisy environment of daily life to the silence of the desert enabled them to perceive deeper levels of noise and silence.  In the desert's quiet they discovered the noisiness within, the restless cacophony of voices raging in their hearts.  Yet if they persevered further, they  found that beneath that was another level of silence, an abyss of stillness that encompassed all that exists.  There, in the primal silence within the human heart, the voice of God could be clearly heard. The patient process of untangling the threads of voices, of settling down to the center was the lifelong work of the desert.  It is our work as well."

So my question again is how is our listening going?  Surely, it's an art that we must develop.

This week I know many of you have taken on the 40 day challenge (discipline really) to listen to the New Testament.  This takes a different kind of listening skill as well.  As you've heard through Matthew, Mark, and now Luke, perhaps it stood out at least once that Jesus did his share of desert listening, going away to pray. 

This Sunday night, I will leave space at the opening of our study together for people to share  what you've been hearing from God.   It can be one word, a phrase, a sentence, a story... 

Let us continue to dip into the sand,

Julie

  

  

This Friday we begin a three week study and discussion based on the video, "Different Books, Common Word: Baptists and Muslims" produced by EthicsDaily.com, an imprint of The Baptist Center for Ethics.  There will be a discussion guide provided.

Bring friends and neighbors with you; consider taking a long look at the world you live in to see if there are any Muslims you might invite to join us.

Learn more about the video and its subject at the two previous blog entries below.

  

Another excellent article by Cliff Vaughn (see previous entry).  Go to EthicsDaily.com.

  

From Boston to the Bible Belt and from Beaumont to the nation’s beltway,Baptists and Muslims are changing history with the way they change each other. Tired of being defined by extremists, some Baptists and Muslims in the United States have sought and found common ground: the common word in both traditions to love God and love neighbor. The courageous Baptists and Muslims in “Different Books, Common Word” will surprise you.

"Different Books, Common Word: Baptists and Muslims" is produced by EthicsDaily.com. The program will be shown on our local ABC affiliate, WLOS, this Sunday at 1:00 PM.  The hour-long documentary follows five stories of interfaith dialogue and action among Baptists and Muslims – two faith traditions often popularly characterized by their extremists.

"Ignoring Critics, Some Baptists and Muslims Cooperate" is an excellent article written by Cliff Vaughn, managing editor and media producer for EthicsDaily.com.

  

Celebrate with the Providence family the birth of the Christ child.  Thursday, 6:00 PM.