Come and party with Jesus

Did Jesus know how to have a good time? There seem to be some real differences between the Jesus presented in many north-American churches and the one that is the real Jesus discovered in the accounts of his life in the New Testament. I believe that many modern churches have transformed the Christian faith into a rule-based enterprise. In contrast, the REAL life that Jesus offers is love-based and full of joy. If you think that these two ideas are the same, you are seriously messed up!

In the church plant in Rio, I can’t tell you how many people come to us completely blown-away by the spirit of joy that they find in our young Christian family. Many of those who visit the Victory Church have already “tried church” only to have every ounce of life sucked out of them by grace starved disciples. It is truly heart-breaking.

The REAL JESUS hardly ever missed a party! From the wedding feast in Canaan when he lived up the party by turning water into wine (John 2), to the bash at Matthew’s full of this new convert's “sinner” friends (Luke 5), a big part of Jesus' life and ministry was being part of social events (i.e., parties). Think about it. Maybe this is one of the reasons that “sinners” like Matthew, Zacchaeus, and others felt at ease around him . . . and this is definitely one of the reasons that the religious elite of the day didn’t.

The REAL JESUS constantly used the image of party to describe life in Heaven. Whether it’s the prodigal son returning home and his dad throwing a hum-dinger of a party (Luke 15), or his comparison of heaven and a feast in Matthew 8, or the parable of the Great Feast in Luke 14, one of Jesus’ favorite descriptions of Heaven was the image of a giant party. I can't wait to get there!

Obviously, this is not to say that Jesus never took life seriously. As part of his mission, he taught, instructed people to repent of their sins, and managed to live a completely sinless life. He also saw as his mission to show people that the life that God has in store for them is a full-on adventure. For those who think the Christian faith is about obeying an impossible list of rules, Jesus corrects them by saying, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11.28-30

When the apostle Paul writes to a rule-based Church in Galatia, he asks them, “What has happened to all your joy?” Galatians 4.15 Good question, Paul! What has happened to the joy of so many Christ-followers?

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." ' But wisdom is proved right by her actions." Matthew 11.18-19

Meet Jesus and start living.

Portuguese mistakes

In the car yesterday, Claudia, David and Maite (one of Claudia’s friends) were talking about High School Musical. If you don’t know what High School Musical is, then you don’t have kids. While they were talking about Chad (the character with the big hair in the picture), David said that he had a cool “Peru na sua cabeça” which from Portuguese literally means “a turkey on his head.” He meant to say that Chad used a wig (“Peruca”) but, instead, said he had a turkey (“peru”). It was pretty amusing and we all had a good laugh.

My Portuguese mistakes have been many. . .
Once I called a maid (“faixaneira”) a doorknob (“fechadura”). Another time, while preaching the story of the Prodigal Son, I called the fatted calf (“bezerro gordo”) the fatted bug (“bozoro gordo”). Somehow, the sermon lost some of its impact as I repeatedly and emotionally talked about how the father expressed his love by killing the fatted bug. The good news is that the Brazilians I know are just happy that I have bothered to learn their language and that, most of the time, I speak it well.

Scientific inquiry and God's existence

God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth. John 4.24

Oxford Biologist Richard Dawkins is openly challenging the Christian faith in the public arena. Athiest Phillip Pullman's books, including the popular The Golden Compass, intend to teach children to question God's existence. The debate over God's existence is in vogue today . . . although, really, it has been in vogue for the last 400 years. A word of advice is in order both for fervent defenders of God's existence and those who would question their belief in the Allmighty. SCIENCE CAN NEVER GIVE A DEFINITIVE ANSWER EITHER FOR, OR AGAINST, GOD'S EXISTENCE.

As Jesus affirmed in John 4.24, and as all believers in the Christian God know, the God of the Bible is a spiritual being. This means that he is outside of the realm of the material/physical/scientifically testable world. While this alone does not dismiss scientific debates about his reality as irrelevant, it does mean that such debates can not possibly give a final answer either for, or against, God's existence.

I, for one, have considered a lot of historical and contemporary arguments about this subject and am convicted that believing in God is completely rational and consistent with modern scientific inquiry. However, while science, philosophy, logic, and history are valid tools to judge truth claims, Christians must remember that, when the dust settles, the God question is ultimately one of faith.

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. Hebrews 11.1-3

Facing obstacles with faith

But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it. Numbers 14.24

Whether you are rich or poor, young or old, or whatever your situation, you will encounter obstacles and challenges. Problems and difficulties are part of life, right? In my life right now, I’ve got two kidney stones (ouch!!!) and my wife and I have just made a painful decision to return to the USA after more than 9 years of work in Brazil . . . just to name a couple!

What do you do when you are facing pain, doubts, or opposition? What do you do when you know what God’s will is for you, but it sure looks tough? Think about Caleb. He was one of the twelve spies who did an inventory of Canaan, the land promised by God to the Israelites after years in slavery. While all of the 12 spies concluded that the land was good, only two recommended that God’s people advance and take hold of it. Why? Ten members of the recon team saw strong enemies and fortified cities. Two, Caleb and Joshua saw the same thing, but remembered God’s promise to give the land to them, and made the decision to trust in God. Given the same data (good land, fortified cities, and strong opponents), ten decided to run away and two decided to trust in God and move forward.

When you face difficulties and obstacles, and you will, what will you do? Will fear dominate you? Or, will you choose to see with eyes of faith and move forward trusting in the One who has brought you this far? What you do when you face this moment makes all the difference.

For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5.4-5 (NLT)

Coffee-rights imperiled!!!

Move over BOSTON TEA PARTY, Gov. Romney's BOSTON COFFEE PARTY is on its way!

While the best looking man in politics made his major speech about his Mormon faith, the big news is in what he DIDN’T say. Reading between the lines, one can only conclude that Mitt’s secret agenda is to BAN COFFEE and other caffeinated drinks. Look out friends of java, an executive order shortly after Mitt’s inauguration which could criminalize your favorite drink.

Baseless accusations or insidious plot? You be the judge!

The official position of the Mormon Church (LDS) is that caffeinated drinks are against God’s will. http://lds.about.com/library/weekly/aa121202a.htm

In 1975 The New Era's Question/Answer section asked, "Is it against Church standards to drink cola beverages or any other beverage containing caffeine?" Bishop H. Burke Peterson, who was the First Counselor in the Presiding Bisopric (not sure what this means, but it sure sounds scary!) at the time answered:

“We know that cola drinks contain the drug caffeine. We know caffeine is not wholesome nor prudent for the use of our bodies. It is only sound judgment to conclude that cola drinks and any others that contain caffeine or other harmful ingredients should not be used.”

This explains a lot. Hearing that coffee is “not wholesome nor prudent” explains why my morning cup of coffee feels so naughty and why Life Insurance Companies rank excessive Coke drinking right up there with bungee jumping as far as a risk factor.

However, while my latte may be sinfully delicious, I am willing to take my chances on eternal judgment by enjoying it.

Are you willing to risk your constitutional right to a caffeine fix? If Mitt is elected, prepare yourself for a new age of Prohibition.

NOTE: Obviously, my coffee-ban bit is said with tongue firmly in cheek. Candidates should be judged by their character and their policy ideas, not my conspiracy theories.

See also: http://www.reuters.com/article/reutersEdge/idUSN0453249420071204

Modern translation of the book of Ecclesiastes

"Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun."

Ecclesiastes 2.11

This comic seems to sum up the cynical outlook of the book pretty well . . . with the exception of the faith-oriented last half of a chapter.

Never seen on a Rio de Janeiro postcard

1. Machinegun toting police. A friend of mine, Claudio, who is a Rio police officer, told me that the only urban area in the world where the regular police officers use automatic weapons is Rio de Janeiro. Every day, you see machine guns hanging out of the windows of police cars. It’s pretty weird, but as my wife said, if you were a police officer going up against Rio’s drug lords every day, you would probably keep the machine gun pretty close.

2. Insane traffic. A few years back, a friend of ours visited us in Rio. She was so traumatized by the crazy driving that she claims to have kept her eyes shut every time we were in the car. I’m not sure if I believe her, but I have to agree with her that traffic here is pretty scary. If you are a nervous person by nature and your are planning a trip to Rio de Janeiro, bring a blind-fold.

3. Abject poverty. Anyone visiting from the USA can’t help but be struck by the masses of poor people living on the hillsides, children living on the streets, and beggars pan-handling at the stoplights.

Rio is city full of inequalities, injustices and insanity. Rio needs Jesus. May God continue to work through the Victory Church to pour out his wisdom and grace upon this mega-city.