MM
the Philadelphia Manna January 2014
P H I L A D E L P H I A
PROMISE S readThePhillyManna.org
READY TO MAKE A KINGDOM IMPACT?
Discover How You Can Start a Church in Your Community.
Want to know more? Visit pennjerseycp.com. Ready to get involved? Email Cp@Brnonline for a free copy of Kingdom Matrix
Kingdom Matrix will help you find answers as to how the church properly fits into the larger picture of God’s activity. Become and agent of change in your community by becoming a part of church planting today.
M
the Philadelphia Manna | January 2014
Columns 07 | Signals 26 | Unfiltered
Features 08 | Spirit of Promise The purpose of a promise.
10 | Promises, Promises Not one has been broken.
14 | Promise Ring
15 | Standing on the Promises of God
Stay in Touch
God keeps His promises.
16 | Winter Blah Cue the blues. Winter is here.
18 | Unseen Substance What is true faith?
20 | Why God? Where is God when it hurts?
21 | Captive Audience Christmas is not about your perfection.
The joy of a promise kept.
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
3
M
the Philadelphia Manna | A Publication of Maranatha, Inc. Editor-In-Chief: Debbie Byrd Creative Director: Joe Willey Editorial Coordinator: Karen Punches Contributing Writers: Phil Bohaker, Josh Millwood, Karen Punches & Brittney Switala Philadelphia Publisher: Chuck Kieffer
Frequently Asked Questions Who We Are The Manna is published by Maranatha, Inc., a Christcentered ministry called to proclaim the Good News of faith and life in Jesus Christ through various forms of media, as God directs, until He returns. “Maranatha” (mer-a-nath´-a) is an Aramaic word found in I Corinthians 16:22. It is translated, “Our Lord, come!” Joy! 102.5 WOLC is also part of Maranatha, Inc. Its call letters stand for “Watch, Our Lord Cometh.” Maranatha!
Disclaimer Non-ministry advertisers are not required to subscribe to the “Statement of Faith” printed at right; nor are their businesses and products necessarily endorsed by the Manna, Joy! 102.5 WOLC, or Maranatha, Inc., whose viewpoints are not necessarily represented by the opinions or statements of persons interviewed in this magazine; nor are the viewpoints of its advertisers.
Statement of Faith We Believe… that the Holy Bible is the inspired, infallible and authoritative source of Christian doctrine and precept; that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; that the only hope for man is to believe in Jesus Christ, the virgin-born Son of God, who died to take upon Himself the punishment for the sin of mankind, and who rose from the dead so that by receiving Him as Savior and Lord, man is redeemed by His blood; that Jesus Christ in person will return to Earth in power and glory; that the Holy Spirit indwells those who have received Christ, for the purpose of enabling them to live righteous and godly lives; and that the Church is the Body of Christ and is comprised of all those who, through belief in Christ, have been spiritually regenerated by the indwelling Holy Spirit. The twin mission of the Church is worldwide evangelization, and nurture and discipline of Christians.
the Philadelphia Manna 3402 Edgemont Avenue, Suite 366 | Brookhaven, PA 19015 Manna e-mail: ckieffer@readthephillymanna.org
©2014 Maranatha, Inc. May not be reproduced without written consent of Maranatha, Inc. Photos: iStockphoto and Thinkstock
Maranatha, Inc. | Home of the Manna
On the Air A Life Saved, Twice Over For some, parenthood may be a choice, but to those of us who were never able to experience the birth of a child, a baby is a treasured gift from God. And yet, in my generation we’ve thrown away millions of lives while childless couples have paid millions of dollars to adopt from overseas. Life for the unborn in America has become as disposable as a Bic razor. There are many stories that speak volumes about the issue, but I have one story about a life saved that will move your soul. A story is a powerful thing, but rarely does that story have a voice. Anthony Mossburg’s life was spared at the last moment from a scheduled abortion. Thankfully, his heavenly father had other plans. Today, singer, songwriter Anthony Mossburg is an multi award winning acoustic artist from West Virginia who now resides in Columbus, Ohio. His bio is powerful. Anthony never thought much about God until his path crossed the life of a youth pastor in college. When he learned about Jesus and what He had done on the cross for him, he chose to change his lifestyle, accept the grace offered to him, and became a Christian. Now his life has become an adventure of unearthing truth, revealing personal struggles, celebrating successes, and helping others do the same. He shares his God-given gifts by writing moving lyrics to which people can relate. He creates and sings vibrant melodies with a deep, rich, and unforgettable voice which stick with you long after the songs are over. Over the past few months we’ve aired tracks from his Rambler CD to rave reviews by our listeners on Big House radio. Anthony has a gift and richness that creates powerful images in the minds of those who embrace his music. I’m excited to share the release of his latest project entitled “Whiskey and Wine.” The video was released six days ago and already has over 7,000 views.
It can be found on YouTube at http://www. youtube.com/watch?v=6EwLEyCCWII This is a beautiful song about the strengths, the struggles, and the faith of Johnny Cash and June Carter—and how we can find ourselves and our own relationships in much of what they went through. The song is full of analogies about being very different than someone else and how difficult that can be at times. Anthony describes the song about belonging or being an outcast, about running or staying. It’s about a strong faith—or one that’s there, but just...more shaky. Though we can sometimes see few similarities with another person, every relationship whether romantic or not , can benefit from love, faith, hard work, and determination. Through these efforts, we can so often still find a way to make things work. I hope you will enjoy this tribute to the lives of Johnny and June as much as I have. Anthony’s prayer is that it touches your heart and somehow helps you in your own life. This week, as you reflect on the unborn and the life God himself has blessed you with, think about the music of Anthony Mossburg. As a foster parent of eight kids and a dad who could never have children I know I will. Every life saved from an abortion center could be the next Anthony Mossburg. Unfortunately there are 40 million children who will never get a chance to sing. It causes one to wonder about the countless untold stories we’ve missed. Chuck Kieffer is a Pastor, Publisher, Anti Hunger Activist and Host of Big House Radio, heard Wednesday afternoon on www.wybf.com from 3-5pm. He and his wife Joy operate The Giving Garden Food Pantry and Urban Garden in Wallingford, Pennsylvania.
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
5
Go Out
Philadelphia
Kennett Chocolate Lovers Festival 2/9 | Kennett Square, Pennsylvania www.kennettchocolate.org Calling all chocoholics! Hundreds of chocolate treats including cakes, brownies, candies, cookies and cupcakes will be available for tasting at this festival benefiting the United Way of Southern Chester County.
Delco Story Slam 2/19 | Newport Square, Pennsylvania www.delcostoryslam.com The Delco Story Slam is a monthly event where anyone can get on stage and tell a five minute story based on the theme of the night.
Album Release Party 1/18 | Doylestown, Pennsylvania www.karensplace.org The No Longer is comprised of 3 brothers from Philadelphia, Nick, Luke, and Geoff Desiato. The band has made a concerted effort to create projects that represent them musically—foregoing high-priced gadgetry in favor of maintaining their musical integrity.
The Cat’s Pajamas 1/25 | Wilmington, Delaware www.queen.worldcafelive.com The Cat’s Pajamas, Philadelphia’s premier family band, brings its high-octane kid-rock to World Cafe Live for its annual December concert!
Free First Sundays at the Barnes First Sunday | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania www.barnesfoundation.org On the first Sunday of every month, visitors enjoy free admission, family entertainment and informative seminars from 10 am to 6 pm.
An Evening at The Baldwin School 1/29 | Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania www.baldwinschool.org/mnightshyamalan The Baldwin School is pleased to welcome M. Night Shyamalan to our campus to discuss his new book, I Got Schooled: The Unlikely Story of How a Moonlighting Movie Maker Learned the Five Keys to Closing America’s Education Gap.
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
7
Spirit of Promise By Phil Bohaker
W
e are culturally conditioned to take promises lightly. Politicians make endless promises, then routinely break them in the name of expediency. Marriages begin with sacred vows of lifelong commitment, then as often as not end in divorce. Business partners strike a deal, then undermine the agreement behind the scenes. We say what we need to say, then do what we need to do. What seemed like a good idea five minutes ago doesn’t make me happy anymore, so I cut my losses and move on to the next thing. This cultural tide is a danger in many a Christian’s daily life. Many of us do strive to live with integrity, to let our “yes” be “yes” and our “no” be “no.” But the cultural norms pressure us and threaten to seep in and taint our lives. With a divorce rate among Christian couples equal to the national average, just to cite one example, the Christian community is by no means exempt. We make promises we never intend to keep or, at least, fail to keep once times get tough. We are wise to take note of how God makes promises and, more importantly, how He backs them up. There are many examples of God’s promises in Scripture but perhaps
none more important to the Christian life than the promise of the Holy Spirit. To speak of the promise of the Holy Spirit is to speak of both the thing promised and the promise of something else to come. Jesus sat His disciples down for a talk just before ascending to heaven and told them to wait for the arrival of the Holy Spirit, who in His words was the “promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4). Twice Paul makes reference to the “promised Spirit” (Galatians 3:14; Ephesians 1:13). Jesus had promised the Spirit would come to fill the void caused by his own departure. He had done miraculous things by the power of the Holy Spirit; it was time to pass the baton to His followers. They would carry on his mission in the power of the Holy Spirit, not just replicating His ministry but even doing greater works than He did (John 14:12). In the mystery of the triune God, the risen Christ would be present with his Church through the ministry of the Spirit. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the promise to every believer. The connection between Spirit and promise also points us to our future. The Holy Spirit is the guarantee of God’s promise of eternal life to all who believe, a kind of “down
payment” for our rich inheritance to come (Ephesians 1:1314). There is no reason for believers in Christ to fret over the state of our souls, for God sealed us airtight and leakproof with his living, personal assurance of our future salvation. He has given us Himself as proof that He won’t forget his promise. The temptation to make flippant promises and break them easily is a threat at some point or another in any Christian’s life. This is not to say that all promises are of equal spiritual significance. Canceling dinner plans and ending a marriage are not comparable betrayals of vows. Yet, there is a commonality present in all promise breaking: something better came along. Or, perhaps, something more important came along. Some such instances are justified, of course. Rare is the employer who would call an employee to account for breaking the terms of employment agreement if she had a family member rushed to the hospital and was forced to leave work early. These are the urgencies of life, the exceptions to the rules of promise making. But when it comes to moral issues, situations which test our integrity, the space for compromise
quickly narrows. God has given us all we need to stay true to our word by making it clear that He is always true to His Word. The assurance of our salvation, rooted in the death and resurrection of Christ, is the antibiotic to the plague of promise breaking. What could we possibly be lacking when, though we were dead in sin, God “made us alive together with Christ…and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 2:5-6)? And if that were not enough, He gave us the Holy Spirit to prove it. In fact, the Holy Spirit’s testimony to our luxurious inheritance is protection from any temptation in life to think that what we have is not enough or that the world’s poisoned apple will satisfy our hunger. What more could one want but what God has already promised? What has God promised that is not already as good as done? Those are the questions to ask when a onceuttered promise feels a little burdensome, and you want to lighten your load. Ask the questions, then stop and listen for the Holy Spirit to supply the answer. readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
9
Promises, Promises By Jeff Friend
A
s 2014 emerges, it seems another word—promise—can be added to the growing list of terms that Americans find irrelevant today. Put it right below the other words like faithfulness, honesty, commitment, morality and all the rest of those tired old notions from past generations. They have been replaced by concepts like “me first,” “instant gratification” and “rules were made to be broken.” A promise? That’s so 20th century. But before we totally cleanse our collective vocabulary of the word, maybe we should take one last look at what the big deal about the word was in the first place. After all, it has been around for so long and was so widely cherished, it must have had some importance. Indeed, a promise is a big deal. Promises can be written or oral, implied or direct, short-term or long-term, between people or organizations and many other forms. You can even make a promise to yourself, like “I promise to start exercising.” A promise is simply an assurance of something that will happen in the future. But it all hinges on the integrity and dependability of the one making the commitment. We all make promises every day—to be at a meeting, to attend a child’s sports event, to call a friend. Yes, even to pray for someone. But how good are we at keeping all those promises? Those may be relatively small obligations, but if we have trouble keeping them, how do we do at the bigger ones like legal contracts or marriage vows? Aren’t they just more formal types of promises? It’s easy to make a promise, but often very hard to keep them. We usually don’t promise something with the intention of not following through. We just get busy, distracted or simply forget. But how do you feel when you are the one affected by a broken promise? Those times when someone you totally believed would be true to his word wasn’t. We all know how that feels. Breaking a promise made to a family member or friend certainly causes disappointment, hard feelings and a loss of trust and credibility. Even after an apology, it may take years for those wounds to heal, if ever. But what about when we don’t keep a promise we made to God? Sometimes we tend to make a promise to God when we are in trouble. “Lord, if you get me out of this mess, I’ll never miss another church service.” “God, I’ll give 20 percent of my income to the church if you’ll just provide the money for me to pay this bill.” Unfortunately, most of these “desperation promises” are quickly forgotten once the crisis passes.
At other times, we make well-intentioned and sincere promises to God, like Peter did. He assured Jesus, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you” (Matthew 26:35, NIV). Within a few hours, Peter had disowned Jesus three times, and the realization that he had broken his promise to Jesus devastated him. Humans may have great difficulty in following through on promises, but God has a perfect record. The Bible uses a variety of words to express when God makes a promise—swears, says, covenants, oath, prophecy—but the end result is the same. If God makes an assurance that some action is going to happen in the future, it will always happen. The Bible is full of evidence, starting in Genesis. In Genesis 3:15, God specifically told the serpent, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between her offspring and yours; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel” (NIV). The birth, death and resurrection of Jesus fulfilled that promise. God made many other covenants including those with Abraham, Moses, David and Noah. Throughout the ages, God has proven that He is trustworthy, faithful and unchanging concerning His promises. If God promised something, you can count on it. Joshua confirms that to be true when he writes, “Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled” (Joshua 21:45, NIV). If you need more proof of the enduring nature of God’s promises, just look into the sky after it rains. See a rainbow? That is God reminding us of His promise to never again destroy the whole earth by a flood. “Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth” (Genesis 9:16, NIV). An ‘everlasting covenant’. His promises never expire. God made a lot of promises in the Old Testament and Jesus made many in the New Testament, and not one was broken. But some of the most exciting promises wait to be completed, and they are part of the foundation of our hope for eternity. “In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:2, NIV). So even though our culture may want to get rid of “promises,” Christians can be assured that God will continue to honor His promises forever. You can depend on it.
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
11
Promise Ring By Josh Millwood
W
eddings have become a spectator sport. We go. We watch. We eat cake, dance and try to photobomb every picture. The end. Billions of dollars are spent in America putting on spectacular shows, with elegant or over-the-top themes (maybe even a Sylvester Stallone classic Over The Top theme). There are reality series about weddings. There are endless movies about brides running away or grooms learning to dance. Marriage is the new professional sporting event. But it used to be a covenant. You are required by law to have a witness when you get married. Even at the Justice of the Peace. Even in Vegas. Why? Because this promise matters. Western civilization is built on the back of the stability of family. The definition of family has changed many times. The most recent has been a swing away from the nuclear family (Dad + Mom = Children) to anything goes, whose math doesn’t quite add up. Bear in mind, families used to place a higher importance on grandparents, cousins, creepy uncles and, the further back you go, multiple wives and concubines. But in all forms, the family quite simply means stability. Every wedding ceremony should have a bit in the middle, somewhere after the introduction and prayer—but before the unity candle—where the bride and groom can address the attendees. I imagine this address to go like this: Groom: Thank you all for coming, even the ones of you who think [Bride] is crazy for marrying me. It means a lot. Bride: I’m not crazy. I’m not pregnant. I truly love him. I promise. Groom: Speaking of promises, we aren’t the only ones making them today. You see, we invited you here not just to witness this awesome union [Bride/Groom High Five], but to make us a promise… Bride: We simply can’t do this on our own. We need you to support us with love and wisdom and to hold us accountable all the days of our lives. Groom: We are going to do our best to honor one another and to live godly lives. But we aren’t delusional. We know that over half of marriages today end in divorce and quite frankly that terrifies us. Bride: We want your help to skew those statistics. With your help, we can learn to protect one another, forgive one another and keep our family whole. But that will take all of you reminding us that this promise we’re making today is a lifelong thing. Groom: If you can’t agree to help us in this journey, then please leave now. Seriously, we’ll wait. We spent a load of money on the reception and if you can’t agree to help our marriage succeed I really don’t want to share any of my cake with you. Bride: Do you promise to be there for us? Attendees: WE DO! Bride: Awesome! Groom: Thanks! Refreshing, right? That’s the whole point of why we should attend weddings. We are supposed to be stepping up and letting this fledgling family know that we’ve got their back. We won’t let them down. We will eat their cake...
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
13
MM
readThePhillyManna.org
P H I L A D E L P H I A
Share it with anyone! Use email, Facebook, Twitter to send a great magazine to a great friend
Standing on the Promises of God By Brittney Switala
I
f you were to ask most, they probably wouldn’t be able to repeat any actual promises from God. Of course there is a belief in the absolute Truth of the Bible and its life-giving nature, but how do you apply these promises? Clearly it is important to look at scriptural context when deciding if a verse is a promise of what can be expected from God. A better thought process may be, “How can I align my heart to what the whole of Scripture is telling me?” instead of, “Here’s a promise of what God owes me.” Christian publishers thought they knew. Twenty years ago pocket-sized promise books were all the rage. There were promise books marketed specifically as teen graduation gifts, wedding gifts and gifts for new parents. The books were little more than Bible reference books (a condensed concordance) designed around topics of particular interest to each demographic. These books held wonderful scriptures to encourage and challenge, even memorize, but they weren’t specifically promises or covenants. Interestingly enough, the word “promise” itself is only used 13 times in the King James Version of the Bible. Various websites say there were between 3,500-5,000 promises of God in the Bible. Dictionary.com defines a promise (noun) in the following ways: 1) a declaration that something will or will not be done, given, etc., and 2) an express assurance on which expectation is to be based. Given a dictionary understanding of the word promise, let us determine whether two popular verses which are often deemed as “life verses” or promises are truly assurances for today and for the situations in which they are regularly applied. The first is Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” This passage is found in a book of the Bible that is rarely quoted, except for this one verse. The book of Jeremiah is in the Old Testament and he was a prophet to the Jews. Jeremiah is writing to the Jews taken by Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Babylonian Empire, from the land of Judah to live in the region of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar took Jews to Babylon in a series of captivities. Jeremiah was part of a group that was left in Jerusalem before its eventual destruction and the final deportation. In the context of the verse, the Jews were being told that, for 70 years, they would live in exile but that a
hope and future was to come. Some well-respected theologians would argue that verse has no modern-day application, while others, like pastor/ author John Piper would say this passage applies to the Church today. John Piper said in a sermon on this passage: “Everything that God meant to be fulfilled for His people Israel now is going to be fulfilled in His people of the New Covenant. So that not only Jews but also Gentiles, through faith in the Messiah, become part of the covenant people of God, so that every promise can be laid hold on by Gentiles who are in the Messiah, in Christ Jesus.” So, if Jeremiah 29:11 is understood to be for us, here are some important notes: “…Plans to prosper you…” As believers in Christ, we know that we have a positive end in Heaven with Christ (1 Peter 1:3-5). It does not promise financial prosperity or an easy life. “…And not to harm you…” God allows trials and persecution to help us grow in our faith. He also sometimes rescues people from harm (2 Thessalonians 1:4, 2 Peter 2:9). A second commonly-cited life verse or promise is Proverbs 3:5 and 6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” The book of Proverbs is a book of wise sayings and principles, not promises. Solomon wrote much of it to instruct his son about right living. That being said, one must be careful not to cling to any verse in Proverbs as an IOU from God. Proverbs 3:5-6 is consistent with the message of all Scripture that the Lord wants us to seek Him in all things (Deuteronomy 4:29, Acts 17:24-28). The Proverbs themselves provide much of the wisdom and understanding necessary to have a straight path. Proverbs 3:5-6 encourages seeking Scriptures for life wisdom to make ethical choices, but they are not necessarily a promise that the Lord will give clear direction at all times. We can be assured God has good plans to preserve and refine His Church. This may not mean individual believers won’t suffer physical harm and even death on Earth for their faith in Christ. It may not mean every decision will be easy or even clear. It does mean something far better and more rewarding: God will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). And that is a promise you can stand on. readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
15
C
hristmas is over. New Year’s, too. The artificial tree is stripped and awaiting its usual corner in the attic. Strings of lights are now stuffed into boxes. All the fudge has been eaten. Presents need to be returned at the mall. No more Burl Ives singing or television specials to watch. You’re back to the grind at work thinking, “How long until Memorial Day?” Right about now, maybe you’re feeling as deflated as the blow-up Rudolph in your neighbor’s yard. If this describes you, it’s safe to say that you have the blues (cue the B.B. King guitar lick). It’s okay, though— you’re not alone. Most of us have gone through the postholiday doldrums at some point. All the celebrations are over and we’re left looking down the barrel of a long, cold winter and wondering how we’re going to make it through day after
ordinary day. Well, there is good news. Believe it or not, regular days can be filled with as much hope and wonder as the Christmas season. How? Because our traditions may come and go, but the Lord never changes, His promises are forever, and His attention is never away from those who belong to Him through Jesus Christ. In fact, He is always watching you with keen interest, as if it were just the two of you and no one else. You’re that important. In Scripture, the psalmist writes, “O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord. You go before me
Winter Blah By Karen Punches
and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!” (Psalm 139:1-6). If you wanted to personalize it, perhaps it could go something like this: O Lord, you see me when I hit the snooze button. You watch me as I eat my cereal. You’re with me as I’m putting gas in my car. You know I’m anxious about my staff meeting this morning. You were with me when I bought paper towels at the store. You made me cross paths with that person today. You know I love singing that song. You understand what I worried about before falling asleep. No matter how seemingly trivial our daily movements and tasks may be, the fact that they matter to God and have already been planned out by Him is what brings meaning to the mundane. It’s the knowledge that the possibilities are
endless when we consider that He is always working behind the scenes on our behalf. Author Elizabeth George writes, “We must never panic, never fear, never wonder, never doubt, and never question if God is in control or what He is doing. True beauty and strength believes in the complete oversight of God, even over the minutia of life.” So, when routines, errands, schedules and appointments—even boredom—tempt us into wondering whether any purpose is behind this “same old, same old” day, we have to adjust our attitudes and remember what the psalmist went on to write in Psalm 139:16: “You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in Your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.”
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
17
Unseen Substance By Margaret Manning
A
t any given moment during any time of the year, were you to visit my home, you would find a stack of books on the nightstand beside my bed. Generally, these books represent my varied interests of study: gardening, theology, psychology, and current events. But recently, a new pile of books has sprung up on my nightstand. I’ve begun collecting books on physics. Now, for those who love science, and particularly physics, this comes as no surprise. Why wouldn’t I have already accumulated a library full of physics books? But for those who, like me, didn’t graduate beyond basic biology, you might think me crazy, or masochistic, or both. Whatever the case, my interest in physics began by considering this particular statement from Hebrews 11:1: “Faith is…the conviction of things not seen.” What a complex and seemingly paradoxical statement about the nature of faith! How can we have a conviction in things that are beyond our senses, beyond our perception and understanding? Moreover, how do we maintain the conviction of faith in the absence of concrete evidence? Can we really sustain conviction in that which is beyond our conscious experience of the world? Physics in its simplest definition is the study of matter and how it works. Physicists are concerned with the material and the energy makes up the universe. As such, the discipline of physics deals with elements so small that they cannot be seen even with the aid of the most power-
Maranatha, Inc. | Home of the Manna
ful microscope. John Polkinghorne, physicist and Anglican priest, explains, “We now know that atoms themselves are made out of still smaller constituents (quarks, gluons, and electrons….we do not see quarks directly, but their existence is indirectly inferred).” While physicists can only see, as it were, an indirect inference to these tiny realities of matter, they point to and indeed make up matter and energy all around us. I cannot see them, nor do I contemplate their existence on a day to day basis; but I trust they are there and at work when I sit down on my office chair each day! In the same way, the Christian scriptures affirm that faith discerns the substance behind the often murky shadows of our reality. Indeed, the discipline of faith is to train one to have a different kind of sight. The apostle Paul wrote that “what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot is eternal…for we walk by faith not by sight” (2 Corinthians 4:18, 5:7). The conviction of faith, therefore, is the ability to see through our circumstances to the spiritual realities behind them. The grace and strength promised in weakness, for example, the wisdom that is found in the foolishness of the cross and in the suffering Christ, or the blessing and joy that is found among those who weep, all bind us to a concrete reality in God even while we “see through a mirror dimly” (1 Corinthians 13:12). It is an eternal reality experienced in the midst of our temporal lives.
In this sense, then, the conviction of faith calls us to go beyond certainty to wisdom. As Scottish author George MacDonald once noted; “Men [sic] accept a thousand things without proof everyday, and a thousand things may be perfectly true and have no proof. But if a man [sic] cannot be sure of a thing, does that automatically mean it is false?” Indeed, all kinds of assumptions are made each and every day—that my chair won’t fail, or my car will get me from one place to another without injury, or I will see my loved ones again at the end of the day—without any certainty or proof. Perhaps the conviction of faith seems more tenuous when suffering comes. The writer of Hebrews names ancient men and women who endured in faith. They endured even when the promise was not received or seen, even when they were “tortured, mocked, scourged, stoned, imprisoned, sawn in two, killed with the sword, impoverished afflicted and ill-treated” (Hebrews 11:35-38). These were the ones of whom the world was not worthy, the writer tells us. They saw beyond their circumstances to that eternal reality. They saw there is something greater than comfort or ease in this world, and they held on— however tenuously—to faith. The “conviction of things not seen” is the substance of faith. It is the attention to those seemingly immaterial realities that are the true substance behind the circumstances of our daily lives. The conviction of faith is the
ability to see in the disparate threads of our lives a beautiful garment, a useful quilt, or a magnificent tapestry. The conviction of faith is the ability to see beyond the finite to the infinite—in much the same way as physicists have discovered the infinite world of sub-atomic particles. Those invisible particles form an intricate tapestry of essential structure for everything that we see around us. In the classic story of The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupery writes of a little fox who promises to reveal the secret of life to the young boy in the story. When the secret is finally revealed it is this: “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”In a similar manner, faith sees what cannot be ascertained by chasing after certainty. Rather, faith offers the conviction of what is yet unseen as the substance of reality. Margaret Manning is a member of the speaking and writing team at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Seattle, Washington. Unseen Substance by Margaret Manning, A Slice of Infinity, originally printed May 14, 2013 (www.rzim. org). Used by permission of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
19
Why God? By Karen Punches
T
he staggering diagnosis following a routine medical test. The news that a newborn daughter is blind. The phone call that a son was killed in a car crash. The good-bye note left on the counter at home... Tragedy and heartbreak take countless forms. No human exempt, no life left untouched. Does the world ever make less sense than when we find ourselves entrenched in it? We’re shaken to our very foundation. It seems everything we think we know or ever believed to be true is now in question. If God is good and loving, why did He permit this? Would calling out to the heavens serve any purpose? Is God even listening? Does He care? Even the great author, academic and Christian apologist C.S. Lewis was in such a place at one time. When his wife, Helen, died of bone cancer, he took to emptying his emotional tumult inside a journal, which he later published as A Grief Observed, but under a pseudonym instead of his real name, for fear that his writing would be too raw for his readers. A man who always seemed to have the answers, Lewis was now having to grapple with his faith in the midst of personal anguish like he had never before experienced. “Meanwhile, where is God?” he writes. “...Go to Him when your need is desperate, when all other help is vain, and what do you find? A door slammed in your face, and a sound of bolting and double bolting on the inside. After that, silence. You might as well turn away. The longer you wait, the more emphatic the silence will become. There are no lights in the windows. It might be an empty house. Was it ever inhabited? It seemed so once. And that seem-
Maranatha, Inc. | Home of the Manna
ing was as strong as this. What can this mean? Why is He so present a commander in our time of prosperity and so very absent a help in time of trouble?” Lewis was asking honest questions. Many of us have asked the same ones, wondering where our help is and why we’re having to endure something so horrible. But in the end, they are questions we may never receive answers to, at least not on this side of eternity. God says in Scripture, “For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9). We don’t have the capacity to grasp Him or the way He chooses to direct our lives. A circumstance we may perceive to be a cruel blow is viewed differently by God, Who can see all of time at once and knows what He is going to do. But we probably don’t want to hear that during our pain. We don’t want to be told, “Just remember, all things work together for good.” We’re hurt—angry, even. Angry at God? Maybe extremely angry with Him. But grief is a process and one that must be undertaken so we’re ultimately in a position to receive from God what we need in order to move on. Although he suffered greatly, C.S. Lewis was eventually able to come to this conclusion: “When I lay questions before God I get no answer,” he writes. “But rather a special sort of ‘No answer.’ It is not the locked door. It is more like a silent, certainly not uncompassionate, gaze. As though He shook His head not in refusal but waiving the question. Like, ‘Peace, child; you don’t understand.’”
Captive Audience By Karen Punches
T
hese days, anybody can be a celebrity. Thanks to YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and blogs, we can be an overnight, virtual sensation with the world as our audience. Hilarious, offensive, provocative—the more shock value, the better. People are waiting to be entertained. Who knows? You might be the next big thing to hit the internet. Popularity can be intoxicating and addictive. It feeds our innate selfish desire that says, “Look at me! Look at me!” Is it possible, however, for fame to be beneficial, for the allure not to overtake the ego? It depends on our focus. The Bible says that crowds clamored to John the Baptist, the man God appointed to announce the coming of the promised Messiah—Jesus Christ—and to preach His message of repentance to the Jewish nation. He was a unique man, from his clothes to his diet. He spoke the truth of salvation with authority and did not shy away from rebuking the religious leaders for their hypocrisy. Naturally, he garnered quite a following. But John the Baptist was only the agent of belief; not the object. When Jesus began His earthly ministry and people began to follow Him, some of John the Baptist’s disciples approached him with that concern. But John, who knew his place and purpose, pointed away from himself and toward his Superior. “...You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for Him.’ It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the best man is simply glad to stand with him and hear
his vows. Therefore, I am filled with joy at His success. He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less. He has come from above and is greater than anyone else” (John 3:28-31 NLT). John continues to exalt Jesus to the people: “‘He testifies about what He has seen and heard, but how few believe what He tells them! Anyone who accepts His testimony can affirm that God is true. For He is sent by God. He speaks God’s words, for God gives Him the Spirit without limit. The Father loves His Son and has put everything into His hands. And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment” (vv. 32-36). It’s not about us. We are not the source of God’s light. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the Light. He reveals the way to us and guides us along that path. John the Baptist knew that he was never to be the main attraction. He could have absorbed the hype and celebrity status; but he didn’t. A humble servant, he fulfilled his role by continually directing people to Jesus. Who are we living to make famous? Ourselves—or Christ? Perhaps you don’t have your own YouTube channel where you’ve uploaded videos of yourself preaching the gospel message, but your life is preaching something. From your own household to the community where you work, shop, and eat...people are watching. May our everyday conduct humbly point to the truly Famous One.
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
21
Unfiltered
Think Out Loud
Dig My Mood: Nick Lowe If you are into music, then you are probably into Nick Lowe. The simplicity of what he writes belies the diffi culty of writing simply. Nick Lowe has gained notoriety not only as singer songwriter— “(What’s so Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding”,“I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass”—but as a producer of Elvis Costello, who also recorded Lowe’s songs. Nick Lowe with his wave of white hair and the gentlemanly suit is as smooth as glass. Boy, does he know how to make a broken heart seem desirable. In fact, it really seems cool to be broken hearted. Lowe doesn’t sing about lost love through tearful blue eyes though. He sings about it almost joyfully, sometimes smirking his way through it. Maybe it’s just his stiff British upper lip refusing to tremble in spite of the remorse. Dig My Mood is a gem, full of beautiful and thoughtful songs. “You Inspire Me” is a gentle ballad full of appreciation for his love. “Freezing” is so atmospheric and reminiscent of a frosted winter day that it’s awkward to listen to if it’s over 40 degrees and there is any blue sky shouldering its way between the clouds. “Failed Christian” is an honest snapshot of many people’s thoughts, maybe even autobiographical. “I’m a failed Christian, I don’t go to church, I smoke and I drink, I lie and I curse” Lowe nearly whispers. Lowe is good at picking his way through his observations in rhyme. Then he gets to his point, “I’m a failed Christian, I’ve got my own church, I pray with my soul to this great universe”. Hmm. “All over the world, the blood’s on their hands, religious instruction I can’t understand, I’m a failed Christian.” As keen as he is, Lowe misses the point and looks at the externals of “failed Christians”, and misses Christ. Dig My Mood isn’t cheap kid’s stuff rock ‘n roll. Nothing here will make you bang your head or wander off into the night. Dig My Mood is thoughtful, beautifully written music, if you like music. It just isn’t good theology. - Joe Willey
Maranatha, Inc. | Home of the Manna
The Screwtape Letters: C.S. Lewis We are not privy to the letters of devils of any sort and maybe that is the intriguing thing about C.S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters. The novel is a fictional account of a correspondence between two devils—one, named Screwtape, who is experienced in tempting humans; and the other, his nephew and newly-assigned tempter, Wormwood. What we peek into is as fascinating as it is chilling. The Screwtape Letters highlights petty irritations and self-important thoughts that we all live with daily and shows them to be just ridiculous pride on our parts that lead us away from serving God. Nothing, to the devils’ minds, seems to be as effective as the mundane parts of life and that feeling of growing hot and then cold about a particular person or subject. Sometimes it feels like they are reading our mail, instead of we reading theirs. Screwtape as a character is almost likable…almost. He is intelligent, proper and intimate. But, with great skill, Lewis shows how those attributes are turned into evils as Screwtape reveals his calculating, conniving and treacherous nature. In short, he is prideful. Pride is the central message of The Screwtape Letters. And, here is where the book is most chilling. Whether it is appealing to the pride of the human “subject” through subtlety, as Screwtape recommends Wormwood to do, or as a commentary on one of the obvious characteristics of a devil, we can see ourselves. We are victim or victimizer. We cannot escape that we are either struggling to get away from evil or to get closer to it. There is no other way. - Joe Willey
The Sun: Frans Masereel Could you tell an epic story in images instead of words? For the woodcut novelist, Frans Masereel, the question seemed like a good one. The Sun is the story of an artist, presumably Masereel, that falls asleep while working at his table and dreams his spirit is doggedly drawn to the sun. The sun really isn’t the sun to his disembodied self, but an ideal of enlightenment and perfection. His alternative self falls from the window while reaching for the white-hot ideal and begins a wandering journey toward his goal. He struggles and strives to reach the sun and just as importantly, make others see that it is worth reaching for too. For the trouble, he is ridiculed and scorned. He listens to the critics for a brief time and searches for his ideal in booze, but is only derailed from his objective. He searches for it in sex, but is only convinced of its futility, even while basking in its afterglow. He stretches for the sun from the tops of trolley cars and on the masts of ships. Diving into its brilliant reflection, he only sinks to the bottom of the sea. When his last attempt to reach the sun in an airplane is thwarted by a crash, his spirit walks up the rays to ultimately reach his goal. Immediately, he bursts into flames and like Icarus, falls to earth. Death does not stop his wandering, as his skeleton dances through space. Whether Masereel meant to echo the words of Solomon in the book of Ecclesiasties is not revealed, but “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity,” booms from the illustrated pages of The Sun. Masereel was certainly onto something that is like plasma in our blood—our search for significance. What Masereel missed though, is what King Solomon discovered and put down so desperately in Ecclesiasties. There is no ideal, outside of God. A life spent desiring Him is the ultimate in significance. Masereel’s great talent in the graphic arts and questioning curiosity are quite capable of handling the question he asked in print. The sad thing is that The Sun stops in the very spot it should begin. - Joe Willey
Let it Bleed: The Rolling Stones A friend once said, “Admit it, if your life depended on one band, wouldn’t youpick the Rolling Stones?” Anyone that has ever seen the Rolling Stones live knows how it is. Let it Bleed is the band’s influential 1969 album that can’t be ignored as a great rock album. It sounds great. You can love or hate Mick Jagger’s voice or delivery, but it is anything but ordinary. Keith Richards’ guitar playing is edgy but tasteful and he doesn’t waste one twangy note. The rest of the band and the guests are flawlessly supportive of the interplay between Jagger and Richards. What else you could do if you played with those two? Incredible album, but what should you make of it? There are two songs that bookend Let it Bleed, two songs that are ambitious and dead on—“Gimme Shelter” and “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” It’s all there, great delivery, shimmering guitar work and even The London Bach Choir. But what are they getting at? “Gimme Shelter” is contagious and has an easy to sympathize with lyric, “War children, is just a shot away,” but there never is any answer as to where shelter is found. Take away the contagious attitude and the hair trigger guitar and it’s empty. Is empty what someone is supposed to hold on to? Is that the offer of hope? “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” burns slower than a Lucky Strike. It has another great hook, but is settling for what you don’t really want all there is? Maybe it resounds with people because at some point everyone knows what it’s like to not get what you want. What is hoped for is someone to reconcile what is wanted and what is needed. Someone doesn’t need to be wealthy or to sleep around or to be blinded to their problems for just a weekend. Don’t people want to be clean, new and at peace? Don’t they really want a shelter? So if you listen to Let it Bleed you’ll probably get it, but that is what will leave you short. It can’t bleed forever. At some point it has to heal. - Joe Willey
readthephillymanna.org | January 2014
23
MM
readThePhillyManna.org
P H I L A D E L P H I A
Advertise with us
Philadelphia! CONACT
ckieffer@readthephillymanna.org