He’s Got Plans of His Own

Scripture: Matthew 16.21-28; Romans 12.9-21


There is a scene in the movie, Dead Poets Society, in which English teacher John Keating (Robin Williams) gives his class their first lesson in Introduction to Poetry. Mr. Keating’s first instruction to his boys is: Turn to the Introduction, “How to recognize good poetry” – and please rip that page out of your books.

The boys in his class give a collective, “Say again?” They’re sure they’ve heard wrong.

“Go ahead,” Mr. Keating repeats, “Rip it out. Rip it out now.”

The reason Mr. Keating engages in this unorthodox activity is to boldly emphasize that this particular essay on how to rate a poem based on a geometric scale is absurd. Poetry is not written that way, cannot be read that way, and will not be quantified that way.

Reading poetry has a lot in common with reading the Bible. Don Miller talks about how popular it is to come up with formulas and steps to be successful in life. Writers do this. Preachers and self-help gurus do this.

An old youth group member of mine called me the other day to ask me what I thought about Joel Osteen. If you haven’t heard, Joel Osteen is pastor in Houston, Texas of what is estimated as the largest Christian church in the United States. Osteen is author of the best-selling book, Your Best Life Now. When she asked me what I thought about Osteen, my first words were, “He smiles a lot.” After listening to Osteen preach on tv and reading more about him, this is what I think: He offers decent advice to people on how to improve their lives and he often does it in easy-to-follow steps. He is the latest incarnation of Norman Vincent Peale. Remember him anyone? There is nothing wrong with this. But it occurs to me, that you can listen to Osteen, follow his steps, and be fairly successful, and leave God completely out of the equation. In other words, it sounds like Your Best Life Now is really something you can do pretty much on your own, its all a matter of doing the steps and working the formula. It’s another installment in that popular series of books for Dummies ( Computers for Dummies, etc.) – this one is God for Dummies. Maybe that was harsh. Anyway. . .

Don Miller writes, “Apparently Jesus had not heard of the wonderful tool of acronym. He mostly told stories, some of which were outlandish. Step one: Eat My Flesh. Step two: Drink My blood. Do you know what having to read something like that would do to a guy trying to process dairy products?

See, reading the Bible is like reading poetry. We’re not supposed to always look for hidden self-help tips and acronyms and business plans. And that brings me to the gospel story for today. Notice who the central character with Jesus is – Peter. Notice how, in the span of oh, say six verses, Peter goes from being hero, the Rock of the Church, to being a goat, a servant of Satan, or Satan himself! I mean, have some sympathy for Peter here. He’s no devil. So why did Jesus turn on him so quickly. Well, those six verses give us a big clue. It all happens when Jesus tells the disciples that He is going to go to Jerusalem, suffer at the hands of the authorities, and then be killed. Peter, maybe feeling his oats as newly designated head-0f-the disciples, shouts, “God forbid! God.” And then Peter almost says, “I won’t allow it!”

Can you recognize Peter? Do you know who Peter is? Peter is the planner. Peter is the leader. Peter is chief-of-staff. Peter had already begun mapping a campaign strategy to get his guy elected. He had Judas working on some pie charts and talking points, “We’ll kick the Romans out of Jerusalem for good! And we’ll accept no pay raises!”

Peter had plans for Jesus. See, that was the problem – Jesus can be quite annoying when we make plans. Jesus has the annoying habit of reminding us that Life will not always be subjected to our plans. Reality is more complicated than three or four steps to success. “Reality is like a fine wine, it will not appeal to children.”

Can you see yourself in Peter? Do you get frustrated or angry when life does not submit to your control or your plans?

If Jesus ever gave a list of steps or rules to live by, there is no such record of them. So, if the Bible is not about that, what is it about? It’s about relationships. It is an invitation to know God and to know your fellow human beings. Let me let Don Miller speak again:

This is the thing about life. You go walking along, thinking people are talking a language and exchanging ideas, but the whole time there is this deeper language people are really talking, and that language has nothing to do with ethics, fashion, or politics, but what it really has to do with is feeling important and valuable. What if the economy we are really dealing in life, what if the language we are really speaking in life, what if what we really want in life is relational?

A good question. I mean look at the Apostle Paul and his words to the church in Rome (12.9-21) “Let love be genuine. . .love one another with a mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. . .contribute to the needs of the saints, extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony. . .” I could go on. It’s all relational! We show God we love him by loving each other in tangible ways. That’s the church. Now, I’m not saying its unorganized – what I am saying is the organization is not the point. The relationships are the point. That is why no matter where we are or what we are doing, but especially when we are busy and full of plans, we better make sure we are kind; we are encouraging; we show people value and patience and love.

Another movie scene: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (the old version), the climactic scene where Wonka tells Charlie that he has won and will receive the whole Wonka empire as his prize. Wonka tells him he has been looking for a child, a good and true one, in which to invest himself and handover his secrets to. “I knew early on, I couldn’t trust a grownup with my factory. They would want do things their way not mine.”

I wonder if that’s what Jesus meant when he said, “Unless you become like little children you cannot see the kingdom.” Maybe while we are making our plans, and working frenetically, and trying to achieve our “best lives now,” God is sadly and patiently waiting, with plans of his own. God is waiting for us to love him and be loved by Him. He is waiting for our attention and our obedience. He cannot proceed with His plans for us without them.

Jesus saw so much good in Peter. Jesus loved Peter. But Jesus knew Peter had some trials ahead of him. Peter’s trust would be tested. Peter would deny Jesus and cower in fear with all the rest following the crucifixion, but Jesus would again call Peter and beckon to him in relationship once again. This happens after the resurrection, on a beach by the Sea of Tiberias (the Apostle John records it in chapter 21). “When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, do you love me more than these?”

“Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

“Simon, do you love me?” Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.

“Simon, do you love me?” Lord you know everything. You know that I love you.

I think Jesus repeated himself so Peter would get the point; so we’d get the point. And Peter listened, and he did love Jesus. Peter loved Jesus so much that Peter was crucified too for that love. Peter and those other apostles changed the world, not because they were great planners and organizers, but because they were great lovers. Love was their plan.

Pop the Question

Scripture: Matthew 16.13-20

There are some men here, and maybe some women too, who remember exactly where and when they popped the question, “Will you marry me?” It’s a big question. It’s one you get nervous and excited and anxious to ask.

Another big question to ask someone is this, “What do think about Jesus?” I bet there are some men and some women here who can’t remember the last time they asked anyone outside of Sunday School that one. It’s a scary question to us, full of doubt. I bet many of us feel much more fear and trepidation in popping that question than the marital one. Our inner conviction seems to be, “I can handle you telling me that you don’t love me, but I can’t muster the nerve to ask you about your spiritual beliefs.”

Jesus had no such fears. Yeah, I know, he was Jesus, but we sometimes forget how often and effectively he drew people into conversation about their souls. We forget what an evangelist and a proselytizer Jesus was. Jesus knew how to get to the heart of the matter. Matthew the tax collector; the woman at the well; James and John working their fishing business; the rich young ruler. Jesus challenged people to make a decision, to change course, to get up and follow.

I think we worry too much about Jesus offending. As I’ve said before, our culture likes Jesus, that’s not the problem. They just haven’t listened to all that he’s had to say. Or else, they haven’t really allowed him to bring them to a decision point. And frankly, we believers have often been a hindrance rather than a help. How Do We Hinder?

We hinder the work of Jesus the Proselytizer when we make ourselves and our methods of presenting and living the gospel offensive. For example, when we equate our politics with God’s truth; when we present Jesus as invisible chairman of the Republican or Democratic Parties. Bono, lead singer of the group U2, put it nicely: The left mocks the right. The right knows it’s right. Two ugly traits. How far should we go to try to understand each other’s point of view? Maybe the distance grace covered on the cross is a clue.

It’s fine and good to be politically involved, but I believe the Gospel transcends political divides.

We get in the way of Jesus the Proselytizer when we present a weak, vague, and mushy message of what the heart of the Gospel is. Everyone is a sinner. Jesus, God’s only divine Son, came to earth and died on a cross so everyone who believes and trusts in him will be saved from their sins for eternal life. The Gospel is pretty straightforward and simple, and also a little discomfiting, a little blunt. So be it.

That Gospel is still a wonderful and dangerous message. But you know what? It’s a dangerous thing to seek the living God!

It’s like the man who got a cab ride in New York City. The man got upset when his cab driver ran a red light. “Do you realize you just ran a red light?
The driver said, “Relax. My brother drives like this.”
The driver ran another red light and said, “Relax. My brother drives like this.”
The next light was green, but the cabbie came to a screeching halt. The passenger became even more upset, “You ran two red lights, saying your brother drives like that, then you come to a green light and stop! What’s up with that?

The driver said, “Well, I have to stop at green lights, because my brother might be coming down a side street.”

Sometimes our witness is so vapid and weak is sounds like being a Christian is all nice and easy, and private, and not much will be required of you. But instinctively some of those seekers in our community we are witnessing to know that it’s risky to come to church. It’s dangerous to open your life to God. When you get nearer to God, you never leave the same. They know it’s a dangerous thing to put your self in the hands of the living God!

So how do you talk to someone about Jesus? Well, consider how you would do it on an airplane. Most of the time you sit next to people you’ve never met before and will never see again. Many Christians have talked about meaningful conversations they’ve had about Jesus with people on airplanes. This is probably because there is a certain urgency to the conversation. People know this ride will end soon. It’s now or never.

Maybe if we could take a little of that context and attitude to more everyday situations, we might find that boldness and urgency we need.

But one aspect of the “airplane witness’ I would caution you on: You are not responsible for other’s decisions or indecisions. It’s not up to you “to close the deal.”

I had a yard sale the other weekend and to be honest, I stink at it. People came to the yard sale – that was fine – people just didn’t buy anything at my yard sale. They would come and look and leave. And as this happened more and more I was filled with self-loathing. “This junk stinks. Nobody wants it. They’re laughing at me. What was I thinking trotting all this stuff out here?” I then identified part of the problem as this “I didn’t know how to close the deal.” I didn’t know how to get undecided people to commit themselves to buying.

When it comes to witnessing, there are times when people are ready to make a decision and we need to be ready to help them do that – help them pray, help them take the next steps of finding a church, finding a small group, and beginning spiritual disciplines. But witnessing isn’t the same as selling yard sale items. Witnessing is also about relationship.

There are many other times that we don’t have to worry about closing the deal. That’s Jesus’ job. That’s the work of the Holy Spirit. God will take care of that. Our part is to just begin the conversation, pop the question, plant the seed.

You may have listened to all of this and still be saying, “I haven’t a clue what to say to anyone about Jesus – Here’s something to say: This past week at church we read the scripture where Jesus’ asks, “Who people say that I am?” So Bob, I was wondering, what do you think about Jesus? Who do you think he is?

That’s it. It’s pretty simple. It’s a beginning. The conversation may go any number of places from there, but it’s not too difficult for anyone to start there.

The Three Rules of Relationships

Scripture: Genesis 45.1-15; Colossians 3.12-14


What about Bob? The title of the movie is a question. And the implied question is, “What do you do with irritating, annoying, and unlovable people?” Do you avoid them; stay angry with them; hold a grudge against them? Is there another, better way?

If you don’t know a better way to this fairly common occurrence in our lives, PWA, people who annoy, then what do we do when we encounter some more serious relationship breaches? What happens when somebody we really like and trust hurts us? What happens when they disappoint us, offend us, or betray us? Is avoiding them or holding a grudge against them the answer?

You know the story of Joseph, how as a young boy his older brothers were jealous of him and sold him to slave traders who took him to Egypt. Joseph was hurt and betrayed by his own brothers. The guys who were supposed to look out for him, sold him out! Now, we know the whole story and how it all worked out for Joseph; but don’t forget the wickedness of that betrayal. Joseph had to go through emotional, physical, and spiritual misery for years after that before he ever saw any good come of it. If anyone ever had reason to hold a grudge it was Joseph.

He could have nursed that grudge a long time if he wanted to. He could have cursed his brothers and his parents for that matter. Joseph could have played the victim very well. That role could have been the defining role of his life. But it wasn’t. I know that because of this passage of scripture in Genesis 45. Joseph has by now, risen to this incredible position of power in Egypt, the world’s superpower at that time. Through skill, integrity, and God’s providence, Joseph rises to become Pharaoh’s right-hand man. “Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.”

So here is Joseph with this new life and unimaginable authority and power. Perhaps the only thing he lacks or regrets is the family that he once knew back in Canaan. He thinks about them often, in tears and sadness. And lo and behold, one day, as Joseph is supervising food distribution to people seeking relief from famine, Joseph’s brothers show up! Joseph can’t believe it? Maybe he has been hoping and waiting for this moment these years – maybe he has rehearsed what he would say and what he would do if ever he got the chance to face his brothers again. Maybe he had a tough speech prepared. Maybe he had a special prison cell in mind for the ones who made him a slave - if ever there was a time for payback, this was it. But if Joseph had these things in mind, we don’t know and can’t know it. Because we never hear that payback speech, and we never see the big act of vengeance. Joseph shows his power in another and perhaps unexpected way. Joseph forgives his brothers.

I remember with both my boys, at one time or another, challenging them to make a situation right by saying they were sorry. “Say you’re sorry to your brother.” “Say you’re sorry to me.” And I remember both of them, at one time or another, answering this way:

“No.”

“Come on, you need to say you’re sorry.
“No.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t like that word.”

Now. If anyone hear has ever doubted that there is power is words, in a mere word, let your doubts rest. There is power in the words, “I’m sorry.” There is perhaps even greater power in the words, “I forgive you.”

I don’t think we have the proper appreciation for the incredible power that we have with the words, “I forgive you.” To forgive someone is not to excuse them, but to pardon them. It is to set them free from the sin debt that have with you, and to set them free from the guilt they have in themselves. To forgive is to be Christ to another human being. Remember, Jesus scandalized the Pharisees most of all when he forgave others their sins. The Pharisees said that’s blasphemy, only God can forgive sins! Jesus said, no not blasphemy, this is the work and will of God for all of us.

Key Scripture: Colossians 3.12-14: “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Now, I titled this message, The Three Rules of Relationships, and the first rule obviously, is forgive. You know what, it’s like the rules of selling a house, but instead of location, location, location, the rules here are: forgive, forgive, and forgive. Honestly, I couldn’t think of any other things that are quite as important as forgiveness in human relationships – nothing comes close – except for love itself. The Apostle seems to suggest this too, “and over all this forgiveness, put on love, which binds everything together in unity.”

When we forgive we not only bless the one we have pardoned, but we really bless ourselves. We set ourselves free from potential bitterness and mean-spiritedness that inevitably comes with harboring a grudge. To paraphrase Ann Lamott, “When we don’t forgive it’s like we take the poison and wait for the rat to die.”

When we forgive we set ourselves free from forever playing the role of the victim. You may say I don’t feel like forgiving them, or I don’t have that kind of faith. Jim Wallis says that biblical faith is not something you have, it’s something you do. If you want to feel like forgiving, you must do it. If we are people of faith we see that no matter how unfair and cruel life seems to be sometimes, we know that all things work for the good for those that love the Lord and are called according to his purpose (Romans 8).

We agree with Joseph, that great forgiver, who as he wept over and hugged the brothers, with whom he was now reconciled, said these words, “You meant for evil, but God meant it for good.”

Tell Me I’m Dreaming

Scripture: Genesis 37.1-4, 12-28; Romans 10.5-15


Joseph was seventeen years old. He was at the height of his obnoxious powers. He loved telling his brothers about the dreams he’d been having. They involved some inferior physical objects (his brothers) bowing down to a superior physical object (him). It was all very Jungian. What it also was, well, it was infuriating to Joseph’s brothers. The kid, being the youngest, was already the favored child. Joseph didn’t get his brother’s hand me downs, he got new stuff. And then the dreams. Joseph was asking for trouble.

Of course, from his perspective, he hadn’t done anything. He couldn’t help it if he was the youngest and dad’s favorite. He didn’t ask for these dreams, either. They just came to him. Funny thing about dreams – sometimes they describe your deepest longings, things that are already in you, other times they reveal things that could be true of you. But dreams are not always easy to follow. Dreams take indirect, circuitous routes on the way to completion – if they are completed at all.

Woody Allen once said, “If I could just see a miracle. Just one miracle. If I could see a burning bush, or the seas part, or my uncle Sacha pick up a check.”

Dreams are like miracles in the sense that they don’t get much respect from a lot of people. Those who do respect dreams are looked upon with suspicion. To call someone a dreamer is usually not a complement.

My nephew has a friend named Zach, who, from what I hear, is a bit of a dreamer. Now, I don’t know Zach, but I know his parents, played basketball with his dad and went to church with his mom. Zach has a reputation for talking big. He always has big plans. He dresses the part too. He’s a sharp dresser – his peers are wearing t-shirts and jeans, he’s wearing red pants and silk shirts. Another generation might have called him a bit of a dandy. Zach has said that he wants to go into politics eventually, maybe run for governor. His immediate plans involved law school. His test scores didn’t encourage him in that direction, so now he plans to go into podiatry. My sister overhead some ladies at Zach’s church talking about him. They said, “What is with that Zach? First he’s going to do one thing, then he’s going to do another!”

What’s funny to me about those comments is that Zach is only 23 years old. He’s allowed to change his mind about a career. But because he’s a dreamer, he comes under suspicion. “Get yer head out of the clouds.” “Set realistic goals.” “Get a real job.”

These are the practical bits of wisdom that we impart, or force feed to our young, when maybe God is trying to tell them something else. Maybe God doesn’t always want us to be “practical,” or to be “realistic”. Maybe our idea of realistic is just too small and mean. Maybe God’s reality is bigger and better than our imaginings!

I mean who would of thought that Joseph, the youngest son of an obscure herdsmen in a backwater country would somehow end up as de facto ruler of the most powerful country in the world? His brothers didn’t think it. Neither did his parents. Probably Joseph didn’t really see that coming either. But he had a dream and he followed it.

Now, as I said earlier, dreams can take pretty indirect and unexpected paths to fruition. And not every idea is a dream in this sense, and not every dream is worth pursuing. For example, I used to have a recurring dream in which I was the star of a basketball team and I would routinely go down court, leap high in the air, and slam dunk the basketball. Just like Michael Jordan. I used to have that dream pretty often. But is that a dream worth pursuing? No. It gets less and less likely that will ever happen. Don’t get me wrong – I still got game. I got skills. I just can’t jump very high anymore. Well, I never could jump, to be honest with you. And even if I could jump high enough to dunk a basketball and achieve that dream, it’s not that big of a dream.

Charles Swindoll, in his book Living Above the Level of Mediocrity, talks about how Walt Disney was a man who loved a challenge. “Walt would occasionally present some unbelievable, extensive dream he was entertaining. Almost without exception, the members of his board would gulp, blink, and stare back at him in disbelief, resisting even the thought of such a thing. But unless every member resisted the idea, Disney usually didn’t pursue it. Yes, you read that correctly. The challenge wasn’t big enough to merit his time and creative energy unless they were unanimously in disagreement.”

I don’t recommend universal opposition as the starting point for every dream, but when there is some disagreement, some questioning, some controversy, then you know, maybe, just maybe, we are onto a dream here worthy of us.

A dream worth our attention is more than an idea or a fantasy, it is obviously a gift of purpose from God. It something that calls us and compels us. It is something that will often bless many people and further the Kingdom of God. It is something we work for, sacrifice for, and wait patiently for. This kind of dream becomes a driving vision.

Joseph had to sacrifice a lot for his dream. He lost his family. Or rather his family lost him. He was sold into slavery, taken to a foreign culture, falsely accused of seduction, put in jail, worked hard and faithfully before he ever saw the first realizations of his dreams. But in the end, I bet Joseph said, it was all worth it. The dream was worthy of his life – and Joseph proved worthy of the dream.

Folks, we’ve got to dream once in awhile. And we might as well dream big. Dream something worthy of our attention, worthy of our passion. Bill Hybels challenges his church periodically to think Big Hairy Ideas – things so out there, that if they are ever going to happen it must be from God.

Home Fellowships. Here is an idea that I’m dreaming about, that I hope will develop into a vision for community and small group life. The idea is people meeting in each other’s homes according to general areas and neighborhoods to eat together, talk together, study together and pray together, say once a month for a period of time. What might God do with us in such a time and context? I wonder. Tell me I’m dreaming and I’ll tell you we’re onto something.