The Prayer Room: 12/14/14, Third Sunday of Advent

"Come now, let us argue it out, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool." Isaiah 1:18 (NRSV).

It's been a rough week for me, personally.  Not only are there all the family pressures and stresses that come with the holidays, but when you work in the business I work in, well, extra long hours on your feet, dealing with cranky people, start to take their toll as well. It all kind of caught up with me this week as I've been sickly and really run down.  I even missed a day of work for the first time this year! I like to think that my quest to give myself a Christmas attitude adjustment has gone well, but it's been tough the last week.

But now it's time to look on to the week ahead.  In most Christian traditions, the lone pink candle on the advent wreath is lit for the the third Sunday.  This usually represents joy or hope.  However, in the devotion I've been following based on the works of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the third candle represents redemption, which I think is a close cousin of joy and hope.

Redemption is the crux of the issue, the reason for joy and hope.  Last week I focused on the great mystery of the Incarnation, God coming as man.  This is indeed something to be in awe of and celebrate, but it's just the beginning of the story.  The grand, final chapter of the story of Christ on earth is his redemptive work on the cross for you, for me, for everyone.

However, we often make a bit of a mistake when we stop there.  "Well our sins are forgiven, so oh well."  Christ's redemptive work is also meant to be transformative.  When we just accept redemption and go about our business, we're also only getting half the story that Christ desires for us.  Bonhoeffer refers to this as "cheap grace."  It's when we realize how costly the grace of Christ crucified is, that we can really start to turn inward and make changes in our own lives that will hopefully help us make a difference in the lives of others, indeed in the life of the world as a whole.

Advent can help us do that.  As we wait to celebrate the birth of Christ, we turn inward and examine ourselves, preparing our hearts, bodies, and minds for this sacred season.  I invite you to join me this week in remembering, with joy and hope, the redeeming work of Christ which was not cheap, that cost him his life to save ours.

WITH GRATEFUL THANKSGIVING:

--For life of Christ, Son of God made man, born of Mary, crucified, died and buried.  

--For his resurrection on the third day completing his redemptive work. Christmas always leads to Good Friday and to Easter Sunday.

--For those who give of their time, money, and resources to help those who are less fortunate at Christmas and throughout the year.

IN PRAYERFUL CONCERN:

--For my uncle Greg, who will be undergoing full brain radiation this week in an attempt to kill multiple tumors.

--For those who feel the pain of depression, rejection, and loneliness more acutely during the holiday season.

--For those who are spending their first Christmas after the death of a loved one.

--For those who are traveling to visit family this season, and for their safe return home.

DEAR FATHER:

Thank you so much for this wonderful time of the year.  Give us the strength and wisdom to live in peace and make inroads for reconciliation as we gather with family and friends to celebrate the birth of your son, Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray:

Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
A-men.

Book Review: "Revival: Faith as Wesley Lived It," by Adam Hamilton

My background as a Christian is largely Calvinist Reformed, with a dash of Roman Catholicism thrown in.  So how in the world did I end up drawn to the United Methodist Church?  Well, as I've stated in previous entries, I eventually found the other perspectives to come up short when I tried to square them with what I actually believed, not only about Jesus, but about the world around us and how we, as Christians, should respond to that world.  Then came a man named John Wesley.

Now, I already knew a bit about Wesley.  When I was considering going into the ministry I studied a lot about different perspectives on Christianity.  I knew he was the founder of Methodism, and I knew he used to travel around and preach outdoors.  As a musician, liturgist, and worship leader I was more acquainted with his brother Charles, who penned many of the classic hymns of the faith.  I never seriously looked into the Wesley theology though.

That changed over this last year as my search for light, my search for the sacred, brought me to the United Methodist Church, where my parents have attended for 10 years or so since our church closed. I began to read about Wesley bit by bit, to see what it was already about.  I watched a biopic about his life, which I figured was going to be like a B movie type deal, but I actually found it to be quite good and inspiring.  This lead me to read more and more about him.

As all this was going on, I heard that our adult Sunday school class was going to study Wesley and his teachings through a book by Adam Hamilton.  Even though I work most Sunday mornings and can't attend class after church, I bought the book and jumped at the chance to learn more about this man and his philosophy.

I'm happy to say that the book was outstanding.  It's a fairly short read.  I was reading it one chapter per week in concert  with what the Sunday school class was doing, but I could have probably finished it pretty quickly otherwise.  Over the course of six chapters, Hamilton looks at various pivotal moments/time periods in the life of Wesley and talks about how they affected his teachings and ministry.  He covers Wesley's early life in Epworth, his formative years and the first rise of Methodism at Oxford, his short time in the United States which led him to a crisis of personhood and faith leading to his Aldersgate experience, the regeneration of his ministry of grace at Bristol, the rise of Methodism in London, and finally how Wesley persevered and guided his faith and the faith of others until he died in London at age 87.

However, the book is more than just a biographical sketch of John Wesley.   Adam Hamilton really dives into Wesleyan theology and how it effects us as Christians today, and how it should inspire us in our daily lives.  This was finally a version of Christianity that was in sync with what I believed to be true.

There's a couple of things that struck me.  First, Wesley preached that Christianity is for everyone, regardless of race, gender, social status, economic status, or anything else.  After his Aldersgate experience, he traveled throughout the English countryside and ministered to the needs of the poor, the hungry, and the marginalized: people who were not usually welcome in the churches of the day. Much of this was done outside in fields, on mountainsides, and in market squares.  These people flocked to his message of Christ for all.

Second, I like what Wesley had to say about grace.  For modern Protestant Christians, it's the grace of God through Christ that "saves" or justifies us.  It's a gift that can only be accepted and not earned. Wesley was opposed to ideas like Calvinist predestination which claims that God destined some to be saved and some to be condemned from the very beginning.  As mentioned, for Wesley, God's grace is for all.  Wesley mentions three kind of grace.  Prevenient grace is God's grace at work in our lives before we ever believe in him or seek him.  It guides us closer to God through those in our lives and events around us.  This kind of grace is not irresistable and will not override one's free well, but can lead us finally to God.  At this point, we experience Justifying grace, the acceptance of Christ in our lives.  But for Wesley, it didn't end there.  Further we can experience Sanctifying grace.  This is how God works in us after we become Christians. It's how we grow and mature in our faith and respond to the world around us, and for Wesley this was very important.

The last thing is how Wesley viewed works of mercy.  For Wesley it wasn't enough to have achieved justification.  God wants us to reach out to others, especially the poor and marginalized.  This doesn't just include preaching, it includes helping them, attending to actual physical needs. However again Wesley is quick to underline that these works of mercy are not the means to grace, but the ends of grace.  They are the result of the people of God actively going out into the world to serve others.

So these are just a few things highlighted throughout the book.  I would encourage anyone, Christian or not, to read it and think about how you can affect the world around you for the better.  Perhaps, like me, and like Wesley himself, you will find that your heart has been "strangely warmed" to the message and mission  of Jesus Christ.